Preparing for the Family Vacation
Next week we will embark on our first family vacation. We will be closing up the house, stopping the mail, setting out the extra litter box, and heading away for a week. We will be stepping away from cell phones, Internet, play dates, karate lessons, and the multitude of other things that fill our days. We will relax on the beach and watch the kids experience the ocean for the first time. We'll try new restaurants, explore local haunts, immerse ourselves in a world where the clock doesn't control anything, and we'll build new and crazy family memories.
The vacation preparation list is extensive and doesn't seem to be getting any smaller. Each kid must have clothes, shoes, beach supplies, hair bands, car activities, and all necessary nighttime stuffed animals. There's the constant upkeep with laundry as one packs knowing that certain shorts or dresses will need to be put in the suitcase - this is especially true for a potty training toddler! My husband and I have to pack ourselves in as little space as possible since it's bound to come down to extra suitcase or stroller?
There's always the animal preparation - the automatic feeders, extra littler boxes, remembering to pack the dog's leash. We must stop the mail and cancel the newspaper. The car needs to be decontaminated of all trash, leftover Cheerios, and socks that have been hiding since the days of Winter. There are DVD's to pack, a refrigerator to clean out, grass to mow, and a thousand other little things to remember. A vacation will certainly be necessary after surviving all the preparations.
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