Post Vacation & Summer Family Checklist

After a fun-filled trip to PEI we're home and slowly easing back into our normal routine. Don't you hate that feeling of the post-vacation blues? The reality wake-up call that you really can't continue to eat out at restaurants, spend lots of money, and hold onto that "who cares Im on vacation" attitude. There's something invigorating about being on vacation, and coming home is almost like a let down. I think we're all feeling that today. And the dark, rainy weather certainly isn't helping! I came across a few tips to help you ease back into regular life, especially with kids. Most of these I've tried to adapt into the end of our vacation.

1. Give yourself a "rest day". Book off the day after you return. No work, no school. Just give yourself a day to rest, unpack, do laundry and mentally prepare yourself for reality.
2. Plan a fun, but easy activity with your kids. Baking cookies, or renting a movie you've never seen. You don't want to overdo it on your "rest day" but it's nice to give yourself and your kids something to look forward to and make them forget about all the fun they just left behind.
3. When you're packing to come home, do your best to make the unpacking as smooth as possible. Put all the dirty clothes together in a bag so they're ready for the wash and pack everyone's clothes separately so clean clothes are easier to put back in drawers. I've been guilty of just tossing everything in the suitcase and telling myself I'll worry about it when I get home. I've discovered that when I get home is NOT when I want to worry about organizing clothes, garbage and laundry.

Aside from a few disappointments from Mother Nature, we did have a wonderful time, squeezed in everything we could and took lots of photos to remember such a great weekend! We revisited some of our favourite stomping grounds and indulged in the some of the best treats PEI has to offer!

We managed to check off one of our activities on our Summer Family check-list! Ride the PEI Ferry!
This has always been so much fun for our kids, and I look forward to it as well. It's such an excitement for them to drive up onto the ferry, then run upstairs to explore the boat. We can eat at the restaurant, play arcade games, and sit outside and enjoy the gorgeous view. To end our trip,we took the last boat of the day, so a gorgeous sunset was our background for our sail home.

I'd love to hear about some of your Prince Edward Island experiences!