[Judilyn]

We leave in 2 weeks for a long awaited vacation to Minnesota. We are renting a log cabin on a very secluded lake and I just can't wait to get there.

We have always had a van but a year ago in June I was in a bad accident ( I was hit by a garbage truck). My van was totaled. When we looked to replace it we decided to go back in to a car because our daughter will be driving soon and we figured that we would not need another van. Bad judgment on our part, I have many times wished for a van again.

Anyway this is a 9 hour drive in a medium size car. My kids are 16, 13, and 8. Any suggestions for keeping such a wide age range happy on a long trip? I know that part of the time she (my teen)will be driving so that will break up the trip for her. What I am dreading is the 3 of them stuck in a small space for 9-10 hours. They were so much easier to keep entertained when they were small, loved to listen to nursery rhyme tapes and would sing the Itsy Bitsy Spider 500 times. And, at least they slept for part of the trip. My 16 year old is already complaining about being dragged off from her friends to the land of no where!

Any suggestions or words of wisdom?
Thanks
Judilyn