 A
father in Florida
Holidays are great aren't they? Well, that's the theory, but
in reality a holiday with children can be highly stressful, especially
if you're a single parent with sole responsibility. Being in exactly that
position himself, Theo Theobald decided last year to take his two kids
to Florida for a fortnight; here's some of what he learned on the way.
Decision making
Choosing where to go will depend on lots of factors and money can be
a crucial one. Prior to our American trip, we'd spent a couple of Summer
holidays at Butlins, where the kids had a whale of a time, all of which
goes to show that it's not how much you spend which dictates the amount
of fun you can have.
Another factor to consider is that of comfort; will the kids be able
to stand a long haul flight, is the climate suitable? (remember how easily
tender young skin can burn in the sun). Our Florida jaunt was in March,
which meant that it wasn't too hot and the added bonus was that the theme
parks were less crowded than in the height of season.
You may be feeling democratic and let the kids have a say in the choice
of destination, but my own preference is to do the homework first and
make the decision on behalf of us all; I figure that in a few years time
they will have much more say, but for now I'll use my judgement to select
the venue.
An extra tip is to wait until it's booked before you tell them; this
saves any hitches, broken promises or last minute disappointments. I built
up the excitement by wrapping up Mickey Mouse toys with labels on saying
'come and see me soon!', it took a few minutes for the penny to drop,
but once they realised they were delighted.
Plan ahead
This really is the key to a stress free holiday. Map out the stages of
your journey in your mind and leave PLENTY of time to get to where you're
going. We stayed at a cheap motel near the airport the night before we
flew and the children seemed to enjoy this as being all part of the holiday.
If you're faced with a long wait at the airport, get some cheap toys (colouring
books, a model car or small doll, that sort of thing) which you can produce
with a flourish once you're checked in; for us they helped to bridge the
gap before we boarded..
Stay Calm
With planning and plenty of time for your journey things should be pretty
much on an even keel, but if you are feeling a bit stressed make sure
the kids don't suffer; I tried to keep reminding myself that they were
on holiday and this was supposed to be a special time; I wanted them to
be able to look back and remember the positive things about the trip,
rather than Dad shouting at them in the airport! Tiredness can be a key
factor here and if you're going long haul it's inevitable that you'll
all suffer some fatigue; we did our best to re-adjust to the time difference
by staying up as late as we could manage once we'd arrived and though
it was tough because our bodies felt like it was four o'clock in the morning,
after a good sleep we'd pretty much beaten the jet lag. I kept the kids
going with snacks, a warm bath when we arrived and the novelty of the
new accommodation (including the cable TV!)
Stuff to do
As part of your pre-planning you can find a variety of things to do in
your resort if you're on the internet at work or home. We were lucky because
the 'entertainment' is laid on in Orlando, in the form of the Disney and
Universal theme parks. I wasn't so regimented as to decide what we'd do
each day, but bought passes that allowed us some theme park days and others
in between to take it easy. No matter how thrill-seeking your kids are,
it's hard work doing consecutive days at the parks as there's so much
to see and do. Lots of accommodation in Orlando is in the form of private
villas with pools, so on our days off we just chilled out at 'home'; likewise
many of the hotels have their own pool, which will keep youngsters amused
for hours. It's worth noting that buying shorter duration passes is more
expensive on a pro rata basis than a full 14 day pass; if you do decide
to go for the full hit, you can usually use up any unused days on future
trips as they don't expire. Alternatively you can sell back any unused
time at many supermarkets, which have booths especially dedicated to dealing
in park tickets - you may not get the best deal in the world but you can
get some money back.
New experiences
Adults tend to be much more creatures of habit than kids who are often
better at adapting to change, so do your best to help them experience
lots of different things. If you're self-catering as we were, it can even
be an eye-opener going to the supermarket; as you'd imagine they're bigger
than at home and the range of produce is quite different. Equally the
experience of eating out is great fun and you'll generally find a fantastic
level of service. We didn't go to a single restaurant where the server
wasn't superb and nearly all of them stopped to chat to the kids and find
out what sort of holiday they were having; it was a superb social experience
for them. My kids like most kids love watching telly, but even this turned
out to be an experience as the commercials are so much cheesier than at
home! This kept the children amused for hours and they insisted on telling
everyone about the 'Shark cordless vacuum with its patented wall-hugging
technology!'
About the author
Theo Theobald is an ex-husband with an overactive guilt complex. A former
advertising copywriter, he is an established author of business books.
Now he has turned his attention to more important matters: life, survival,
happiness and aspiring to be a great single dad - what on earth will he
find to do in the afternoons?
How to be a Great Single Dad by Theo Theobald is out now, published by
Hay House, and priced
£8.99
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