Holidays with toddlers: Should you risk it?

No, and here’s why:

Packing clothes: When packing for a toddler you need to remember that no item of clothing will be worn twice. This includes pyjamas. Because, you know, dirt is fun. So is painting yourself with your breakfast cereal.

Packing other necessities:  Mainly diapers. Wouldn't want to run out of those! However you start to get a pretty good idea of how big a contribution your child is making to landfills when half of your hatchback is filled with diapers. Don’t forget the wipes either! And bum cream, and sunblock, and baby powder, and and and… the one thing I seem to forget every time is a face cloth. Which is when I really appreciate remembering the wipes!

Packing stuff only toddlers need: You will probably not have much space left by this time. This is where you decide that you can totally pull off wearing the same jeans for the entire holiday. Besides, by the second day your toddler will have added so many decorations (read: stains) that nobody will be able to tell anyway! Back to the packing – here is where you need to remember to take plastic crockery & cutlery, sippy cups, bath toys, other toys (neither of which will entertain you toddler for long but here’s hoping) and of course a variety of stuffed animals, ALL of which your toddler simply cannot stand to be separated from.

Packing food: This applies even if your holiday is catered. We all know that toddlers eat only two types of food at any given time, one of which is usually ice-cream. They don’t care whether the meal was prepared by a world renowned chef; if it isn’t mac and cheese it ain’t getting eaten. You also need to pack snacks, or, as I like to call them, “sanity savers”.  Car rides, visits to places of interest, eating out, chilling by the pool – all much better if your toddler has a snack to distract them from distracting you.

Packing all of the above into your two-door hatchback: Here's hoping you really enjoyed playing Tetris when it was all the rage. 

The travelling: Toddlers and confined spaces are not a great mix to begin with, so being in a confined space with a toddler for several hours is bound to be the type of experience that would drive (excuse the pun!) any normal human to the absolute brink of their sanity. Oh, you say, but we are planning our trip so that the majority of drive time falls over toddlers nap time. We tried that once – toddler stayed awake, whining, crying, ignoring all the busy bags mom had laboured over all those late nights, until we were exactly 15 minutes away from our destination. The next time we thought we would go to extremes to ensure a sleeping toddler – we left at 3am. 3am! Toddler was awake all the way. ALL. THE. WAY… Also, your vehicle will reach your destination sporting several new interior decorations (read: stains) and a smell you can’t quite place. (It’s probably the dirty diaper you had to change in transit – how much fun was that!? – which has now rolled into and secured itself in some obscure crevice)

Having a toddler on holiday with you: Oh, you thought you would get to relax? Maybe spend your evenings in front of the fire with a nice glass of wine, read that book you’ve been intending to for ages, spend quality time with your husband, sight-see… Ha! Being on holiday with a toddler is not much different to being at home with a toddler – except that you now get to try put toddler to sleep in a new environment, without that one stuffed animal that you forgot and toddler now insists on cuddling. Fire = too dangerous. Wine, well, just watch your glass – my toddler has a knack for stealing sips of unwatched drinks! Sight-seeing – see previous point re toddlers and confined spaces.

Clean-up: And by this I mean the week after you return from said holiday with several suitcases full of dirty laundry, an empty fridge, and a toddler whose routine is now non-existent. How are they supposed to understand that we don’t have ice-cream for breakfast now that we’re home?!

Yes! And here’s why!

Having a toddler on holiday with you: Be honest – if it weren't for your toddler waking you at dawn you would never have seen the mountain change from grey, to pink, to red, and then to that incredible explosion of nature as the sun rose upon it. You would not have noticed just how many different flowers were in bloom if your toddler hadn't insisted on smelling each and every one. Twice. You get a glimpse of, and vaguely remember again, what it is like to experience everything for the very first time – the sand, the waves, and the delight of an ice - cream cone.

Experiences: As an early childhood educator, I cannot stress enough the importance of providing a life rich with experiences, and especially experiences involving culture and nature, to children under the age of 6. Yes, they may not be able to recall the details when they are older, but you are laying the foundation for a lifelong love of, and respect for, nature, adventure, exploring, and other cultures – while at the same time allowing for a wealth of “accidental” learning to take place through the various experiences your toddler enjoys!

Memories: These shared experiences are what keep families together when life is not all sunshine and butterflies. So take pictures – lots of pictures! In a month, a year, 10 years’ time, when you’re wondering whether it is all even worth it, these photographs will help you remember why your family is precious, and that there are in fact good times to be had. Through these shared experiences the family grows and becomes richer.

So, even though the prospect of a holiday with a toddler (or two – in our case) can be daunting, I absolutely believe it is still worth it. Remember, they aren't going to be so little forever – in just a few short years they will be your tennis partner, and hey, they may even be bribed into pouring your drinks for you! So hang in there, and share a sympathetic smile with the other poor saps being dragged around the holiday resort by their toddler!