Two Unexpected Travel Toys

by Lauri Griffin | More from this Blogger

Tonight at dinner we talked about travel toys and activities for a rapidly approaching trip to visit family. Last year we took a insanely long car trip. The adventures make for great stories, although I wouldn't be in a hurry to sign up for the same trip again.

One of the funniest things though, was discovering two unique travel toys. The first surprisingly fun travel toy is pipe cleaners. They are inexpensive, colorful, lightweight and quiet. With three kids in a van, the quiet part is much appreciated. Kids can twist pipe cleaners into animals, shapes, bracelets and necklaces, pretend glasses, halos, crowns, or rings. Twisting one around a pencil makes a fun spiral for bracelets or hair for a creature.

The other surprising travel toy is a roll of cheap aluminum foil. And yes - you are going to need one roll for each kid. They will be delighted with the novelty of getting to use as much as they want. A small roll from the dollar store is plenty though. The foil can be colored on with markers to make fun shiny artwork. The markers don't dry for quite awhile though so be cautious of stains and getting marker all over arms. The best use for the foil is sculpture. It bends, twists and holds its shape. The foil can be shaped into swords, bracelets, animals, shoes, hats for teddy bears, clothing for dolls or anything else your child can imagine.

These ideas are of course, not for very young children. The children should be old enough to not want to put the pipe cleaners in their mouths.

The kids can also combine the foil with the pipe cleaners. So that their foil crown can be decorated with pipe cleaner swirls and jewels, their foil dog can sport a pipe cleaner collar and dog tag, and their foil dolls can have pipe cleaner curls and shoes.

Hmm...I might break out these for a rainy day too, not just for travel.

More Travel Toys: Traveling With Young Children: Dos and Don'ts

Travel Games

Fun Travel Games

Keeping the Kids Busy in the Car and on the Plane

Learn more about Lauri Griffin

Lauri lives in Colorado with her husband and three sons. Amidst all the laundry and packing of lunches, she tries to keep parenting fun.

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