If you're taking advantage of the slight decline in gas prices and taking a family road trip this Labor Day weekend, here are some tips for surviving your time in the car:

--Momsminivan.com has lots of games and some interesting tips on how to relieve car-sickness. (And a good one in case you aren't able to relieve the sickness in time to prevent a mess; stow empty butter tubs and their lids in the car, so you can at least contain the mess until your next stop.)

--This site has more tips, including one we have used: leave in the pre-dawn, before-breakfast hours. If you get kids to sleep in their traveling clothes, you can "swoop" them into the car at the last minute, and with luck they'll sleep for a few more hours. Then you can stop for pancakes.

--This story from the Los Angeles Times suggests giving kids projects or games they can do as a team to cut down on back-seat bickering. For example, they can compose a song for Grandma together, or work together to count green cars, the story says.

--If you can plan ahead, have a grandparent record him or herself telling or reading long stories. Play the tapes or CDs on the long ride.

--And a couple of don'ts: You might be tempted to prop a portable DVD player between your kids' seats if you don't already have a system with two screens in your car, but beware: looking even a little to the side to watch the movie can cause vertigo (and car sickness) in some kids. It happened to us once on a trip to the Outer Banks. Reading can cause car-sickness even faster, so save the books for your destination.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 12:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Tip Sheet Thursdays, Travel
        

We went on our annual summer pilgrimage to Dutch Wonderland last weekend, and found a place to stay that was so peaceful and reasonably priced that I just have to share. Even if it means that Rayba Acres Farm becomes so popular that we can never get a reservation there again.

This is one of several farms in the Lancaster, Pa., area that offer guest lodgings, and it was the first time we had tried one. (My husband found it; kudos to him.)

It was really great to get away from the bustle and commercialism of Route 30, where you'll find most of the standard lodgings. This farm was in Paradise, a bit off the main road but still close to everything, including the Strasburg Railroad, where we rode the train on Sunday.

We had read that the place had "cats that follow you around," which we knew our children would love. And we weren't disappointed...

Continue reading "A great place to stay in Amish country" »

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Travel
        

Break out the booster seats, if you haven't already, for kids 4-7. Starting Monday, Maryland's new booster seat law takes effect. According to our primer on the new law, it's one of the strictest in the nation.

Now kids must use a child-safety seat until they turn 8, unless they are at least 4 feet 9 inches tall or weigh 65 pounds. Here's a helpful graphic on how kids should be riding.

In our story, a few kids and parents were quoted saying it might be tough to get an older child who had been riding with just a seat belt back into a booster seat. Do you anticipate resistance from your kids? How will you handle it?

 (Photo by Paul Sancya, Associated Press)

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Travel
        

Today's site should be inspiring for kids who love to ride their bikes and parents who want to see the world. Family on Bikes is chronicling a family's planned bike journey from Alaska to Argentina, which is to start in June. The family? Mom, Dad, and 10-year-old twin boys. The bikes? Two singles and a tandem. The length of the journey? 20,000 miles, in about 2 1/2 years.

The kids are going for a Guinness World Record as young cyclists to complete the Pan-American Highway. The parents, both teachers, will school their children on the road and blog about their odyssey, and hope to be hooked up with classrooms where students can follow what they're doing.

Tell us about your bike trips with kids. And try not to feel intimidated by this family's plans. If it makes you feel better, I can barely bike down the block.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: On the Web, Things to Do, Travel
        

One number you didn't see in my post on Disneyland math the other day was how many costumed characters we saw in the park (outside of the parade, which is full of them). That's because, for some reason, there weren't many around. Either we were at the wrong places at the wrong times, or they were hiding from the crowds.

So we opted the next morning for a character breakfast, which is a nice, though pricey, way for your children to get up close and personal with favorite Disney friends. Characters stroll through the dining room and come to each table for autographs and photo ops, so you skip the long lines to greet them in the park. For young children, this might be the main attraction.

You'll need reservations ahead of time; the concierge at our hotel got us into the Chip n' Dale Critter Breakfast at the Grand Californian. During about an hour there the kids got to meet six characters: Chip and Dale the chipmunks, a raccoon, two bears and Pluto, whom we unfortunately called Goofy at first.

He shrugged his shoulders as if to say this happens all the time. Poor Pluto.

Thank goodness he showed up, because the other creatures weren't quite as familiar to my kids. (It might help, if you're planning ahead, to ask about which characters will appear.) But they loved the attention from them just the same. And all of us liked the breakfast buffet, which -- just so you're prepared -- came to $91 including tip for the four of us.

Have you been to character meals at Disneyland or Disney World? Tell us which ones you'd recommend, and whether there are any you'd avoid.

(Photo by me)

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 12:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

We long planned to visit Disneyland on this California trip, but did we actually plan the visit, as all the guidebooks say you're supposed to?

Well, we planned to plan....but we ran out of time. (I'm blaming it on my devotion to getting you blog readers more posts.)

So without the benefit of strategizing, advance ride selection, etc., here's some of the math on our day in Anaheim:

Cost of four tickets (purchased at a slight discount through a relative's employer): $232

Hours at the park: 9

Rides completed: 6 for daughter, 7 for son

Approximate total hours of waiting (for rides, staking out a parade spot, etc.): 4.5

Wait for the Nemo submarine ride every time we checked: 90 minutes. (We passed.)

Souvenirs: $34

Lunch, dinner and snacks for 4: $90

(Click below to read more ...)

Continue reading "Disneyland by the numbers" »

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 1:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Things to Do, Travel
        

My family just got back from a spring break trip to Los Angeles to visit my in-laws. We'd been looking forward to it for months, and not just because we rarely get to see our California relatives. This time, I promised my daughter a visit to American Girl Place.

You probably already know that American Girl dolls are an expensive obsession for girls from, say, 5 up to 12 years old. There are historical characters with inspiring stories, dolls that look "just like me," matching girl-and-doll clothes, dolls for the dolls, and on and on.

They're mostly purchased online, but there are three stores, in New York, Chicago and now at The Grove in L.A., where you can experience full American Girl overload. Since my daughter's birthday is almost here, I told her we could go there and pick out her big present. After months of deliberation, she settled on Samantha, a well-to-do orphan from 1904 that we were told is American Girl's most popular doll.

I was prepared to pay for Samantha -- $90 including paperback book. But I was bracing myself for all the American Girl Place extras. ...

(Photos by me)

Continue reading "L.A. travelogue: A pilgrimage to American Girl Place" »

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Travel