We have just returned from our 4th family vacation. The first three were at a beach house in Rhode Island but this last one was at a beach house in Long Beach Island, NJ.
In spite of a somewhat longer drive and a public as opposed to a private beach, I preferred LBI to Rhode Island. The house was beautiful--larger & free of a stuffy basement where one family would have had to sleep had we remained in RI.
Also there was more to do for the kids at LBI.
But the best part of family vacations for me is not the house we stay in or the beach or the drive time or things to do or any of that.
For me it's all about being with the family. And in my humble estimation there is no better family than mine.
I don't know of many families (if any) who can get through a week of 6 adults and 4 children (ranging in ages from 1 to 6 years old) all living in relatively close quarters who can return home without regretting the swift passage of time.
But our family is just the opposite. Family vacations bring us closer. None of us wanted to see it end.
In fact the only serious source of conflict throughout the week was that the men did not fair as well as usual against the women playing setback. But there will be plenty of opportunities to redeem ourselves.
In November we'll all be headed to Florida for Thanksgiving. We'll be staying in a tight, 3 bedroom condo--very different from the roomy 5 bedroom house we just left.
But since it's Florida, the weather will be nice and there are two lanais one of which is furnished so there will be plenty of space for 4 children to spread out to do what they like to do. Plus there are beaches and pools and playgrounds--and the family.
1 comment:
I totally agree, George. Vacation has always been that moment in time that defined us as a family. We had a great time in LBI with our kids this year. They didn't want to go out to eat! We crowded around our small table each night and sat for hours, just enjoying...savoring, really, our limited time together.
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