Ready, Set......Vacation!!

"When do we go to our vacation house?" As soon as it got warm outside this question has been frequent for my 4-year old. At first when he started asking I was confused because I didn't know if he was talking about a grandparents house or something he saw on Curious George. (Curious George has a country house.) Then he said the beach house, and it all came together for me. Last summer we rented a house on the beach. So this summer we found a beach on Lake Michigan for vacation.

So I don't get bombarded with the when question over and over again, I took two calendars and had the boys start counting down the days. At the end of the day the boys X out a day. When we were within 10 days of vacation, they numbered the countdown. I was hoping to teach them a concept of time, and days of the week. My husband laughed a little about it and said that adults don't have a concept of time with a pointed look at me. I feigned innocence even though I'm rarely on time. Although, in my defense, it is very hard to be on time. If your not early your late.

Packing last year for vacation.

Now onto the packing for vacation. I despise taking everything but the kitchen sink. Before kids my husband and I were very light packers. We could both fit into a carry on luggage. Last summer we drove halfway across the country with a van full of clothes, toys, food, electronics, beach accessories, etc. This year to keep things light I started a list a week ahead of time to remember essentials, but to rethink items that aren't really needed. I asked the boys what they wanted on the list to bring. My 4-year old said, "I just want to pack what I want, and then I'll tell you what I packed." My 3-year old said, "Yep." He was agreeing with his older brother. I liked those answers so much I wrote them down on the list.

Packing their toys.

I told each of my sons to pick out 5 pairs of shorts, 5 t-shirts, 5 pairs of underwear, and 5 pairs of socks. They both did this without incident, and put their clothes in the suitcase. I gave them each their little kid bags to fill with what they wanted to play with in the car and on vacation. I told them it had to fit in the bag, so not too big and not too small that it would get lost. Both boys did a good job packing.

I really like making them apart of the preparation. It gets them excited for vacation, and makes them feel like they have accomplished something. They feel grown up when they can do things for themselves. They like to be helpers.

Vacation last year on the beach.