The stress of visiting home
I’ve written a few times about the unmitigated stress of visiting home with the children. Ignoring suggestions that I could dial up the discipline and strictness a little, the truth is that my kids are African through and through. They’re raised on a diet of afternoons running shoeless through the undergrowth whilst their parents sip (guzzle) wine. Taking them home to spend extended time in murky pubs or in people’s houses (why do British people have tables full of knickknacks just asking to be broken) is super stressful.
Still as an expat this is something I need to master. Eschewing a pre-visit, month-long, Victorian style discipline boot camp, I’ve been searching for ways that may make my trips home slightly calmer. It is definitely easier when family come to visit but eventually the motherland calls and we head off home. Here are some ideas to help you to keep them entertained.
Choose Your Accommodation Wisely
Pick your accommodation carefully. If you have one or two well behaved children and relatives with enormous houses (and no knickknacks) then staying with family will be the easiest. But we aren’t blessed with either, so we need to rent somewhere. Location is paramount if you don’t want to spend all day in the car. So is somewhere with space for our feral children to run around and recharge. Cost is a consideration too. So in short somewhere near to family with lots of space and that costs nothing. Oh, and with heating, heating in England is nice too, specially in winter. The last place we stayed seemed to forget about that.
Plan, Plan, Plan
I hate planning, it goes against my inner perception of myself as a free spirited bohemian, but I have to admit the times I’ve put a few rudimentary plans in place, the visit has been much smoother.
So do your research, even if you are just headed home and think you know it all. The worst is getting there and finding that you have no idea what to fill your time with. This is especially important if you’re visiting someone (and somewhere) for the first time. Think about where you might like to eat, and what looks fun to do in the local area for families.
Book In Fun Days
Book in fun days well ahead of time. My kids have been planning the trip to Legoland for about 3 years. Booking and planning family adventure days gives you the chance to do something different as a family. It’s also a great method for bribing and blackmailing the kids when they are being unreasonable. Book in a few things to do so you have a rough itinerary. That way, you know that the kids will be occupied for most of the time.
But Don’t Pack In Too Much
At the same time, just don’t do too much. Your kids will get cranky and it could mess up your time with family. So allow for downtime too.
Meet Up With Other Parents
One sure-fire win that you can count on for keeping the children entertained when you’re visiting family, is being able to meet up with other parents. It’s a win- win situation – your kids have other children to play with AND new toys. So if you’ve got friends or family members with children a similar age to yours, make sure to book in catch ups with them too. Then, you can head to a park or a pub or anywhere else and still keep the kids entertained, without having to go to children-specific spots.