This is the final post in a three-part series on traveling with kids. Looking for more?
Check out Part 1 and Part 2!
Today's post is all about how to have fun as a family (and keep track of your kids while you're at it).
What to do?
Check out Part 1 and Part 2!
Today's post is all about how to have fun as a family (and keep track of your kids while you're at it).
What to do?
Two major obstacles to family fun when you have a lot of kids are finding things to do with kids whose ages are widely varied and finding things you can afford when you multiply the ticket price by 6 (or 7 or 10). Unfortunately you sometimes can't tell a good choice from a bad one until after it's too late.
Playing somewhere outdoors is always a good option. Parks, beaches, and forests are cheap (often free) and can be enjoyed by kids of all ages. On our trip, we went to Ruby Beach, Rialto Beach, and La Push, and our kids were all able to find something to do. The little kids mostly stayed up on the beach. They spent hours playing in piles of smooth rocks, and built a fort out of pieces of driftwood. The big kids all wanted to be in the water. They started out just taking their shoes off and getting their feet wet, but eventually they ended up waist deep in the waves, soaked to the bone, and loving it!
We also went to the Hoh Rain Forest. It was beautiful and fascinating, but the little kids tired quickly of hiking up the steep trails. Unfortunately they are too big to be carried, but still too small to keep up. If I had it to do over again, I would have packed a picnic (even though it wasn't meal time), so that grandma could stay at the bottom of the trail and picnic with the little kids while the rest of us went for a longer hike. I love hiking and long for the day when my short-legged children will be able to keep up with me, but until then we will have to settle for smaller adventures.
On this particular trip we went to the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium. We don't live near a zoo, so that is always a place we like to go if we have the chance. If you live by a zoo, it's almost always better to get the membership. With a big family, it's typically a lot cheaper. Also a lot of places honor memberships at other zoos, so if you have a membership where you live, you may be able to use it to get into a different zoo wherever you're traveling. And the best part is you can shop around and find the cheapest zoo that shares membership benefits and buy it from there. Just be sure to read the fine print and make sure whatever membership you buy is valid at the zoos you plan to visit most. Sadly this doesn't work for us since we never get to go to any zoo more than once a year anyway.
Some cool bonus fun at this zoo was feeding the budgees and riding the carousal, both for only a dollar. And the best part was when our cousin, Dudley, fell into the snake cage and, errr... never mind.
While in Seattle we did something we almost never do. We split up. I prefer to stay together as much as possible, but sometimes it's just torture to make kids go to places that aren't designed for someone their age. For this reason we try to bring a grandma or auntie or some extra adult along whenever we go to a carnival or amusement park too. Grandparents are great at sitting for hours and watching little kids ride the same gentle ride again, and again, and again. And it frees both my husband and me to go and ride bigger rides together with our big kids. When a tag-along adult isn't available, then my husband and I can always split up (but it's not nearly as fun!).
In Seattle the cost of getting in to most of the places we wanted to go was just too high to pay for kids to be bored. So Grandma took the little kids to the Seattle Children's Museum (which we had a discount pass to), and they loved it! They were there four hours and could have lasted several more. My husband and I took the big kids to the EMP (Experience Music Project). Parts of it were a bit scary (at least for me!), but over all it was very interesting and the kids enjoyed it. It was a bit pricey (as all museums of that size are), and next time we will probably get the Seattle City Pass to get us into everything, but on this particular trip we didn't have the time or the money to get full value out of a city pass.
In Seattle the cost of getting in to most of the places we wanted to go was just too high to pay for kids to be bored. So Grandma took the little kids to the Seattle Children's Museum (which we had a discount pass to), and they loved it! They were there four hours and could have lasted several more. My husband and I took the big kids to the EMP (Experience Music Project). Parts of it were a bit scary (at least for me!), but over all it was very interesting and the kids enjoyed it. It was a bit pricey (as all museums of that size are), and next time we will probably get the Seattle City Pass to get us into everything, but on this particular trip we didn't have the time or the money to get full value out of a city pass.
We also found a lot of great (free!) places to stop and see along the way. Whenever possible we like to stop at dams and parks and any place that has a free visitor's center with things to look at or even just a placard by the side of the road! On this trip we went to the locks and watched the fish climb ladders (not as impressive as it sounds, they aren't even real ladders, and the fish swam the whole way- I never once saw a fish climbing). We found the Freemont Troll and let the kids climb all over him. And we went to the state capitol, where the tours are free and the thrills are... well, okay it wasn't actually that thrilling, but it seems important to make kids go to places like that just to help them grow up well rounded. We also walked all up and down Pike's Place Market and just looked at stuff.
While going on multiple outings like this, money can seem to magically fly out of your hands at an alarming rate. The key to keeping these types of excursions cheap is to know what you're willing to pay for. We don't buy a $5 doughnut for each kid on impulse. We try to always plan ahead and know either what we intend to spend our money on, or how much we plan to spend as a whole. I carry cash in my pocket for impulse shopping, and when it's gone, it's gone. Using cash helps you stop and think before you spend. If you just buy impulsively, you end up bringing home a car full of expensive junk that you have no place for. When we vacation we like to look for either a mug or a Christmas tree ornament. They are easy to find, practical to use, and always in our price range. One of our kids collects pens, another likes stuffed animals. So they are always on the lookout for that one special memento to purchase during the trip.
