BeddingBlog

Archive for February, 2010

When planning a family vacation, don’t get ahead of yourself and pick a tropical island like Fiji before taking a few things into consideration…Fiji might have been great when it was just our husbands and us, but now that we have kids, do you really want to sit on a plane for 12+ hours, or even 2 hours for that matter?  Probably not.  So here are my top 10 vacation ideas to have a relaxing, enjoyable and stress-free trip.

1. Plan the trip wisely. Take into consideration EVERYONE’S interests…There is no need to try to fit everything into one trip, but wherever you decide to go, make it a place where there’s a variety of things to do.  For instance, the kids might enjoy the museums, I would love the shopping and my husband would get to go on the boat or see a sports game.  A couple good places that we’ve considered are Chicago, Las Vegas, Austin, and Seattle.  So much variety and lots of kid/adult friendly activities.
2. Make a Travel List. Something we started doing a long time ago was making a travel list – we started compiling all those things we “forgot” on short trips to visit the in-laws.  This way when we take an extended trip we wouldn’t forget a staple item.  The other thing to remember is that almost ANYTHING you forgot can be replaced, so don’t worry about it after you left, it’s too late anyways.
3. Take the scenic route… I used to enjoy flying before we had kids, but now I’ve realized as long as the kids can handle a road trip, I’d much rather have my own car when we get to where we are going, and save myself the trouble of getting two children through security at the airport and onto a cramped airplane.  Not to mention taking kids to the bathroom on a plane or in an airport is NO FUN!
4. Try new things. One of the events we have planned for our next family road-trip is camping.  There are so many beautiful places around the country that I want to share with my kids that it’s impossible not to spend at least one night in the great outdoors.  What more can you ask for than some fun campfire stories and roasting hot-dogs and marshmallows like when we were kids.  However you don’t have to camp to try new things – we’ve tried to get our children to be open minded especially when it comes to food and going to seafood, barbeque and different cultural types of restaurants can be fun.  I can’t think of a better way to make memories than by trying new foods – my parents did this with us growing up and I have special memories from “the first time I ever ate…”
5. Preparation makes perfect… Well, not quite, but when it comes to work, it definitely helps.  Whenever we travel, I try to get ahead with work and take care of everything in advance so that I don’t have to be bothered on vacation.  By allocating responsibilities out to others to handle while I’m gone, even if a situation arises at work, it can be handled while I’m not there (or at least until I get back .
6. Stick to a Schedule. Now you might think that when you’re on vacation, you can sleep in and do nothing, well especially with kids, that’s not the case.  I try to make sure that we eat breakfast at about the same time (and not just fast food breakfasts – all the fat in it will end up wearing you down), lunch and dinner.  When travelling, our usual day goes (get up, work out in the hotel) shower, check e-mail (take care of any work) then make sure everything gets packed, loaded into the car and kids are ready.  Everything seems to go smoothly if we stay on track and stick to a somewhat “regular” schedule.
7. WASH YOUR HANDS! I used to think this was just for when you’re at home, but when traveling its more important than ever to wash your hands all the time.  After travelling with sick kids, you’ll know there’s no better way to ruin a vacation than by colds and flu.  Make sure your kids take their vitamins when traveling (and you too).  This is another reason why I stopped flying with the kids – every time I got onto an airplane (even worse during colder months) was that I would get sick and there is NO WAY I would risk having sick children on the trip.
8. Plan ahead. I know that I already said plan, but this one deserves two spots.  Not only should you plan where you’re traveling to, but also what you’ll be doing.  You’ll want to call ahead to find out when places are open, what the costs of each attraction are and make sure that you have a rough idea of what will be going to happen each day.  You don’t want to get bored while you’re on vacation and ask yourself – “what’s there to do?”
9. Eat Healthy. Not to ruin a vacation, but if I have to eat junk food for a week, and gain five pounds from a lack of exercising, I’ll be cranky and swear off vacations when I return home.  So, don’t throw your healthy diet by the wayside, simply choose to eat healthy and enjoy sweets and treats in moderation.  The better you eat, the better the moods will be during the trip also!
10. Pack for the weather. Even though it might be cold or warm when you leave, you might enjoy cool, cold or even hot weather and it’s always a good idea to pack accordingly.  If you have room, I always try to pack my childrens’ bedding (all year round bedding).  Not only does it keep them warm in a cool hotel room, but I found they sleep MUCH better when they have something from home.  It does sound strange to bring your own bedding and pillows, but it makes for a more enjoyable trip.

So with these 10 easy steps, you’ll have the family vacation of a lifetime and be sure to make memories just like the ones when you were a kid.  However I can assure you that my daughter and son will never know how lucky they are NOT to have 3 other siblings crowed in a suburban with no rear air for the 10 hour drives that we were so lucky to enjoy as kids!!  And as a parent, I am mighty glad that they don’t know what that’s like either!