Whether you are a veteran parent, a novice just starting out, a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or anyone else with a child in your life, it is likely that kids will make their way into your pickup truck at some point. Kids are tough customers when it comes to vehicles, and I don’t just mean keeping them busy. Having a child in your car will test what your truck is made of in a whole new way. So, what do you do?
How do you make your truck more kid-friendly? You want the kids to have a good experience in your truck. I have a few suggestions for you to help make traveling with children in your truck easier on you and your upholstery. There are suggestions spanning from activities, to seat protection, to alternative storage capabilities.
You may wonder if it is even really necessary to make your truck kid-friendly. To that, I say absolutely! Even if you are only going to have a child in your truck once in a while, the experience will be far less stressful for all of you if you are well prepared. I am not trying to scare you, just prepare you. Kids are a blast, but sometimes they don’t love being in vehicles for any period of time.
Traveling with Kids 101
Traveling, even just to the grocery store and back, can be quite the experience if you don’t go in prepared. You veteran parents out there know what I’m talking about. Sitting in a vehicle for any period of time can feel like an eternity for a child, so they really need to stay busy. Even just their minds staying busy will help.
This doesn’t mean that you need to plug in the TV every time their bottoms hit the car seat. There are plenty of fun activities that can be done in a car to keep them from being completely bored. However, entertainment isn’t the only thing you need to think about.
Kids are messy, and unless you have a “no food or drink” policy in your truck, there is no way around this. One of the ways to make your truck kid-friendly is to make sure you protect the interior of your truck from messy accidents.
Making Your Truck More Kid-Friendly
There are a lot of ways to make your truck more kid-friendly, and it isn’t all for the kids. Some of my suggestions are for your sanity and the care of your vehicle. You don’t need to necessarily follow every one of these suggestions because they won’t all work for your situation. Pick what you like best and leave the rest or try a few at a time until you find the sweet spot.
Add Some Fun Decor
Kids tend to have favorite characters that they really love. They love watching their shows, seeing their pictures, and playing with their toys. So why not bring some of the fun into your truck interior?
You don’t have to go crazy or over the top. Adding some seatbelt swagger, a car seat decoration, or a window cling will be the perfect addition to help them feel excited to ride in your truck. It will give them something to look forward to seeing.
If they don’t get to ride in your truck very often, then this will be a fun treat when they do get to ride along.
Books
You don’t need to bring along a whole library, but having a small selection of bright and interesting books will go a long way to beat the boredom, especially if it is a carefully curated collection. They don’t have to all be for reading. Some of them could be look-and-finds like “Where’s Waldo” to keep their minds engaged.
For younger kids, sturdy board books are perfect for them when they are in a car seat because they can’t tear them up. There are other kinds of books for babies that are basically indestructible, even if they chew on them. Those are perfect for keeping little hands busy.
ISpy (Travel Edition)
There are iSpy books that can be purchased that have tear-out sheets. This is fun because the kids have to look for different types of items out the window while they ride along. There are also some really great free printables that you can find online.
Some of my favorite iSpy printables are the ones that have pictures that can be colored because it adds another level of activity to keep the kids engaged.
Snacks
You can’t call your truck “kid-friendly” if you don’t have at least a small snack bin. There is something about the sound of a car engine that immediately makes kids hungry and thirsty. You will rack up quite the fast food tab if you don’t come armed with proper sustenance.
I do recommend snacks that aren’t super messy. Depending on the age of the kids, some good snacks would be applesauce pouches, peanut butter crackers, granola bars, or some kind of trail mix. Plus, add in some small bottles of water.
Coloring Books/Crayons/Pencils
We are a digital world, but don’t underestimate the power of coloring books and colored pencils when riding in the car. There are a few things to keep in mind, though. If you live in a hot climate, you may want to choose colored pencils because crayons can melt in the summer heat.
If the children are older, then you can keep markers in the coloring bin. Markers are not a good idea for young children because they will write all over your truck or themselves. This is a fact.
Dry Erase
Dry erase is a good idea for older preschoolers or early elementary-aged kids. Add some dry erase activity books and markers to your coloring book bin for a variety of options when the kids ride in your truck. I love these books because they can be used over and over again.
I also really like to have a small dry erase board that the kids can write on, play games with, or just whatever they please. This dry erase option leaves more room for creativity than an activity book. However, either option works great.
TVs
Travel TVs with a Blu-ray/DVD player will absolutely save you on long truck rides. It is up to you to decide when you will turn it on. Some people tend to not want to use the TV system for car rides under 30 minutes. This is a personal preference and can even be decided on a day to day, ride to ride basis.
But this really is a great way to make your truck kid-friendly and give them a chance to watch a fun movie while riding along with you.
Along with DVD players, it is wise to have a great selection of movies in your truck. Make your choices based on the ages of the child and their favorite characters or stories. Another great way to choose the movies is to let the children pick what they would like to have available on car rides.
Fun Kid Music
Who doesn’t like a road trip sing along? We know we do. But there are some kids that probably aren’t going to be into the music that makes you car-dance, so make sure you have some kid-friendly tunes ready.
This doesn’t have to be nursery rhymes or lullabies. Kids enjoy many different kinds of music, but a pretty safe bet would be anything from a Disney movie or from the KidZBop line up. If the kids are old enough, ask them what they would like you to keep in the truck music-wise.
