While sitting at the park today I asked my friend how her recent vacation went and she said, “It was ok.” This got us started talking about the difference between a vacation and a trip especially when it comes to being a mom and traveling with your kids. So let us start by breaking down the definitions according to Webster Dictionary:
The simple definition of both words are:
Vacation: a period of time that a person spends away from home, school, or business usually in order to relax or travel
Trip: to make a journey
I travel a lot with my three kids and my husband, but Id have to say I go on way more trips than vacations. As a mom, my kids are my business meaning, my job is taking care of them, feeding them, dressing them, and referring the sibling arguments. All of these things are still expected when we travel. Yes my husband is not at work which means I have an extra team mate full time in handling the kids, but all of my kids needs still need to be met. I don’t mean this to sound as if I don’t enjoy traveling with my kids and relishing every moment spent with them, I’m just saying that yes most of our time away is more of a trip than a vacation.
For my recent birthday, my husband surprised me with a vacation to Nashville, where for three days we will hang out, go out to dinner, and spend time relaxing. It really is a vacation with no kids involved!
Well as I am currently writing this article, I’m sitting at the Ft Lauderdale airport for what was supposed to be a 30 minute layover and has now turned into a six hour and counting layover , but you know what it is still vacation! I can assure there is no time at home that I could be sitting in chair, typing a post and watching a show in peace. Yes Id rather be sitting at a bar in Nashville listening to music with my husband but heck its still pretty relaxing just hanging out watching a show while he reads a book besides me.
The moral of the story is it is not the destination that determines if you are on a vacation or a trip but instead it’s the company you are with and the activities that are occupying your time!
