Sometimes I am reminded why we are moving heaven and earth to take an extended family road trip with our kids.
The other day I was waiting for my kids at music lessons and a dad I recognized came in with his two daughters. We started chatting and he explained to me that the girls each play both bass and acoustic guitar.
“Wow,” I said, “That’s a lot of time dedicated to music lessons!”
“They have lessons twice a week, karate three days a week and both are on a swim team. My wife and I trade off the days we work late so that we can drive them to their practices.”
As a former parent coach, there were many thoughts that came to my mind and lots of things I wanted to say about over-scheduling kids, being at their beck and call so they can be driven around, and spending family time in a mini van going to and fro, but I didn’t. Of course I didn’t.
I fully realize that for some families, these activities aren’t only for the kids. There are a lot of parents who get just as involved, or maybe even more so, than the kids. I’m not knocking them; more power to them. The thing is, that’s not us. We don’t love to be on the run, we love to be home. We actually enjoy playing games together, putting together puzzles and watching movies snuggled up on the couch. I’m so tremendously grateful that we will be able to spend six weeks doing just that.
What about you? What are your favorite ways to spend time together as a family?
