Long gone are the days of pick-up-and-go travel, when my belongings fit perfectly into a overnight tote, when the books or magazines in that tote would actually get read. Now, of course, it's entertainment for my toddler that swallows up the space in my carryon—after all, baby's airborne happiness translates into a headache-free journey for me, right? Meet the 10 things that have successfully kept my daughter busy on cross-country flights. They're small and lightweight, so you can pack a lot of them without feeling (and looking) like a mule.

1. Travel-Size Doodle Pro: My daughter loves this thing. Kind of like an Etch-A-Sketch, only it has a stylus to draw with.

2. Animal Toobs: Tubes filled with sets of safari-animal and sea-life figurines.

3. Colorwonder: Mess-free markers by Crayola (color shows up only on Colorwonder paper, clear on everything else.)

4. Colorforms: Remember these from when you were little? Kids still love them. Reusable vinyl geometric shapes that you can stick and restick to any shiny surface—like windows and tray tables.

5. Felt or magnetic boards: There are a ton out there to choose from. We like the Eric Carle Very Hungry Caterpillar magnetic board.

6. Travel-size soft-cover books: Again, there are lots to choose from. We're fans of Lauren Child's Charlie and Lola series.

7. iPhone: I love my iPhone, but, truthfully, my daughter loves it more. I loaded it with a few applications for her, along with kid-friendly movies and podcasts rather than lugging a DVD player with me. Check out apps like Wheels on the Bus and Old MacDonald, and podcasts like Sesame Street.

(OK, here's where the list strays a little. We all know that if you give a toddler a gift, they're likely to spend twice as much time playing with the wrapping paper it came in. That said, some of the things that have engaged my daughter the most on the road are nontoy items from around the house.)

8. Post-it notes: My daughter has spent hours filling them up with drawings, handing them out, and sticking them all over the place.

9. Pipe cleaners: These can be twisted into endless shapes--try making little animals or something wearable. (I promise that turning them into sunglasses will leave you all looking ridiculous but laughing.)

10. Blue painter's tape: We actually haven't tried this one yet, but came across the idea on Delicious Baby.  It can be stuck on anything and removed quickly, and can even be used to outline games like hop scotch on the floor. (If your kid is really acting up and all else fails, you can fashion a straightjacket out of it.)

Visit See Jane Fly for more tips on traveling with kids and additional posts by Kena Frank.

The Zune HD went on sale earlier this month, and the solid, thoughtfully designed MP3 player is already giving the iPod a run for its money. Features include a Wi-Fi connection with Web browser, an HD radio, and an easy-to-understand, touch-screen interface that even a 6-year-old could follow. And because it can play 10 hours of HD video right from the palm of your hand or connect and play the videos through your TV, it's handy both for long car rides and hotel rooms. From $219 for a 16GB player. 

Whether it's saving some cash on checking bags or skipping the plastic baggie of liquids and gels, we're all for any product that will make going through airport security less of a hellacious experience. These face-cleansing wipes from Decleor are soothing, eco-friendly, and ideal for removing raccoon eyes after an epic flight-layover-delay red-eye experience.

An MP3 player that costs less than 10 bucks? The light, sturdy Evergreen DN-2000 plays up to five hours of music directly from an SD memory card and is powered by one AAA battery. At $8.50, you won't have to worry about lending your MP3 player to your children--or you could buy one for every member of your family.

We hadn't realized how inadequate regular travel bottles were until we saw the infinitely more functional GoToobs. These new bottles are made of soft rubber (making shampoo easier to squeeze out), have notches on the caps that allow you to indicate what's inside (soap, lotion, etc.), and have wide mouths so you can clean out any gunk that's left at the bottom. In 1.25-, 2-, and 3-ounce sizes--all carry-on approved.

So many people I know have cut their trips back this year or are taking none at all. But rather than giving it a corny name (staycation is one of our least favorite words at Cookie) that makes you feel worse for not going away, why not just call it what it is? Staying home. And that can be an adventure in itself. I just came across these little recipe books, published by Bear Wallow Books: There’s Lewis & Clark: Adventures in Cookery, which gives the history of their journey, along with recipes for things like apple leather and fried corn bread (you might want to skip over the fried squirrel or beaver tail, but your kid might like to hear about it). There’s also Native American Recipes, Old Recipes from Family Farms, and many more. At $5 each, they're really a bargain for an adventure that will take up most of an afternoon.