Every year, we usually make several mini- vacation trips throughout the year. Most years we make 2-3 stay-over trips within a 5-7 hour distance, and almost always one long trip annually, usually out of state. This year, we went to Colorado, and we have couple of trips lined up for the near future. In this post, I am hoping to provide some info on how we plan our vacations, as well as some practical ways to manage the trip- including getting ready as well as the trip itself.
Most years, we end up choosing the location based on the location of my husband’s Pediatrics conference. There was one year, we (me and kids) extended the vacation to 1 month. Since we are a homeschooling family, I and the kids stayed back after our trip to Philly for the World Meeting of Families, at my sister’s place in Virginia, which is close to Washington DC. My husband flew back to Houston, as he had work. And while I was at my sister’s with the kids, we were homeschooling with the books we had packed. I also took them multiple days to DC, to see all the major monuments, White House and Capitol building. That was some real life school, right there! As driving through D.C. with then 6 kids, by myself, was not a very simple task, my husband started calling me the ‘patron saint of D.C.’😂! But it was a very grace filled time, and I certainly cherish those days! I also took them over to Pennsylvania to see our old house and family friends and our good old Chocolate Factory at Hershey, which we probably visited 50 times while we were staying there😁! My husband flew back to Virginia after 3 weeks, for our return road trip; through which we toured Shenandoah Valley, Smokey mountains and other spots along the way.It was another very blessed trip!
There was another year we did the same in our vacation trip to Chicago. I stayed back with the kids for a week there, hoping to take turns at our different JesusYouth friends’ houses. But on the way back from dropping my husband at the airport, some of the kids started throwing up secondary to a stomach bug; and the bug didn’t go away until it caught all 7 of them (at that time we had 7 kids), and it was very difficult days for me! So we were stuck at one of our friends house for the remaining week; obviously causing so much difficulty for them, and in the end, passing the bug to them and their kids😢. I do want to mention that this family was so open to us from the beginning, and even though I was feeling bad the whole time inconveniencing them, they were so supportive and it was a really witnessing way they handled the whole situation. Thank you so much, Sony and Alphy! 😇
I am breaking down into smaller topics, some tips we use to plan and manage our trips.
Choosing location and place to stay
Like I mentioned, we usually choose our location for the year based on some other major event going on; most of the years it is based on the location of my husband’s annual pediatrics conference. This year, there was no physical meeting with the pandemic; and hence we chose Colorado for the purpose of a snow filled vacation.
Once we choose the location, my husband is on top of finding a suitable place to stay. Once our family size expanded, almost always, we rent a house through Airbnb, as that is way much cheaper for us, than having to book 2 hotel rooms(Our family size needs 2 hotel rooms according to most hotel’s policy). My husband researches the options available for our family size, focusing mostly on the houses hosted by ‘ SuperHosts’. By booking way ahead of time (3-4 months), we are able to get it comparatively cheap.
Not only is it cheaper for us, but it is way more fun also; and being able to cook and launder clothes is a huge advantage. Also with so many kids crammed into a small hotel room, it is a recipe for disaster! A house, even if relatively small with even a tiny backyard, works wonders! This is a ‘parent sanity saver’ tip! Also as we can cook our own food in an Airbnb house. This itself will save a lot of money than buying each meal from outside. Few caveats to keep in mind for Airbnb versus hotels- We have to clean up the house on leaving, which we have to factor in, especially if we have a long drive that day. Most places do have most amenities, and we can survive without bringing anything. But, unless we read through the listing, or ask upfront, there could be small surprises(one place didn’t even have dishwasher soap; but luckily I had packed some).
So whenever we stay over at Airbnbs, I have a separate list of stuff to take in my Trello Board, which includes all basic things I need (like spices, coffee powder, microwave safe containers with lids, dish soap, laundry detergent, etc etc and always my Instant Pot! I also pack some large disposable aluminium foil trays and extra ziplock bags to store excess food.
For overnight stays on the way to the final destination, we do go with either hotels or friends’ houses, if on the way. We have been privileged to meet and stay with several of our JesusYouth families, who opened their house to us on several occasions.
Planning the stay
Once we book the house, our next step is to plan the days there. My husband is fond of the Foder books which have lots of suggestions of different tourist spots in the location. He mostly researches the areas we will be visiting, and goes ahead and get any tickets or anything upfront.
We also start purchasing any special equipment or gear we will be needing for the trip, mostly always from Ebay, Amazon, or clearance. (Throughout the year also, we take into account potential future trips, and if we find something on clearance that we might need, we go ahead and buy. We had purchased a kayak, long before we had planned a trip we used it for, as we had gone there previously and we know we will be going there almost every year. Some things are just better to buy when it comes on a great deal than renting from facilities; especially in large families, where we know we can use it again and again for younger kids in the family. That’s why we had purchased ski gear this year, instead of renting).
Planning for necessities for the trip
Like I had mentioned in a previous post, I always keep a running ‘Packing for trips’ list, nowadays in Trello. I keep almost everything we’ll need for the trip in the list under different headings, such as ‘kids/baby, digital/reading, Airbnb stays, lake/beach items, clothes/accessories, toiletries, things to do last minute before leaving, etc etc. So half the battle is already done, without having to brainstorm each item again and again, as I just need to tweak this list for the current trip. I then add a list for the specific trip, and add in things to remember to buy, or take.
I choose a reasonable number of clothes based on making sure there is a washing machine at site, and the nature of the trip. If its something we’ll need several change of clothes a day, I factor that in, not to mention extras for the babies, and younger kids who love to roll in mud, lol!
