Pack your bags and get ready to hit the road! It is time for a summer family vacation. Family vacations are a priceless gift and create lasting memories for children to take with them into adulthood. Taking the time to enjoy a vacation will not only offer the opportunity to relax but also the chance to improve communication and bonding.

Quality Time Spent Together is Priceless

With soccer try outs, gymnastic meets, and basketball games, the family is always on the go. There is little time left after a full scheduled day to sit down and have quality time together – time that has no distractions or time limits. Taking a vacation as a family will give you the opportunity to have essential time to have meaningful conversations. It will also help the family to grow deeper in their relationships and maybe even find out something they did not know about one another. Quality time is essential in a healthy relationship.

Sit Down, Take a Breath and Relax

The pressure and stress of a single day can be immense. Even when you leave work you sometimes tend to bring it home. Whether it is answering emails, taking phone calls or stressing about what you have to do the next day. Taking a vacation will allow you the time needed to take a step back and relax. This will also help with your productivity once returning home. You will have a clear mind and be able to step right back into your daily tasks.

Memories that Last a Lifetime

A family vacation is sure to be full of laughs and memories. These are things that children can carry on with them into adulthood and even pass down to their children. It gives siblings and parents the opportunity to connect with each other.

Try Something New – Create an Experience

You do not have to travel across the country to have a great and new experience. Have a “staycation” and take a historical tour of your city. You will find out things you might now have known before. You will also have teachable moments where you can show your kids how what they are learning in school relates back to real life.

Family vacations are vital in creating bonds that assure kids they are safe and cared for. It creates an environment where you can all be silly, play games together and have experiences as a family. Here at Place of Hope, we try to give the children in our care this same experience. We want them to create relationships with those that are surrounding them. Our desire is for them to have life changing moments when they see a mountain for the first time, experience the saltiness of the ocean or see things they have only seen in pictures. We have seen the joy on a kid’s face when he eats at a breakfast buffet for the first time; their elation when they walk into a theme park and the life-changing bonds created around a campfire during a first campout. To support and be a part of giving many first ever vacations and family memories, please visit placeofhope.com/donate.