traveling cross country

My husband is getting orders to Texas (military) so we will be moving in three months from Washington state to Texas. Our son will be about 20 months by that time. He is still rear facing so we are realy concerned how he will do on the trip. We will of course make plenty of stops but I was wondering if anyone could recomend some toys that will be safe in the car. He has some soft books already. Thank you- Alee

This is a bit off topic but...we used to live in WA!! LOVED it. Moved to Oregon and LOVED it too. We then moved to Texas from the Portland area.(Like it here too now that we've adjusted to the heat) I flew with the kids ( 5 yr old and 1 1/2 yr old) and my husband DROVE the truck with our two big dogs and a turtle in the cab with him!!
Welcome in advance. What part of Texas are you moving to?
I would bring some of those little finger puppets and small stuffed animals (like beanie baby size) that he and you can play with together. Snacks make a great diversion and of course a full belly can make for a long nap!! Maybe a med. sized note pad and a few markers or crayons?? Some people like the markers that Crayola makes that ony write on special paper (pricey but my daughter did once color all over her seat belt straps when using a regular marker! She sure was quiet and busy though!!) Get some cd's or tapes of childrens songs, some finger play ones you can do together and some quieter ones for rest time.
I have a friend who moved when her second daughter was just about 2. She rode in the back with her two kids while her mother drove. ( Oregon to Montana) She was amazed at how the younger ones language bloomed just on that trip due to the attention from her on the way!!
One problem I've run into sitting with kids in the back is once I do it they always want me back there. Maybe you could have a routine of part of day being in front, he won't want or need you back there all the time, and part in the back.
Good luck,
C.

We will be moving to the Dallas/ FT Worth area. We will miss all the trees- LOL. Thank you so much for replying those are great suggestions. I might need to move his car seat to the side to make more room for me since our car is soooooooo small. Thanks

When we took my daughter on a road trip from NY to FL (she was 5 months old), I sat in the back with her ... we brought kids music to listen to & I brought an American Sign Language referrence book to look up the hand signs so we could "dance with our hands" to the music. Soft books are good & if he uses markers sometimes you could supervise (I like the Color Wonder by Crayola because it can't make a mess anywhere & the markers come in a zipper bag that snaps to the pad of paper, making it easier to keep track of them -- our rule is one marker at a time). I also supervised playtime with Playdough as young as she was & remarkably she never put it in her mouth (well, she tried but I was quick with an alternate game, LOL). We stopped at every resting place possible if for no other reason than to get some fresh air & stretch ... at your son's age, getting him back in the car might be tricky -- when I took my daughter on a 4 hour trip 2 winters ago I learned real quick to use the countdown technique: 5 minutes left to play, 1 minute left to play, 10.9.8.7.6.5.4.3.2.1 & RACE TO THE CAR laughing

I haven't done a driving military move, but a friend of mine almost did last year, and she said that the military doesn't expect you to go very far each day. Take advantage of that! Plan your route so you can drive a few hours, then take a break. Stop places where you can get out and walk around, let your toddler climb, slide & swing at a park, eat some good food, etc. View it as a family vacation, if you can. 'Cause no matter what you do IN the car, what you do outside the car will really help.