Getting Outta Dodge

Our big trip-eroo is coming! It’s not here yet, but it’s coming (read more about it here and here)…

Last year’s vacation was great, don’t get me wrong, but we didn’t time it very well. We hit the road in September, right when everything in both our work worlds were kicking off back at home. Not a good idea. We’ll chalk it up to living and learning. THIS year, we were determined not to have the same thing happen- so we chose a time when ministry life is a little slower and right before things pick up in Mitch’s summer camp schedule. If all goes as planned, this year’s vaca will be just as awesome and fun, but with less worrying about the home and work front.

I realized that we have a system. It works for us. It’s a system that we use whenever we go away- whether it be a weekend adventure or a long-term trip. There’s a process that happens to make sure we can leave well. Know what I mean when by that? Leaving well helps us fully enjoy what we’re leaving to do. We’re fully prepared, things are organized, and there’s a plan in place. Not only do we enjoy our trips more when we do this, but coming back is easier too because we don’t come back to chaos.

Does this happen every time? Hah! Yeah right. Did I mention we’re humans? And messy? But we do our best to run through our “before we ship out” checklist and I thought it might be helpful to share a few things that happen as the trip gets closer. So without further ado…

ONE YEAR OUT…

This would be more for those big trips, family vacations, work trips you know you’ll be going on, etc…

Tip 1: Brainstorm where you want to go and decide on a time frame. This past year, we had wanted to go to Arizona and do some hiking in the Grand Canyon. Apparently, lodging and excursions are booked up to 12 months in advance! TWELVE MONTHS! So picture us back in January trying to get our spring family vacation booked, only to find out that every single room in most places out there was completely booked. Places fill up, so start your planning early! Also, prices tend to be cheaper when you book earlier in advance.

Tip 2: Make your budget. It was very helpful for us to create a budget of what this trip was going to cost right from the start. Using that, we were then able to see how much we had to put aside and how long we had to do it. When it comes time for the trip, we won’t be spending any “new” money to make it happen… which inevitably leads to a less stressful experience because there is no worrying about “can we afford to do that?” or “wow, we didn’t take THAT cost into consideration”. Budget for everything you can think of- lodging, flight, driving, meals, special activities, spending money. Even if you don’t have an exact number, a general idea will help you understand what it is going to take financially to make your trip happen.

SIX MONTHS OUT…

Tip 3: Book things. Unless you’ve already done this, of course! Get it done and out of the way. Save all of your email confirmations and file them in a specific folder (I’ve been marking ours as “vacation”)- it’ll save you time months down the road from having to dig through email archives to find your trip info.

Tip 4: Research the area! Get to know where you’re going. I am a HUGE fan of doing lots of research before we go because then I feel like we can make our plans, taking all of that knowledge into consideration. We are less likely to miss out on something if we have a general idea of the top things to see, do, and eat while we’re in the area. Ask around! Poll people on Facebook, find people that have been there before, read reviews online… your best resources are the folks that have “been there, done that, and here are our tips”. PS. We’re still taking tips and tricks for visiting Florida… all you veterans out there, tell us your secrets!!!

THREE MONTHS OUT…

Tip 5: Get excited! We did this by looking through our pictures of the last Disney trip we took, watching some of the Harry Potter movies, and… you guessed it- using the trip excitement to fuel some summer fitness goals! In the realm of pictures, I even popped one in a frame on the mantel. You could set up a countdown somewhere. Getting excited about the trip also inspires us to continue to plan, plan, plan. Find out everything we can so we can make the most of our time and money while we’re there.

Tip 6: Think about getting someone to crash your pad. We’ve never felt like we needed a house sitter. You might not either. BUT, in this day and age, it amazes me how often people will announce to the world that they are not home. With Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and the rest of those opportunities to share that “this is what I’m doing and where I’m doing it”, it is so easy to forget that the message we are essentially sending is: I am not at home. If you plan on posting photos of your trip, it might be a good idea to look into making sure you’re not leaving an empty house behind! Just my two cents…

A FEW WEEKS OUT…

Tip 7: Think about your to-do list. Are there any bigger ticket items you would feel better accomplishing before you headed out on a relaxing vacation? Plan some time to knock them off your to-do list… it’ll make leaving it all behind feel that much sweeter. My big ticket item? Cleaning and getting the back patio ready for the season.

