The Mom Stash III

They say a man’s home is his castle.

We moms command a different palace—the family car. And since we spend so much time there, we might as well fortify it with all things we need to do battle. Here’s the latest in our irregular Mom Stash series—tried and tested ideas to equip your car for any encounter. (We keep a plastic dollar-store basket stocked up and handy for a variety of battles.)

For the Snack Battle
For many kids, the click of that carseat harness evokes a Pavlovian response and the ‘Can I have a snaaaaaack?’ cry ensues. Keep a stash of non-perishable food such as fruit leather and crackers in the car at all times, replenishing as necessary. Add a box of paper coffee filters (the cone-shaped ones work better than the flat-bottomed ones) to divvy the snacks out into, and you’ve got disposable snack holders and napkins all in one.

For the Ensuing Garbage Battle
Where there are snacks, there must be garbage. Keep your old facial tissue boxes and bring them into the car to use as a garbage receptacle. The plastic on the top keeps the garbage in and when it gets full you just throw the whole thing out.

For the ‘It Fell Down!’ Battle
We’ve been having lots of fun with our Gopher pick up and reaching tool. Keep one in the passenger seat (not for use while driving!) and you can be a hero when Jack’s teddy bear falls down in the back of the van without anyone having to undo their seatbelt. (Also invaluable for those with bad lower backs due to pregnancy, child birth, child rearing, schlepping, lugging and parenting in general.)

For the Under the Foot Battle
We know this is a little OTT but if it makes you feel better (it does for us), keep a small whisk broom (the wire-wound corn ones work the best) in the vehicle for whisking (natch) sand, mud and Goldfish/Cheerio crumbs off the carpet. Waiting for everyone to pile in? Go for a little clean sweep to pass the time. We also like the 12-Volt Wet/Dry Vacuum from Canadian Tire. No batteries to worry about—it runs on the car’s power.

For the Cold Feet Battle
No need to keep the troops away from puddles when you have an extra pair of socks for everyone. Also helpful for the “I am getting dressed all on my own but have managed to make it out to the car without socks and have to be at preschool in five minutes” stage.

For the “Not Today—It’s Been Raining” Battle
Keep an old towel in the car and you can conquer all those wet slides in the playground after a little rain (or other interior mishaps with the juice box straw). Everyone’s happy (and you look like a genius)!

For the Fine Dining Battle
You’re always restaurant-ready if you keep a small bag (we use a medium size freezer bag) of washable markers, pencil crayons, stickers and index cards to bring in for pre-meal entertainment. Add a Tide to Go pen and you can take on any dessert!

So pick your battles (you might not need it all) and cache some of this stuff in your stash.

Now, if only we could think of a way to fit a butler and a valet in there—then the war would be won (and we wouldn’t be leaving them in the car, that’s for sure).

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