Healthy snacks looong car journey help

chirpychick

Hi
Trying to cut a long story short!
We are going to visit my grandparents next weekend as my grandad is in his final stages of life and the journey can take around 7 hours.
It's the first time we have had no choice to travel during daylight hours with my son who is 3.5.
The journey is going to be tough as it is as he has speech & language disorder, sensory processing disorder and being assessed for dyspraxia and ASD. The various learning difficulties and emotional delay will make for a stressful time for him as well as having to be out of routine for 4 days and going to a strange place with people he only recognises the voices of over the phone.
But he also has a lot of allergies (like his dad!)
The whole trip is costing what is to us a small fortune, having to stay in a caravan and the diesel etc but I know when in the car all he will want to do is eat lol!
I can keep him off for a couple of hours but when he starts in the car there is no stopping him!
So I need some help thinking of low cost snacks that fit in with his allergies that I can possibly make in advance.
So his food allergies are:
All additives for example sulphites so no raisins or dried fruit.
Most herbs and spices(!)
So I mostly have to make his own bread as I can't find any he can eat. Though he's ok with small amounts.
He won't eat crunchy foods (hypersensitive mouth) so no Apple ( unless stewed soft like in muffins) no carrot sticks or cucumber.
He's prone to gagging and choking which we have had investigated but appears to be related to hyper sensitivity.

He adores sausage rolls which I can make.

And we are nut free as husband is allergic.

If there's things people can suggest that are really very cheap is be so grateful.

chirpychick

Oh also he likes fruit, banana, watermelon, cut up grapes, blueberries, strawberries etc all of which I'll take but I don't want to give him too much or he'll be bouncing off the car walls and pooping for England lol which is not what you need on a long car journey

NewShadow

Hi there.

One problem I'm foreseeing is that he might not want to eat anything 'new' if he has sensory issues.

Anyway to exhaust him before hand (keep him up the night before/wake him early) so he's more likely to sleep?

Depending on the driver and route, you could try and screen some of the light so it's a bit darker in the back.

Assuming not, if you make bread, could you make breadsticks?

Thinking for dipping and if you made a few 'flavours' he might be less bored.

I'm also thinking if you made mini sausage rolls, and maybe some mini cheese and onion pasties, or some filled with veg/mash (like vegetable fingers from tesco).

Small things take longer to eat (theoretically). So if you gave him a couple of mini rolls it could keep him occupied for longer than just one.

If he likes soft fruit, how does he feel about baked carrot? Cut it into chunks and roast for about 20 minutes. Sweet, not crunchy, less sugar than fruit.

You could take a tub of stewed apple, if he likes it. Or for in the future, you can make dried fruit, or buy sulphate free dehydrated fruit - but not sure if you want to?

FairyPrincessk

I'm not sure if the additives include those found in bread and wraps, but presumably you have a safe option, so what about pin-wheels? Spread thinly with any of these he can have: tuna mayo,chicken mayo, cream cheese/shredded cucumber, hummus (if he can have it, you could make your own and blend extra smooth), or pretty much any smooth or creamy sandwich filling, roll up and slice. If he can't eat wraps, you can do the same by flattening sliced bread with a rolling pin.

You could also do muffins, or put the muffin mixture into a loaf tin. Slice and then cut the slices into 'fingers' and wrap individually to dole out. Banana loaf could also work this way and there are so many recipes out there I'm sure you can find one with minimal added sugar!

Maybe make up your own mini tubs of yogurt to keep the sugar minimal. Flavor with mashed banana or cut up fresh fruits that he likes if he'll tolerate the texture of 'lumps' in the yogurt.

If cheese is an option, then a bit of that--perhaps in cubes.

I've also seen people use ice cube trays for a sort of mini 'smorgasbord.' 3.5 might be a bit young for this as it might just get flung around, but if not you could put bits of fruit in a few cubes, small bits of sausage roll (either sliced or make mini ones), pin wheels with a couple of flavours etc. This might eke out how long it takes to eat.

Peas/Sweetcorn are also often used as snack food. I'd probably use frozen and then defrost and give him a few to try before leaving to see if he'll eat them.

