Family planning gets complicated as kids get older
There’s nothing like taking a family vacation. No, really. With
us, it’s pretty much been nothing for a while.
Ever since my older son, Ross, has been in college, it has been
so difficult for all of us to get our schedules coordinated that
there have been hardly any trips together. I knew as my boys got
older it was going to be more difficult, but I didn’t know it was
going to become the impossible dream.
Family planning gets complicated as kids get older
There’s nothing like taking a family vacation. No, really. With us, it’s pretty much been nothing for a while.
Ever since my older son, Ross, has been in college, it has been so difficult for all of us to get our schedules coordinated that there have been hardly any trips together. I knew as my boys got older it was going to be more difficult, but I didn’t know it was going to become the impossible dream.
Hunter, my younger one, is a senior in high school, and he’s already back in class. Ross is going to the University of California, Santa Cruz, which doesn’t start until almost the end of September – the last of the University of California campuses to begin fall classes.
This is further complicated by the fact that Hunter is in band, and therefore must buzz off to various pep band engagements at football games as well as marching band competitions later in the fall. This means that most weekends are booked up for him for a while.
Also, Ross currently has a job – so rare these days for young men of a certain age in this economy – and it may only last until the fall quarter begins, so I’m looking for him to squeeze every nickel out of it. Ross also happens to have a girlfriend who occupies large chunks of his time.
And then I do work – after a fashion – although since I am self-employed, the hours are flexible. But certain deadlines must be met and I also have to have enough money and sanity left over for other things. So there’s that in the mix too.
I had asked the boys a few months ago if they’d like to take a little weekend trip with me, since I had by this time figured that a modest weekend outing might be our best bet, given all the factors involved. I suggested going to Universal Studios – a place we’ve never been before.
They thought that would be fine. But when, oh when?
So for the past several weeks I have been triangulating all our schedules and poring over school and band calendars to see when there might be an opportunity to go.
Ross also asked if his girlfriend, Nichole, could come along. I said that would be fine. And so there’s another person’s schedule to consider on top of everything else.
However, the stars finally aligned, and it seemed as though everyone would be free on one particular weekend in September. I said, great. Let’s plan for it.
I thought at that point that everything was hunky-dory and we were finally going to do this thing. But alas, I was wrong.
“What do you mean, that weekend?” Ross asked me when I mentioned it the other day.
“We talked about it, remember?” I said.
“I thought it was the weekend before,” he said. Turns out Nichole must move into her new apartment the weekend that we’re planning to go.
So if Nichole can’t go, then Ross doesn’t really want to go.
I broke the news to Hunter yesterday morning. He took it in with his usual lack of teenage enthusiasm. “We can go another weekend,” I said. “Okay,” he said.
It was back to the schedules and calendars to figure out some other weekend in the next few months that might possibly work for all of us.
Last night, I went to Santa Cruz to help Ross move out of the house he was living in this summer, and there was Nichole helping pack.
“Oh, guess what,” she said. “I think I can go in September after all!”
I think that means we’re back to Plan A. Maybe. Possibly. We’ll see.
