With the big travel weekend coming up in a few days, I thought I’d share our other newfound travel toy.

Hoopla.

Toys get boring after a while, but TV is forever. Or something like that.

After getting to SFO way too early, and Bean shaking with the jittery excitement of an AIRPLANE TRIP and grandma’s house, we needed a way to calm things down and now. Which is how I finally came to download the Hoopla app.

In a matter of minutes, I had plugged in my SF library card number, scrolled through hundreds of kids’ shows, “borrowed” Bean’s favorite, and had Bean sitting calmly between us, eyes plastered to a brand new episode of Stella & Sam.

Just like that. Silence.

Now, obviously, you’ll need some kind of wifi signal (or high data plan on your phone) so this isn’t the perfect solution to long desert car rides. But, in an airport or other waiting lounge, it is nearly magical. And it’s all for free.

Hoopla also lets you borrow audiobooks and actual books, so once your kid is tired of TV (hahaha! if your kid ever gets tired of TV) you can switch over to borrowing picture books to read together.

Hoopla is available through iTunes or Google Play.

More reading:

Axis 360: Read Practically Any E-Book or Audiobook You Want, at Any Time, For Free

Our New Favorite Travel Toy (For the Three Year Old Set)

Get Into Nearly Any SF Museum For Free, With a Library Card