Tip 8: Do a dress rehearsal. That’s right, a practice, if you will. What I mean by this is talk yourself straight through the trip, from beginning to end. What are you planning on doing each day? Even if some or all of your days are going to be spent relaxing or not doing too much of anything. Think it through. This will especially come in handy if you’re wanting to do specific activities, eat at specific places, etc. Having a plan in place ahead of time will minimize the amount of time you spend (or waste, depending on how you look at it) deciding what to do and when during your actual trip.

Tip 9: Look at the details. What will you need for each part of your trip? IDs? Toll money? Credit card? Certain type of clothing? For example, we’ll be taking a boat trip that includes some jet skiing and in order to be able to do that, we need to get a boating certificate beforehand. Had we not gone through the details, we would have shown up without it and been unable to participate!

ONE WEEK OUT…

Tip 10: Make a final, comprehensive to-do list. What needs to happen at work and at home before you ship off? Pay those bills, mail the cards that have been waiting forever to be addressed, create your “I will be away from the office until…” automatic email. Whatever you have to get done to leave well, do it. You’ll enjoy your time away so much more when you feel like you successfully tied up all the loose ends!

Tip 11: Leave an empty fridge! We usually try and eat everything in the fridge that could potentially go bad during the time we’re away. Things to try and finish up: dairy products, produce, leftovers, the last bits in those chip bags (they’ll probably be stale when you return anyway!).

Tip 12: Pack early. If you pack early enough, you’ll have time to run out and grab those last minute things without feeling rushed. We realized shortly after packing that we had NO sunscreen! A quick trip to the drugstore solved that problem and now we won’t have to worry about remembering to grab some in the final few days before we have to leave, which are always the craziest.

Tip 13: Print all tickets and confirmation emails. We created a folder of every paper trail we might need for the trip, paper clipped like-documents together, and labeled everything clearly for easy access.

Tip 14: Tell someone about your travel plans. We always try and email a rough itinerary to our parents for bigger trips with addresses of the places we’ll be staying and the general time frame of where we’ll be when. This is just in case of an emergency- if they need to find us, they know where to look.

Tip 15: Clean! There is nothing more relaxing than coming back “home” (wherever home is- could be your house, apartment, dorm room, bedroom, whatever) to a clean space. Or maybe it’s just me. The last thing I want to walk into after a vacation or time away is a crazy messy kitchen or a bathroom that desperately needs cleaning. Or my biggest kryptonite: piles of clothes everywhere. Talk about a quick and harsh way to snap back into reality!

LAST DAY…

Tip 16: Take out the trash. It only takes one time to make sure you never make that mistake again. We speak from experience. And don’t forget the ones upstairs or in the bathrooms!

Tip 17: Unplug! Want to save some money? Go around your house and unplug lamps, electronics, etc. Skip the fridge- that could be dangerous, but those other things that won’t be in use while you’re gone will continue to eat up your electric bill if left plugged in. This would also be a good time to make sure everything is turned OFF- stove, oven, curling iron, candles blown out… no trip is worth losing everything because you didn’t double check.

Tip 18: Leave a porch light on. Or whatever your system is. You don’t want to proclaim to the world that you’re not home. Another good way to avoid prying eyes is to arrange with a neighbor to collect your mail, newspapers, etc. so things are not piling up where people can see.

Tip 19: Lock ‘er up! Double check that all doors and windows are shut and locked. The windows get me- I always forget about those suckers.

Tip 20: If it’s not done, let it go. Not everything is going to be wrapped up perfectly. There will be unfinished business somewhere along the line, things you didn’t have time to get to. Guess what? It’s okay. Figure out how to detach yourself when you walk out the door. Chances are, you are giving up time and money to make your trip happen, so allow yourself to enjoy it. Revel in it. Leave well. 

Happy travels!!