The UnFun Family Vacation

Have you ever imagined a great family trip, full of educational world wonders and fulfilling relationship building?  Now insert your actual family...not quite the reality?  That's where we are right now.

Last year was definitely NOT a good travel with kids year.  Not that we didn't travel, but I didn't have the energy or focus to write about the several sleepless camping trips, a sleepless visit to family via air, or a sleepless "vacation" at the beach.  Did I mention my two-year-old is making our family trips sleep-deprived endurance-tests of family torture?

In fact the highlight of my 2012 traveling-with-kids adventures was, in fact, our first adults-only anniversary trip to Cancun since baby#1.  I love traveling with my kids (well, most of them), but I have to admit alone-time was so peaceful and relaxing...it's my new mental escape from all things stressful now.

Anyway, as eye-opening as our Cancun trip was to what vacations must be like for the rest of the no-kid-vacation world, I refuse to give up on relaxing family vacations.  I know they are possible and rewarding...I just don't know how long it's going to take for it to be possible or rewarding for US.  I imagine I can't be the only one with this problem! 

We have done so many much more difficult trips with kids the same age (driving Europe with a 6, 4 and not-quite-two-year-old for example...see Travel with Kids: Estonia), but clearly we have a different personality here.  A personality that doesn't go to sleep until 11pm and gets up around 4am and announces it by repeating everyone's names LOUDLY and without end:  Ella, ella, ella, ella, mommy, mommy, mommy, DA-ddy, daddy, daddy, and on and on and on.  You get the idea.  Which ends up with either daddy or I getting her up and taking her somewhere to get her quiet.  This results in our trips getting drastically shortened because we as parents are so exhausted and grumpy that no one is having fun.

 Maybe I have finally met that time in my life (or kid in my life) when I really do just want to chill at home...or in Cancun maybe, but I hope not!