I love a good road trip…loading up the car, packing a picnic lunch, and heading out of town. As a child we used to pack our family of five into a huge green station-wagon (with a camper towed behind) and head out to see the country.
One of the many fond memories are the picnic lunches my Mom would pack. We’d always get Pringles when we traveled—a rare treat My Mom was quite industrious (and organized) in those days before plastic storage bins. She painted a beer-box avocado green (back in those days the beer-boxes were really sturdy and had lids that you could reopen over and over again.) Mom would corral all of our snacks, paper towels, plates and other goodies into the beer-box. With our green beer-box full of food and our green, metal Coleman cooler loaded with drinks, we were all set for a picnic on the road.
On our road trip earlier this summer…Jay and I carried on the family tradition, packing a picnic lunch to eat on the go. (I love to eat on the go…you get to your destination faster, plus we put what we saved in food to an extra 2 gallons of gas! Woohoo!)
We had a small cooler with our lunches packed inside, and then, corralled some healthy snacks, and other essentials like tissue, TP (you just never know when you might need some of that), hand sanitizer, etc. inside the blue market tote. I put small items in a little metal bucket inside to keep them together and easy to find. (See those buckets do come in handy.) Using this open, handled container, it was easy to get to the food (and see what we had) while we were on the road. The best part was by packing all this healthy food…we didn’t stop and eat junk food.
Now, here’s the best part. I was packing our sandwiches for the road trip and decided to wrap the bottom half of the sandwich in parchment paper, to keep turkey, laden with mustard, from spilling on our laps. (Isn’t that parchment paper trick very Martha? 😉 )
These multi-compartment containers are great for road trips, too. They keep lunch neat and tidy…and they’re really convenient for young kids. When my kids were young we’d use these for eating McDonald’s on the road—fries in one compartment, burger or nuggets in the big compartment and ketchup (and mayo!) in the third. It works great.
Sadly, I don’t know a source for these containers. They were made by Glad-Ware (got mine at Target, naturally) but it was years ago. If anyone knows of an alternative divided container, please share. (Thanks.)
So, how about you? What are your favorite tips for staying organized on the road? Do you like to pack food or eat out? And if you do pack your own food, what’s your favorite car-friendly fare? Or if you’d rather…do you have any car traveling vacation memories you’d like to share? Did your family load up into a green station wagon and transport food in a recycled beer-box? Can’t wait to hear your ideas (and stories!)
For the “food holders” you could use recycled Lunchable containers. They look about the same as the ones you pictured. I thought thats what it was at first!!! But I never thought to use it for car rides and such, so I LOVE that idea!
I found the containers, they are rubbermaid, unfortunately they are only made with two compartments now.
http://www.rubbermaid.com/rubbermaid/product/product.jhtml?prodId=HPProd100069
Not sure whether this is a good size but they have one at tupperware,
http://order.tupperware.com/coe/app/tup_show_item.show_item_detail?fv_item_category_code=6000&fv_item_number=P10055361000
Dad built a big “picnic box” that was sort of like a foot locker but was painted light yellow. All of the supplies for a picnic went into the box and then the food was in a blue cooler and drinks were in red & black plaid thermoses. (Remember those with the red handled lids that doubled as cups?!) We would make the run from Charlotte, NC to Pensacola,FL or Corpus Christi, TX to Pensacola,FL and back with that in the trunk of our copper colored Ford Galaxy 500. It was fun for us ,but Dad never really enjoyed the whole “driving the family” experience. Those “are we there yet” and “do I have to pull the car over” scenes in comedies really strike home.
Would love to have one of those market baskets for our XTerra – I have never found one, even though I have looked for years.
I just bought my kids bento lunch kits for school this fall. Looking forward to a nicely organized, healthy year of lunches. I hope they’re as much fun as they look. Google it. 🙂
We have some of these containers, too, and love them. I can’t imagine why they quit making them! The ones from tupperware are too long and there is another brand that sells something similar but I don’t like the way the lid fits and there are only two compartments. I wish I had stocked up on these!
