Stuck On You

Whoever said ‘it’s the journey not the destination’ had never been on a long flight with children. While sometimes it all goes very smoothly and you step off the plane feeling fabulous and looking like Posh Spice with a trail of kids behind you, other times you get vomited on 15 minutes into the journey.

This holidays me and my two children are embarking on a five hour flight followed the very next day by an 8 hour car journey. This is not the first time we have done this so I have picked up a few tips along the way that I thought I would share with all of the mums out there who may have a short or long trip on their horizon too.

For me the key is to pack things that will keep the kids amused and entertained (and quiet), especially on a flight where you are in such close proximity with other travellers.

Personalised Wheelie Bag of Goodies

While we may be blowing our own trumpet the Stuck on You wheelie bags are ideal for flights, bus or car trips. They are the perfect size for carry-on, can be packed with entertainment and kids as young as two can wheel them themselves. I have many a fond memory of my children proudly swanning through the airport with their wheelie bags in tow.

Fill with a sticker book, an activity book, a couple of picture books, stickers, a sketch book, pencils, crayons, an electronic game or ipod if they have one. Magnetic games are perfect for travel and there are some gorgeous ones around on the market or you can make your own with minimal fuss.

 

 

Top Tip – The Magnetic Fishing Game

 

This is a great distraction for younger kids from about 2-8. Tie or glue a magnet to a piece of string attached to a little wooden pole (chopstick or a bamboo skewer will do) and put it in a little box with a few metal pieces that stick and a few that don’t. Nuts, bolts, fridge magnets and paper clips will do. Or drag it out by getting your kids to draw their very own fish, cut-out and colour them in and stick a paperclip to them to catch while fishing.

Personalised Activity Books

It’s a good idea to put in a few items they haven’t seen before, that way the very act of rifling through their wheelie bag will keep them busy. May we recommend the Stuck on you personalised activity books? For kids aged 1 – 10 there are puzzles, pictures to colour in and activites to keep them busy for hours! Our Tools 4 School (pics below) and travel kits are pretty good for distractions too!

 

 

 

Top Tip – Wrap a few things like presents

This is most effective for kids aged 2-4 on a plane. Wrap about five things and your kids can slowly bring them out and open them one by one. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant – a packet of sultanas, the activity book or a small packet of pencils. Tell them they can open a new one every hour or just remind them about one anytime they get restless.

A Packed Lunchbox

Of course, we recommend the Stuck on You personalised lunchboxes packed with goodies. Your travelling companions and your sanity will thank you if you keep the snacks in your lunchbox low in sugar and stickyness. Some ideas – little packets of sultanas, packets of nuts and seeds (for older kiddies), banana chips, cheese, carrot and celery sticks, little tub of yoghurt, corn chips, fresh fruit, soy crisps, a savoury muffin…

Fresh water is a must too. Naturally, in their Stuck on You personalised drink bottle (pictured below). If you’re on a plane sending them off to refill it will buy you a few moments to yourself every now and then too.

 

Top Tip – Spotto with a Sketchbook
This game is ideal for long car trips. Take a plain sketchbook (hmmm…how about a Stuck on You personalised sketchbook?) and fill a page or two with things for your kids to spot on the journey. If they are older you can write a list if they are younger you can draw pictures – a bird, a tree, an aeroplane, a train, a bus, a bike and some harder ones like a dog with a hat to keep them keenly searching.You could fill another page with things they have to collect on the stops to make sure they stretch their legs – a stick, a rock, a feather, a leaf.

Those are my top tips for distracting kids on long journeys but we have more journeys ahead so I would love to hear all of yours too. Wherever you are going and however you get there, have a safe and pleasant holiday and do your best to enjoy the journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It takes me a little while to get into the Christmas spirit but once I’m there – I’m there! The tree is up, there’s a big red star on the door, I dug out the Christmas carol albums, I’ve done all my online Christmas shopping and am now bracing myself for the Christmas wrapping frenzy. It can be a crazy-hectic time (it certainly is here at Stuck on You) with a gazillion trips to the shops, furious list writing, preparation and planning.

A great way to unwind and gently ease into the Christmas spirit is to sit down with the kids each weekend leading up to the madness and watch a Christmas movie. Or, buy them a copy and pop it in their Christmas stocking!

Here’s a review of my all-time favourite top 3 Christmas movies for kids.

