KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

Hi,

I have been reading up on travel books from taiwan about DIY trip ( not joining any tour group ) with their kids to Europe, Australia for weeks ....

I am just wondering if any one has tried it (i.e going without their spouse) Would it not be wonderful rediscovering yourself?

I am a stay at home mother of a only son. School days can be so stressful herding him to finish home works and tuitions. Barely got good times to enjoy with him to play. When daddy home his face lightened up and "dumped" me to be with him....guess who has become the "bad gal" at home..
Therefore I am entertaining the thoughts of taking him out on a trip just the two of us to "rediscover" each other ( he is only 10 year old )...sadly I hesitate because I am not sure if I can handle the travel with him alone....

Hence if mommies out here have done that, can you share your experiences....

can start off with places that you've been to & familiar with... at least you don't have to struggle checking out map & wasting precious time to be with your kid when overseas.
For example places like HK, no communication problem, efficient subway system that take you to almost every tourist attraction, can either be adventurous to try out new exotic food or have familiar chinese/jap asian food..

I don't see why there should be any trouble 'handling' a 10yo kid when travelling. They can walk, carry things, eat anything, read guide books and maps etc. Just don't pick anything too tough or adventurous, but a city-based trip or beach holiday should be fine.

Pignite wrote:Hi,

I have been reading up on travel books from taiwan about DIY trip ( not joining any tour group ) with their kids to Europe, Australia for weeks ....

I am just wondering if any one has tried it (i.e going without their spouse) Would it not be wonderful rediscovering yourself?

I am a stay at home mother of a only son. School days can be so stressful herding him to finish home works and tuitions. Barely got good times to enjoy with him to play. When daddy home his face lightened up and "dumped" me to be with him....guess who has become the "bad gal" at home..
Therefore I am entertaining the thoughts of taking him out on a trip just the two of us to "rediscover" each other ( he is only 10 year old )...sadly I hesitate because I am not sure if I can handle the travel with him alone....

Hence if mommies out here have done that, can you share your experiences....

don't see any problem if all 3 of you go on the same holiday

you want more time with your son ? easy, make him the driver throughout the trip ..... while he drives you have time with your son, after that it is still shared time .... it will be great holidays....

i like self drive holidays in europe, and have done it many times

LOL I kinda agreed. I wanted to go Osaka pokemon centre with him. He is going to be 10 years old once

But then I prefer to go Japan in autumn when it's much cooler. So meantime I will research as much as I can about what we can do and where to stay...

I guess if we don't take our 1st step we will never break the mould. I will be living like a froggy in a well with many regrets.....

Thank everyone for sharing....

Pignite wrote:LOL I kinda agreed. I wanted to go Osaka pokemon centre with him. He is going to be 10 years old once

But then I prefer to go Japan in autumn when it's much cooler. So meantime I will research as much as I can about what we can do and where to stay...

I guess if we don't take our 1st step we will never break the mould. I will be living like a froggy in a well with many regrets.....

Thank everyone for sharing....

Its nice to do things together. Why not get your son to do the planning of the holiday together? He would be happier if he is involved. As long as you set some ground rules, it should be ok.

During our holiday trips, he would join in the discussion and even help with doing the checklist and itinerary. Have fun!

Agree with Jr and VK2010.

Don't "punish" dad la...hehe. He will be so lonely at home knowing both of you are having fun. But then, this is only me. I like to do thinks together with my DH. I don't even go holiday or extend biz trip if he is not there!

Seriously, as boys get older, (I have 2 teen boys), they will tend to be closer to dad. I think it is natural as Dad is the male role model.

I am attending a cookie baking and decorating class with Ds2 next month. DS1 will be on overseas school trip so can't join. But 3 of us did a cake baking class together some time ago, and we had fun. So it is really up to you to try to do little things together with your DS. You don't even need to go holiday to do that )

Hi Dnls,

Not that i don't want to include DS. He is those type who prefers to stay at home during his free time. Anything more than a week he will get grouchy....so travelling is not his thingy...

Luckily DS is like me like to explore. So far we go as a family not to exclude daddy..

Now i am looking further away (europe) but then can see DH shaking his head...

Therefore i need to try to travel with my only son, go "see" the world before he becomes like DH... I must overcome my fear to do DIY tour with DS.... after my 1st step who knows we may become travel buddy in future..(can count my DH out)

Pignite wrote:Therefore i need to try to travel with my only son, go "see" the world before he becomes like DH... I must overcome my fear to do DIY tour with DS.... after my 1st step who knows we may become travel buddy in future..(can count my DH out)

If you want to go further and longer, you may want to consider a guided tour? That way, you won't have to worry about making travel and accommodation arrangements. If it's your first time doing DIY and you are not so confident, you may want to try something shorter and simpler first.

It is a good idea to travel together to have some bonding. But be forwarned that the opposite might also happen. If the interests are not matching, the trip might turn out to be stressful for both as tempers may show up, for example one might want to do shopping while the other wants to stay in hotel. It happens to friends and spouse trips. But it might be more problematic with your DS as the relation is more of mother (I-will-decide-what-you-should-do) and your DS (why-am-I-doing-things-that-I-don't-want). Perhaps, you should think through and have a good discussion first. Sorry, just my thoughts...