Wednesday, November 13, 2013

5 Roadtrip Phrases I Wish Existed 20 Years Ago

When I was growing up road-trips were very different than they are now.

There were no great places to stop if you had to pee while on the Ohio turnpike (much to my mother's dismay), when going through the mountains in West Virginia you gripped your seat for dear life because the roads were narrow and your dad drove like he was trying out for NASCAR, and roadtrip dining didn't mean trying all the great restaurants along your route. It meant the homemade trail mix and PB & J sandwhiches your mom made before you left home, which had become soggy after a day in the cooler at your feet.

Which is probably why I used my motion sickness as an excuse to drug myself and sleep through those family bonding experiences. 

So when we set out with our little car loaded down onto the open road I found myself slightly jealous of my children. They were having the road-trip that I had only dreamed of as a child; complete with portable DVD player, neck pillows, and an endless supply of things to keep them entertained. 

Children live such hard lives these days.

All of these wonderful things led me to realize I was saying things to my children that would've sounded much like the Hallelujah Chorus when I was 10.

In honor of that, I thought I'd share with you 5 phrases I wish my parents could've said to me when sitting in the car for over 14 hours (and I'll explain why they are so wonderful so you don't roll your eyes at me):

1. Quiet down and watch your movie. I can't tell you how many times as a child I dreamed of having a watch, dvd player, or vehicle that would allow us to watch movies while on long trips (or in ballet class) as opposed to playing a 10,000th round of the alphabet game. If technology were only 20 more years ahead of itself...

2. You're getting hungry? Ok baby, we will find a place. 'Nough said.

3. GPS says we will arrive around 7:00. This for me was a pretty big deal. As a child I always wanted specifics about our trips; where we were going, who'd we be with, when we would get there, what would we be doing, etc. and my parents' answer of "around 6:00 if we don't get lost" never set well with me.

So having this miracle device that not only told us our specific arrival time but also guaranteed that we wouldn't get lost would have probably made most of my car sickness dissipate immediately (maybe).

4. Just put your pillow on and take a nap. We are going to have quiet time. This one shouldn't have been such a joy to me, but I remember those trips growing up where we had so many people in the car that we weren't able to unbuckle and lay down (it was the 90s, car seats weren't such a big deal). That neck pillow made our trip go so smoothly! And anyone who has ever taken a trip knows what I'm talking about.

5. Let me just finish this chapter... As I've said before, I have one of the worst cases of motion sickness that I've ever seen. And no matter where I sit in the car I've never been able to do anything without making myself sick. But since the wonder of technology has finally caught up with my dreams, I'm now able to read on my kindle without making myself ill. I still can't use my phone, or check out any of my apps but who cares when you are able to read to your hearts content.

Obviously, it is technology that has made my adult road trip experience completely different than my childhood one.

I'm not denying that that is one area I allow my family to have free reign on the devices. And the only thing I can ask myself is why it took so long for these wonders to come about? Why are my kids the lucky ones? *Insert my pout face here* Brats.

Have you been on a long trip recently? What did you find was something that made the trip easier (other than drugs, I can't advocate for that)?

9 comments:

  1. Love this list, especially #2. Pull over? We didn't pull over for anything! The best thing for our trips now can be simply said: our vehicle. It has 3 rows of seats so no one has to sit right next to anyone else and it has the dvd player. What an incredible tool for peace on a trip. Our children are very, very lucky.

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    1. Right? I'm surprised we made it out of the road-trip torture alive! Lol!

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  2. We were driving back from the beach this summer and the portable DVD player ran out of batteries, and I swear my children thought they were going to absolutely DIE just looking out the window. Aaaahhhh, they have no idea how good they have it! ;)-Ashley

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    1. Lol! Too funny. Mine have been acting like that since we got home. Ty seems to think we need to have a movie in to take him to school...we live 5mins from his school. He could walk there.

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  3. You can't see me, but I'm giving you a standing ovation. THIS IS SO TRUE!!! Every. single. point you make!! Our old school family car rides were nothing like the cushy travel experiences our kids have! (And I thought I was the only one who can't read a book in the car, but can totally read my Kindle! Woot!!) --Lisa

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  4. Thank goodness for portable devices that play movies and other things the kids will watch. Of course when I was little, I laid down with a pillow and blanket and slept in the back seat or played with those magic ink books you got at Stucky's. I have gotten my children used to eating in the car so we don't have to stop and eat which helps considering the amount of bathroom breaks we have to stop for with little ones. Love your list!

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  5. Hahah I love this... especially #1. Oh, how far technology has come! Stopping by from SITS :) Have a great rest of your weekend!

    xo,
    Stephanie
    Diary of a Debutante
    www.stephanieziajka.blogspot.com

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  6. I love GPS's. Even for adults they are quite the awesome invention! We've gone so many places we probably would have been too scared to go to if we didn't trust our GPS so much. :P (Maybe too much.)

    And I still remember when I was 10 years old and my grandparents bought us a little tv/vcr that my Dad strapped to the top of a milk crate and put it in between the driver's seat and passenger seat in our van so that we could watch from the back. It plugged into the cigarette lighter and we watched Ice Age on many, many a roadtrip. We were ahead of our time!

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  7. Yes, GPS's rock.

    We will be going on a 7 hour trip next week. I just bring the portable DVD for the kids and buy them new small toys. That generally keeps them quiet.

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