Create a Memory: Go on a Family Vacation

I have always been on the frugal side. Yes, I have taken small vacations here and there, Seaworld, visiting family, but nothing large scale and far away. The main reason for that is because of the cost associated with it. It costs a lot of money to be gone for two weeks. Food, lodging, souvenirs, airfare, they all add up.

However, there is one thing that tipped me over the edge to make the decision to just go for it. My son was going to be 16 in 2011. I woke up one day in 2010 and realized that in a few years he'd be out of school starting a life of his own. I wanted to do something that we would both enjoy and remember forever. You know, "Hey, Mama, remember when we...

Of course you will have to consider the costs associated with your vacation. Don't go if you really can't afford it. But with a little forethought and saving, it is doable. I planned my vacation a year ahead and calculated how much I'd need to save each month in order to be able to go. I also cut back on non-essentials, such as eating out and unnecessary shopping trips. Once I explained to my son that we were cutting back now so that we could have fun later, he understood and was glad to have something to look forward to.

Lesson learned? If you wait till you think you can afford it, or when the kids or older, time will slip by before you know it and your kids will be grown and starting a life of their own. Plan well in advance to give yourself enough time to save up the funds to go. Remember, no credit cards! You don't want to be paying for your trip after you've already been on it.

Once I decided that I was willing to go on vacation, the next decision was where to go. My son and I had two totally different schools of thought. I wanted to go somewhere that was pretty and relaxing, you know, like a cruise. My son loves trains. I mean LOVES trains. That was one thing I knew he would not budge on. I didn't want to spend two weeks on a train. Nothing pretty and relaxing about that. He wasn't seeing himself going on a cruise. Two weeks at sea on a little boat with nothing to do? He wasn't having it.

So after poring over different travel books, and a lot of pulling for our own agendas, we finally decided on an Alaska cruisetour which included seven days on land, seven days at sea. It also had the option of train travel. He was all for that. I could handle a day or two on a train, he felt he could be on a ship for seven days, especially when I showed him that the ship docked several times that week so we could sightsee.

Lesson learned? Compromise. Find out what you would like and what your kids would like. Take a little of both and put together a special vacation that everyone will remember forever. Trust me, nothing is better than hearing long after you've returned home, "Mama, remember when we....."