10 Things I Learned From Our Family Vacation
Posted in Your Family on 22. Sep, 2009
It may be a little late in the year for a post on vacationing with kids, but I thought I’d share my thoughts on the subject anyway. And who knows? Some of you may be planning trips this fall, in which case I hope this helps.
In June, my husband and I decided to take our two kids to Disney World for a family vacation. We had taken our 3 ½ year old two years earlier, but it was a new experience for our 22 month old. This was our first vacation with her, so we were pretty excited. Our plan was to fly down, stay in a hotel, rent a minivan, and see the parks. That’s exactly what we did – but there were some bumps along the way. Mostly we had a good time, but there were moments when I thought my head would explode from the stress of it all. When we went with friends two years earlier (we only had our first child, less than two years old) and it went really well. Even in spite of the fact that I was 8 months pregnant, that trip was easy. I figured, “This trip should be easy as well – we only have one more kid, and I’m not pregnant now, so what could be difficult?” Well, I had a lot to learn.
The Top Ten Things I learned From Our Disney Vacation
- Have your child wear a temporary tattoo with your cell phone number on it. Thankfully we did not become separated from our kids at any point, but I did worry about it in those enormous crowds. Go online and order temporary tattoos – these wonderful things are waterproof and stay on for days. Make sure your cell phone number is on the tattoo – that way, if your child does become lost, an adult will see the phone number and call you right away. Also, do not put the child’s name on the tattoo, for safety reasons.
- If you have two or more kids, bring a side by side double stroller. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I figured we’d only need one stroller. Our 3 ½ year old could either walk or be carried briefly, right? I really thought that she would be running around the park and would not want to sit in a stroller. I was very, very, very wrong! In the Florida heat, amongst the crowds, she needed to be in a stroller. We took turns with her and our younger daughter in the single stroller, carrying whoever wasn’t riding. On the last day we rented a second stroller. That made all the difference in the world. I also suggest a side by side double stroller because (after a lot of “people watching”) those seemed the easiest. Parents wheeled their kids around in those things like it was nothing at all, and the kids were happy and rested. We have a double stroller, but it is a tandem one that sits one child in front of the other. If it’s hard to navigate around the mall, it will be even harder at the Magic Kingdom. Also make sure that your stroller has a shade for the kids, cup holders, and storage bins.
- Pack work-out shirts that wick away the sweat from your body. If you have running clothes, pack them. This isn’t a big deal in the fall, but if you go anywhere during any hot time of year and plan to be outside, just pack clothes that will keep your dry and comfy. I packed regular tops, and realized once I was there that I wished I had just packed my workout shirts.
- Priceline can be an awesome resource – but do your homework. If you haven’t used Priceline yet, I highly recommend it. Research the going rates for local hotels where you plan to stay, because occasionally you can spend more than you should and only find out in hindsight.
As long as you do your homework and research the hotels (and their rates) in the area you want to stay, I suggest booking through www.priceline.com.
- Don’t push it with kids. If you are planning a vacation at a theme park or some other high energy place, make sure and plan breaks. Do something like “one day on, one day off,” or plan half days. When you push your kids, they end up getting way too tired to enjoy anything – and you are wiped out as well.
- Avoid wearing khaki shorts when you go on water rides or if you plan on getting wet at all. When you’re done riding Splash Mountain, it’s no fun to stand up and realize that the whole world can now see through your khakis. Victoria’s “Secret” sounds a bit ironic when your shorts become see-through.
- Have you ever seen those spray bottles attached to fans? They are well worth it. But try and buy one from a CVS or a Walgreens, because they are very pricey in the actual park.
- Don’t flush your cell phone down the toilet. Trust me, it’s possible for a cell phone to fall out of your pocket and into a toilet that is already flushing (thank you, automatic flusher…). Just keep your cell in your purse or hand it to your husband when you go to use the restroom. It’s not fun to watch your phone fling out of your pants pocket and down the drain.
- Plan on eating out a maximum of once a day, not every meal. Maybe this is a no-brainer, but it is tempting to just say, “We’ll get something on the way.” Oh, how that adds up! If you rent a house or a condo, it’s a piece of cake to do this – but it’s harder in a hotel. (This is another reason to really consider where you are staying. Having a kitchen is a huge asset, and you may end up saving more money on food than the extra money you spent on renting a condo instead of a hotel room.)
- Take a million pictures. Looking back on our first trip to Disney, we only took a handful of pictures. I have no idea why, but there are only a few pictures. This time around, we took pictures of everything. The airplane, the hotel, waiting in line on rides, you name it. I am so glad that we did this! Even if you feel silly snapping shots constantly, you’ll be glad you did it. Your kids will thank you too, and then the whole family can look back fondly on your vacation.
- Grace
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