Miracle on 34th Street

Don’t let your kids’ initial disgust at the thought of watching a black and white movie discourage you – this movie is a must-see for Christmas. Sure, it’s a bit earnest and over the top  but it gets me all choked up and mushy inside every time. It stars a very young Natalie Wood, Maureen O’Hara and Edmund Gwenn who won an Oscar for his performance in this film. The story follows Kris Kringle (Gwenn)  and the cynicism and non-believers he encounters as he ventures outside of the North Pole. He goes about performing Christmas miracles and attempting to instill faith and Christmas spirit in those around him.

Central to the story we follow Kris Kringle as he tries to convince Susan (Wood) that there really is a Santa Claus. As I said, it can be a little heavy on the cheesiness but in my book it delivers everything you would want from a good, old-fashioned Christmas movie.

 

Home Alone

This is the ultimate family Christmas movie and as it’s a little dated a lot of parents forget all about it.

My son has the entire Home Alone collection (they go to 4 and get progressively worse) and he loves them! For those who don’t know, it’s all about Kevin (Macauley Culkin) who gets accidentally left behind in the chaos as his entire family go on an overseas trip. Left behind to fend for himself Kevin learns to face many fears including a scary neighbour and domestic chores!

The fun parts are when two bumbling burglars (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) repeatedly attempt to break into the home. Kevin plants all sorts of ingenious booby traps leading to lots of slapstick and genuinely funny moments.

I often find bits of string tied to saucepan lids and door knobs after my son watches these movies as he tries to replicate the same traps on me!

 

A Christmas Story

I’ve saved the best ’til last – my absolute favourite Christmas movie is hands-down A Christmas Story. Released in the mid 80s it wasn’t a huge commercial success and many have missed it. Every now and then you will catch it on TV around Christmas time which is how I first stumbled upon it and it had my little brother and I in absolute stitches.

At the heart of the story is Ralphie Parker who desperately wants “an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing which tells time” for Christmas. It’s slightly left of centre but you’ll love the quirky ways of the endearing Parker family from Mrs Parker who stands in the way of Ralphie’s ultimate wish believing he’ll shoot his eye out and Mr Parker played brilliantly by Darren McGavin.

It’s a simple story about a simple family but is filled with plenty of warm and touching moments and plenty of laughs too. If you haven’t managed to catch this one I highly recommend it. A perfect present because it’s great to rewatch year after year.

 

 

At Stuck on You we’d love to know about your families’ all-time favourite Christmas movies. From the old to the new – what do you watch every year at your house?

For my son’s first Christmas I made him a bright red, faux fur Christmas stocking that measures a metre high. Of course, several years later his sister came along and she had to have one the same size. They absolutely love them and even though she’s now 8 and he’s now 12 they still hop in them every year and we take a photo before hanging them near the tree.

I love the challenge of coming up with creative ways to fill them every year. I usually start accumulating bits and pieces around October so it doesn’t get too pricey all at once. I thought I’d share a few ideas for those of you struggling to fill enormous Christmas stockings and Santa sacks this year.

A little flower pot and a packet or two of seeds

I’m all for the gifts that take up a bit of room and won’t end up broken or in the bin before the day’s out. Planting the seeds gives you a fun project to do together once all of the Christmas madness has died down.

Multi-packs of cereal

It may seem a dull but my kids have come to expect their little packets of cereal each year. There are six in a pack and it gives you a chance to let them enjoy the sweeter cereals you might not normally buy, they take up plenty of room and kids love lining them up and deciding what they will eat each morning.

Some practical stuff

Do they needs bathers? A new beach towel? Underwear? A new lunch box? Sandals? Slippers? A sun hat? Put them in the stocking too. (Isn’t it nice that Santa is on our side?)

Magic tricks and practical jokes

These are great fun as the kids slowly bring them out throughout the day. A fly in an ice block, a whoopee cushion or a fake severed thumb bring plenty of laughs to our Christmas lunch.

Something yummy

I like to pop a few yummy treats in there and pretend to be horrified that Santa would do such a thing. The lolly Christmas stockings have treats they can bring out each day after Christmas and, again, they take up room!

A book or two

I like to give them a few little Mr Men, Golden Books or Dr Seuss to add to their collection and a big picture book they can pour over once all of the excitement has died down. Any of the books by Graeme Base keep them quiet for hours – or minutes, at least!

Of course, there are plenty of stocking filler ideas from Stuck On You too…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What’s that? Your kids don’t have a Christmas stocking yet? Well, not only do we have plenty of things to go into your Christmas stocking, Stuck On You have bright, bold monogrammed and personalised Christmas stockings too!