What is one of the most exhausting, exasperating and stressful thing I have done in this motherhood journey? You think I'm going to say childbirth, right? No, what I'm talking about is taking those beloved children on vacation.
Below are a few things I've learned about surviving vacation with small kids while creating memories and building traditions.
1) Keep it familiar. The past two years we have gone to the same city for a beach trip. This is great because the kids always know what they are going to do and what they want to do. It's familiar, and as long as the kids keep thinking it's fun, it can be a win-win.Hearing my son talk about where we were going to get ice cream, and the first restaurant he wanted to eat at made me smile for probably an hour down the road.
2) Bring reinforcements. Most of time this means grandparents tagging along and it usually works out great. Parents get a night out (or two, if you are lucky) and we don't get sick of each other by the third day.
3) Remember to be flexible. I know this is a given. We know it, but after 10 hours in a car watching Wreck It Ralph over and over along with eating crap food (there really is no other appropriate word for the stuff we eat on the road) my patience is shot. If everyone is in a bad mood, all the kids are going to remember was how crabby mom was, not how great fishing on the boardwalk was. Word.
4) Remember your favorite. One of the things we have started doing with our kids is asking them on the last night of vacation what each of their favorite part was. It actually makes all the hard work, organization and exhaustion worth it to hear your kids talking about what they loved about vacation.
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