The Lollipop Road

Posts Tagged ‘family’

So, it’s 4AM and I’m hold up in the bathroom of our hotel room, trying to survive the hotel night from hell!  Let’s start at the beginning; it’s always a very good place to start.

As you know, traveling always brings out the best in everyone, especially kids.  Having managed to squeeze out only four hours of sleep last night, I wasn’t firing on all cylinders either.  So, we set off for New Hampshire again this morning after digging out from the 16 inches of snow that Mother Nature saw fit to dump on us Wednesday.  Luckily, we were able to lay enough guilt on the guy who plows our driveway (the road into the abyss) that he took pity on us and plowed us out in the wee hours of the morning.

Of course, that left me with only about a foot of residual snow to dig through where the plow can’t reach…oh joy.  The day seemed to be going so smoothly; it was 9AM and we were ready to go, one full hour ahead of schedule.  We had endured the usual fight with the kids, trying to get them to eat breakfast, which of course they didn’t.  I issued the obligatory warning – you know, “don’t be telling me you’re hungry in an hour“.  Predictably, one hour later – “I’m hungry“…grrr!  Note to self – force feed kids before the next trip.

After serving a buffet for our oldest son while driving and then stopping for a quick lunch for the rest of us, we made it to our destination in record time.  A few hours later we were on our way to the hotel, ready for a restful evening.  No one was looking forward to it more than me; this was my chance to catch up on some much needed sleep.  Within ten minutes, the room was destroyed – you know what I mean.  Note to self – request a pre-destroyed hotel room – it will save ten minutes.

I ducked out to pick-up some pizza while Mommy reigned over the unruly mob (and by mob, I mean our two darling children).  The real fun started on my return – thank you for waiting!  Apparently, there was a coloring activity while I was gone; the result was a white comforter covered in crayon marks.  “Oh, what the hell, let’s just put the pizza right on the table” (and by table, I mean the bed).  “Yeah, that’s a good idea, daddy.”  GRRRR!  Note to self – next time bring a plastic table covering for the table, I mean bed.

No worries, I’ll get some ice…that will give me a one minute break.  Hmmm…that 16 month old running down the hallway looks an awful lot like our son…wait, it is our son!  Note to self – our 16 month old knows how to escape a hotel room without being detected – bring chains next time.

Oh well, nothing that barricading the door with 100 pounds of luggage can’t fix.  Oops, I didn’t realize that my wife had birthed Hercules!  What’s that wet spot on the floor…I hope it isn’t, um, whew, it’s just my cup of water that Hercules dumped on the floor.  Note to self – bring a wet vac next time.

Ahh, it’s bedtime – YES!  An hour later, we’ve all fallen asleep.  Fast forward four hours – everyone is awake.  NOOOOOO!  Fast forward one hour – I’ve escaped to the bathroom to do some reading…knock-knock…LEAVE ME ALONE!  Fast forward one hour, Mommy takes a bath and I have high hopes of falling back asleep.  Fast forward one hour, I’m writing this.  Note to self – next time bring Ambien – kids can take that, can’t they?

Ugh, I’ve just been urinated on – “watch what you’re doing”!  “Mama, you better get in here.”  Everyone is awake again.  “When does the sun come up?”  Not soon enough, not soon enough!

Note to self – book a massage when we get back home!

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When Randy suggested that I try my hand at writing a few articles for The Lollipop Road, I said, “Yeah, right!”.  I’ll do it right after I wash the dishes, change diapers, wash, dry and fold the laundry, chauffeur my oldest son to school, change more diapers, go food shopping, prepare lunch and dinner, change even more diapers, pick up my son, play with the kids, wash the floors and did I mention – change diapers, you get my drift.  But then I thought about it (not surprisingly, while I was changing diapers) and decided – why not.

I mean, yes I’m busy, too busy in fact to get everything on my ever-growing “to do” list done, but should I let that stop me?.  Why not do something a little different, unexpected and out of the ordinary for a change, I thought.  After all, it might be fun.  What’s the worst that could happen, the kitchen floors won’t sparkle?  Okay, I admit, the floors never sparkle.  I just wanted to give all those hard-working moms out there a little extra excitement, just for a moment. Honestly, I’m simply satisfied if there’s no caked on food from the previous meal!

So, back to this writing gig.  Now that I have no more excuses, what would I write about?  And then it dawned on me – I’ll write about… excuses.  After all, aren’t excuses the major reason most people put off going on vacation?  Things like, ”I don’t have time now” or “we’ll go another time” permeate the psyche and make us complacent.  We feel content to go about our days doing the same thing day in and day out because it is familiar and comfortable.  But if you don’t make the time to go now, then when will you go?  Will it be a year from now, five years from now, when you’ve retired?

Most of us are too busy and overwhelmed to even think about a vacation.  I have to admit that sometimes when my husband mentions traveling, I roll my eyes, thinking to myself – can’t we just use the money and get a maid?  I know, a maid is probably most women’s secret fantasy.  We actually had one shortly after our second child was born.  My husband was working obscene hours and my 3 year old refused to wash the toilets like I asked him to, so I was on my own!  Having someone clean for us wasn’t a luxury, but rather an absolute necessity.  It was great while it lasted, but gradually I was gaining precious minutes back and it did eventually became a luxury, so I took over the task of cleaning the house once again.  I have to admit that it was great having a maid, but the truth is that I just filled my “extra” time with some other job or errand.

