Monday, January 21, 2013

Including grandparents in family vacations | RetireAndRenew.com

Once our daughter grew up, married, and became a parent, we needed to decide how we would participate in their lives.

For some grandparents, the answer is easy. They live nearby and see their grandchildren frequently. For others, distance prevents everyday visits.?

Spending time with grandchildren

Have you ever gone on a vacation with your son or daughter and their children? For those of us who live far from the grandchildren, a visit is usually a planned event. This involves booking a flight, train, or bus trip, or arranging an automobile journey.

Dates are pretty well established.? The family knows when the grandparents will arrive and when they will leave. The visitors may or may not stay in the home of the younger family.? A lot depends on the? family plans for ?what to do? while the Grandparents are in the area.

Some things the grandparent needs to consider prior to arrival, are:

  • where to stay
  • how to get from place to place
  • interests and habits of the grandchildren
  • family expectations of their children?s behavior
  • events they want to include in the trip

Discussion and planning should begin before the grandparents arrive. Children should understand the names and general relationships before the visit.

Grandparents should explain if they can?t take part in strenuous activities. If they don?t want to participate in the theme park or other visits, they should explain. They may, in fact have goals for visiting some other sites.?

Plans for the visit

When our children and grandchildren come for a visit, they do stay in our home. The house provides a lower level with beds and television.? The separation of families is helpful for all.

While here in the area where we live, their parents keep them busy.? They usually visit a theme park located within about 20 miles of our home. It is lies within the Mall of America in an indoor site called Nickelodeon Universe.?

Introducing the Mall of America (with information from Wikipedia)

The Mall of America, also called MOA, is a shopping mall?located in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of the Twin Cities, in the United States. It opened in 1992, the mall receives 40 million visitors annually.[2] The Triple Five Group.

As you can imagine, the mall itself is very large for an indoor shopping site. What makes it more attractive to children and some adults is the theme park which is placed in the center of the Mall.

Photos of the Mall:

DSCN2967 (250x188) (2)

?DSCN2953 (250x188) (2)

?DSCN2966 (250x188) (2)

?DSCN2977 (250x188)

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Should grandparents accompany the family to Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America, or other Theme Parks?

This has to be a decision made by both families. Prior to their visit we consider whether the help of an extra adult will keep the children happy and appropriately watched? Or, will care of the grandparent interrupt the pleasure of the young children?

While looking for information about extended family vacations, I came upon some web sites that I found helpful. Here?is an?example.

http://blogs.ajc.com/momania/2011/06/22/tips-for-taking-a-stress-free-trip-with-extended-family/?cxntfid=blogs_momania?

Final thoughts

An extended family vacation is one of those events that take thought, discussion, and resolution by those involved. The goal is to allow input?from everyone and in the end have everyone in agreement with the decision.

Source: http://retireandrenew.com/?p=1087

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