27 Dec Five Tips for Traveling without Kids for the First Time
Whether your child is 3 or 13, it can be stressful to leave them at home for the first time to travel without them. First you’ll have to prepare someone to step into your shoes for a few days. Then you’ll need to stock the house with ample food and entertainment. Finally you’ll need to manage your fear that something will go very wrong while you’re gone. Breathe deeply, into a paper bag if necessary. These five tips will make it all a little easier.
© VertigoM
1. Create a schedule
One of the most powerful tools for parents handing off children to caregivers is a blank weekly schedule. Don’t try to organize soccer practices, piano lessons, and school pick-up times with a Word document. Instead, download a blank weekly schedule and fill it out in pencil. That way, your friend, babysitter, or mother will know exactly what to do when.
2. Document everything
It’s a lot of work to create a childcare binder, but well worth the effort in the long run. Gather up a small binder, page protectors, important phone numbers, daily schedules, medical releases, insurance information, pet care info, maps, and maybe even take-out menus! You’ll travel easier knowing that everything your caregiver needs is at her fingertips.
3. Don’t travel too far
For your first-ever trip without the kids, consider staying local. Find an interesting city, spa resort, or bed and breakfast that’s 1-2 hours away by car, and go there. It’s good to do a practice run, and you really don’t need a tropical vacation at this point. Once you’re a parent, the real luxuries are sleeping in, completing sentences, and eating in restaurants without laminated menus.
4. Don’t stay away too long
Your mileage may vary, but here are the emotions I usually @feel when I travel without my kids: Day one: mild anxiety. Day two: euphoria. Day three: peacefulness. Day four: uneasiness. Day five: desperation to see them. If you want to go to London for a week, by all means do it, but not the first time. For your inaugural trip, three days is plenty.
5. Skype with the kids…or don’t
Many parents like to stay in touch with their children while traveling, via phone, text, and Skype. I’ve actually found that contact makes everyone sadder, lonelier, and more homesick. With children who are old enough to know they’ve been left, I recommend sending your kids a cheerful text or email on the first day with a photo of you or a mention of the “perfect souvenir” you’ve found for them. After that, try not to call every night. On the last day, send a note saying how excited you are to come home. Trust me, it gets easier. Bon voyage!
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