What Makes A Vacation?

Even after being in the North County of San Diego for almost a month, I’ve found myself telling folks that it “still feels like a vacation”. At the time I (Carolyn) wrote this article, we hadn’t officially ventured into homeschooling yet. It left me thinking… what is a vacation? Are we on a permanent vacation because we are away from home, or, since we are a few months in each of three locations (surf town, city, ski town), will we settle into a lifestyle that doesn’t really feel like a vacation at some point during each experience?

ENVIRONMENT OR MINDSET?

According to Google’s dictionary, “vacation” as a noun is “an extended period of leisure and recreation, especially one spent away from home or in traveling”. Well, we’ve definitely had plenty of extended leisure time so far. My daily routine for our first few weeks looked like this:

• 7:45 am – Wake up without an alarm clock; wake the kids to get ready for surf camp if needed
• 8:00 am – Breakfast while seeing, hearing, and smelling the waves on the beach
• 8:45 am – Bike with the kids to surf camp
• 9:15 am – Bike to a yoga class or head to my own surf lesson, depending on the day
• 10:45 am – Return to the condo & shower, maybe throw in a load of laundry, check a few texts/emails
• 11:30 am – Complete an errand or two – check the mailbox, get a few groceries, make phone calls, etc.
• 12:45 pm – Bike to pick the kids up from surf camp
• 1:00 pm – Bike back to the condo with the boys
• 1:30 pm – Lunch on the deck
• 2:30 pm – Take a nap
• 3:30 pm – Walk to the beach with the boys to read my book, surf, fish, hang with the kids
• 5:30 pm – Return to the condo for some screen time – boys on their crazy apps, me on my laptop prepping blogs and doing research for homeschooling
• 6:30 pm – Cook dinner myself or supervise one of the boys cooking something
• 7:30 pm – Eat dinner, clean up the kitchen & family room with the kids
• 8:00 pm – Watch regular, live TV as a family (America’s Got Talent and Master Chef are favorites)
• 9:30 pm – Read in bed before falling asleep

In 2017, The Economic Times from India noted in their article 9 Reasons to Take a Vacation that “…when you take a vacation, you immediately reduce the stress in your life and give yourself the space and time to get back to work with a clear mind. Life is short. Don’t make it shorter by avoiding vacations… Consider vacations as an enjoyable way to invest in your good health.” So, given that definition, a vacation might be available to you at any given time, without having to travel if you just decrease your stress and recharge. I heard someone say when my kids were babies that their friend would savor every moment of quiet and decreased stress to the point where she referred to the time when you walk around your car to the driver’s side, in the peace and quiet, after you buckle your screaming toddler into their car seat, as a vacation! As for the phrase, “Life is short. Don’t make it shorter by avoiding vacations”, I’m hoping this trip renders us full of life and thriving (even if being at the beach every day for three months will make me significantly more wrinkled).

So, is it the state of mind, or the location? If it’s the environment, then we are most definitely on a permanent vacation for 10 months. But, if it’s a state of mind, then we can hopefully practice accessing the sense of “vacation” even after we return to our permanent home. Since Dave has to continue to work Monday through Friday while we are away, I’m hoping that the environment we’re in now that feels like a vacation to me and the boys allows him to feel like he’s living IN a vacation and that he can access the sense of reduced stress because of it. It’s pretty chill in our surf town right now, and he says he’s chillin’, so all good so far!

SCHOOL CALENDARS FOR “VACATIONS”

Now that all of the kids we know as a family have returned to compulsory school, but we have not, I am struck by how much our society revolves around the school calendar in general and the local school calendars in particular. Here in the North County of San Diego, there was a significant decrease in surf camp attendance when the local schools were back in session this week as well as less lifeguard coverage at the beach. The beaches aren’t as crowded during the day, and the energy has a different hum.

For years I’ve been under the impression that the school calendar is some sort of archaic idea from hundreds of years ago that was based on some sort of farming calendar. I read the article “Agrarian Roots? Think again… Debunking the Myth of Summer Vacation’s Origins” and found out I was sorely mistaken! (Wow, that puts me in my place as an educator for the last two decades!)

We’re all too familiar with how U.S. compulsory school calendars dictate not only when most families are eligible to take vacations; they also result in higher prices during those times for flights and hotels, and the crowds are more dense. Some schools have opted for a year-round schedule to circumvent this, though mostly to avoid the summer slide in academic performance. For our family, we’re looking forward to taking advantage of our homeschooling calendar by hitting Disneyland and Legoland a week or two after Labor Day as well as a two day venture to Las Vegas for super cheap to see Matt Franco (AGT’s winner a few years ago) toward the end of September.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR US?

I wonder if after we start homeschooling my stress levels will increase, and I will feel the need for a vacation again? I wonder if our lack of fidelity to a school calendar – or even to a daily school schedule – will make it continue to feel like we are still on vacation even when we are well into our trip and have set our homeschool routines? I’ll let you know in a few weeks. For now, it’s back to the beach….

🙂 Carolyn