But we all do need a break, and we love those wonderful family vacation memories. You can do it all, by vacationing at home. Here's how:
Family fun at home sweet home
Make chores off limits
• Unplug the phone or let the answering machine take calls.
• Make a no laundry rule. (After your vacation have clean-up day. The entire family can haul the mountain of laundry to the Laundromat to use the big machines, and then afterward stop for pizza.)
• And don't scrub that tub!
Create your own motel
• Have the kids make room number signs to be taped on bedroom doors.
• Put fresh sheets on each bed and reassign sleeping quarters (maybe even for Mom and Dad).
• Assign your youngest child the task of putting little chocolate mints on everyone's pillow before bedtime (my 9-year-old's suggestion).
Go camping
• Pitch a tent in the living room (or just use sleeping bags).
• Make s'mores in the microwave.
• Eat hot dogs for dinner and tell ghost stories.
• Make it a no-electricity night and light the room with candles (handled by Mom and Dad only), then read bedtime stories by flashlight.
Get Mom out of the kitchen
• Cook some meals in advance and freeze them.
• Use paper plates and cups.
• Serve bagels, cream cheese and juice for breakfast.
• For lunch have a picnic in the park or your backyard.
• For dinner one night (watch the kids' faces!), serve just ice cream with lots of fruit.
• Plan to eat at least one meal a day at a restaurant‚ or get takeout.
• Post rule number one in a prominent place in the kitchen: "Mom is not allowed to do dishes."
Create your own restaurant
• Instead of dining at one big table at home, set up folding tables and chairs to resemble a mini-restaurant. Older kids can take turns being waiters, diners and short-order cooks. (Have ingredients handy for making mini pizzas, sandwiches or other kid-friendly meals.)
Put on a show
• Pretend you're on a cruise ship and let your kids provide the entertainment.
• Pre-teens can host bingo games, while the younger kids pretend to be pirates taking over the ship.
• Every family member can participate in the evening's talent contest. Hang sheets for curtains and use a flashlight for a spotlight. (Don't forget to serve fruit smoothies in tall souvenir glasses.) Keep your camera handy.
Enjoy a family movie night.
• Open up the sofa bed in the living room (or use the floor) and pile on the pillows. Then pop popcorn, and watch home movies or rent a family favorite.
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