I am a big believer in family vacations. Packing up the family vehicle, cancelling the mail, telling the neighbor to keep an eye on the place, and getting away from the usual grind for some family togetherness. I have very fond childhood memories of annual trips, and I don't really remember ever not taking at least one annual vacation.
I want that for my family... but life does not always happen the way we want. Especially over the past few years, that has not been feasible, and it likely will not be this year. In mid-April I marked my first year at my current job, and was eligible for one week of vacation. Since my manager (whom I consider a work-aholic) allows only a very restricted amount of vacation during the traditional vacation months... and, since I am currently in the market for a new job and would lose my week (and the pay) if I switch jobs without taking the week... and, since finances are currently tight... and, since I need to get my wife's kitchen back together... we decided that I would take my week April 18-24 and make it a working vacation. (Now, there's an oxymoron, if ever I heard one!)
My kids spring break started April 22nd, so the original plan was to work the beginning of the week, then maybe do an overnight road trip during the long weekend. Although I didn't quite accomplish what I had hoped, the first part of the plan worked out pretty well. I got quite a bit of work done on the kitchen/living room/foyer/stairway/hall, and hope to keep the momentum going for some evenings and days off. Gotta get it done!
The second part of the plan... not so much. Getting and keeping a family of six all healthy at the same time is not easy. At least, not this family. Jen and Ben are fighting off nasty colds and coughs, so the road trip was scrapped. We managed to get out of the house Friday and Saturday evening for some simple family togetherness, proving that family fun does not always have to be elaborate.
Not my idea of "vacation", but for now, it'll have to do.
Now, the challenge for me is to deliberately carve out more of those short, simple snippets of family together fun throughout the summer, to offset the lack of an actual summer vacation... all while getting my family in the new part of the house, trying to earn a living, and searching for a new job. Phew!
It's often easy (as I know personally) that sometimes quality is better than (or, at least equal to) quantity.
ReplyDeleteBig elaborate family vacations are a rare thing here too.
Truth be told? I'd rather have five "evenings" of everyone home, and healthy - sitting around the fire pit catching up than a big huge fancy vacation.