Just when I thought things couldn’t get any more “exciting” (i.e. – stressful) in the week leading up to our trip, one of my granddaughters fell off our back deck onto the lower deck, resulting in a scratched up face and bloody nose, a concussion, a sprained right wrist, and a buckle fracture of her left wrist.
Suddenly, it was “deja vu all over again,” as they say. In 1999, just before embarking on a 6-week, nearly border-to-border trip across both the US and Canada, our son’s front bike tire blew out while he was delivering newspapers and he catapulted over the handlebars, breaking his elbow. BIG PLUG HERE FOR HELMETS! While his helmet was cracked clear through from the impact, his precious head was not. A broken elbow we could deal with, and we did. Was it inconvenient? Yes, at times, but we adjusted.
This most recent accident will be inconvenient also. (But Grandma is grateful it happened before the trip, instead of during!) Said granddaughter will not be able to carry her own luggage and or even do ordinary things like brushing her hair or buckling her own seatbelt. I am also supposed to keep her “quiet” because of her concussion. Anyone who knows her at all, knows what a challenge this will be!
But her younger sister has already stepped up to be her assistant and has been quite attentive. Her cousins have also volunteered to be helpful. If one of the goals of this trip is to do some team-building among cousins: check!
Perhaps now would be a good time to post this:
Ten Golden Rules for Skip-Gen Travel
- Plan well.
- But don’t overplan.
- Stay flexible.
- Some things are under your control and some things aren’t. Learn which are which. Concentrate on the former and let go of the latter and you’ll be happiest.
- Model a calm demeanor and resilience for your grandchild, no matter what happens.
- Head off meltdowns by scheduling downtime.
- Remember that children are not small adults; set reasonable expectations.
- Always allow extra time for whatever you plan.
- The quality of the relationship trumps everything else.
- Have fun! Kids will remember how you made them feel, more than what you did.