Since I wasn’t able to take time off work during the holidays, I found myself with the option of taking spring break as vacation. Usually, I would have sent my son to a spring break day camp, and I know he would have had fun, but I decided to ask him what he’d prefer. A spring break with his friends or with his mom. My mom’s heart lit up when he chose quality time with his old mom (36 years old—that’s pretty old for a 6-year-old, after all). So I went to see my boyfriend to tell him I’d be taking time off for spring break, and I sold him on the idea by saying we’d save money on day camp. My boyfriend started laughing. Have I ever told you that my boyfriend knows me really well?
He knows me well enough to realize that, just like every time I take time off to keep my son with me on a teacher’s planning day and sell him on the idea by saying I’ll save the $16 on daycare, I always end up, by the end of the day, having spent more on activities or at a restaurant. It’s true that since I’m taking the day off to spend time with my child, I want it to be a special time doing new activities that we’ll both enjoy.
I’m well aware that I’m fortunate enough to be able to afford activities that are a bit more expensive than just playing outside. I’m very lucky in my situation. I’m not saying it’s essential to spend lavishly to entertain our children. Nor am I doing this to give my son the childhood I never had—because I wasn’t spoiled enough when I was young. I do it because I can, and nothing brings me more joy than seeing the look in my children’s eyes when they discover something new, and nothing warms my heart more than hearing their laughter as they experience something new.
I know full well that this post won’t resonate with everyone, because not everyone is in the same financial situation as I am. I sincerely hope that those parents understand that no matter what activities they do—whether it’s indoor surfing or simply building a snow fort in the backyard—their child will be happy just to have spent quality time with them.
So yes, my spring break won’t have cost me any less because I didn’t send my son to day camp—where he probably would have had a lot of fun—but I’ll have paid more for the privilege of witnessing his joy and even his happiness at spending time with me.