I didn’t do many roadtrips growing up (I’m from KC…there’s no where to road trip TO when you live in the middle of the country like that!) but it seems that every time we get in the car to drive more than an hour, I immediately get the munchies. Even if we JUST ATE breakfast! It’s 8:30am and I’m scouring the food box for Wheat Thins. (!!!)
With littler kids, when we travel (by plane or car, whatever) we got the idea to gift wrap some of the cheap $1 store toys or the trinkets that come in party favors. When they start to get antsy, we give them a “present” that will keep them busy for 15 minutes or so. It works like a charm!
we do the same, pack a big picnic and blanket find a church or school somewhere along the route and have a picnic, the kids can run and burn off energy, while enjoying the scenery of somewhere we have never been! Yea!
I just wanted to share a link where I got my market tote. I keep all my returns and stuff in it. i ma tinking about ordering another. I had great customer servic e and great prices from http://www.byotote.com/view.htm the site sasy they are out of stock email them and you might be able to get one. lots of colors to pick from.
http://www.byotote.com/view.htm
Thanks to Nikola for posting the info on where she got her market tote. Those are so cute! They would be great on car trips to corral all the stuff for the little one. I was curious to know if this is where Aby got hers? Found one at reusablebags too. There are a couple of different types with material differences. Any opinions out there? Thanks!
Organized Activities
Our recent road trip to Yellowstone was quite an amazing adventure!
http://the303griffiths.blogspot.com/2008/07/campingroad-trip.html
Unfortunately, it was inturrupted several times by car trouble. My strategy for activities was to segment the busy bag into several ziplock bags with just a few things. It worked great! Every time a case of boredom (or a blown tire) erupted, we pulled out a new bag of travel toys and activity books. It’s similar to when you rotate the toys and they re-discover something “new” or an old favorite they haven’t seen for a while.
Jewels
We used to take car trips with food packed too! Funny story to follow, first this: when the kids were little, instead of letting them have the big bags of sugary goodness, we’d get the giant $5 bag of mixed treats from the party store, snack sized baggies, and he would sit on the floor with them packing up little treat bags with Tootsie Rolls, Smarties, etc. Portion control at an early age! and they thought it was very fun to bag up the goodies, even counting them out!
Ok, funny: it was 1978, and we were 3 weeks into a 4 week car trip; Dad, Mom, me at 14 and sister at 12. I have NO IDEA what Dad was thinking. Between Sis and I in the backseat was a Tupperware Mom had packed with healthy snacks, including peaches. 3 week old peaches at this point, and unrefridgerated. They kind of got forgotten. At the California border all cars were being stopped due to a blight…no fresh food was allowed into the state. The border guard asked my dad if we had any ‘flutes’ (meaning ‘fruits’, but dad didn’t understand the accent), and Sis and I tried to cover up the Tupperware stealthily. I couldn’t imagine what might happen if we not only antagonized the guy but also had very old peaches in the car!
Ah, the family stories, huh?
Oh, and BTW, most of my things went to college in 1982 in beer cases…sturdy, handles, and that great lid that opened in the middle.
When I was growing up my parents didn’t own a car (GASP!!) so we went on holiday by train or went on cycling holidays. We literally packed up our bike paniers & cycled around different parts of England & stayed in B&Bs or Youth Hostels. My parents were always ones for packing your own lunch (to save on the pennies mostly) but also coz it’s fun to have a picnic & you can eat anywhere rather than search for a cafe or whatever… My son had a picnic in our garden as part of his 5th birthday parties & one of the children there was SO excited coz she had NEVER had a picnic before!