The kids bring a small amount of their own spending money so there is no begging or whining. Either they have the money or they don't, and it's not up to us where they spend it. My big kids earn their own money by babysitting or doing yard work for other people. My little kids don't have a lot of cash at their disposal, so I try to fill the weeks leading up to a trip with opportunities to earn money. This summer I paid my little boys for perfect obedience (it felt like questionable parenting, but it worked!). Every time they obeyed right away and with a smile, I gave them a quarter in their money jar. Every time they disobeyed, I pulled a dollar back out of their jar. If they obeyed slowly or with complaint (which is the norm) no money changed hands. The two weeks leading up to the trip were filled with the blissful sounds of little boys saying, "Yes, mom! I'd love to help!"
Keeping Track of Kids
Have you ever been at a store or restaurant and seen another family getting out of their mini van and thought, "Man! That's a lot of kids!" And then you look back at your own family and realize you have the same number or kids, or more? I don't typically think of having five kids as a lot until we go out in public. Then we start to seem like a traveling circus. The more crowded a place is, the worse it feels.
So how do you keep track of kids when you travel? When you have more kids than hands, it can be hard to keep track of everyone (this is where the matching shirts can come in handy!). We once took a flight to Detroit when our girls were 3, 5, and 7 years old. We practiced for days on how to move through the airport and what to do if you get lost. We gave them each back packs with our name and cell phone number written on the backs, and told them if they got separated from us they should walk to a counter, show their back pack, and ask for help. Our 5 and 7 year olds seemed to get it, but our 3 year old was terrifyingly oblivious. Despite all our practice, when we asked her what to do if she got lost, her answer was always, "Run outside and get in a car and find you." Scary! We ended up writing our name and phone number on her belly in permanent marker and carrying her the whole time we were in the airport just to be safe.
So how do you keep track of kids when you travel? When you have more kids than hands, it can be hard to keep track of everyone (this is where the matching shirts can come in handy!). We once took a flight to Detroit when our girls were 3, 5, and 7 years old. We practiced for days on how to move through the airport and what to do if you get lost. We gave them each back packs with our name and cell phone number written on the backs, and told them if they got separated from us they should walk to a counter, show their back pack, and ask for help. Our 5 and 7 year olds seemed to get it, but our 3 year old was terrifyingly oblivious. Despite all our practice, when we asked her what to do if she got lost, her answer was always, "Run outside and get in a car and find you." Scary! We ended up writing our name and phone number on her belly in permanent marker and carrying her the whole time we were in the airport just to be safe.
We hold hands, we wear matching outfits, we count heads constantly, but there is no perfect way to get around a crowed area with a huge pack of kids. I tried those toddler leashes once, but the kids just used them to strangle each other. If kids are little enough, and the path is big enough, a stroller is a great option. If they are buckled in, they can't get lost. Once they outgrow the stroller (or if you are in a place where strollers cant fit, it can be scary. I think the zoo is a parent's worst nightmare. So many people. So many kids! And they are running everywhere from one exhibit to the next. When we went to the zoo this time, we were lucky not to lose any of the little kids, but our twelve year old went missing for more than 15 minutes. She was smart enough to stay put and wait, but she was not exactly happy when I finally came for her. Overall I'd say the buddy system is our best option, but even that fails when kids get distracted, so you always have to be on your guard.
Flexibility
Maybe I should have started with this topic. The key to any successful trip is flexibility. I try hard to plan and prepare as much as possible, but in the end you have to be willing to roll with whatever comes your way. My husband and I were married in Utah, but our wedding reception was in Washington. We weren't sure how far we'd be able to drive after the wedding, so we didn't make a hotel reservation that night. We planned to just drive until we got tired of driving and then stop at the nearest motel and get a room for the night. Well, it turns out every place in Utah and Idaho were full that night, so after multiple stops (of course this was before cell phones so we couldn't call ahead and check, we had to stop and get out at each individual place!) we had to just keep driving. Our entire wedding night was spent driving, and driving, and driving. Eventually we pulled into a truck stop in Oregon around 7AM and slept a few hours in our rental car before heading on to our destination. Not exactly how we had envisioned that night going, but we survived. Life happens.
On our trip this summer, we were scheduled to come home on Saturday, but halfway home we got tired and decided to make a pit stop at a friend's house (thank you Ron and Misty!). Our friends warmly welcomed us into their home for the night with only an hour's notice. The kids enjoyed meeting some surprise playmates, and the grownups enjoyed staying up until 3 AM catching up.
Be willing to change plans if needed. Be able to laugh when things don't go right. And most of all remember you are there to have fun with your family, so have some!
Marcia
Did I forget anything? What are your biggest vacation successes or pitfalls?
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