Plan now, relax later

A little planning can make a big difference – and save lots of time and money on vacation. Our goal is to keep it simple, but still have tasty and somewhat healthy meals. The key is figuring out what to bring from home and what to buy locally. Of course it makes a big difference if you are flying or driving. And if you are driving, it is important to factor in how long the trip will take (hours vs. days) on what you will want to pack. I find it easier to navigate my neighborhood store: I know where things are, I’m familiar with the prices, I can factor in sales and specials, so the more I can do in advance the better.

For our SoCal trip we created a menu and activity plan. The boys each brought a friend - which means we were planning food for 4 very active growing boys and 2 adults. The boys gave us ideas on what type of food they thought would be fun on vacation. Graham and I have been exercising a lot so we opted for high protein meals. After all the input, here’s our plan:







Once the plan was in place, we worked out what we could bring from home:



And then I tried to anticipate what I would need to get locally:




It might seem like a lot of planning up front, but it pays off when you can sit back and relax. According to Preston’s friend, it must have had some positive impact because he said, “my favorite part of the trip was everyone eating dinner together!”

Kari On and Keep Traveling