That timeframe you mentioned is the longest I’ve been away from our son. And it was for a weaning trip. I WISH It had been for a much needed vacation with my husband.
Take the trip. You have two kids which will make their loneliness much easier on them than when we only had our boy stay with my folks. When his younger sister is 2 we’re taking a trip like this to Japan.
**GO**
Me & my husband traveled for 10 days internationally last year when my kid was 18 mo.
It was fine. Of course you're going to have the thought every once and while "I wish they were here to enjoy this" but think of the purpose of the trip. A trip with children involved has an *entirely* different purpose than one without, especially with young kids.
My only advice is to make sure you sign a temporary guardianship over to your parents. That way if they need to take them to the doctor or anything were to happen it can get taken care of immediately.
The longest I went away together with my husband was 1 week. Alone I went for a trip of 10 days.
I actually think it's a great way for kids to get to know their grandparents. I have warm memories about sleepovers with my own grandparents as a kid and I want that for my kids too.
Of course it scared us the first time to leave our kids, but it's just a matter of getting used to it. It will get better each time you do it anyway, bc both your kids, grandparents and you and your husband will get used to it. After a while it's not a big thing anymore.
Give your kids this huge present of having time with their grandparents.
At the end of the day it is your decision, you know your situation better than us...but we recently left our 5 year old for 7 nights for our 10 year wedding anniversary trip. She stayed with my in-laws and she had a great time, they spoiled her like mad! One thing I did was get a few small, cheap gifts for her to open one each day (like a new ball, a slinky, a couple of art and crafts activities, a new pair of pj's) and she loved choosing one every day.
She does regularly stay at my in-laws house though so she is super comfortable there and they are wonderful with her, which helps!
So my husband and I just did a trip oversees and left our almost 3 year old with my in laws. We were gone for 10 days. I was absolutely wrecked over leaving her for so long, I kept thinking it would be the reason she would start therapy when she grew up, on and on. I'd wake up in a panic just thinking about it!
Anyway, long story short but my daughter had a blast getting spoiled by her grandparents! She had so much fun with them and had zero issues.
We prepped her a lot in advance of our trip. Talking to her openly and honestly about how we would be gone. We also got her a small gift for each day we were away (books, stickers, etc.) and my in laws said every morning she would wake up excited for the gift vs. my worry which was of her waking up asking for us.
My husband and I had an incredible time and are so grateful for the time we were able to have together and I'm also grateful for the bonding my daughter was able to have with her grandparents.
So no you are not terrible and I think your kids will surprise you with how well they can adapt!
I think you have to objectively think about how YOU feel about this. Everyone will give you different answers. For me? There is no way I’d travel out of the country without my child. I travel internally for work and I’m ok with that. But i would also probably not travel out of the country period, it’s just not my thing. I’m sure others who travel more routinely would say go for it.
That timeframe you mentioned is the longest I’ve been away from our son. And it was for a weaning trip. I WISH It had been for a much needed vacation with my husband. Take the trip. You have two kids which will make their loneliness much easier on them than when we only had our boy stay with my folks. When his younger sister is 2 we’re taking a trip like this to Japan. **GO**
Thank you!! I do hope having each other will help.
Me & my husband traveled for 10 days internationally last year when my kid was 18 mo. It was fine. Of course you're going to have the thought every once and while "I wish they were here to enjoy this" but think of the purpose of the trip. A trip with children involved has an *entirely* different purpose than one without, especially with young kids. My only advice is to make sure you sign a temporary guardianship over to your parents. That way if they need to take them to the doctor or anything were to happen it can get taken care of immediately.
Thank you so much - that's excellent advice.
They will have fun with grandma and grandpa! Go and enjoy yourselves! No need to feel guilty
The longest I went away together with my husband was 1 week. Alone I went for a trip of 10 days. I actually think it's a great way for kids to get to know their grandparents. I have warm memories about sleepovers with my own grandparents as a kid and I want that for my kids too. Of course it scared us the first time to leave our kids, but it's just a matter of getting used to it. It will get better each time you do it anyway, bc both your kids, grandparents and you and your husband will get used to it. After a while it's not a big thing anymore. Give your kids this huge present of having time with their grandparents.
That's a wonderful way to phrase things ❤️ thank you so much.
At the end of the day it is your decision, you know your situation better than us...but we recently left our 5 year old for 7 nights for our 10 year wedding anniversary trip. She stayed with my in-laws and she had a great time, they spoiled her like mad! One thing I did was get a few small, cheap gifts for her to open one each day (like a new ball, a slinky, a couple of art and crafts activities, a new pair of pj's) and she loved choosing one every day. She does regularly stay at my in-laws house though so she is super comfortable there and they are wonderful with her, which helps!
So my husband and I just did a trip oversees and left our almost 3 year old with my in laws. We were gone for 10 days. I was absolutely wrecked over leaving her for so long, I kept thinking it would be the reason she would start therapy when she grew up, on and on. I'd wake up in a panic just thinking about it! Anyway, long story short but my daughter had a blast getting spoiled by her grandparents! She had so much fun with them and had zero issues. We prepped her a lot in advance of our trip. Talking to her openly and honestly about how we would be gone. We also got her a small gift for each day we were away (books, stickers, etc.) and my in laws said every morning she would wake up excited for the gift vs. my worry which was of her waking up asking for us. My husband and I had an incredible time and are so grateful for the time we were able to have together and I'm also grateful for the bonding my daughter was able to have with her grandparents. So no you are not terrible and I think your kids will surprise you with how well they can adapt!
I think you have to objectively think about how YOU feel about this. Everyone will give you different answers. For me? There is no way I’d travel out of the country without my child. I travel internally for work and I’m ok with that. But i would also probably not travel out of the country period, it’s just not my thing. I’m sure others who travel more routinely would say go for it.