The 4 Stages of a Family Holiday...

We spend all year day dreaming about our Summer holiday... and then when it comes round parts of it can feel like a nightmare! 

We spend all year day dreaming about our Summer holiday... and then when it comes round parts of it can feel like a nightmare! We definitely don’t enjoy every part of it; if only it were all sun, sea and sangria…
Part 1: Anxiety
The worst part of any holiday is the packing. Whether you’re super prepared and do it weeks early or if you leave it until the last minute it’s still an enormous chore. We hated it while we were single but when you’ve got so many people to pack for it’s like a never ending task. How many outfits does everyone need? Do we have enough sun lotion? What shall we put in the First Aid kit? Where on earth are the travel adaptors? After running around for days like a headless chicken if we didn’t have a holiday to go on we’d explode!
 
Part 2: Exhaustion
Everyone in the house is manic with excitement, no one gets any sleep and then it’s up at the crack of dawn to race to the airport. We don’t want to pay any more than necessary to check in bags so we’re carrying, pushing, pulling as much as we can possibly squeeze into our hand luggage. There’s no chance anyone will catch up on sleep during the flight, there’s far too much playing, fighting, screaming whinging going on… After arriving in blistering heat we can barely think straight and we just cross everything in the hope that when we finally arrive at our destination every one will need a lie down as much as we do…
 
Part 3: Confusion
Why does the on site shop only open during the afternoon? How do we work the air conditioning? Why are there never any sun loungers free? Why is it raining in Spain in August? When you’re out of your comfort zone it can take a while to get your head around everything and you will have questions left, right and centre. It normally takes until around day 3 of your holiday to finally feel like you’ve worked everything out.
 
Part 4: Relax
You’ve settled into a nice routine and feel right at home. You know the nicest child friendly restaurant, you secure the perfect spot by the pool every morning, you’ve found where sells the yummiest ice cream and the staff know you and your family by name. You feel so relaxed that nothing bothers you and you’ve transformed from stressed mummy to serene mummy. Noooooo what do you mean it’s time to go home??
 
Written by Jennie-  Irish mummy blogger and staff writer at www.familyfriendlyhq.ie
Check out her blog www.mummyvstheworld.comand facebook page

Jennie Dennehy

Jennie Dennehy is Mama to two gorgeous boys and is a Writer and Blogger. Her life is full of laughs and Lego and she’s always longing for a hot, frothy coffee.

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