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Vacation Sharing
The Reasons and Benefits of Vacationing with Other Families
By Sue Poremba
For most adults, the most anticipated days on the calendar are the ones marked "vacation." Those are days to set aside work and all of the other chores that make up our regular routine.
Traditionally, the family vacation meant mom, dad and the kids getting away for some bonding time. Today, the family vacation is likely to include your best friends, like Pete Codella of Henderson, Nev.
"Our family has vacationed for a couple of years with our neighbors and good friends," Codella says. "We go to Capistrano Beach each summer. This will be our third annual trip together."
Vacationing with another family has a number of benefits, according to Stacy DeBroff, author of The Mom Book: 4,278 of Mom Central's Tips – for Moms from Moms (Free Press, 2002). "It offers an extra source of companionship and amusement for everyone," DeBroff says. "Kids who play well together cut down on TV and video time, complaints of boredom or seeking out adults as the singular source of entertainment. Adults can swap babysitting for outings or dinner dates, or during the day, rotate the responsibility for keeping an eye on the kids."
For Brad Janes of Fredricton, New Brunswick, it is the opportunity to spend time with friends he doesn't get to see very often. "It's a great time for us to catch up on everything, and great for the children to renew acquaintances," Janes says.
Vacationing with another family does require an extra level of planning and preparation. For example, when my family decided to go to Florida with our best friends, the trip was postponed three times before we found a week that fit both families' busy schedules. We also had to compromise on travel plans due to the large number of people in our group.