I have been reading about family vacations in magazines, this being the time of year to plan those, and I am seeing a theme.  All of the articles that I have seen so far schedule vacations like everything needs done right now!  Some tout “Extreme Adventures” for families, while the theme park schedules can be daunting especially if you have young children.

I am not saying to not do these things.  We plan to visit theme parks and amusement parks at some point.  However, we are all about doing these things at your own pace.  We see no need, for example, to try and pack all of Disney World into 1 or even two days.  When we go to a zoo or museum or park, we would take our time.  We go when the place opens, and typically stay until just after lunch.  That way we beat most of the extreme crowds, and we can see things at our leisure.  If we don’t see some things, who cares?  They aren’t going anywhere, and it is a reason (excuse? :-)) for another trip.  We find that kids love to go somewhere more than once, especially from year to year, so we do some of that too.

Again, our cause, and the reason for this site, is to relax, both parents and kids.  Vacations should leave you more relaxed when you are done, not welcoming work as a way to get to the regular schedule.