Ideally, a family vacation allows you time to relax and do what makes you happy, without the endless list of errands competing for your attention.  More importantly, the best vacations will bring you closer together as a family, enabling you to laugh together, learn a little more about each other and love one another.  No maid service can do all that for you.  So, no more excuses, no more eye rolling (okay, maybe a little) and more quality family time…sounds like a plan.

Amy will be guest blogging for us on a regular basis.  As a mom of two, her entertaining sense of humor and unique style will provide an interesting perspective on family travel.  We welcome her and look forward to hearing more from her in the future.

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Last week, Norwegian Cruise Line announced that it would be teaming up with Nickelodeon to offer special entertainment and activities on select ships beginning later this year.  Nickelodeon will be entertaining your little ones onboard with character favorites like Dora the Explorer and Sponge Bob.  On select sailings, there will even be live entertainment from some of the kids’ favorite Nick stars!

The new year-round program will debut onboard the Norwegian Jewel on it’s April 24, 2010 sailing out of New York.  In July, the new Norwegian Epic will become the second ship to include the program as part of it’s regular year-round program.  NCL has not indicated that the program will be rolled out to any other ships, however, one would presume that if the new venture is a success, we’d begin to see it on other ships.

So far, there isn’t much in the way of specifics, but we’re told that we should expect character breakfasts (for an additional charge of course), character meet and greets, Nick Live! poolside entertainment, Slime Time LIVE! (that’s going to be messy) and Nick themed parties and elements incorporated into the Kid’s Crew program.

NCL is also planning an all out Nickelodeon bash on select sailings each year.  With live performances from Nick stars, more game shows and special show premiers, these themed sailings will undoubtedly be popular with the kids.  Check out this great story from a prior Nickelodeon themed cruise.  That’s right, Royal Caribbean has hosted them in the past, but with NCL’s three-year exclusive venture with Nickelodeon, that’s a thing of the past – for now at least.  Dates for the special theme cruises have not yet been announced.

So, it seems that Disney will no longer be the sole provider of character themed entertainment.  Although one would hardly expect NCL’s program to rise to the level of Disney’s all out approach, when considering the affordability of most NCL sailings, Disney may just be in for some interesting competition.

Check back on Wednesday when we explore some of the deals available on these sailings.  We’ll also be announcing another surprise that you won’t want to miss…stay tuned.

Disclosure

I found a terrific article today that was reprinted in Parents magazine in 2004.  Although headlined as The Newest Trend in Family Travel, I found the article to be timeless.  Traveling with multiple generations and/or extended family can be beneficial for everyone, but maybe it’s a bit scary too.

Over the years, we’ve vacationed with our parents, siblings and other relatives, but we’ve yet to embark on a vacation involving both our parents and our kids.  After reading the article, I asked myself why we hadn’t accomplished that goal.  Well, I guess the answer was simple – for every reason the well articulated author cited in the article.  Okay, maybe not every reason – for example I don’t have a brother, let alone a lefty brother.  So, okay, what are the top reasons that inhibit multigenerational travel?

1. Coordinating Schedules – Trying to find a time when everyone is available can be challenging.  Kids are in school, parents work, grandparents are leading more active lives and extended families spend less time together in general, living farther apart than ever before.
2. Agreeing on a Destination – What destination will have something for everyone?  Someone doesn’t like cold, someone doesn’t like hot, someone hates the beach, someone hates the mountains, someone gets seasick and of course someone has been there before.  I give up!
3. Money – Not all branches of the family tree may be able to afford a particular trip, or any trip at all, particularly in a difficult economy.  Do you pay for everyone, subsidize some and not others or do you tailor the trip so that everyone invited can afford it?
4. Making it Happen – Assume you’ve made it past the other hurdles.  You’ve planned far in advance, but one month before the trip, things start falling apart due to an illness, financial difficulty or other commitments.  Do you cancel, modify, reschedule or just go ahead as planned?

It’s easy to see why families might not be able to make it work.  Sometimes it’s difficult enough to plan a 3 hour visit, never mind an entire vacation.  We live in a busy society where people don’t want to spend their leisure time practicing patience and compromise.  Perhaps it’s a broader sign of our society in general.

So, is the multi-generational vacation just a myth?  No, it’s only a myth if you want it to be.  As kids get older, they enjoy spending more time with their grandparents.  Of course, that’s not always easy when you live hundreds of miles apart.  So, planning vacations together is really more important than ever.  But, how do you make it work?

Well, there are more and more grandparents who are traveling with their grandchildren while the parents stay home.  It works because it’s simple.  So, first rule – keep it simple.  Second rule – see the first rule.  And finally, third rule, keep an open mind, be flexible and just enjoy your time together.  If you try to make it difficult, it will inevitably be difficult.

Before you start, check out these basic tips on planning a multigenerational vacation.  Plan, be positive and most importantly, just have fun!

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Wishing You and Your Family a Happy and Healthy New Year!

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