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TwitterNBC’s ”Today” show recently had a segment about the top picks for family smart cars. While watching the news program, road trips immediately popped in my head.
Growing up in a military family meant we had to pack up and leave on short notice — a lot. I am the youngest of five kids — two girls and three boys — in my family.
I’m quite familiar with road trips.
So there we were in the back of my parents’ banana yellow Ford station wagon. It didn’t have seatbelts because, frankly, in 1969 they were an option and not the standard. I remember every time we’d lower the back seat, we’d all bounce around like bingo numbers.
If you were lucky, you’d get a second turn to sit on the bench seat in between Mom and Dad’s seats.
We had books — from comics to encyclopedias — to read in the back seat. We had board games and whichever radio station the wagon picked up.
And, yet, we still felt like we were held hostage in the car.
Back to the news program and the smart cars now on TV, the vehicles looked normal on the outside. But they were decked out with dual DVD screens, game consoles, iPad capabilities, remote seats and a satellite radio service.
When did parents sign up to be vehicle flight attendants?
The only thing missing was a briefing from reporter Ann Curry telling us where the exit rows and oxygen masks were located.
I don’t have those things.
I have a few things in my car to make the car trips a bit smoother for the family. But any time you spend family time together — even in a car — it’s a good thing.
If my kids talk to me when they need food or we’re at a rest stop, I’ll mark it down as quality time.
Did your family take many road trips? Share your experience.
Z. Carlson is married with two teenage children. She works part time. Read her here on momaha.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
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Posted by: Amy Grace on 01/27/2012 @ 9:45 am:
“…every time we’d lower the back seat, we’d all bounce around like bingo numbers.” Hilarious Z! My family moved from Omaha to Southern California when I was young, approx 1700 miles away. My mom drove a Mazda hatchback at the time, and I distinctly remember being in the hatch with the back seats down, and baking in sun as we crossed the desert. Reading your blog, it actually makes me feel much sorrier for your parents, who had to have someone in the seat between them! I like personal space anywhere I am, and that includes in the car!!
Posted by: Lisa M on 01/27/2012 @ 10:17 am:
We traveled half the country in a tiny red Toyota…Mom and Dad in the front seat and the three of us kids in the back. They liked to do driving at night, so sleeping back there was a fiasco. My sister slept in the back window and my brother and I fought over who got to sleep on the seat vs. the floor. The floor was pretty undesirable, as there was a division between the two seat floors in the middle!
Posted by: Jessica H. on 01/27/2012 @ 12:46 pm:
I just purchased a van with all those whistles. Sometimes we use them, sometimes we don’t but it does seem much less stressful when the kids can watch a DVD and I can listen to the radio in peace. Not to mention, no fighting cause one kid sits in the front and the other in the back ( by choice). And this is coming from the oldest of 7 children and we had station wagons and Astro vans growing up- you never got your own seat and all there was to entertain you was notebooks/pens and the one gameboy to pass around. We have yet to take a road trip in our van but I am sure it will be wonderful and full of memories!
Posted by: Athena on 01/27/2012 @ 1:27 pm:
I remember when we moved from Hawaii to Virginia (My dad was in the military). We drove from California to Virginia…with 5 kids, my parents and my grandmother. There was a couch in the back that pulled out to a bed. This had no seat belts and that’s where 4 out of 5 of the kids got to ride. I believe we even spent time just hanging out on the floor. No movies…just books, the radio and sleeping. Of course there was always the quiet game to see who could stay quiet the longest….I think that was usually started by my dad!
Posted by: LA on 01/29/2012 @ 10:25 pm:
Love this article! So true – I love the time with my kid in the car; I know it’s short-lived since he will be getting his license in the next year.