TravelKiddy

Is it just me, or does traveling with the kids make you want to sit on the floor and rock with your knees to your chest while chanting, “Don’t make me do it. Don’t make me do it. Don’t make me do it?”

Phew. I thought it was just me.

Catatonic stupors aside, I usually try to prepare for major travel by getting some Fun! New! Activities! To! Keep! Me! From! Going! Insane! This usually involves a trip to the store, desperately grabbing a variety of toys, books, and puzzles that are easily transportable and might be my salvation. (Well, for at least a few minutes. Let’s not be greedy, eh?)  Importantly, the items to be new (and therefore novel), engaging, easily transportable, and more fun than creating “art” on the van floor with pretzels and drool.

So, when I heard about the TravelKiddy, which is a ready-to-go bag full of activities to keep kids occupied on a trip or any other reason, I thought: MUST. GET. NOW. BEFORE. FAMILY. VACATION. IN. ONE. WEEK.

It comes ready to go in a green durable canvas bag that can zipper close (so important to containment!) and has a carrying handle.  Inside, you’ll find all sorts of goodies to keep kids aged 3-6 (there’s a separate one for older children) entertained. Let me tell you, it is LOADED with activities. Some of these include an age-appropriate coloring book, doodle pad with stickers, maze book, crayons, pencil, crafts for the making, small toys, as well as travel-sized tissues, sanitizing wipes and band-aids. There is also a separate plastic bag enclosed containing activities and toys to keep in reserve for the return trip (or another occasion). Which, when you think about, is totally key. 

Turns out we’ve not only used (and benefitted) from it during our sanity-testing road trip a month ago, but scores of times since – grabbing it any time we anticipate needing a little Elise-distraction time, even while at home. And there’s still TONS left for her to do.

There are certain aspects to this product which I love. The zippered, sturdy bag is great for keeping everything together; we just grab it and go. The crayons come in one of those plastic containers that you can hold a bar of soap in: INGENIOUS.  (Who knew that would be the perfectly-sized crayon-carting vehicle?)  The maze book, sticker/activity book, doodle pad, coloring book are completely age-appropriate and are full-sized.  The sheer variety of things inside is impressive: everything from a small package of Wikki-Stix to a small dinosaur measuring tape to animal figurines to stamped blank postcards (awesome idea)…there’s even a foam drawing board to make coloring or drawing in the car easier.  I also love the addition of sanitizing wipes, tissues and band-aids (for the mother who always forgets to have tissues in her purse despite having a purse the size of a small goat *ahem*).

There are also a couple of things about this product that I wish were different.  The small plastic ruler/stencil is a great idea, but the stencil shapes are so small, that I think probably only older kids with better hand dexterity could really use it. Elise tried and couldn’t. Also, the ever sharp pencil (with those multiple tips stored inside the clear pencil – a retro delight) had points that were so sharp, I feared something or someone would get impaled unless I confiscated it asap.  I loved having a handle on the bag for easy toting, but a shoulder strap would be even more awesome. 

This bag (their “classic” version) goes for $34.99…but there’s also a basic version (without the return bag) for $29.99…and a “deluxe” version for $44.99.  The items individually add up to at least twice that amount, but more importantly for me, the time saved in having a ready-to-go activity kit without all the hassle of assembling one myself is key.  I’ve got more important things to be doing with my time, like sleeping and bathing.  I definitely think the classic bag we have is worth the price tag, given how much we’ve been able to use it (and we haven’t even tapped the return bag yet! Shhhh.)

Overall, it’s a brilliant idea for busy families.  This was just what we needed.

Editor’s Note: This item was supplied to our writer at no cost—but with absolutely no obligation for a positive review. Momicillin accepts no “pay for play.” See our Terms & Conditions for complete details on this policy.