Are We There Yet?

I used to laugh when the kids on TV would get in the car then ask almost immediately, “Are we there yet?” I used to- now I totally sympathize with the parents. I don’t like when my kids show little patience, however, I also totally get it sometimes (am ready to be there too). So how do you keep your kids busy in the car so they don’t ask the dreaded question? Here are 10 ideas:

1. Mad Libs– I love Mad Libs. They are especially great once your kids understand what nouns and adverbs are but still doable without that knowledge. Take turns being the person who writes down all the nouns, verbs, and more then have fun laughing! I bought a packet from Scholastic but you can also print some out at .

4. Sing Songs– Choose silly songs, religious songs, songs from, or even play Name that Tune. Just be sure its a song that you can live with in your head for the rest of the day. My kids love to sing but I’m getting a little tired of “Let it Go.” Camp style songs are great for car rides. Try, “The Other Day” or “Singing in the Rain.”

5. Car Bingo– Print out our version on my blog or find some others on my Pinterest Board. I like to laminate mine or put them in a plastic sleeve. Then I give my kids washable markers- they wipe right off. The winner might get to pick the radio station or be the first one out of the car. The Bingo board is easy to adapt to wherever you may be. For example the horse could be any farm animal, the blue car can be any car with stripes, the police car can be any emergency vehicle, and the red car can be a convertible, a sports car, or just a red car. This you can change things up as well as end the game before it gets frustrating.

6. Find an Object– My kids do this one on their own all the time. I grew up playing slug bug and with a sore arm so instead of that, we pick an object that we all know and find it. The first person to spot it gets to pick the next object we find. Or just pick red cars and see who can find the most.

7. Share Some Jokes! Here’s one of my new favorites that my daughter came up with:

Knock-Knock
Whose there?
You
You who?
Yoo-hoo. Big summer blow-out.

Yep, its from “Frozen.” I love that she came up with this one. Here’s some others:

• How do you make a lemon drop? Hold it then let it go.
• What person can jump higher than a house? Anyone! A house can’t jump.
• What’s brown and sticky? A stick
• What happens when you throw a green rock in a red sea? It gets wet.
• What does a pirate pay for corn? A Bucc-an-eer
• Why is it dangerous to tell jokes when you’re skating? Because the ice might crack up

Check out my Lunchbox Joke Pinterest Board for more fun!

Follow Camille’s board Lunchbox Jokes and Fun on Pinterest.

8. Sleeping Lions (aka The Quiet Game)- Lions apparently makes this game lots more fun. The object of the game is to be last one to wake up. The parent can tell jokes or say, “Hey, look at that!” to try to get the lions to wake up. Making noise or opening your eyes disqualifies you, however, the eye part can be hard to enforce if you are the driver so try to get them to laugh!

9. I Spy– I like it because you don’t need any supplies and even the younger ones can play (My 2 year old will insist on a turn as well. We play along and eventually he says Yes to something). The down side? There really is only so many things that you can choose from that will still be there a moment later. When you start using things inside the car, not everyone can see it so that doesn’t work so great either. If you get creative though, it can be fun and its good for those quick trips.

10. Maps– Give everyone a map with landmarks circled so they know exactly where you are and how much further to go. I find this works well when we are driving across town. Its not so far between the landmarks that they start asking but far enough that they have to be looking. If I don’t have a map- I give my sons a zoo map that I keep in the car. For some reason, my kids love looking at maps. My sons chart out their next trip at the zoo.

What do you do to keep the dreaded question from being asked? I’d love to stash some more tricks up my sleeves. Share your ideas in the comments.