Welcome to the June edition of Authentic Parenting Blog
Carnival: Vacation and Travel.
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Authentic
Parenting Blog Carnival hosted by The Positive Parenting Connection and Authentic Parenting. This month our participants are
sharing ideas, inspiration and information on travel and vacations!
Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival
participants.
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I’m going to admit something here, and I feel slightly silly about it… I’m scared of travelling with my daughter. I read blog posts about people travelling with their babies and toddlers, and see pictures my friends and family have shared of them on holiday with their kids, and I shudder to imagine doing it myself.
You see, Nookie hates the car. As an infant she would scream the very minute she was put into her car seat. The longest journey we have ever taken her on was a trip to Southport and back to see some friends of Hedgehog’s when she was about 3 months old: a journey of about 3 and a half hours there and back. It was so stressful it traumatised me! She initially slept, but was soon awake while we were on the motorway and the screaming commenced. We eventually stopped and I calmed her, but the moment we were back in the car she was back to screaming. And then she cried most of the way home.
As she’s got older she will tolerate short car journeys. She’ll occupy herself with toys, singing and chatting, and if there are two of us in the car we can play videos on our phones for her. But her maximum tolerance is still about 45 minutes. And we can’t possibly stop at a shop or anything and expect her to get back into her car seat. Once she’s out, until she’s tired, she will not get back in again without a fight! I once made that mistake and I’ll never do it again.
So the prospect of travelling for a holiday this summer is something that fills me with dread. We pretty much live in the exact centre of England. It’s at least a 2 hour trip to the coast either way. I would dearly love to take Nookie to the seaside for the first time so she can build sand-castles and splash in the sea. I’m sure she’d love it. But in reality I just can’t see it happening.
So for the moment our ‘summer’ (because so far this year we’ve had a total of about 7 days of hot weather in the UK) has been filled with day-trips to local places of interest. We’ve visited nearby lakes, nature reserves, parks and farms. We’ve gone paddling in rivers and explored markets. We’ve eaten ice-cream and drank hot-chocolate. And for the moment I guess this will have to suffice.
I’m sure things will get easier when it comes to travelling with Nookie. But for the moment there are enough places to explore nearby without having to travel to the coast. It’s a shame, but I can live with it. We’re fortunate that our beautiful county is filled with parks, lakes and rivers all within a short drive. And I’ve discovered some interesting places that I never even knew were there.
It’s actually quite nice come to think of it.
Visit The Positive Parenting Connection and Authentic Parenting to find out how you can participate in the next Authentic Parenting Blog Carnival!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
- Traveling with a Sick Child — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama shares her tips and tricks for traveling with a sick child based on firsthand experience.
- Educational Travel | Pennsylvania, New Mexico &; Louisiana — That Mama Gretchen relives three childhood trips while outlining a plan for future homeschooling adventures.
- Babymoon: A Cruise in Europe — Bianca from The Pierogie Mama writes about the babymoon that she and her husband took to Europe, via a week long cruise through the Western Mediterranean..
- ITravelling with our little one — Stoneageparent describes what travelling means to her family, exploring the link between attachment parenting and travelling
- I Just Can’t Do It — aNonyMous at Radical Ramblings describes the nightmare it is trying to travel with her daughter, and how for the moment day-trips to local areas will have to suffice.
- Carnival: Travel and Vacation — Macgyvermama rounds out her “Travel Light with Babies and Kids” series with some juicy tips on how to travel light and stress free with your moving and grooving Toddler!
- Traveling: Adventure, Nature, Family — Brenna at Almost All The Truth shares her hopes and fears for her Great Summer Camping Road Trip with her three small children.
- Frustration Free Flying with Kids — Based on her extensive experience flying with her family, Laura at Authentic Parenting shares tips on how to make the trip fun for you and your children.
- 12 Awesome Toys To Bring Along When Traveling With Children - Ariadne over at Positive Parenting Connection is sharing about toys her children love and playful ways to use them that make travel with children more fun and less stressful for the whole family.
Thanks for sharing and being really honest about your fears of travelling with your daughter. It sounds like she is a high needs child, as you said commenting on my post (thank you that). This must make it difficult for you to travel far with her. How do we do it? Well, I sit in the back with Ewan and entertain him a lot, with his favourite books and toys and looking at the passing scenery. We try to time it so he\’ll have a nap too, the longer the better so we can make some miles!
But it isn\’t easy, in fact car travel really is difficult because it is the ONLY time I cannot truly respond to my son by picking him up and letting him feed or just be close to me. I hate this, and of course he cannot understand at all why I\’m ignoring his cries. We stop when he cries and try to settle him, but it would be a lot easier if he was on my lap (but of course against the law, we wouldn\’t do this).
I have friends who have bough DVD players for their kids to watch on long car journeys but we don\’t watch much TV so this wouldn\’t fit with our ethics.
Just try to be calm and positive about it, try a few hour journeys and see how things go, gently gently. Good luck. As you say, there is some beautiful countryside right on our doorstep.
Sounds like you live in the same county in the UK as me.
Thanks for the advice. Truly. You’ve actually given me a lot to think about. I think a lot of my fear is also because I’m a new driver and I’m very reluctant to drive anywhere I’ve never been before. But I’ve decided that this week I’m going to face my fear and go somewhere a little further than usual, where I’ve never been before, and push myself out of my comfort zone! I refuse to be confined by this ridiculous fear any more!
Thank you so much.
Ok… well then it is a small world indeed.
That is so difficult. I have 3 very different children, but 2 of them were terrors in the car. I wonder if there are any other ways you can travel where your child wouldn’t be strapped in her car seat the entire time? Maybe a train?
It almost certainly will get easier as she realizes the destination is worth the ride, but until then just keep doing what you’re doing – putting her needs first while attempting to expand her horizons!