Family planning – Getting you and the family ready for Summer!

Entry #86, May 11th, 2010

Here in Florida, the kids and parents are counting the weeks until Summer vacation.  To some, summer is a great time to have family vacations, take in local activities, and enjoy the warm weather and all that it brings.  For others, the summer time means lots of PLANNING!! What will my kids do all summer? How much time should I take off from work? Do I need to make reservations now?

Summer should be fun and carefree, but it will require some forethought.  Let me show you some ways to plan now, so that you and your family will have an enjoyable summer.

Kids:

• Teenager’s: Get them started now on what their plans are.  If they plan on working, whether voluntarily or for pay, they need to
  

  Enjoy your summer! Plan now.

  apply now. Have your teen look on the Internet, through the paper, and walk into local establishments that may be hiring.  Instill in your teen now, how to speak to a manager, and how to professionally seek employment.

• Younger Teenager’s: Thinking about enrolling him/her in a summer camp? Check to see what the enrollment dates, prices, and locations are for the camps of interest.  Talk over with your child your ideas, and get their input.  Nothing is worse then having them complain about how much they HATE camp.  (They will pick something else to complain about instead!)

Vacation Preparation:

• Your Job: Ask for the time off, now! (Enough said)
• Booking reservations: Unless you are only going to Uncle Larry’s and crashing on his couch for 2 weeks, you may not have to book reservations. For those of you planning on staying in hotels, using air/bus/car/train travel, you will need to book reservations.  Try and book reservations as soon as possible, once the summer months set in, prices will likely go up.
• Shopping: buy summer vacation items before the season is here. Swimsuits and other seasonal items are cheaper when it’s not 100 degrees outside yet!

Make sure you can "afford" to take the vacation you want.

Budget:

Before you plan on buying those designer sunglasses, sit down and make a budget.

• Surf the web for bargain discounts, and book when ready to achieve lowest prices available
• Factor in food, entertainment, gas, and other incidentals when planning a budget for vacation.
• If going on a destination vacation remember excursions, tips, and souvenir money as well!

Summer time will be great if your family has done some advanced planning.  Sure, you can still have spontaneity, but be prepared for the spontaneous stress that can come along with it!

Need more tips? Visit ‘Getting your family ready for Thanksgiving’. It has plenty of travel tips!