The WM Parenting Connection

By Denise Bertacchi, Stay at Home Moms Expert

Is your family planning a summer staycation this year? Staycations—affordable vacations in your home town—have been made popular by the lengthy recession as a way to have family fun without breaking the bank.

How do you plan a fun but cheap vacation without leaving the state? It’s actually pretty easy: you just need to look at your home town as if you were entertaining guests for a week. If you live in a small town, include whatever exciting destinations are within driving distance for a day trip.

How to find Staycation ideas: 

• What is the absolute “must see” activity you would take a visiting niece or nephew to see? 
• If your online pal said they were stopping over in your city and had a couple hours to kill, where would you send them for lunch? 
• What park would you take friends to for a memorable picnic? 
• Where’s the very best theater to see a summer blockbuster? (Are you getting the idea now?) 

For added fun, map out your Staycation itinerary with an easy art project for the kids--make a passport! Click the next link to find easy directions to make a custom staycation passport. Each page of the passport represents a destination for your family to visit during the summer. Fill the passport with photos of your travels and decorate with travel themed stickers. When summer is over you'll also have a great "souvenir" of your trip!

When planning your vacation remember to consider places from the perspective of your children. It’s really easy to get bored with traditional activities in town if you’ve lived there for a long time. When was the last time you went to (fill in your local tourist trap here)? How old was your child when you visited? An older kid might not remember something they saw as a toddler, or might be able to do activities that were once off limits when they were smaller.

I live in St. Louis. It’s been said that most adults here have not been up in the Gateway Arch since they were kids! Why? Because it’s something only out-of-towners and fieldtrips do! 

Summer Dreams: Create a Passport to the Ultimate Staycation