Suggestions on keeping a toddler awake in the car?

[ihugtrees]

I just got a new job, and my schedule will be 11 am-5 pm. I will be taking my daughter with me (I am a nanny :) I have a 25-30 minute commute in the morning and 45 minutes-1 hour commute in the evening. In the morning, my work day will start at 11 when I pick Nanny Baby up from daycare, and then at 11:30 we will be getting Nanny Preschooler from school...so we will actually be in the car from about 10:30 until about 11:45 am. Since my daughter naps around 1 and goes to bed around 7, we will be approaching sleepy times during both car trips, and she loooooves to sleep in the car. Problem is, if she sleeps in the car, she won't sleep once we get home, and that throws everything off :-/ I'm thinking picking up Nanny Baby & Preschooler will be exciting enough to keep her awake after 11...or I hope so any way...but before 11, and on the way home, I'm really not sure about.

I *could* extend my work day until 6, and have her already fed, with PJ's on when we get in the car, so that if she falls asleep I can transfer her to bed...but I'd really rather have our own dinner & bedtime routine at home if I can keep her awake.

Any suggestions for keeping her awake in the car? I'm afraid it is a lost cause and hope someone has some ideas I haven't thought of...

[SpuglyRoo]

What about a stash of things that she only gets while in the car?  Like special books, or a magna doodle, a flashlight, etc.?  Another recent thread was talking about things to do for dark car rides and someone suggested glow sticks (like in the dollar section of target).  The ride home is nearing dinnertime, right?  Is there a part of it that you'd feel comfortable with her eating or drinking in the car?  If I give my son a water bottle it keeps him distracted opening and closing and spilling it the whole way home.  I figure that it's only water and he and the car will dry, and since you are going home it doesn't really matter that she arrive possibly wet (unlike if you were going out).  She's what, about a year and a half, right?  Does she like silly songs that you could have her sing with you or a with a CD?  Sometimes I would have him make lots of animal sounds with me, which is rather comical as they get to the point when they are fading.  I would recommend trying and having ready a wide assortment of distractions.

I have soo been there and sometimes nothing works, I have had my son fall asleep in the car while I was sitting in the back next to him talking to him and feeding him and playing with his face and he still crashed.  It was rather ridiculous.  Good Luck!

[crunchy_mommy]

We sing. He loves to fill in the words, so we'll sing things like the alphabet sounds song from youtube "apple-apple" and he'll do the "ah-ah-ah", I do "baby baby" & he does the "buh-buh-buh"... Or the itsy bitsy "SPIDER" goes up the "WATERSPOUT" and I try to get him to not only fill in the words but also do the handmotions. I just have to watch out for songs that he doesn't participate in because then it just puts him to sleep more quickly! Also games like "What does the PIG say?" or ABC games (I say A, he says apple, I say B, he says book)... I don't know how old your DD is, this really has only been working for DS for the past 5 months or so (he's 21 months now) and my efforts are useless if we're in the car more than 25 minutes or so. I do think you'll have a tough time with the hour+ rides, that's a long time to try to keep her awake especially if it's close to nap/bedtime. Maybe another option would be try to get her to move her nap to 2pm & bedtime to 8pm, so it's not so close to the car rides? And if you can arrive early at the pick-ups then she could get outside & play for a few minutes in between stops, that might help keep her awake... If this is going to be 5 days a week though, I'm sure you & she will adapt to the whole thing after a week or two, though it might mean she ultimately takes her nap in the car!

[tzs]

i have a 15-20 minute drive home right at naptime and same as you, if she sleeps in the car it's h*ll at home. and 15 minutes is not enough of a nap. since mine is so short i feed her ritz-type crackers. i know....it's horrible, trashy, probably setting her up for an eating disorder....i had said i'd never have a kid eat in the car. but sleep is really important and she's already cutting the am nap out by being in daycare with me in the am. 

i'm not sure what i'd do for a longer ride though

[lisavark]

I also do snacks in the car to keep DD awake. :) But personally I'd do the pj's-before-the-evening-trip if I were you. Course, I have a kid who's impossible to get to sleep, so I'd be jumping for joy if she fell asleep in the car--if I could transfer her, of course! :)