I just went on a four day vacation with my parents to meet with my grandparents who live in Wisconsin. We do an annual trip, either to their small town called Superior, or somewhere in Missouri to see them. This year for 4th of July, we met them in Branson, MO and did a lot of fun things, including the Branson Belle Showboat, go-karting, mini golfing, Dogwood Canyon, & the Titanic museum. The only thing is: at the end of it all, I was about to rip my hair out.
Do not read me the wrong way, I love my family! But, after awhile, you just start to get on each other's nerves. Ever been around the same person, for example: a roommate or a sibling, so much you just get tired of them? I love my parents and grandparents, but man do I clash with them sometimes. Let's just say 3 days was enough after sleeping in crappy hotel beds, dealing with stomping hotel guests above us, waking up early enough to go on our tours, & not eating enough food.
Rewinding to previous road trips and family vacations, our vehicle was always equipped with a VHS box tv, a ton of Disney movies, a Walkman with 15 different CD's, my pink Gameboy, four chapter books, and my army of stuffed animals. I shared all of that with my cousin Logan and my older brother Justin. Road trips used to be so exciting & the highest point of my year; now they're breaks away from work and then I realize while being on vacation, I should've stayed for the holiday at home to get time & a half at work.
Family trips are really fun when you are younger, but at 20, everyone has their own lives & there's less to share and everyone starts living their own lives. It seems like family vacations are centered around younger children to make them enjoy the trip. Once we're adults, we find more to complain about or bicker over and trips become agonizing instead of fun-filled.
Catching up with my grandparents was the best pet of the trip. We don't talk to each other much, and the extent of keeping in touch is a Facebook comment on a post or photo. Nowadays, I can't just spontaneously decide to take a nine hour drive to Wisconsin to see my grandparents. I am a young adult now and I have more responsibilities to think about before doing whatever I feel like. With the addition of cordinating with my parents to take a trip at the same time; what my friends are doing that week; requesting time off work; with making sure I have enough money, it's super hard.
When my children are growing up, I'm going to make sure they have the best family vacations. Visiting Hawaii twice in my life were the best family vacations I've ever had & I can't wait to provide them with what I had
