On the trip up to Rhinebeck, we were discussing cars and how souped up they are these days. How you can even get them with satellite tv’s and while this may seem like nirvana to parents on long road trips that something is lost. What about “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall”? What about all of those this-trip-is-never-going-to-end-so-let’s-stare-out-the-window-and-play-a-game games??
Have you ever played the license plate game? Well, we did!
We had a lot of laughs with this and played it both coming and going. Rules were set up – no parked cars, only vehicles with someone behind the wheel. We were all surprised by the variety of plates we saw. And something was definitely up with North Carolina —- there were tons of those cars on the road.
That’s my column there on the left hand side. I almost ran out of room I was so good at that game. ; ) There was some fierce discussion from a certain poor loser in the back seat about what value a Consulate plate should receive. I believe they are the wild card of the license plate game and should have extra points attached. I know I didn’t need to argue about it since I was so far in the lead, but it’s the point of the matter. And check out Vicki spotting another cheesehead on the road!
discuss.
purlingswine 
I’m glad you posted the picture. Now everyone can see how you cheat.
I always knew she was a cheater Cara. Thanks for exposing her.
So who was driving this vehicle??? Ann, if it was you, how on earth were you watching the road!
My favorite road-trip game has always been the ABC game. I was telling Cara how I always loved it when we’d go through MINOCQUA (in northern Wis. — on the way up to “up north”) because I could usually get through the alphabet TWICE (all those Qs and piZZa joints).
; )
You know, I’ve never actually played this game. Clearly, I had a deprived (or is that depraved?) childhood.
My favourite activity on long car trips involved a map and a highlighter. Whenever we saw the next town on the route, we’d highlight the road from our previous position to the current town. It also had the benefit of stopping the “when will we get there” questions (I think), since we knew exactly where we were, and where we were going. This activity also happened to be cheap (a set of maps and a highlighter per kid… we each had our own to prevent bickering) and teach us map reading.
We also played lots of adlibs and other car activity books… again, one book per child to prevent fights.
Gawd! I hope YOU were not driving!
I also remember fondly…
“MOM! He’s looking at me!”
“MOM! She’s touching me!”
and the ever popular….
“MOM! She’s looking out my window!”
good times.
And then? From MY childhood of wonder?
There’s:
“Don’t make me stop this car”
and the classic
“I’ll give you something to cry about!”
Yup. Good, good times.
xo
Me and my best bud had a fun one while on the way to Atlantic City. She always sat on the right and I on the left. We would both scrunch down in our seats, she putting her right foot out of her window, and I my left. We’d move our feet in unison. We could tell by the parents’ comments if we were noticed. No seatbelts either!
How is it I’ve never played this game? Unpopular though it may make me, I still think you’re right about the consulate plate.
My kids and I made hundreds of 1.5-hour trips between home and the cabin. For some reason we never played the license plate game, but we loved the category game (one person picks a category, like characters on The Simpsons, and we take turns naming them; whoever can still name one more after everyone else has run out wins and gets to pick the next category) and our version of the alphabet game (had to spot an object outside the car that started with the next letter of the alphabet; for q and x it was allowed to find an object whose name contained the letter rather started with it). Good times!