About holiday (plus kids).
I can say many things about holiday.
About traveling.
About holiday and traveling with kids.
Oh, yeah, plenty.
And I hope this will not sound too chatty, because I know you too have your own experience and excitement and drama through your holiday...
I just want to share some things....
especially for people who may be dare enough to take their infant on a plane for more than one hour's trip, or for people who expect full relaxing time for them while two kids also come along... (sooo not gonna happen), here are some tips from me:
- Please be kind to a mom with a non-stop crying infant on the plane. If you can't (because the sound of the crying infant IS really annoying, especially if the sound is not from yours), just give her a kind look. Please. She just as helplessly as you are, and I am sure she just want to be disappeared and willingly jump from the plane if that could stop her baby from crying. Or not.
- And for you, parents, who still have an infant and get the ideal images about taking the baby smoothly for several hours on a plane for the first time before the baby had tested for several short trips before, please, pretty please, don't be so dare. There are too many people on the plane which cannot escape anywhere else except to hear your baby crying or whining the whole time, and trust me, you don't want to see their face. Please be kind to us.
- The ultimate helper : bring your ipod and earphone. If any of that two situation occur, bring it out, sista.
- Do not expect your children to eat the same healthy food as they eat at home. And don't expect them to eat as much food as they eat at home too. Unless if they want to, or they are starving. You are not a bad mother to give them french fries or fried chicken instead of forcing them to eat the lobster and crab that you and your husband dying to eat. Especially if they give the food a strange look. Be kind. Remember, it is their holiday too, not just yours. And french fries at holiday are much better, mom, this kid said.
- Don't forget to bring your medicine for headache. It tends to occur when the sun is too hot or the kids are too handful, or the plane get delayed, and there are still millions other things that can happen not as well as you planned. Headache, huh? You can get one too if you kidding yourself by joined the kids standing under the 'water bucket' like this.
- A hotel with no tv is only for honeymooners, not for parents with kids. Get it? Good. Unless you are ready for games such us monopoly, uno, lego, for EACH night, you will get back to point 5.
- Always bring spare clothes. If you go for three nights, just bring four set. Or five. Talked about the unplanned trip one more time to the restaurant with the beach view before you got to the airport (and the kids that said, Mom, I want to look for some shells at the beach, OK? And run fast before you can open your mouth and said, But you get no spare clothes!). Yeah, that kind of situation. In my case, my boy had to wear my girl's pant until we got home. Not pretty. Not pretty.
- Lower your expectation on anything. And I mean ANYTHING. That case, if anything get wrong (a.k.a not as well as you dreamed before), the plane, the food, the spa, the room, the kids that only want to stay at the hotel because it's just too hot, you will not get back to point.5. And if anything goes above your expectation, you'll feel very happy. Truly happy (like my son here who successfully entertained himself for one hour delayed of the plane).
- Get your life cut from the internet for a few days is a good thing. And I mean it also for the ones that glued to their Blackberry or Iphone. Be there. It's holiday. Your eyes need a holiday. Be kind to your eyes too.
- Last but not least, do not forget to collect any ephemera you can get along the trips. Tickets, menu, coupon, anything, for your scrapbook. Come on, be a good scrapbookers!! LOL. Once my husband gave me THAT look when he saw me drying the drinking coaster at the restaurant while we wait for the meal. And before I said anything, my daughter said,"Oh, dad, please, like you don't know what will mom do with that!" Good girl! You got it? Good.
I still have a few on the list but I am afraid I will scare some people who never travel with their kids alone. It's not fair. They have to feel what I just told here for themselves, all the bad, and of course, to feel all the joy too.
Happy holiday!
Hope you enjoyed yours as much as I enjoyed mine.
Uh oh, I feel sorry for the other people on our flight already!
Posted by
Cassy |
April 5, 2010 at 2:56 PM
Mmm, Ria... in June I'll be one of those moms with the infant. Hope people will give me the kind look instead of the 'why can't you handle your own baby, lady?' look. (Crossing my fingers).
PS: lovely shots. Guess I can expect gorgeous layouts/albums soon, right?
Posted by
Chiquita Elaine |
April 5, 2010 at 9:59 PM
nice points ci =) although i'm not married yet hehehe...
Posted by
maya |
April 8, 2010 at 2:16 AM
oh how true this post is travelling with young kids is a nightmare and the looks you get from others who dont have any kids! I remember when we only had one son flying to USA..it was a lovely trip but never again as we had no sleep and trying to find the right food..made me laugh you collecting stuff as that is what I would do!! looking forward to the interesting layouts with the captions
Posted by
Lorraine |
April 8, 2010 at 1:50 PM