Home Again: The End or The Beginning?

So after a wonderful trip to Spring Lake (A Real Vacation! (Daily Vacation Style)), the family is all back home.  We've unpacked, washed the clothes, put all the laundry away, and restocked the kitchen.  Now it's back to ugggggghhhhhhhhh.....regular life.  Regular life comes with all kinds of terrible titles: same-old-same-old, hum drum routine, daily grind, etc.  I think one of the saddest things you ever hear people say is that they are home from vacation and are "settling back into their normal routine".  Who wants to disappear back into "normal"?

 

 

To prevent this, towards the end of a vacation and in the first days you are home, it is important to try to bring some planning and excitement into your "everyday".  Rather then thinking about how you are going to miss what you have, think about how you can do something at home that gives you a similiar feeling.  Take the time to do things by yourself and as a family that you enjoyed on your trip.  While we were away, my husband, daughter, and I went on many many walks through the park, the beautiful town, and along the boardwalk.  After we got home, it felt natural to go out in the evening for a family walk.  The vacation was over, but we were still all together having a great time.

 

I also love to think of post-vacation time as the time to really start something new at home.  A lot of times, we put off beginning something or committing to something when a trip is on the horizon, since we know we'll be away for a time in the near future.  Well, now that you are back, chances are it will be a little while until you travel away from home again.  It is the perfect time to bring something brand new into your life.  Sign up for a class, begin a book series, plan to visit local destinations, redecorate a room, start a new family tradition - there are endless possibilities depending on what you prefer.  If you happen to be a pregnant, still slightly nauseous at inconvenient moments woman with a seven month old (*raises hand*), then you might find finally putting time into that scrapbook at home an ideal project to begin.

 

Whatever you choose, no matter how involved or simple it is, make sure that you don't slip back into your old life, marking the days until you can next escape "the daily grind".  As you unpack your bags, get excited for all the wonderful things you can experience right where you live.  After all, your life is what you make of it.  If you think it is boring, then it most certainly will be.  Time to change things up and start something new.