Spring Break!

Spring break is upon us! Yippee our kids scream, no more getting up early, no more homework and no more worries for at least the next week. Spring break is that time of year where the kids rejoice, and we parents are put in a very precarious position of deciding what to do with them? Many parents are blessed to be in the position of taking their kids on a cruise, or to some exotic destination like Hawaii or Mexico. Some parents are even brave enough to send their kids off on their own, believing that their little Suzy or Tommy will be well behaved, responsible and do what is right. Are you serious? If you're lucky the tattoo they get won't be too obvious, the beer and jello shots will have been left behind on the floor of their hotel room under four towels, and hopefully they won’t tell you that they fell in love with Julio, and are moving to Mexico to find themselves. For many parents, especially single parents, spring break can be a difficult time of year. Many parents can not afford an expensive spring break, and others have a tough time getting time off from their jobs. Recently I was asked by Channel 2 and the “Every Day Show” here is Denver to record a series of ideas for parents in just such a position. Below are some ideas for all of you parents on a budget, or just having difficulty getting time off. I would love to hear from you what your ideas are as well…. rn1. Road Trip! Take your kids on a road trip, with NO destination in mind. Flip a coin on which way you go, North, South, East or West it really doesn’t matter. Make it an excursion and a time of discovery for just you and the kids. There is nothing wrong with your kids staying in some low budget hotel in the middle of no where. I promise you that the stories will last a life time. 2. Create a scavenger hunt in your own city. Make up a series of riddles that the kids need to solve. For example here in Denver it may go something like this “Go to where the buildings touch the sky” (Downtown Denver) and then “Go to the street between 15th and 17th” (16th Street here in Denver is an out door Mall) From there lead them to as many unique and interesting destinations as possible. 3. Go somewhere that is fun, inexpensive,a short drive and easy to get to. In Colorado we have places like Estes Park or Glenwood Springs. Each is within a few hours drive and filled with inexpensive hotels. Many of the hotels have pools that the kids will just love. How often do we all go somewhere near by and then say to ourselves “Why don’t we do this more often”? 4. If you have relatives that live in town, or near by, are they willing to take the kids for a few days during spring break and explore new and exciting things? When I was young growing up in Montana, my grandparents would always take us on an over night trip to Yellowstone National Park. I still remember those trips today. 5. Explore somewhere in town that you very rarely go. Maybe a tour of a famous land mark, a behind the scenes tour of a candy factory or a trip to a park. I am sure that each of you reading this have already thought about just such a place. You see Spring Breaks don’t have to be about cruises, Mexico, Florida, tattoos or even your new son-in-law Julio. They don’t need to be long, expensive or outrageous. What they do need to be about is taking a break from your every day life. And what they really need to be about is making deposits in the memory banks of your children.