Take a Stay-Cation!

This year, my husband and I contemplated taking our annual trip to the mountains during his fall break (long weekend). But, with a 15-month old, 4-hour car drives just aren't what they used to be. And, we were unsure about how well she (or our backs) would do on 4-hour hikes. And, does a 15-month old really appreciate the beauty of the mountains, crisp fall air, apple orchards, and rushing waterfalls? Not so much.

After contemplating other destinations, we decided to do something we'd never done before: take a stay-cation. For those of you not familiar with this new-fangled term, it's basically staying home during a vacation period and doing activities in your hometown or region that you would normally not do on a day-to-day basis.

We had a blast! Here are some places in middle Georgia that we visited:

• Tanger Outlets at Locust Grove
• J Christopher's
• Noah's Ark
• Go-Fish Georgia Exhibit
• Lane Southern Orchards
• Wesleyan College to feed the ducks and take pictures

If you're planning on taking a stay-cation, consider this advice:

1. Set a budget for your stay-cation. It doesn't have to be big; stay-cations can be lots of fun and save lots of money versus a traditional vacation.
2. Set ground rules, like no chores or home-improvement projects during the stay-cation. This is a time to enjoy being together as a family, not for being uber-productive!
3. Do your destination research. Find some local attractions that are age appropriate for your family. Call ahead to find out admission fees, learn about rules or regulations, find out about attractions, and make sure operations are running normally. Thankfully, we found out ahead of time that a local farm had lost its pumpkin crop this year, so we opted to go to another farm. We also found that some attractions were not open on certain days or during certain hours. Some attractions also offer "free admission days" that are worth taking advantage of, too!
4. Plan to attend when the weather AND crowds are good. One of our attractions was located at the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry at the same time as the fair was being held. Because we knew the fair would be packed on Saturday, we opted to go on Friday instead.  We nearly had the place to ourselves! And it never hurts to tune into the weather forecast each evening!
5. Plan a daily schedule. Set an agenda for each day and stick to it. If you create a plan, you're much more likely to follow through with it.
6. Plan some free time in your schedule each day. If you have little ones, schedule afternoon naps at home, for instance. But allow everyone some rest time. No one needs to come back from a stay-cation exhausted!
7. Take lots of pictures. This is a vacation to remember, so don't forget to snap a few of your favorite memories.
8. Plan to dine out if your budget allows, but also plan to cook. You can save a lot of money by packing picnic lunches and having a slow-cooker meal on when you arrive back home from a day of adventures. We planned some really nice treats (like BBQ ribs and chocolate lava cake) that we wouldn't normally have; this made our stay-cation extra special. You could also make casseroles ahead of time that can easily be popped in the oven with minimal effort.
9. Do all of your errands and grocery shopping BEFORE the stay-cation begins. Then you don't have to interrupt the fun to run to the store to pick up miscellaneous items!
10. Take a date. If you and your spouse are as busy as we are and don't get out on the town as often as you'd like, consider going on a date. Bonus: Since you're staying in town, all of your regular babysitters are still on hand!
11. Ask friends and family to respect your stay-cation, as if you were out of town on vacation. This prevents other obligations from creeping in on your family time.
12. Go with the flow. Don't worry if your plan doesn't work out perfectly, if your timing is off, or if the kids get cranky. Just do what will be best for your family. After all, it's all about being together and being happy!

We had such a great time on our stay-cation that we plan to make it an annual event. In fact, my husband recommended we try to do one of our "outings" each month in the meantime, just so we can get out, explore, learn something new, and enjoy being together as a family. Who could object to that!?!

I'm already counting down the days to our next stay-cation. How about you? Have you ever taken a stay-cation? Where did you go? What did you do? Do you have any tips you can share?