This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #EarthDayDriveAway #CollectiveBias
My middle daughter’s birthday is on Earth Day. In fact, if you ask her when her birthday is, she will tell you it’s Earth Day instead of the date, which I think is a bit adorable.
We don’t do “kid” birthday parties where all the classmates and friends, etc. are invited to a party. I’ve been a mom long enough to know that rarely do people show up, and it just ends up being a disappointment and a hassle. So, I usually give each child the choice of going on a weekend road trip to somewhere fun or going shopping.
Most of the time they pick shopping, but for the past couple years, Molly has chosen road trips to various hotels with water parks. I gave her the choice again this year, and it’s another road trip to a new hotel + water park.
Before we head out on our special birthday road trip, we always get an oil change a few days beforehand at Walmart’s Auto Car Center with Mobil 1™ motor oil. Our minivan is getting up there in miles, so we got the high mileage oil. Walmart makes getting an oil change so easy, and it can be done while we shop for road trip supplies.
Now through 4/30/18, Mobil 1™ is giving Walmart customers a chance to win a Chevy Equinox, plus $10 off their next Mobil 1™ purchase at Walmart! There are two ways to enter to win the Chevy Equinox:
- By purchasing 5 quarts of Mobil 1™ in the store or a Mobil 1™ oil change at the Auto Care Center.
- By recycling any used oil at an Auto Care Center.
It’s so important to remember to recycle your old motor oil, and all you need to do is bring it to Walmart for proper recycling. Plus, doing that gets you another chance to win!
As a bonus, if you purchase 5 quarts of Mobil 1™ synthetic oil or a Mobil 1™ synthetic oil change at the Auto Care Center, you are also eligible to receive a $10 Select Certificate valid on a future Mobil 1™ purchase at Walmart. Don’t know which motor oil is right for your car? You can use the Oil Selector tool on Walmart.com to find out!
Once you’ve done these, head over to the Earth Day Drive Away Sweepstakes to enter for your chance to win the Chevy Equinox and to receive your $10 Walmart Select certificate.
- Limit 2 entries in the sweepstakes per customer (1 for purchasing and 1 for recycling).
- Receipt required to receive $10 Walmart Select Certificate.
- Terms and conditions, FAQs, and other information can be found at EarthDayDriveAway.com.
To make birthday road trips feel special, I do a few things for the birthday kid.
#1 Call ahead to your destination and ask if they do anything special for birthdays. We found one hotel/water park gives the birthday kid special animal ears with a birthday hat. They also had options to order a cake delivered right to the hotel room.
#2 Bring along or stop for a birthday treat. Sometimes, I secretly bring along cupcakes for a little family party in the hotel room. Other times, we make stop on the way at a bakery and let the birthday kid pick out something special.
#3 Pack some small gift bags for the birthday kid to open during the road trip. Even though the trip is her birthday gift, I also like her to open a present or two. I pack little lunch bags with blind bags or small activities she can do in the car on the way.
#4 Find a extra special thing to do while on the road trip. We find a fun ice cream parlor or have her pick out a unique souvenir — just something to remind her of her special birthday trip.
I always look forward to when the kids choose a birthday road trip for their birthdays. It’s become a fun tradition and special time in our family.
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16 comments
We always drop our car off at Walmart for an oil change before we head out on road trips. I love doing it there because I can shop while they do the oil change.
I don’t drive anymore so our road trips are usually train trips which is cool by me. When I did drive however, I always used the Walmart garage for oil changes
Oh cool, having a birthday on the road would be fun! I love your ideas. Walmart always has great stuff. I have gotten my oil changed there.
Such great tips! We’ve never gone on a birthday road trip, but that’s a really great and fun idea. I’d never think of it myself, but sounds fun!
It looks like your daughter had a wonderful time. We love going on road trips anytime. The first thing we do before we go on a road trip is going in oil change and check our tire pressure.
We always check the oil (and fluids, tires, etc) before a road trip. I used to get my oil changes at Walmart because the pricing was good but the auto center closed.
I love the idea of a birthday road trip! I agree that getting your car checked up on is best before a road trip, and having someone who knows what they are doing performing the maintenance is best.
I love the idea of not having parties during birthday and going on a road trip instead. I guess I will copy this idea when I become a mom in the future. Plus of course, having a gift that your kids can open on his/her birthday. 🙂
I am all for road tripping and I think it is so cool your kiddo has picked road trips the past couple of years! I agree we have to be sure our cars are road trip ready!
I love that Walmart offers this service, it’s so convenient. It looks like you guys had a great time.
We have made this a tradition now, a birthday roadtrip,. Ever since my kids turned 9, I stopped hosting parties and go on roadtrip instead. I love the idea of packing small gift bags.
This is a great idea. I imagine birthday parties get boring after a while. Taking a birthday road trip is a wonderful idea!
How cute that her birthday is on Earth Day and she loves that! I think it’s a great idea to do a road trip as something special for a birthday – it’s really all about spending time with that person anyway!
I love the birthday road trip idea. Oh let’s be honest, I love a good road trip anytime! And it’s so important to be prepared for them so they stay fun!
I love this! We stopped doing birthday parties a few years ago in exchange for family trips or experiences, one year we did Great Wolf Lodge and it was amazing! Trying to plan a couple trips for May and June birthdays now.
What some awesome ideas, they are bound to make memories that will last forever as I definitely remember days out and trips more than parties from my childhood.