Traveling with little ones this summer? It can be a bit scary, but enough planning and organization can make a difference to a potentially awful and stressful vacation. If you want to ensure you have a great experience for years to come, read on!
It is important to remember there will be bumps, so it is best to relax and go with the flow. The very first family vacation my husband and I decided to take was up north to my parent’s cabin with our little children. We were excited for the swimming, strolling downtown, and spending time on the beach. I had envisioned a relaxing vacation, where everyone would be happy and enjoy playing with one another.
What I didn’t imagine is the amount of time I would be saying “no.” From the moment arrived at the condo, I spent most of the time saying “no” and “don’t touch that.” We were staying in a cabin that was completely furnished with a complete kitchen, laundry room and basement, which would have been great for my husband and me, but now with kids it was blaringly obvious how un-baby proof this place was. I had to make my husband run out and purchase safety plugs for all of the outlets and a couple of baby gates or else I would be spending most of our vacation in the emergency room of filling out insurance claims.
I also didn’t expect the tantrums. Didn’t they know we were on vacation? A supposed to be relaxing vacation at that? One of the children yelled out, “No have fun!” I couldn’t believe that he was completely opposed to having fun. When a toddler is in a bad mood, there is almost nothing you can do to change that. I was beginning to wonder if this was vacation was a waste of time. I didn’t think I had unrealistic expectations of our family vacation, but I did imagine it going a bit better. It felt like we were at home; like it was every day and that we only changed the location of where they could throw their tantrums. I considered that maybe it would be best if we just went back home.
At my husband’s suggestion, he insisted that we take the kids to the beach. He was certain that things would make a change for the better, but I was certain that we would face another disaster. But he was right! From the moment the kids stepped onto that beach and saw the water for the first time, the mood had shifted. The look in their eyes, as they saw the beach for the first time, reminded me why we go through the stress of going on vacation. At that moment, it made everything well worth it.
I’m glad you didn’t decide to go back home, even with a crabby toddler! It is well worth it! I did it with my son when he was a toddler and he was not happy at first, but he loved it by the time we left! 🙂
This is really smart! No one plans on an accident, best to be prepared!
Vacations can definitely be stressful to plan and get to. However, I do believe they are totally worth it in the end.
I often find vacations stressful, but like you said, totally worth it later. We are planning for next month.
Vacations are so worth it but oh they can be a headache to get ready for! It can be so hard to predict what you need while you are gone!
I can bet it was tempting to head home on your vacation. I’m glad you were able to have fun!
Sometimes all it takes to help uplift a vacation is a change of scenery. I bet you don’t say ‘my husband was right’ often though, eh 🙂
Ugh, I remember one vacation when my dad fell at the beach. He ended up tearing something in his ankle and it was horrible. Anything can happen, that’s for sure. Thanks for the reminder to be sure we are covered.
Traveling with kids can be so tricky. A change of scenery was a great idea. I am glad you were able to have some fun.
I never understood why my mother would be stressed on vacation until I became a mother myself. It’s hard to relax when you are worried about something happening to your children. I am glad you were able to have some of that stress taken away.
It’s definitely not always predictable how the kids are going to feel. I’m glad the trip to the beach made it all worth it!
YES! It’s hard to know what kids will do, want, or need. I try to accommodate everyone on the trip especially if we are going to be far from home. Glad it all worked out in the end.
Traveling with kids is so hard! This is so smart!