If you’re a sports parent of more than one child, you already know the struggle – keeping the non-playing siblings entertained for hours at the rink, field, or court {without having a tablet in their face}. Enter my all-time favorite mom hack: The Sibling Sports Backpack. This magical bag is the ultimate game-changer for rink rats, sideline siblings, and bleacher kids everywhere.
The #1 Rule: The Backpack Stays in the Car
The key to success? This bag never leaves the car. Ever. It’s a special, sporting-event-only stash of fun that kids don’t get to dig into at home. This keeps it exciting, fresh, and highly coveted every time game day rolls around – plus you never have to worry about forgetting it or having to pack yet another bag to leave the house!
What’s Inside?
The magic of the Sibling Sports Backpack is in the carefully curated contents. Think boredom busters, quiet activities, and mess-free fun that keep kids engaged {without costing you a fortune at the concession stand}. Here are my top 12 items I’ve filled our Sibling Sports Backpack with;
- A ream of paper. You read that right, just a straight-up stack of plain printer paper. Much more cost-effective than notebooks or coloring books. They can make their own signs, drawings, etc. Who knows, the art may even make the tournament highlights!
- Washable Markers. {these are our special fan favorite metallic gel crayons that change up the usual Crayola rotation!}. And I say washable because someone will color on their clothes, the walls, the table, etc. No stress, easy clean-up mess! Pro Tip: ditch the box and just keep them in a plastic ziplock bag inside the sibling backpack so you can quickly consolidate post-game.
- Mini Magnetic Blocks. Kudos to my sister for finding these magical bits of goodness. Picture miniature versions of magnates all neatly in a tiny bag with prompts to build or free play. Whenever we get these out, its guaranteed at least one other mom asks me for the link {which if you travel frequently, these are great for planes + restaurants}.
- Electronic Tic-Tac-Toe. Obviously, they could play on the paper sheets, but this is more fun also has settings for one player if you have a solo sibling looking for a little entertainment.
- Sticker by Number or Letter Books. Perfect for most any age as long as they can match numbers and letters. This keeps our hockey sister squad entertained for hours, and since you can rip the perforated blank page + sticker pages, one book can entertain multiple children. We normally get a few by number and a few by letter in different themes to change up the scenery.
- Magnetic Drawing Board. Something about the click of the magnet balls keeps kiddos entertained for hours, plus all pieces are hooked to the board, so its not like you have to worry about a battery or losing the pen and ruining the fun.
- Wrist Return Ball. This is not a quiet or contained item, BUT it will entertain them for hours, and it’s cheap. This is great for those siblings with LOTS of energy and excess space to burn said energy / away from other fans. If you’re not brave enough you can always replace with a Yo-Yo, we love this soft return Yo-Yo as it helps out littles!
- Reusable Sticker Pads. These are great for the littles. Best trick I ever learned from a friend is that when they are done, all the stickers need to go back to their home aka the clear sheet. This ensures you don’t lose and keeps the backs clean for use over and over again.
- Rubber Band Bracelet Loom or Loom Kit or Bracelet Kits: This was a HIT at our last tournament of the year for everyone, and it was a bonus because we had team color bands so it was a hot ticket item for the sibling squad, athletes, and fans alike. Make sure you have a couple of ziplocks or (these storage bags we use for everything) to put bands and or beads in so they’re not everywhere.
- Activity Books without a ton of accessories: Our favorites include the Klutz Invisible Ink Activity Book or Klutz Fortune Tellers with rip out pages for hours of fun (hello 90s childhood), Cats Cradle (with the string), and various word search and puzzle books to share with everyone!
- Card Games: Uno is great for all ages and even just two people, we also love games like ‘Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza’, Spoons, Skipbo, LRC, and just regular stacks of cards for War!
- Snacks and a Light Weight Refillable Water Bottle. IYKYK. Make sure that bag is locked and loaded with snacks to share and a full bottle of water. We usually bring a bigger bag of snacks to the hotel or keep in the car to refill the sibling backpack before a day of games and keep items fresh (because remember key to success is the bag never leaves the car)!
Bonus Perks: Friendship & Focus
Not only does this bag save your sanity, but it also encourages sibling squads to bond, share, and make new friends with other kids stuck on the sidelines. And best of all? It gives parents a chance to actually watch the game without constant concession stand trips or meltdowns.
Trust me—once you put together your Sibling Sports Backpack (our entire list can be found here), you’ll wonder how you ever survived without it!
What are your must-haves for surviving sports season? Drop your favorite sibling entertainment hacks below!
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