Anyway, I have carried on the family tradition & I always try to pack our own food because it’s fun, cheaper, healthier & saves time. I love Baco’s Rainbow snack packs (& so do my boys!) filled with raisins, cheerios, rice cakes… Am also loving the Bento laptop lunch boxes that Monica mentioned above. Think I’ve got to invest in those for the new school year! ;o)
Our famly of 6 plus our collie would pile into a green station wagon and tow a pop-up camper on many vacations. My parents liked to leave early in the mornings so our cooler also held a small carton of milk and juice. We’d stop at a road side park, pull out some cereal and pour the milk and juice for a quick breakfast. Lunch was also at a park with Pb & J or bologna & cheese sandwiches. Chips and either fruit or a cookie would be our dessert. I remember as I became a teenager I didn’t like these kind of vacations – a new camp site each night – but as an adult I sure appreciate the many places we were able to visit all because it was a cheaper way to go. Thanks for bringing back those memories.
my most vivid car trip memory is from when I was pretty little. I was in the back of the station wagon with my dad’s girlfriend’s kid (we were great friends). Well, the window was halfway down, and for whatever reason, that girl grabbed my spare pair of shorts that I had brought with me and dangled them out of the window. We both giggled and I playfully reached for her arm, trying to rescue them. Well, the car hit a bump and the shorts went flying from her hand and landed on the trailer hitch. We hit another bump, and the shorts flwe onto the freeway. We were silent after that, both afraid of our actions being discovered, and getting into trouble.
It all looks so nice! I’ve been wanting one of those market totes so bad, now I want one more. I saw Target has them for only 8.99, I really need to pick it up while they still stock them 🙂
Ohhhh, your blog brought back so many memories, I’m so glad that you asked for memories…..
Road Trips—Seattle (Everett, WA) to LA, Calif. Many…but I remember one where I was about 6 years old and my oldest sister drove me and another sister in an early 1970’s VW Bug. I got to sit in the back seat with the “squeaky” styrofoam ice chest laden with “Shasta Pop” in flavors of grape, black cherry, and lemon-lime and TAB soda. The ice chest was stocked with Peanut Butter and Honey sandwiches for me and Tunafish for my sisters (the oldest one was on Weight Watchers when all you could eat was Tunafish). So every time that ice chest was open the whole car would smell like Tuna for the next 30 miles or so!! I learned how to tell time on that trip..Are we there yet? Nope, when the big hand gets on the 12 and the little hand is on the 3 we will be…..Oh, such memories…thanks, Aby
No green station wagon, but when I was 6 we did the road trip “Out West” in the big brown van my dad customized himself. We were stylin’ with green furry stuff on the walls and a banquette and table that coverted to a bed for my parents and there was a tent for the kids. The 7 of us camped out across about 12 states from Ohio to Mt. Rushmore to the Grand Canyon and everything in between. Of course my mom was an expert already feeding so many kids, so doing it on the go was just a little bump in the road, lol.
I have those Glad-Ware containers too and have had them for about fiver or six years. I used them when I did daycare field trips and they were fantastic! I still have them and use them for road trips and picinics and days at the lake, beach, etc. They’ve stood up well!! And, they have lids (someone mentioned using lunchable containers to organize Happy Meals — which would work for that, but not for sandwiches without the lids)…I also have one from Tupperware, but it is an odd, long shape. I thought I would use it more because it would be more durable. But I haven’t and these have been used lots and have lasted! I have looked for these containers too. Although I have six, I would love a few more. Should we all write to Glad-ware? I also have that same exact open container; same color and everything. I got it from a friend of mine and have had TONS of people ask about it all summer as I’ve toted it to the pool over and over for all the swim meets we’ve had. It’d be a fantastic gift filled with..well, just about anything, I think. Thanks for all your fabulous ideas, Aby!!
Great post Aby! We just went camping this past weekend and I have to say that planning ahead really pays off. Not only were the kids happy and content in the car with snacks, toys and books to read, (for the three hour ride) but it made for a smoother trip for the parents!
I love those containers. I actually have something similar and got them at our local variety store. Very handy to have!