You have my sympathy--and my empathy. As a toddler, my son furiously protested being in his car seat, so I had to entertain him, unseen, from a distance and drive carefully at the same time. Talk about stress! The best options for amusing a car-bound toddler meet the criteria ofrequire novelty, independence, and safety, since --you can't constantly keep handing him things, or play patty cake, nor constantly can you watch him constantly as you're driving. Some ideas:

Although young children don't improve their fitness levels in the same way adults do when they "work out" or exercise, it's not harmful to do some physical activity that mimics the type of movements that are involved in skiing.

Don't jump to conclusions--there could be a million reasons why your neighbor turned your son away from an impromptu play date. Maybe she really was hosting a child who has some kind of condition that prevents her from playing well with others. Maybe the mom only had energy enough to watch two kids instead of three. (Come on, you know what it takes to entertain more kids than you bargained for.) It's possible, too, that your 6-year-old didn't relay the message correctly--6-year-olds aren't the most dependable messengers on the planet--trust me, mine isn't! Or maybe your instincts are right: Perhaps the neighbor didn't want your son over because she doesn't want her child playing with the new black kid.

As long as she is not trying to climb out, you can leave her where she is. Most children remain in their crib until 2 or 2-and-a-half years old.