Kids and Overlanding

[Raul B]

I wanted to start a thread for all us overlanders that have kids. We can make this a place to share stories and ideas on how to keep kids entertained, safe and just having fun...

Ill start :)
I currently have 5 kids (2 biological, 1 step, 1 adopted and 1 Foster) that range from 2 years old all the way up to almost 17.

With that large of an age gap I'm always trying to figure out way to keep everyone entertained..

For the small kids they can usually roam around and get dirty and they will be happy. Its amazing what some sand toys, binoculars and some imagination will do. For night time I usually bring a large assortment of glow sticks for them to play with.

For the older kids it ranges.. my oldest just likes to nap while the middle child (10) just likes to complain haha... I'm thinking of picking up a metal detector and a Axial RC truck to help.... I have also contemplated bringing a telescope for the night times...

Anyways...

I would love to see what everyone else does.....

-Raul

 

[Young Satchel]

Subscribed. Two boys, 2 and 4, the older with a rare genetic disorder and autism.

Yeah. It's a real challenge [emoji23]


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[Adventureswithlaylay]

My daughters still small so shes happy with her crayons and sand toys. And the telescope is an awesome idea. Me and my wife fight for the telescope at night lol.

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[Raul B]

Subscribed. Two boys, 2 and 4, the older with a rare genetic disorder and autism.

Yeah. It's a real challenge [emoji23]


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My 5 year old was just diagnosed with adhd and is being tested for dyslexia. My 2 year old that we adopted was born with drugs in her system so she is also delayed. Neither of them as hard as what your dealing with so my hat is off to you for going out with them....

My wife was a behavioral therapist working with special needs kids before she became a full time mommy.

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[sonicstage]

I wanted to start a thread for all us overlanders that have kids. We can make this a place to share stories and ideas on how to keep kids entertained, safe and just having fun...

Ill start :)
I currently have 5 kids (2 biological, 1 step, 1 adopted and 1 Foster) that range from 2 years old all the way up to almost 17.

With that large of an age gap I'm always trying to figure out way to keep everyone entertained..

For the small kids they can usually roam around and get dirty and they will be happy. Its amazing what some sand toys, binoculars and some imagination will do. For night time I usually bring a large assortment of glow sticks for them to play with.

For the older kids it ranges.. my oldest just likes to nap while the middle child (10) just likes to complain haha... I'm thinking of picking up a metal detector and a Axial RC truck to help.... I have also contemplated bringing a telescope for the night times...

Anyways...

I would love to see what everyone else does.....

-Raul

I had dyslexia and probably ADHD as well back in the 70's, I am also adopted , however, I don't think my parents knew what ADHD was at the time, The best thing for me and my dyslexia was music, I started playing drums when I was 7 and was diagnosed, that was over 37 years ago

I can't thank my parents enough for turning me onto music, I have played in some of the biggest bands in the business and have managed to have a very successful career because of drums, I now work at Warner brothers producing soundtracks for all Warner brothers films

Reading music and the actual playing was the best thing for me, something to take my aggression out on, I am now married and no kids as of yet but we are trying my wife is a NICU nurse for a hospital here in Los Angeles


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[Rusty burbin]

I'm a father of 5... 4 boys 12, 10, 8 and 5 and a 3 year old daughter. It's like a bowl of alphabet soup here...

Dad - add and Tourette syndrome (ts)
oldest - adhd, odd, ts and generally ornery.
Second - add and ts.
No issues with the 3 youngest.

Traveling has become a bit of a nightmare with our oldest. So much so that we don't do much overlanding as a family.

I subscribed to this topic to get ideas because my wife and I both love road trips and even though she prefers to camp at hotels and I'd be happy on a hammock in woods but if we go as a family we tend to stay close to home.

Looking forward to hearing from y'all! Thanks guys!


Rustyburbin from SoCal 5 kids, wife, dog and a 1970 K20 Suburban

 

[Ironhide Fx4]

Thanks for starting this thread. My wife and I have a 4 month old daughter. We are doubling down on the idea of overlanding specifically so she will experience as much of the world and camping as we can provide.

I have no tips or suggestions yet. Im here to get all of yours for now. We have a big 2 week trip planned in July. Driving from NJ - MT. She will be only 8 months then, I doubt we will need much to entertain her.

 

[RockRanger]

My daughter will be 6 in 2 weeks. Sense she was three we have taken a clear bucket with a lid (maybe 3/4 gallon) and let her fill it with what ever she wants. It gets filled with sticks, rocks, pine cones, dirt etc. She can only collect what fits in the bucket. We used to dump it out as we were getting back in the vehicles. Now we save it till the last stop and then dump it out. Glow sticks are also a favorite.

 

[Billy "Poserlander" Badly]

I haven't camped with my 6 month old, but as soon as I get a dry weekend, we're gonna head out for a single night. I've camped w/ friends' kids before, and I find they respond well to hands-on and interactive stuff. Depending on their age, you can:
-teach them how to build a fire
-bring a microscope/magnifying glass and have them collect stuff to examine
-have them draw leaves/plants/animals that they see
-collect as many different types of leaves or pine cones as they can (watch out for poison oak/ivy)
-fold and fly paper airplanes (cuz there's lots more room outside), and then burn them!

