Four years ago, we took our first family road trip. We drove 6 hours to New England. I grew up on the water and it was important to me to take my boys to see the ocean.

But a drive that long, with kids ages 4 and 1? I knew I needed some strategy.

So I started collecting ideas for travel busy bags.

Thanks to all the fabulous mommy blogs out there, I had no shortage of inspiration. I started collecting them all on a Pinterest board. Over 50 sites with great ideas can be found here:

Busy Bags Pinterest Board

I bought a set of pencil cases to hold them. Sometimes the simplest things work the best: a set of dinosaurs, some Duplo Legos, lacing blocks, or craft sticks to practice making shapes. The first three were things we already had in the house. And the last activity was a simple one to make.

For more of my favorite ideas, check out my page on Travel Activities for Little Kids!

Let me know in the comments which ones you try out and what works for you!