Hey Village Mamas! Mother’s Day is tomorrow and I was sitting reminiscing about how the kids were little and how cute they were yada, yada, yada. And then it hit me, and I had to laugh. The thing I dreaded the most was loading the kids into the car and driving them around. *Huge eye roll* As a first time mom, I was terrified to load my daughter into the car. I would decline visits to see relatives for that reason alone. My gracious mother in law would offer to help, even ride with me (my in-laws lived close by), but I would politely decline. Why was it such a big deal? Like I said, I had to chuckle because I absolutely have no idea. Then I realized it was because I simply didn’t know what to do AND I was afraid of some mishap. Of course as time went on I learned my daughter’s schedule, behavior and I made adjustments as need be to make everything run smoothly…..well most of the time it ran smoothly. LOL!!! By the time my son came around, I had it down pat except his personality was different from my daughter’s, and he responded to the car differently. So in essence I’ve learned to take it all in stride and as always do the best that I can! BUT I want to share with you some things I did to make any car ride fun, because let’s face it, as our kids get older what do we do? Make them watch a movie or look at their tablets so we have peace and quiet. I get it!!! At times, I do the same. Sometimes I just need time and space to think, meditate, listen to one of my ADULT podcasts and not Disney. As I recall growing up, I didn’t have anything. No tablets. No movies. Just the car and the road. We would take road trips, and I was in charge of reading the map. When I would travel to football games with my grandpa (back then you could sit in the front seat), we would race to see who could read the road signs first. After awhile because we traveled the same way, I started memorizing the signs so I could win. My grandpa finally caught on. LOL! Whether they knew it or not, I had developed some really important skills that I use to this day.
So take some time to interact with the kids. If they’re not old enough to read go over the colors on the traffic lights and what they mean. Excellent way for children to learn their colors! I will say this. If you take the same route everyday or every time you run an errand your child will eventually “read” those signs. Memorization is a key to pre-reading skills. You can play “I Spy” (especially if you’re stuck in traffic). If you have infants, sing to them. Nursery rhymes are great or you can make up your own silly song, chant or rap. Singing used to calm my daughter down when she got fussy. She hated the car seat. Singing to your infants helps them in developing language later on. It also helps to strengthen its sense of awareness and attention and regulates the baby’s mood (especially during feeding and sleeping).
I challenge you to turn what potentially can be a nightmare into something fun! If you need any more tips, please contact me! I’ll be glad to help! Have a wonderful and relaxing Mother’s Day!!!!
Did you know?
Garrett Morgan patented several inventions, including an improved sewing machine and traffic signal, a hair-straightening product, and a respiratory device that would later provide the blueprint for WWI gas masks. Check out this book on Amazon!
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