Kareem Black/Getty
There’s a long list of inventions that have made life easier for us moms, and I’m not talking about mankind’s core discoveries such as the wheel, fire and electricity. Instead, I speak of far more important innovations like coffee, epidurals, Velcro, drive-thrus and disposable diapers. In a mommy-centric world, these developments trump Nobel Prize-winning breakthroughs any day of the week. I would now like to add one more device to this distinguished list: the in-car DVD player.
What’s that? You don’t think you need one of these advancements in entertainment? Well, let’s discuss why you may. Today, as our family's trip to the zoo was winding down, I listened to my kids’ umpteenth fight over who was entitled to hold the map. During this squabble, I whispered a slightly audible “Thank you.” I didn’t say this to my husband (who actually ended the disagreement by hijacking the map), but rather at the thought of my car, which has a DVD player locked and loaded. Whenever my day is stressful, the ride is long, or I simply need a minute of peace, I can rely on the DVD player to come to my rescue.
You may ask, "Why not just play car games like every family did for the first 100 years of the automobile’s existence?” I can recall many childhood trips where word games, playing I Spy, singing show tunes and trying to find a license plate for every state, took center stage. I also recall that those treks were long, boring and filled with lulls. Old-school car games and hand-held video games are great fillers, however they rarely provide the 90 minutes of distraction that an in-car movie can deliver.
So, as I refereed my kids’ last disagreement in the gift shop (which you are required to pass through in order to exit the zoo), I breathed a sigh of relief. The mere thought of sliding The Incredibles into the player put a smile on my face and a skip in my step.
