I'm currently on vacation with my family in the Lower Mainland, which started in the Valley, involved a bit of time in the city, and then we took a ferry to the Sunshine Coast. We've made this trip down from the Okanagan many times over the years to visit our extended family here at the coast and we've spent a few summers traveling down to Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast. I've been reflecting on how easy this trip has been now that my oldest child is entering sixth grade, my middle child is entering fourth grade, and my youngest is entering second grade. They can read, they have electronics, and sometimes we just... talk.
It wasn't always so easy, especially since we had those three kids in less than four years. Traveling when they were smaller — and strapped into car seats — was a little bit trickier. Here are some things we did that made the trip far less painful.
1. Stop frequently. We would stop every hour and a half to two hours for a break. We would stretch our legs, use the facilities (and change diapers), and maybe grab a fun snack. We can drive for longer periods now that they're older, but planning for frequent stops when they were little took the stress off a bit.
2. Pack a lot of water and snacks. We usually leave right after a meal, with plenty of snacks — both healthy ones and treats — to keep blood sugar levels regular and to cut down on vacation costs.
3. Buy new toys. Nothing extravagant, but having a magic bag of new dollar store toys that you can dip into mid-meltdown is worth every penny.
4. Invest in a DVD player. When our first child was a baby, my husband was adamant that we would never have a DVD player in our vehicle, even for long road trips. Then we traveled to the coast when our son was eighteen months old and my husband changed his tune. Our little dude was strapped in, with no ability to change positions to get more comfortable. After we'd exhausted all of the toys we brought along, he was still fussy and cranky and who can blame him. That DVD player served us well in the preschool years and now that the kids are older, it's been shelved.
5. Plan the trip around one of the nap times. Having that blissful chunk of silence can go a long way to taking your stress level down. On a related note, realize that nap schedules will likely go out the window and that's okay. You're on vacation, remember?
Do you have any tips to share?
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