You can plan, you can pre-visualize, you can summon all the good vibrations in your power. And still, family vacations can be a mess of whining and laughing, fighting and fun.
Maybe it's just that my expectations were too high. I had been, after all, falling asleep for the past couple of weeks, iPhone in hand, scrolling through Redfin listings of mountain cabins in Lake Arrowhead. Fantasizing about owning the perfect retreat to satisfy the wife's need for trees and mountain air. A plot of land for the kids to enjoy the outdoors away from the concrete and traffic. Assuming this weekend up to the mountains went well, maybe a little vacation home was in the cards.
So no pressure, right?
Read More... I squeezed the handbrakes, but it was too late. We collided and I was thrown into a guard rail. I crumpled over the handlebars and my helmet and the right side of my face cracked the metal railing as I fell to the concrete. Blood poured from... somewhere.
Read MoreMaybe it's all those glossy magazine spreads that did it. Or just some pent-up longing for a calm, communal escape. Either way, I’d convinced myself that we had all the makings of a perfect family summer vacation before us.
Read MoreHopefully you've got yourself a group of friends, who despite the passing years and varied life paths still find a way to get together. The opportunities may be less frequent, the outings more (or less) age-appropriate. But you all make it happen, because, well... it has to be done.
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