You might get some ideas here:
http://welsien.blogspot.co.uk/2011/07/july-15-2011-toddler-tapas.html

Tiddlywinks

Would he eat popcorn? Or is that too crunchy or 'odd' for him.

Finger sandwiches - as they are smaller and can be spread over a longer eating time.

Does he eat jelly? You could make small jelly pots with some tinned fruit in it... that's tasty and light.

Have a look on your planned route and use stops where there are child friendly services so that he can have a bit of a run around - would that help for keeping him calm in the car?

My mum (LOL) was a hyper chatty and excited passenger and it used to annoy me beyond anything with her 'are we there yet' kind of questions... even in her 70s!

So, I used to give her landmarks to watch out for and tick off the list.

I know your son is only 3 but could you have a kind of I Spy game as part of the journey? Or would that make him too anxious?

Best wishes as I know the reason for the journey makes this extra difficult for you all.

DigForVictory

Dried fruit need not include sulphites - but then I have a dehydrator and a mandolin (Wicked slicing tackle!) and make my own dried fruit to the squishiness I like it.

I do appreciate you have too much else to worry about right now, but if you've a friend with a dehydrator, could they do a couple of things for you?

cheel

Flapjacks maybe? Mini ones. They are very filling so might help. My son gets awful car sick so distractions work for us. We play the rainbow game. Spot something red, then something orange then yellow ect all through the colours. We also male up silly stories one line each my sons Line is usually about poop but he found it hilarious! Might stretch out the food requests xxx

Cornucopia

Another vote for Flapjacks (can be made into various shapes & sizes).

Also Banana Bread (oats, banana, egg and honey are the basic ingredients, with baking powder, and you can add other things like coconut or orange zest)

Lynplatinum

Hiya

Dont just think of food!

I used to specialise in teaching children like yours and the need to fend off boredom is immense!!
So once every hour, in a paper bag have a new activity.
Suggestions include:
finger knitting (yes you will have to be in the back to show him how)
small note pad (plain) and paper to draw on + pencil (NOT PEN!)
Using pad show him how to make an animated 'flick book'
sing along CD for the car of theme tunes from shows he knows
dot to dot pages
dice - roll them with him and count the spots - add up two dice together - see who 'wins' out of ten trys each.

Hope this helps

chirpychick

Lynplatinum wrote: »

Hiya

Dont just think of food!

I used to specialise in teaching children like yours and the need to fend off boredom is immense!!
So once every hour, in a paper bag have a new activity.
Suggestions include:
finger knitting (yes you will have to be in the back to show him how)
small note pad (plain) and paper to draw on + pencil (NOT PEN!)
Using pad show him how to make an animated 'flick book'
sing along CD for the car of theme tunes from shows he knows
dot to dot pages
dice - roll them with him and count the spots - add up two dice together - see who 'wins' out of ten trys each.

Hope this helps

Don't worry I am not just thinking of food lol.
We have a busy box which I made up this evening I'll share for if it helps others:
Playdoh - bag of cutters and shapers, bag of pipe cleaners and large buttons to make aliens etc, bag of body parts (lol)
Bag of dinosaurs
Bag of army men
Bag of farm animals
Bag of stickers
Crayons & paper
Hot wheels cars
Books
Bottle tops with numbers on
Alphabet and number duplo
Thomas minis
MP3 player to plug in the car with audio books and music
DVD player loaned to us and 4 DVDs
And if all else fails the tablet
Nothing has cost me anything it's all stuff used from home.

Hubby will be laminating a map at work with the route marked out (maps are an obsession) plus stages of the journey to mark off, landmarks to spot and our stops clearly marked out.

I can't sit in the back as I get horrendously car sick.

Thank you everybody for your help and suggestions.

Ive got a decent list of what I'll be making

Oh and we also have the comfort sensory chews as well which might help though he's not that keen and would still give his arm for a dummy! (Which yes I do have back ups of because nothing else will cure a meltdown - please no judgement- we r trying to wean him off it).

I'm anxious about it as he's become a lot harder this past 6 months but also with my own car sickness and the stress of everything I think I really needed somewhere to vent so thanks for helping me and allowing me. Hopefully it will be a lot better than i anticipate.