Deck the Cars with Family Bonding

Relax. Take a few deep breaths. Picture your family’s last road trip. No, I said relax!

Road trips just aren’t what they used to be, are they? Before your family grew, you and your spouse could spend hours happily plugging down the road in the deep conversation of low-stress down time. Now you hope to make it an hour without a pit stop (or losing your sanity).

And nowadays the typical trip to Grandma’s house is not just over the river and through the woods. More and more families are traveling a full day to spend Christmas with extended family.

But road trips don’t have to be pure chaos. Turning your family voyage from a coup de tat to bonding time does take some planning and a lot of dedication, but it’s totally worth it.

And time in the car has potential to be more memorable to kids than the trip itself. Who doesn’t remember all the family went through to get a flat tire replaced late on Christmas Eve? And your family will laugh later over the apple juice spilled all over everyone in the back seat.

View road trips as an opportunity to get inside your children’s world. You can really draw them out and grow together as a family.

The trick of this happy family scenario? Keep them engaged. Road trips are hard on kids because confinement becomes unbearable. Here are some fulfilling, fun car games your family can do together to keep everyone happy:

Where are they headed? Play the game where family members take turns making up where cars are headed. These tales can get really wacky and you can encourage your kids’ imaginations. You can also learn more about your child’s interests, dreams and even fears.

Where are they from? Give each of your kids a piece of paper to write down different states on license plates. In a given period of time, see who can spot the most license plates from different places.

And then they … You’re familiar with the continuing story, right? Each family member takes a turn adding on to a heroic story. Telling an add-on story can really keep your kids engaged and entertained. No one knows what will happen next!

What’s yours? Ask your kids about their favorite holiday meal, tradition, gift, etc. Reliving those memories can really build security and tradition in your family. It also builds suspense in your kids about where they’re headed.

‘A’ is for Alabama. For families who like to mix games and education, the alphabet game is great for car rides. Go around the car listing the 50 states in alphabetical order. If your kids become a whiz at the states, try the capitals.

Once upon a time in a car … Give your kids all the tools they need to create a travel journal. You can even allow them to include small souvenirs and tickets. Your family can also bring along old travel journals to relive past vacations.

Drip drop. On a dreary car ride, have a rain drop race. Each family member chooses a raindrop to follow down a window. The person with the fastest raindrop wins!

Bible memory. Time in the car can be used to quiz your kids on Bible verses they’ve memorized. Or you can get the whole car involved and each person can add on to the memory verse. To keep kids interested, you can add little incentives like first dibs on the bathroom at the next gas station.

Hey cow! Assign each child a side of the road. Whenever your family passes a cattle pasture (or other animal or geographical feature, depending on your location), have your kids call out “Hey cow!” Count the number of cows that look up.

These are just a few ways you can make the best of precious time when everyone’s together. For more road trip tips, check out Christian Parenting Today.