If there's more than one child, you can often trick them into doing chores like gathering firewood, if you make it competitive (let's face it, kids are idiots).

I'm gonna Google "day camp crafts" as well, I bet there's some good ideas there...

 

[Wolfy]

We have two boys who are 2.5 and 7 this spring. We did a 4 day overlanding trip in Death Valley with them last year and it was great!

We listened to audio books while driving. Recommend the Lemony Snicket books.

We stop a lot and let them out and running around, climbing and generally getting dirty and gross is all the entertainment they need. We're fortunate that they enjoy being out on the trail exploring.

We even did a hard core 4x4 trail with them last summer and they had a fine time. They spend a ton of time climbing and running while we slowly creeped the trucks through obstacles. We ran out of water and snacks and everything, but they never melted down!

-M

 

[Philbobagginz]

I have a boy and a girl. My son is turning 6 and my daughter will be 7 on Thursday. They are troopers when it comes to outdoors and exploring. I took them on their first camping trip last year just for a weekend, but usually if I make up some kind of scavenger hunt or go with them to find "treasure"(geocache) then they are occupied for a while. Even the simplest things like finding some twigs and sticks for the fire is something. I found that the best way to keep them occupied is to keep them involved in everything that's happening at camp.

 

[Jeepney]

I have 6 and 8 boys and they really get well along together. They enjoy the outdoors especially the freedom part of it. They love camping, the firepit, smores, and still young enough to mind the mosquitoes. I hardly think of going out on a trip without them.

If there's one thing i can think of sharing, that is our CO trip when they are a bit younger. It was very uncomfortable watching my kids not run towards the cliff.

 

[AndyHernandez1]

I have a 6 year old boy and a 16 year old girl. My wife and daughter don't enjoy the outdoors as much as us boys do so they hang back often. But my son is a trooper in the car. His iPad helps a lot on LONG trips


Andy's IPhone

 

[Adventureswithlaylay]

Thanks for starting this thread. My wife and I have a 4 month old daughter. We are doubling down on the idea of overlanding specifically so she will experience as much of the world and camping as we can provide.

I have no tips or suggestions yet. Im here to get all of yours for now. We have a big 2 week trip planned in July. Driving from NJ - MT. She will be only 8 months then, I doubt we will need much to entertain her.

Awesome!!! My wife and i took our daughter camping for the first time when she was 3 months. It was awesome. Shes 1 and a half now and oh man does she love being outdoors. Weve traveled alot since ahe was born not only to explore and get outside but the look on her face when we visit places is priceless!!

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[Scott]

I have 2 daughters, 4 and 1. They go with me whenever I can take them. My 4 year old is happy with sand toys sticks and dirt. My 1 year old enjoys dirt too. I'm always looking for entertainment ideas. Reminds me I need to get some glow sticks for the Mojave trip coming up...

That's my 4 year old daughter enjoying the fire at her very first camping trip at Los Coyotes Indian reservation. If I remember right, @Raul B was there...

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[Jeepney]

Adding some pics

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[TerryD]

We have three girls. 10, 7, and 6. On road trips, we generally let them take little game tablets, but only let them play them a little at a time. We play travel games as well, license plate alphabet, and the like. When we've camped, they've kept themselves occupied playing in the woods and drawing/coloring. So far so good! Building toys like legos work well too. They all play with them and can incorporate the stuff they find in the woods.

This will be tested this summer on our first real road trip where traveling is the goal, not how we get to the goal. Guess we'll see if these hold up!

 

[TYSC]

Subscribed... My daughter (9) loves camping, but hasn't been on any long (over 5 hour) drives yet. I usually try to bring our bicycles if possible. I love the microscope idea mentioned earlier. I had a "pocket" microscope as a kid and loved it. I am now looking to pick one up for our next trip.

 

[Wolfy]

He's 7 now and loves dirt.

Hypnotized by the flames by Mike Henderson, on Flickr

 

[Joey D]

I think my parents first took me camping when I was one. I grew up with an annual trip way up into Ontario to Pishidgi Lake in the Kopka River chain on the northwest side of Lake Nipigon. There was nothing and the closest city was Thunder Bay some 200 mile away. It was a great experience and I have some of my best memories as a kid from up there and I think it's one of the best things my parents ever did for me.

The telescope idea is great, my parents bought me one when I was 7 and I would take it to Canada with me every year on our annual trip. It was really fun and I learned a ton about astronomy too from all of it.

I'm glad there are people that are still willing to take their kids out, especially at a really young age, into the outdoors. My wife and I are planning on starting a family once we figure out where we want to settle down at in the next couple of years and I know I want them to experience as much of the outdoors as they can. I think it really helps with education, family bonding, and creates some awesome memories.