As y’all might know, if you’ve read my little bio on here, I am a very anxious person. Because of this, trips and vacations can be a little daunting. Let me clarify-trips and vacations with my family can be daunting. Something about traveling with my friends doesn’t make me worry like traveling with my family does. I guess they’re my happy place or something cheesy like that. Needless to say, when I found out I would be going to the beach with my family and my brother-in-law’s mother at the end of June I was kind of terrified. You might be thinking, “Why would a relaxing beach trip ever be scary?” For one thing it was going to be Grace’s first actual vacation and 8+ hours in a car with a 3 year old isn’t my idea of fun. So here’s some tips I gathered from this excursion.
Have someone who “gets it.”
In my case it was my mom. She unfortunately gets the worst end of my anxiety and it didn't help that I had a full-on attack about going on this trip about 3 hrs before we were supposed to leave. But that little episode forced me to be honest about how I was feeling (something I'm terrible at) and made us have a conversation about it. She reassured me that I could stay in our room whenever I wanted and have genuine chill time and that she would be there to talk if things got too intense.
Don't be afraid to say no.
If you know for certain that a planned activity is going to be a huge stressor to you, simply opt out. For me, it was a late-night trip to a kids amusement park. (I say "late-night" when in actuality it was around 7:30 but for a 3yr old that is bordering dangerously close to bedtime. AKA prime time for breakdowns.) I knew Grace would have fun but I also knew a tantrum would likely take place when she had to leave. And when Grace is unhappy, everyone is unhappy.
Don’t be afraid to say yes (or compromise.)
One night I had the option of staying on the beach and reading all evening or going out with my family. While I wanted to spend time with everyone, I was still hesitant. So we made a compromise. I agreed to go out with them for dinner, then I could come back to our room and unwind. It worked out perfectly.
Have stress relievers on hand.
Luckily our room was directly ocean front. The view was incredible and I called dibbs on the best chair on the balcony the moment we got there. I had brought a few books to read and even purchased two more on the way to the beach. During our five days those books and that balcony was my go-to spot. Well, there and the actual beach. My mom was so awesome and would walk down with me whenever I wanted. This included super early mornings and sea shell searches (say that 5 times fast), sweltering hours in the afternoon working on our tans (HAHA I’M SO PALE) and late late nights and calling dad and letting him hear the waves (he wasn’t too amused.)
MUSIC.
This kind of goes hand-in-hand with number 4, but having my phone and iPad loaded down with new music and old faves was crucial. As previously mentioned, it was a long drive down and a person can only handle so much Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Bubble Guppies. So Ed Sheeran’s new album, 5SOS, and The1975 saved the day. On multiple occasions. And I’ll just tell you, sitting in the sand with the waves crashing with Shirtsleeves blaring in your ears is basically a religious experience.
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