Are We There Yet?

Many parents, when they think of traveling with their kids, immediately hear this whine in their mind, coming from the back seat of the car, “Are we there yet?” I have seen similar scenes in way too many movies too. Being in the car with bored kids is possibly one of the most common fears parents have, which causes many of them to avoid traveling with their children.

How horrible.

Another thing that is now very common is the use of electronic gadgets to pacify kids and keep them occupied on the way to interesting places, because of the fear of what they might do if they get bored. Watching a DVD or listening to music, often each person separately listening with headphones, seem like good ways to “have some peace and quiet”.

Again, how horrible.

Because traveling is not just about the places we visit. Traveling is also about breaking the family routine, spending quality time together and bonding. Sharing a DVD player may keep your kids occupied and quiet, but it will prevent them from developing their imagination, their ability to keep themselves interested and their connection with other members of the family. In fact, it actually makes them bored more often and teaches them to fear boredom and to view their own children later on as a nuisance.

How… OK, you get it.

Ronit and I have just returned from a week away with our kids. It is now winter in Brisbane, with temperatures below our enjoyment threshold, so we decided to go to Port Douglas, which is in the tropical region of Australia. We were hoping for nice, warm weather. Instead, the sky was overcast, it rained lightly on most days and the temperatures we pretty mild. But we had a ball anyway.

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Handy Family Tips: Treasure box

This entry is part 8 of 24 in the series Handy Family Tips

In most home, space is a very limited resource. We all wish our house was half empty with only what we need. Every time our family moves (and I have moved 27 times already), we discover how much we have accumulated. 17 years ago, Gal and I moved to another country with 3 suitcases, 2 boxes and a little girl. Today, we would probably need a 40-foot high-cube container.

Accumulating things is part of life. We accumulate things because we think we might use them (later) or because they have some sentimental value. Just a while ago, I wrote about how hard it is to get rid of kids’ artwork to clear valuable space for new creations. Taking digital photos of many of our things can be one solution to saving space, but there are always things that we cannot throw away as parents, or that our kids, partners or other family members need to decide what to do with them.

When I was 16, I made myself a treasure box and put all my treasures in it – cards I had received from people, special show tickets, photos and awards I had won. Having that box, which I made out of a shoebox, was a great way for me to monitor what I was keeping and what I was not. The space in the box was limited, so I could not keep everything.

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The Worst Age for Kids

Are kids of some ages worse than others? Is there a link between age and behavior? Are teens especially terrible?

I think not.

A few days ago, I went to pick Tsoof up from school and bumped into his guitar teacher, Andrew. We had a chat about Tsoof’s progress and how much he was enjoying his lessons, and then Andrew asked me, “How old is Tsoof?”

“Just turned 14”, I said.

“That’s the worst age”, he said, “Lots of kids stay nice until about that age, but then they start having problems and going wild. That was the most difficult age for me too”.

As it happens, both Ronit and I have heard this sort of warning from many people, so Andrew was expressing a very common notion about teens and how they change, but it made me want to write this post.

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Kids Appreciating Art

Last weekend, we took the kids to see a sculptures exhibition on the beach. I love art and I want to expose my kids to any form of art, so I thought a day at the beach, walking barefoot and seeing an exhibition, would be well worth the one-hour trip. I also hoped it would be a great day after a very hectic week. In fact, it had been a very hectic month. I think I had lost track of time – everything had been great and exciting, so I do not even know when the pressure had started.

Many people tell me kids do not really understand (and therefore like) exhibitions, but I remember my kids in Paris, enjoying every art piece in what others thought was a boring gallery at very young ages.

A few years ago, Eden and Tsoof also enjoyed a pottery class, where they fashioned cups and dolls out of mushy clay, baked it and decorated it. They even got to spend a day with a professional sculptor and learned how to carve limestone.

I am a big believer in informal education and I think kids get excited by new things if we get excited about them and then they learn a great deal from them. I have found this to be true with traveling, with food, with music and certainly with visual art.

So away we went to see the sculptures.

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Make a list: Beliefs about Traveling

This entry is part 22 of 49 in the series Make a List

Traveling does not trigger the same thoughts and ideas in everyone’s mind. For some, traveling means carrying a heavy load, while for others, it means feeling calm and relaxed. Some are stressed by the planning and organizing, while others imagine the views and the pictures they will capture. Some fear the unknown, while others look forward to great surprises.

This list-making post is for the travelers among us. It is for those who love traveling and the thought of going out of their comfort zone to a new destination excites them.

This post is also for those who have never traveled (much), but wish they did (more).

It may even be for those who have had no desire to travel until now…

I can write about traveling because I am a world traveler and love every second of it.

But I was not a traveler all my life.

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Riding in Cars with Kids (2)

Yesterday, I started writing about my secrets for riding in cars with kids. If you are a parent and you have kids, I am sure you are asking yourself how to make the ride safe and happy for everyone. I hope the secrets I give here from 20 years of experience and many hours of being in the car with my kids will motivate you to get into the car with your kids and go on wonderful journeys of fun and joy together.

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Riding in Cars with Kids (1)

Riding in the car with kids is challenging for many parents. When the kids are younger, when the rides are longer and when you are the only adult in the car, it can be even worse.

Gal and I lived in Bangkok for a year and half and riding in the car our kids was something we did for hours almost each day. Eden was about 7, Tsoof was just a baby and Bangkok was a big traffic jam. One day, Gal was on his way home (well, it was a hotel, but we called it home for a month) and sat in traffic for 50 minutes until he decided to get out of the car and walk (oh, I forgot to say we had a driver). He arrived at the hotel after 10 minutes, showered, changed and went back downstairs to see the driver pull into the driveway.

To take Eden to see a friend on Saturday morning, we would drive for about 3 hours to a place that would only be 30 minutes away at 9pm. Going to work took 10 times as long as it would in light traffic and that got every worse during the rainy season.

As usual, when you do not have a choice, creativity sparks.

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Kiss Buggy

About 3 month ago, the kids, our 7-year-old daughter Noff and our 13-year-old son Tsoof started playing the “Punch Buggy” game. If you do not know this game, it involves looking out for a buggy (a Volkswagen “bug”), and the first person to spot one punches the other and says “Punch Buggy”.

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Parents, Get Involved in Your Kids’ Homework

Many parents feel unsure about whether their kids are getting too much or not enough homework. Some complain that their kids sit for hours to do their homework, while others say, “I never see them sitting for 5 minutes”. Over the years, with three kids in different schools, I have also said that homework was too much or that I do not see the kids doing homework at all.

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Who Says Fast Food is Bad for Kids?

I think many children hear negative expressions about fast food, when in fact, not all fast food is bad. There are many kinds of fast food that are very healthy and can be made in a short time at home or at a commercial outlet. Sometimes, the faster it is to make the food, the fresher and healthier it is.

It is true there are many places where you can get fast junk food containing mostly fillers, sugar and fat, but why not change the whole concept of fast food and teach our kids that what is important is the quality of the food, not the speed of making it.

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