The Importance of Family Vacations

How important is a family vacation to you? I would love to go on at least one family vacation a year, but that has not been practical. The price of hotel rooms is so high that we end up only going 20 minutes away for a night or two. Also, we haven't really made family vacations a priority before. It would be nice to take frequent trips to relax and enjoy the slow life for a week at a time. I think vacating more together would help develop a happier and healthier home. Personally, I enjoy my mini vacations at Starbucks once a week, but that is not a family experience. Recently, we have been trying to figure out how we can have the time and financial resources to vacate more often.

We just returned from a week vacation in Florida including a two night cruise to the Bahamas. This vacation was the longest vacation since our honeymoon in which we spent a week in the Poconos. It was so nice to get away with just our immediate family. We were able to bond and explore new surroundings together. But most of all, we got to slow down, relax, and enjoy one another.

Overall, the vacation was wonderful, but the worst parts took place at the airports due to our son, Linus, running off on us. His inability to stay with us created unnecessary stress and exra time when traveling through airports. With all their new security, it is very dangerous for a small child to run off by himself. I hope he will grow out of this stage. Next time we go on a plane, I expect that he will be old enough to understand that he needs to stay with his parents when in a public place. The only reason we didn't wait until he was older was that he was just under the age limit to be qualified as a lap child. This way we saved money on his ticket, but dragging a stroller and carseat around an airport is not an easy task. Gladly, we would have rented a carseat from the car rental place, but the cost of $10.00 a day would have totaled $70.00! The fact that a carseat can be checked on a plane for free won out. Four hands are not enough for the luggage of one toddler.

The results of this trip will be many future vacations for our family. We have found a way to maximize our time and make more frequent trips together. Vacation is important for renewal, bonding, and the overall health of the family. It helps create a relaxing environment by being surrounded by a clean hotel room without clutter, laundry, and bills. Being in a new and empty environment makes me want to create a more organized home even more. I wish my own home felt more like a vacation and a safe haven, rather than the pile of stress that it creates at times. After being away for a while, it feels good to be home.