Vacation Survival Guide

After recently embarking on our first family vacation, I think I have come back a wiser woman. Traveling with children is never easy, but traveling with three children under 3 was definitely.... memorable :) Needless to say, from long car trips, to fast-food, to ferry rides, to hotels, here are a few of the things I learned along the way.

Tantrums, Meltdowns, and Domestic Disasters

After driving all afternoon, we finally arrived at our first stop. And it begins... unload kids, unload playpens, unload suitcases, bring in the diaper bag, bring in blankets and other items of attachment. Go in, get kids in their pajama's, feed them snacks, put them to bed. Run back to the car for all the things we have forgotten along the way. An hour later, the kids finally finally fell asleep and we crawled into bed, exhausted and preparing for the wake-up call at 4:30am.
12:00am... Malakai wakes up for a bottle. By the time I get it ready and come back to him he is asleep. Run back up and put the bottle in the fridge.
1:00am... Selah throws up. Over everything! Look for a washing machine, unsuccessful, hope you can get it washed in time for tomorrow.
2:00am-Caleb wakes up crying. Run upstairs looking for throw-up containers... just in case. He is fine. Go back to sleep.

4:30am-Time to get up and go! I get ready, wake up the kids (Selah throws up again), and we rush to the ferry.
Can you say gong show?!?!?!?! Needless to say, we did it. We got there. Selah was exhausted, sick, and basically a walking meltdown. I have never dealt with my kids in such extreme circumstances. So many things to remember, danger lurks in every corner. They wander off, trying to keep our eyes on them at all times. Now that I look back I really don't know how I did it, somehow you just do it. You just get by. You still find joy in the circumstances, despite the screaming child in your arms. You are tired, you are annoyed, but you are excited and in awe of all the new things. Watching Caleb run around on the boat, watching their eyes light up as they looked out at the water. Through pouring rain, we persevered. And it was one of the best experiences of my life!

So, vacation survival tip number 1: Don't let your child hold you back. They might be screaming, fighting, kicking. They might be exhausted and hungry and grumpy, but often if you just stick it out, drag them to the beach despite the circumstances, most likely you will be glad you did. You get to experience something new, they often snap out of it, if only for a short while, and together you get to explore and experience something incredible together.

Practical tips:

1. If you are in the car for a long time, pack each child a separate car bag. Fill it with little toys such as cars, action figurines, mini animals, water, blankies, etc. This was my SAVIOUR! The kids played with those little things all the way there and if ever you are at someone's house who has no toys, you can bring it in and your kids are entertained. LIFE SAVER!

2. Bring movies and a DVD player, the investment is WELL worth it!

3. Be prepared for the worst, pack advil for you, gravol and children's tylenol, etc. And don't forget a puke bucket! Might save you a boatload of grief.

4. Food, food, and more food. When you kids are melting down, food is the way to their hearts! Have snacks, granola bars, juice, cookies, etc. ready at a moments notice. Now that I have done this, I would ditch the diaper bag and food bag and just pack a medium duffel bag with tons of diapers, medicine, snacks, etc. Then when you are going somewhere, you can just throw a diaper in your purse and you have everything together.

5. HAND SANITIZER!

6. Don't worry about their schedules. My kids need their sleep, they were up until all hours of the night, every night. They missed naps, I thought they would be disasters. No doubt about it, they had their moments. But then they would snap out of it when they saw the crashing waves, or the aquarium, or touched a starfish for the first time, or heard the ferry horn blasting... I have never been so amazed at their resilience or so proud of their ability to take each moment.

7. Go with someone else. Yes, sometimes it is annoying when you want to do something, or they want to do something, but you can always split up. In the long run, you have two extra adults, extra eyes and hands, someone to laugh with when you feel like crying as your kids throw themselves on the floor screaming.... again. Someone to foot the bill of food and accommodations. Someone for the kids to play with.

8. Either bring a little potty so your kids can pee on the side of the road or (if you have boys) a water bottle that they can pee in (works great!).

9. COFFEE!

10. If you are staying in a cabin as opposed to a hotel, find out about laundry. You can pack less clothes and just wash everything every night.

Overall, the episodes of craziness were worse than anything I have experienced. But the location, the new sights, the excitement, the sense of family and closeness as we explored and learned together, made it all worth it. We plan on going back again next year, and this time, hopefully, I will be more prepared :)