Making car trips fun for toddlers
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- January
- 15
Has your toddler ever tossed a toy from his or her car seat only to cry to have it back? And what did you do when that happened? Stop the car to fetch the toy  or reach around while keeping one hand on the wheel? It’s a dilemma most parents of toddlers face at one time or another, but when it happened to Port Chester mom Patricia Friend Douglass, she invented a solution: A toy that buckles right into the car seat.
I talked to Patricia about her new company, Casey and His Friends, for a story in today’s Business section. She told me about the day her daughter, Parker, kept dropping her favorite blanket (which had a pony on it)  on purpose. After Patricia retrieved the blanket, she realized how dangerous it can be and how many moms and dads do it all the time. “You can’t tell me that you haven’t driven down the road and had one hand in the back seat of the car,” she said.
The Casey and His Friends car seat toys are stuffed animals in the shape of horses, a dog and a dragon  all were inspired by animals and people in Patricia’s life. Patricia spent a year developing the toys and getting them “tested for everything known to man,” as her manufacturer put it. Safety expert Stephanie Tombrello from SafetyBeltSafe U.S.A. gives the toys a thumbs up because Patricia got them crash-tested at a university lab.
I haven’t tried one with Pumpkin because they only work with forward-facing car seats (and as I’ve mentioned in this blog, I’m keeping her rear-facing until she reaches 33 pounds), but they seem cute and fun.
What about you other moms and dads? What are your strategies for keeping the wee ones happy in the car?
This entry was posted
on Monday, January 15th, 2007 at 2:03 am by Julie Moran Alterio.
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Snacks work the best. Then CD’s, books, and toys in that order. I find that my son fusses the most in the car when he’s feeling sleepy. He’ll complain for a few minutes then the next thing I know, he’s conked out!
let the kid suffer. ;-]
a tossed toy is a lost toy. have a spare to pass back but dont stop the car. its a bad habit.
Julie,
To this day “Zoe” is still straped in the back seat LOL!!!
David
We’re lucky, as our son is content to look out the window and talk to us. He sometimes wants a book, juice or a snack, but he only gets juice or a snack when both of us are in the car and can make sure he doesn’t pour his juice on the seat next to him.
The worse is the dropped sippy cup. “I”M THIRSTY MOMMMMMMYYYYY!!!!” Can I duct tape the sippy cup on to my child’s hand? Or would that be considered child abuse? That cup has rolled and spilled (spill proof, my foot!) all over the back seat and floor of my car. And I could swear there is something living back there among the gold fish crumbs and dried up Mc Donald’s french fries! Toys…clipped on the linkadoo’s to the car seat straps.
Does anyone else have any experience with this?
Hey, I’m running a blog myself too and I was wondering can you tell me what’s the template you’re using? thanks.