Star-Bulletin
Rand McNally offers a set of books in a sturdy cardboard
suitcase for $9.95, a nice idea because the suitcase gives you
a firm writing surface. The books, shown below, are aimed at
kids from 3 to 7, but are best for children who can read;
otherwise you'll have to explain each activity, which is
difficult when you're driving.

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Road rules

The right preparation,
equipment and 'tude will ease
boredom while traveling

Star-Bulletin

In this state of the union, a road trip is the 45-minute drive from Hawaii Kai to Makakilo. Our kids are simply not equipped for hours on the road or in the air. Yet, come summer, we pack up ourselves, our kids and our sanity and head out for something we optimistically call "vacation."

If you plan to leave these islands on a family trip, you face hours of inactivity, sitting in cars, planes and airports; standing in lines at Disneyland. This time can be torturous or tolerable, depending on how good-natured your kids are -- or how resourceful you are.

Here are some hints from the experts:

Things to take along

Surprise packages: Hunt up old toys that your kids may have forgotten about, plus throw in a few inexpensive new things. Parcel them out slowly throughout the trip. Discard anything that isn't popular. No sense carrying the extra weight.

Home-made activity kit: Punch holes along the bottom of heavy-duty resealable plastic bags and put them in a binder. Fill bags with art supplies such as washable markers, stickers, glue stick or origami paper. Beware of crayons -- they melt in hot cars. The binder serves as a lap board. As supplies are used up, refill the bags with items collected along the way.

Well-packed shoebag: Strap this to the back of the front seat and fill it with your kid's stuff. This keeps everything organized and out from under the seats.

Follow-along map: Place a map of your trip route between clear plastic sheets and allow your child to trace your progress, mark sites of interest, estimate distances, etc.

Personal packs: Allow each child to pack one bag or backpack with toys, games or other activities. The only rule is he or she must be able to carry the bag and be responsible for it.

Books of all sorts: This is a no-brainer. Coloring or activity books for younger kids; puzzle books such as crosswords or word-finds for older kids. Or, of course, storybooks, especially those about the area you're visiting. To save weight, carry only one per kid, and when it's done throw it away and buy a new one.

Tape players with headphones: One for each kid, with extra batteries. This may seem extravagant, but if you're driving from Los Angeles to San Francisco, things will be a lot more peaceful if you're not fighting over the radio. Borrow them if you must. Carry music tapes, books on tape, even tapes of Grandma reading favorite stories. If you have a recorder, let the kids tape commentaries on the road and save them for posterity.

Games to play on the road

Postcards to Me: Have your child keep a journal of your trip on the backs of postcards purchased at every stop. Back home, punch holes in the edges of the cards and string them together to make a trip album. Or let your child mail them home addressed to him or herself.

Do Like Me: One person does something goofy (sticks out a tongue, pulls an ear, pinches a nose, etc.) The next person repeats the motion and adds another. This continues until someone breaks the chain.

I'm So Hungry: Complete the sentence, "I'm so hungry I could eat an ..." with a word that starts with A. The next person repeats the sentence, but with a B word. Keep going until someone's eating zippers.

Scavenger Hunt: Each person has a list of things to spot (a dog on a lap, a woman in a baseball cap, a driver drinking coffee ...)

License Plate 21: Take turns adding up the numbers on license plates as cars pass. Person who comes closest to 21 without going bust wins that round. This has the added advantage of being a math drill.

License Plate Scrabble: Write down the letters on the first 10 plates you see, then see who can make the most words out of the letters in a five- or 10-minute period.

Color-Coded ABCs: Write out the alphabet three or four times on scraps of paper, in various colors. Put all the scraps in an envelope. Each child draws a letter, then tries to find something that starts with the letter and matches the color. A brown C, for instance, could be a brown cow. Person to go through the most letters wins. Depending on the ages of your kids you might want to leave out the harder letters, like X.

Foiled Again: Give sheets of foil to the kids and let them mold them into masks, creatures, anything. The foil can come off of packaged food, or just bring a few sheets along.

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Sources: "Family Fun's Games on the Go,"
edited by Lisa Stiepock, Hyperion, 1998, $9.95; "Trouble-Free Travel
with Children," by Vicki Lansky, Book Peddlers, $8.95)