Three Things to Do Before Vacationing Without Your Child

Nate and I love to travel!  If we were independently wealthy all we would spend all our time hopping around the globe taking in all of the wonderful and amazing things the world has to offer.  Unfortunately a pastor’s salary doesn’t quite allow for us to travel the world but, so far, we’ve been able to go on three big trips since getting married.

It’s been two years since our time in NYC and DC and – surprise – Nate and I just got back from a week long vacation in Zihuatanejo, Mexico.  Our amazing trip recap will be on the blog in the coming weeks but I just thought you all needed to know something first…  We didn’t take Caleb.  That’s right.  We left our little man with his grandparents for a week while we spent the week exploring, connecting, and drinking margaritas!

Are you planning on leaving your child while you go on a vacation too?  Here are a few things you should make sure to do before vacationing without you child.

Make Sure Your Legal Documents are in Order

We’re going to start out with the first thing no one every wants to think about, let alone discuss.  If you’re travelling with your spouse and leaving your child with another caregiver there’s a possibility (God forbid) that something could happen to both you and your spouse!  If you don’t already have a will written up make sure to do that before you leave.  It is important that a guardian is named for your child in the event of any unforeseen circumstances.  If you do have a will already written go over it again and verify that no changes need to be made.  Let the executor of your will know your travel plans and how to access your important documents if need be or include a copy of your will in the paperwork you leave with the individual who is caring for your child.  There would be nothing worse than a confusion over guardianship on top of everything else and the state getting involved where it doesn’t need to.

Fill Out a Medical Release Form

You never know what sort of crazy accident might happen to your child while you’re away so make sure to include your child’s insurance card(s) and a medical release form in the information you give your child’s caregiver.  Of course, your child is always insured care for a life threatening event by an emergency room or hospital but non emergency events (strep throat for example) would require a medical release form.  If your insurance requires prior authorization to visit a specialist or any other special rules like that be sure to make note of that for your child’s caregiver.

Create Daily Schedules and Temporary Guardianship

I’m sure every caregiver would appreciate a daily schedule for your child!  Include any activities the child is involved in, nap times and bed times, allergies, special quirks the child has for eating, sleeping, etc, and whatever else you feel is best.  Consider who the caregiver is when writing the schedule.  You don’t want to end up on some website for writing out an insane list of care instructions for you child.  Grandparents probably don’t need to be told how often to change your child’s diaper.  They raised you or your husband pretty well without you telling them what to do.  😉  Moral of the story – be thorough but not obnoxious.  It’s vital that a temporary guardianship be in place so the caregivers can make decisions and sign documents (think field trip permission slip…) on your behalf.  A schedule for YOU would be good too.  Give the caregiver your travel itinerary, cell phone and hotel phone numbers, and any other pertinent information.

Your Turn:

Any other documents you can think of that need to be left with your child’s caregiver?
Do you travel without your child(ren)?