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So - What are your thoughts on parents who don't take their children on vacations or trips out of town? (Example: mother/father plan a trip to Seattle for a week. They leave their children, ages 3 and 5, with Grandma for the week)
Is it selfish?
Is it neglectful?
Does the child's age make this practice more or less acceptable?
Does the situation or reason for the trip make this more / less acceptable (example - visiting a sick relative, planning an anniversary trip, or traveling for leisure)?
I think parents who never take trips without their children have something missing in their marriage. How could you not want to be alone with your spouse for even a couple of nights? This business of, "I can't be without my children for more than 24 hours." Oh brother.
As a kid, my folks always took us somewhere for a vacation during the summer AND they always went somewhere by themselves for a vacation without us. Gary and I continued this plan when we became parents. It worked for us.
I was surprised at how many of Ryan's friends didn't go on "vacation"....ever. He was always allowed to bring a friend with him on our little trips, most of his little friends had never been outside the city limits. I remember feeling bad for those little guys.
Hmm - interesting.
I have 4 children and who will watch them? My aging mother and father. While they enjoy the company of the grand kids - 4 kids is a lot to deal with and it's very stressful. Instead of it being fun it will likely be a headache, at the least, for them . . . something I'd rather not put them through.
I've never taken an extended trip without my kids - I would never see the purpose or pleasure in doing so. My parents have, occasionally, watched them over one night - but I never went out of town during that time. They stayed at Grandma's and we went back home, watched movies and slept in late - and it wasn't really enjoyable, actually. This was back when my husband first returned from Iraq and was going through some serious PTSD issues, he needed peace and quiet - it was a necessity more so than for fun - it was so unenjoyable that I'd rather just not do it, again.
Yet taking family trips is a thrill - we have no time limits, we can be gone as long as possible - do whatever we want - and I don't have to worry about what the kids are doing, how my parents are, or what trouble is going on.
My sister has 2 kids under the age of 4 and several times a year she and her husband take trips all over without the kids. They've gone to New Orleans, Chicago, Seattle, even Honolulu - without them. The only time they've taken the kids on a trip was to visit their Aunt in DC a few times. To me, how she goes about it and why she does it, just seems wrong.
i think my husband's deployments divide us up enough that I never, intentionally, want to do it - he goes out of town maybe upwards of 20 weeks out of the year, and that separation is plenty enough for all of us. It's actually quite stressful.
((I would really like it if there was a proper debate forum for familiy and child-care issues instead of sticking these issues in with off-topic discussion in lieu of a debate forum . . . but there isn't.))
So - What are your thoughts on parents who don't take their children on vacations or trips out of town? (Example: mother/father plan a trip to Seattle for a week. They leave their children, ages 3 and 5, with Grandma for the week)
Is it selfish?
Is it neglectful?
Does the child's age make this practice more or less acceptable?
Does the situation or reason for the trip make this more / less acceptable (example - visiting a sick relative, planning an anniversary trip, or traveling for leisure)?
((I would really like it if there was a proper debate forum for familiy and child-care issues instead of sticking these issues in with off-topic discussion in lieu of a debate forum . . . but there isn't.))
So - What are your thoughts on parents who don't take their children on vacations or trips out of town? (Example: mother/father plan a trip to Seattle for a week. They leave their children, ages 3 and 5, with Grandma for the week)
Is it selfish?
Is it neglectful?
Does the child's age make this practice more or less acceptable?
Does the situation or reason for the trip make this more / less acceptable (example - visiting a sick relative, planning an anniversary trip, or traveling for leisure)?
I know you have kids, do those guys not drive you insane sometimes?
I haven't taken a vacation since I was a child but I would love to take a "wife and me only trip" soon.
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