Does anyone else drive around with their kids to get a break?

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“Does anyone else drive around with their kids sometimes so they don’t have to be home with them?” the mum of a three-year-old posted on Reddit.  

What happened next was an authentic, sanity-saving discussion.

Motoring me time

This mum says that if she’s out in the car with her child after running errands or on their way back from an appointment, that a little detour provides a bit of much-needed ‘me time‘.

“Instead of going straight home I’ll circle the neighbourhood sometimes. I do this because I’m tired and need a break but my daughter doesn’t really nap much anymore,” she writes.

“I love my little one and I love feeding her, colouring with her, taking her outside, getting down on the floor and playing with her, but I also love sitting on my butt and not waiting on a tiny person hand and foot, even if it’s just for an extra 15 minutes in the car.”

“I drive and I breathe and once I feel like I’ve decompressed a little, we go home and I jump right back in. Anyone else have an unusual way that they get a little break in?”

Yassss queen!

Plenty of Reddit parents said they did this too with various tweaks and twists.

“Absolutely. Driving is a nice break sometimes,” one parent wrote. “If my kids fall asleep while I’m out driving with them I will usually grab a drive-thru cup of coffee and find a nice shady parking spot until they wake up.”

“I do the same, load my kids up grab a coffee and drive around,” another agreed. “It’s a life saver with an 18 month-old and 7 week old.”

It’s totally a thing – and praise be for drive-through coffee!

Some parents said they make sure to appreciate the little windows of quiet time, however tiny.

“A comedian talks about the ‘mini vacation’ moments in parenting life,” one parent responded. “My favourite one is the time you get to yourself after the kids are strapped in and you close the door, outside the car it’s silent suddenly, so you linger, wandering around the long way to the driver’s door before opening it and stepping back in.”

“Independent time”

And other genius mums and dads have invented a whole new reward which also helps them get a break in:

“My friend who is a SAHM to two young boys has sold the idea of quiet time as ‘independent time’ so it’s not even seen as something they have to do (have to be quiet), but something they GET to do when they are grown enough – to earn independent time instead of nap time. It’s the same thing – quiet play in their room – but definitely seen by the kids as a big-kid-right that they’ve earned!”

“It’s all about the spin!” another Reddit user responded approvingly to this suggestion. “Brilliant!”

Maybe you have your own sneaky ways to squeeze some quiet time in? If you do, we salute you!


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