Kids start having music and movie preferences pretty early, and they will appreciate that you care enough to ask. Some well-timed music can make truck rides of any length more fun and can break up the monotony. We can’t tell you how many times the perfect kid’s song has stopped arguing and fussing, saving the mood of the trip.
Window Markers
Hear me out. They aren’t as scary as they sound. In fact, they are just the opposite. The markers are specifically made for kids to use on windows and are extremely washable even they make their mark on something other than a window. The best version of these markers for kids is made by Crayola, which is a brand that parents trust to be easy to wipe off of any surface.
Kids love having the freedom to draw fun pictures on the truck windows as the world rolls by. This isn’t something that they should have free access to, or they will get bored quickly. We recommend breaking these out only once in a while and maybe pair them with a special snack or only allow them to be used when you are going to a certain location.
Seat Protectors/Scotch Guard
Can this point really be overstated? I don’t think so. The best way to make your truck kid-friendly is to protect your interior. If the seats and carpet are protected, then you won’t stress so much when the kids are riding along or have a messier than a usual snack. They will also remove the stress associated with a newly potty trained child riding in your truck.
There are a few options for protecting your seats. If you have kids that are in car seats, there are products that especially made to sit under the car seats to keep any moisture, snacks, or other mess off of your seats. You can also just get normal seat covers that still allow the use of seatbelts and car seat anchors.
Scotch Guard is also a great option if you don’t want to use seat covers. If you choose to Scotch Guard your seats (this is what I did), you need to make sure you do a spot check on a non-noticeable fabric spot to check for discoloration before you use it all over.
First Aid Kit
Traveling any distance in a vehicle with kids can be an adventure. Sometimes on adventures, there are mishaps and booboos that might need a Band-Aid or two. It is always a good idea to have a fully stocked first aid and an emergency kit in your truck. This is a really practical way to make your truck kid-friendly while being prepared for any situation.
Some really good things to have in your first aid or emergency kit would be the following.
- Handwarmers
- Icepack (the kind that you break and shake to make them cold)
- Antiseptic wipes
- Band-Aids
- Flashlight
- Flairs
This is not a comprehensive list, and you can get premade kits from your local store or make your own. No matter what you choose, it is best to at least have Band-Aids somewhere in your truck if children will be riding in it.
Spare Clothing Bin
Accidents happen, no matter where you go or what you do. It could be bathroom accidents with very young kids or maybe a drink was spilled, and a change of clothes is required. You don’t want to be caught out and about without a change of clothes when you have kids in tow.
A gallon Ziplock bag with a full set of clothes per child will fit easily either in your glove compartment or under a seat to be held for and emergency clothing situation. You can also arrange a bin for all of your children’s items to keep them all organized and in one place.
If you don’t have any spare clothing in your truck for the children that ride in there, then there is likely to be some trips to a clothing store when you are out running errands or doing some fun outings with the kids.
Trash Bin/Small Bag
Is there anything more important when traveling with kids, even for five minutes, than a trash receptacle for all of the trash that will magically appear? It seems as though bits of paper and crumbs just happen to fall off of kids. I don’t mean that in a bad way, but it’s true.
That is why to make your truck truly kid-friendly, you need to have small trash bins or bags within the child’s reach so they can dispose of any trash they may have. If you don’t have a trash bag, and sometimes even if you do, the trash will end up on the floor or stuffed in the seats. No one wants to find a hoard of trash stuffed between their truck seats, which is why this suggestion made my list.
Other Ways to Make Your Truck Kid-Friendly
The ideas above are my favorite ways to make a truck, or any vehicle really, kid-friendly. But those aren’t the only ways to make sure you are prepared for tiny travelers. If you don’t travel with children in your vehicle often, then you may forget about having things in the truck that might not be good for kids.
Make sure you remove anything that may be harmful or alarming to any child that may be riding in your truck. Part of making your truck kid-friendly is making sure it is a safe environment. Along with the idea of safety is making sure all car seats and child restraint laws and advisories are followed. Proper child restraint can make sure children in your vehicle are safe in case of an accident.
Another idea for making your truck kid-friendly is by making sure you have plenty of wipes and napkins in your truck. As we have already established, kids can be messy. Sometimes it is of their own doing, and sometimes it is accidental. No matter how the mess is made, baby wipes tackle most messes.
Your local store is likely to carry travel sized packs of baby wipes, so you don’t have to try to find a place for a normal-sized package. The large packages of baby wipes can be bulky and take up space. This is a tip that is too good to not follow.
If you only follow a few of the tips, that’s okay. It is your choice of how kid-friendly you want your truck to be. With that being said, let me suggest the three tips that I think are some of the best. A TV system with a DVD or Blu-ray player is probably the idea that will buy you the most peace along with a snack basket. Snacks and a movie are always a win.
Having a change of clothes for each child in tow is the third tip I would not go without. Take what I have suggested and use it as a jumping-off point to make them your own. Your truck can be as much or as little kid-friendly as you want it to be.
If you’re thinking of different ways to accessorize your truck or make it more functional, consider checking out my recommended accessories page. I spent a good amount of time picking out mods that can be useful for most pickup trucks.