For the Colorado trip, since there was an overwhelming bulk of stuff, with just all sweaters, ski jackets, light jackets, socks, mittens/gloves, snow pants and winter clothes, etc etc, for 11 people, we had to use Space Saver bags that can be vacuum sucked. It did help save some space! Every inch of space counted this time, even though our 12 seater van does have ample cargo space; as we also needed to fit in all the ski gear, ski boots, helmets, coolers etc etc. It was a loaded trip!
Closer to Date of Trip
Closer to date, I start planning a menu; I take into account the days we will be on the road locally, and include menu items for ‘on the go’. Based on the menu I come up with, I start entering the stuff I’ll be needing for that into my Trello ‘Packing for Trips’ Board. I add the spices/seasonings I’ll need for cooking to the list, which I then pack in small ziplock bags. I always keep the menu very simple, relying a lot on the instant pot for evening meals, which I can set ahead of time, so dinner will be ready when we are back. (Some examples will be instant pot pasta, shredded meat, groundmeat for tacos etc).
We look into if the van needs any prep ahead of time, like oil change or tire rotation .
I start packing about a week before the trip. I have written a detailed post earlier about how exactly I pack for the trip. So I am not repeating it. But in a nutshell, I pack all the clothes into large suitcases( I have a meticulous way of packing for trips that require more person interaction, that you can read from the above post. For pure vacation trips, I just dump all of one kids clothes into a kitchen bag each. ) I do have a separate bag of spare clothes which I keep in the van, as well as a separate toiletry/diaper bag. I also pack a small bag with just the stuff we need for an overnight stay at a hotel or house in transit.
I start putting together all the misc stuff 1-3 days before the trip including all the kitchen stuff from my list.
I write a list of things to take to be kept in the cooler and load them the day of.
During trip
Kids have assigned seats, that we choose in a way that there is one older kid in each of the 3 rows behind. I keep vomit buckets in each row, that can be quickly passed around in case of emergency; and a plastic bag in each row, that they can use to put in any trash. This keeps some of the trash under control. Usually our kids are good on the road with respect to motion sickness; but this time, between the youngest 3-4, we had to stop almost every 10-15 minutes on our first day, as someone was throwing up.😬 The vomit buckets really came in handy!
We keep a large bag upfront, housing all the snacks for the trip. I also keep a small bag with some small snack sized plastic bowls and cups that can be passed around for snacks. I have them pass it back when they are done, so that we can re-use later. I keep an insulated sippy cup bag up front with pre-filled milk;, and for longer trips, have an extra milk gallon in a small cooler that can be accessed easily. I keep a small mesh zippered bag with a bottle brush and soap, that I keep the empty used sippy cups, so that I can take the bag to the next restroom break, and wash the sippy cups. We keep a dustpan and small handbroom, that we use to quickly cleanup messes, during each restroom break. Despite these small measures, the van gets really messy with each passing hour. 🙁
I usually have my oldest stay near the baby during the trip, so she can take care of feeding and giving milk. All of our kids have been great during trips, as babies, with us hardly ever having to stop for them. We check their diapers during each gas/ restroom stop. I do pack a small bag for them with small toys and baby books they like.
We are usually able to drive upto 10 hours a day with only 1-2 restroom/gas breaks, depending.
We usually make a stop closer to the final destination, to purchase the groceries we will need for the stay, as per the menu I made ahead; usually picking up a pre-cooked dinner for the night we reach.
How to keep kids engaged during the trip.
Our kids are usually good during trips, except of course for the question. “How much time left?”, sometimes every 5 minutes. 😳
They usually pack a small backpack each with whatever they want, including reading books, notebooks, small toys etc. We usually have Christian music playing. But sometimes they just prefer the silence.
Sometimes I try to sneak in some school🤓. But recently they have not been buying it . There was one trip we ran the whole Dave Ramsey’s 16 hour workshop on Finance management. But not this time! I had loaded a whole SD card with about 530 files including audiobooks, homeschool related seminars, The Gospel of John audio drama, Poetry memorisation files etc, but we hardly heard much this time. 😢
But just for those who are not aware, audiobooks are a great way to homeschool kids on the road; you can download free ones at Librivox.
I also had made an activity box with multiple car trip bingo games, madlibs, road atlases, and geography quiz books. At least they used some of that this trip.
There are lots of ideas for carschooling, if you just search up.
At the vacation spot
We try to tidy up daily so that it won’t be too much work the last day. We have kids do the same assigned chores they do at home, for laundry, dishwasher unloading, table wiping after meals, and brooming. I try to be on top of laundry all the time, so we never run out of clothes. I try to prep meals ahead while we are at the house, in case we run late from a trip. Most places will only have just about enough plates and bowls. So I run the dishwasher right after each meal.
Before leaving, I have all the clothes washed up till then. So in effect, the only clothes to wash on getting back will be the ones used during the return trip.
Reaching back
Soon as we reach back, we have all the kids help to unload the van completely, and dump everything into the dining area, unless everyone is really dead tired, in which case we just take out food items. From there, I put away things that need immediate attention, and put in one load of laundry. Next day, we bring all the clothes to the master bedroom, which I sort through and put away over next 1-2 days. I also tackle the kitchen stuff to put away simultaneously. So most unpacking and settling in is done within 2-3 days.
Within 1-2 days of coming back, one of the older kids clean up the inside of the van- wiping, and vacuuming and cleaning up, as a paid chore. I restock the diaper bag and refill some plastic bags, water, and other stuff, and we are good to go!
Most long trips, coming back, I am not really upto school, as my priority will be unpacking and settling back in. So what I do is have them research up any historical places we visited, and make a small report/ comic/journal/ essay or whatever they want to make with the info; and some general reading for the rest of the time. That way, I buy myself time without feeling guilty that I have them on the loose for another week.😅
So this is how we plan a vacation, and come back with a reasonable level of sanity. I hope you found some useful tips! God Bless!
Good tips Annilyn!
Thank you Simi!
God Bless!