Adventures in Parenting

I finally have something to say to those who ask, “What did you do this summer?”

“We went to Japan!”

With the popularity of anime, Nintendo, and cool cell phones, my kids have been wanting to see Japan. After saving up for a couple of years, our family took the long-anticipated trip. We just came back from a 9-day tour package, and it was much more than we thought it would be! (For more of my thoughts about our trip, see my personal blog.)

The best part of any vacation for me is the time spent with my husband and kids. The place is secondary. But if I was to choose any place to spend with my family, Japan would definitely be in the top 10.

Here is how to get more mileage out of a vacation after you come back home:

1. Leave souvenirs and suitcases out for several weeks. I know this may sound like an excuse not to clean up, but I promise you I did the laundry first. But our souvenir maps, ticket receipts, unopened airplane peanuts, and stuff we bought are laying out in the living room for us to reminisce those highlights of the trip.  It bothers some people (like my husband) not to get things back in order. But hey, why would I want things to go back to normal? I want to stay in vacation mode as long as possible.

2. Look at the pictures together several times. With digital cameras with practical unlimited memory capacity, we took tons of pictures. Each time we look at them, we relive the trip.  Pull out the pictures when the family feels disconnected. Reliving the good times and laughter draws you back closer together.

3. Share inside jokes about the trip. Our Japanese tour guide liked to use the word “challenge”, as in “If eating raw fish is too much challenge, you can choose the cooked sushi”, or “Maybe it’s too much challenge for some of you to use the hot springs.”  So now we would occasionally say with a wink, “Too much challenge for you, uh?”  Sharing common experiences and inside jokes knits a family together.

What did you do this summer? 🙂