No ordinary vacation
As summertime approaches, families are making vacation plans. With gas prices over $4 per gallon and food more costly as well, people might think twice about packing up the family car and driving far.
If you do take the family to another location for a week, then by all means, enjoy the time. If you wish to but haven’t yet made plans, the CS&T’s classified ads in this edition can help you locate a rental in South Jersey, the Poconos or other points.
For many families, however, high costs may preclude a vacation away from home. This year, why not try a vacation at home? This summer, take one week not to go away, but to enjoy the company of family and friends at home and in your community.
Here are a few suggestions for making vacation at home a memorable one:
Wake up without the alarm clock. Take life at a slower pace. Start the days by enjoying breakfast together as a family.
Play together in the backyard with a ball or inside with a board game. That means Mom and Dad, too. Play is good for everyone.
Take a trip to a park in your own community with a picnic basket of treats. Enjoy the scenery, the playground and perhaps a free evening concert, which many towns and organizations offer throughout the summer.
Check out the wealth of cultural and historical day trips available in the region. Maybe this is the year for longtime residents to visit the Liberty Bell or Valley Forge, to name two. Consider taking public transportation as an alternative to fueling up the car.
Make fun, creative meals together in the kitchen. Get the kids involved in preparation, too.
Eat together each night as a family. As busy families know, sitting at the dinner table together can be difficult in the bustle of activities and work. One week “away” from it all can allow one of the most important aspects of family life — meals together — to be celebrated.
Make time to pray, meditate, read a good spiritual book or visit a shrine.
Relax. An important lesson children can learn is to see their parents at ease, enjoying a warm day simply by putting their feet up, talking and being present to each other.
Enjoying the goodness of family, community and home will save money, but there is more to it than that. A week together will not only make lasting family memories, it may also enrich the ways we live in our homes throughout the year.