Actually, it's recommended to stop the car every 2 hours, and have everybody get out and stretch/move their body for 15-20 minutes, then only get back into car and continue journey. It's better for everyone's health. Even sitting at work, in the office, you should get up and walk around every 2 hours. Sitting too long actually shortens your lifespan.

The best way to train your kid not to cry in the car seat is to start short and sweet. EVERY day, strap your baby in the carseat according to instructions and drive at MOST 10 minutes away, to a fun place the kid will like, e.g. nearby playground, nearest mall, candy/toy shop, swimming pool, whatever la. This way, even if your kid cries, he/she is only crying for 10 minutes, and he/she will learn that after getting strapped in carseat, he/she gets to a fun place! Make sure to also strap in properly on the way home!

Once your kid stops crying for the 10 minute daily ride in the car seat, you go to a different place 20 minutes away, just as fun and exciting. Then if kid is ok with 20 minutes away, go 30 minutes away! Work your way up slowly until kid can go 2 hours. But please don't go for more than 2 hours unless asleep, ya. Like I said above, sitting still for more than 2 hours when not asleep is not good for your health. Always take frequent journey breaks. That's why our highways have lots of rest stops. When you have kids, your lifestyle has to change and your driving style also has to change, but at least when your kids are properly strapped in, you can drive at normal speeds, not slowly (which is not safe either), so the stops shouldn't affect the final time of arrival.

This method best works if you ALWAYS strap your kid in. If your kid thinks that as long as he cries long/hard enough he'll get out of being strapped in, then he will cry the whole way. If he knows that you WILL let him cry himself sick rather than let him be out of the carseat, he will give up eventually.

For more tips and tricks on keeping kids happy in their carseat, I love http://thecarseatlady.com/keeping-your-kids-happy/.

This post has been edited by hanishoney: May 20 2015, 05:53 PM

This is very dangerous to the mother. Anyone sitting BESIDE a carseat should be strapped in as tightly as the baby in the carseat. Let me tell you, I know of one mother who died in a car accident because her head smashed into her child's carseat.

Car safety is designed to work assuming that everyone is following all the rules. Airbags work safely IF you're strapped in but can kill you if you're not wearing your seatbelt. Same thing with carseats. They can kill you if you're not wearing your seatbelt. And by wearing your seatbelt, I mean wearing it properly with your shoulder belt on. WHEN SITTING NEXT TO A CHILD'S CAR SEAT, ALWAYS USE SHOULDER RESTRAINT AND SIT UP STRAIGHT AGAINST THE BACK OF YOUR SEAT. Also try to always put the seatbelt over bone, because that's the strongest part of your body. Lap belt over your hip bones, and shoulder belt over shoulder bone.

Here's a picture: from http://www.800bucklup.org/bucklingup/teens-and-adults.asp, where you can find more info on how to buckle up adults properly and safely.

If the seat beside your child's carseat only has a lap belt, DO NOT USE IT.

This post has been edited by hanishoney: Mar 17 2014, 10:28 AM

Waze app for smart phones is a genius thing. When you select your destination, it tells you how long your journey will probably take, taking into account current traffic. And it even updates on the spot if there's an accident ahead on your journey, or whatever. Waze will also direct you through routes that are faster than the jam area, if any.

So whenever I see on waze that my journey will take more than 2 hours due to terrible traffic, I immediately cancel the destination and pick a nearer destination, somewhere that is less than 2 hours, so I can stop and take my child out to play sekejap. Then we get back into the car and I set waze for my actual destination.

After all, if my trip is going to take more than 2 hours, what's just another 15 minutes?

If you don't have a smart phone, google maps is incorporating waze technology now. Don't know how much is in yet, but the current traffic part seems up already. You can check your computer for how long the journey will take just before you put your baby into your car.