Cultivating Calmness in the Car

If you missed the last couple weeks of this series you can find the links here:

Cultivating Calmness: Turn Down the Noise
Cultivating Calmness: 1 Simple Step to Calmer Mornings

I watched as my husband carefully loaded the car seat into the car and latched it into place. Our newborn baby was already fussing and I was exhausted. The sounds that were coming from my precious little one nearly sent me into a panic attack as I wondered how in the world I was going to care for this new life. She screamed the entire way home. I unbuckled the car seat and gently took her into my arms and I cried. I think we both cried for the next six months. Ha! Seriously.

We have had many car rides since that day over nine years ago, some crazy and some quiet. I have heard that some babies like to sleep in the car and their parents will take them for a late night drive just to soothe them to sleep. For us, our first child never adjusted to enjoying a car ride. No one prepared me for car rides with a child who was throwing things my way, screaming at the top of her lungs or stripping off shoes, hair bows and anything else she could manage to wiggle out of. I have vivid memories of pulling over on the side of the road to let her know she better straighten up. I have slightly slammed on the brakes to jolt her to attention. I even waved my right arm like a windmill trying to reach for her behind the seat. Car rides were difficult for my independent toddler and me.

Now that my children are a little older and we have grown beyond temper tantrums and throwing things at the driver (for the most part), we have been able to establish some routines that have helped us have a smoother adventure when we venture out. If you are still in the baby stage and you happen to have a child who does not love the car, take my word for it, there is hope!

If you have a child or two that do not make car rides pleasant, here are a few ideas to calm the chaos in the car:

Have a car ride routine.

Here is our most recent routine:

– We pray on the way, even if it is only a five-minute ride to Target. We all take turns praying. Sometimes we reach our destination by the time prayers are complete and no one has had an opportunity to antagonize each other or act up.

…Lord, Teach us to pray…Luke 11:1(NASB)

– We study our Awana books. Awana is a scripture memory program at our church. The kids know when we get in the car, the Awana books come too.

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11(NIV)

– We listen to Christian music and sometimes we dance. There is nothing like a child’s voice singing praises to Jesus. My kids have their favorite songs and when those songs come on the radio, we crank up the music. This is much more fun than arguing.

Oh sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth! Psalm 96:1(ESV)

– If all of our efforts of a calm car ride fail, we sit in the silence. Yes, you heard that right – silence. If we have attempted our routine above, and attitudes are blaring or feelings are being hurt, we have quiet time.

You’ve heard the old saying, “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. Ephesians 4:29(KJV)

Car rides forever changed once I brought my first newborn home. Our strategies have morphed through the years from Cheerios and chicken nuggets to praying and singing. No, we are not perfect, just doing the best we can to keep everyone safe, singing and enjoying a little silliness.

Do car rides bring stress into your day? Try a new routine. Give it a couple of weeks before you give up. You might be surprised what it will do to transform your chaotic car rides to calm.

If you have some fun games or ideas that your family enjoys in the car, please share them in the comments below! I would love to hear what works for your family!

How will your car rides look this week? Calm or crazy?

We probably look a little crazy because we are that family who sings and dances in the car. What about you?

Love & Blessings,

Micah

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