independence Archives — Thrifty Mommas Tips

Teen Travel – When Are They Ready To Go Solo?

Paula — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 12:57:13 +0000

Solo Teen travel is something that most parents will have to deal with at some point. In this day and age of spread out families, international job opportunities, and easy long distance travel, solo teen travel is becoming more common. The question becomes this: How do you know when they’re ready to travel on their own? Maybe your teen has taken the bus around town or the train to an Aunt or Uncle’s Home a few cities away. They have most definitely done a bit of family travel with you their parents. But as for flying on their own, well that’s a whole other ballgame. I mean airports alone are terrifying even to many adults. So what’s the right call and when? Solo Teen Travel – When is the Right Time to Travel Without You There is no set way to decide if your teen is ready to take a trip on his or her own. However, there are some general rules of thumb that can help you figure out if they meet your personal criteria for them to head off into the wide open world without you there. Responsibility How is your teen doing on the responsibility front? Do they get their homework done on time? Can they keep track of everything? Are they able to manage some of their own money without being absent minded or overly distracted? Did they earn some of their own money with an after school job in order to get the chance to travel? How are they doing at their after school job? No problems at school? All of these questions are important because they show you the level of responsibility your teen is able to handle. Behaviour Is your child a good kid? Do they stay out of trouble? Can you trust them to make good decisions? Do they stay cool under pressure? These are all important things to consider. Good behaviour and the ability to remain calm are two things that will serve your child well throughout life and during solo teen travel. [tweetthis]Is your teen ready to travel alone? How will you know? #travel[/tweetthis] Common Sense This one is a bit of an X-factor, but it’s important nonetheless. Common sense is more subjective of course, but there are a few things to be considered. Does your child understand that giving out personal information or information about their itinerary to strangers during the course of a conversation is a bad thing? Do they have an adequate amount of caution concerning travel and the things that could potentially happen during travel? Emotional Stability Is your child emotionally stable enough for teen travel? That probably sounds like I’m asking if your teen is going to have a breakdown mid-trip, and in a way, I guess I am. Honestly, I know some adults who would never leave their town unless they were forced. If there are adults with a ton of life experience who have severe anxiety when they travel, then it’s not a long leap to consider if your teen can handle the stress. Solo teen travel is a tough thing. They’ll be away from their parents, they’ll be making their way through the great big world, and they’ll be doing it alone. They will be traversing airports, boarding, planes, and luggage pickup by themselves. It’s a big deal, so know if your teen is emotionally ready for it a big question to consider. Teen Travel – It’s no Small Thing Solo teen travel is a big deal. It’s their first foray out into the world with no backup. They will be responsible for traversing the airport, security, boarding, the flight, disembarking, luggage pickup, and all of the other hundreds of tiny things that happen in between all of those things. It is absolutely vital that you are sure they’re ready for it. Of course it’s all subjective, but the above tips should give you a bit of a road map to decide if solo teen travel is something in your son or daughter’s immediate future or if they might need a little more time and scaffolding.

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Flying Alone – How Will You Know When Your Child Is Ready? #travel

Paula — Tue, 20 Sep 2016 12:41:24 +0000

Flying alone is a big step for any child. It’s a big step for a child’s parents, too! It can be a terrifying proposition. After all, the operative word in flying alone is ALONE. Your child will be out in the world, flying and checking in/being picked up on their own far, far away from you. Terrifying. So how do you know when your child is ready to take that step? Flying Alone – A Litmus Test to See if Your Child is Ready Sending a child out into the world is more about their ability to interact safely in that world rather than their physical size. For example, if I had to choose between sending out a totally irresponsible 14 year old on a plane trip or a super conscientious 9 year old, I’d pick the 9 year old. Flying alone requires attention to detail, the ability to follow signs and directions, and a sense of responsibility. None of that necessarily reflects age. A Few Things to Consider before Your Child Flies Alone Responsibility – First and foremost, is your child responsible? Does he or she show their responsible nature on a daily basis? Do they always keep their phones charged and with them when they’re out of the house? Do they keep their money safe and use it appropriately. Do they answer their phone when you call? Do they call when they’re running late? Are their grades in order? All of these questions and more are beneficial to deciding if your child is ready for flying alone, because they show responsibility. Thoroughness – Is your child a careful and thorough person, or does he or she have the ability to be careful and thorough. They’ll be navigating at least a small portion of an airport and boarding a plane. This is not the time to be misreading signs or winging it. If your child does chores well, stays organized with their schoolwork and scheduling, and follows directions well, that’s a good sign for solo airline travel. Independence – This one is so important for flying alone. Can your child handle being alone? The most responsible, thorough child will have a problem flying alone if they get nervous about being away from mom and dad. If you child frequently has spend overs at their friend’s houses or their grandparent’s house for a day or two, they’re probably comfortable enough to go on short trips without you. Readiness – This isn’t what you think. Your child may be ready, but are YOU ready? Flying alone is a super ginormous deal. You are sending your baby off into the great big world all alone – at least for a portion of the trip. If you can’t handle it, don’t send your child. The last thing you want to do is call 15 times and forever make your kids nervous about traveling. [tweetthis]How will you know if your child is ready to fly alone? #travel [/tweetthis] PIN FOR LATER – > Flying Alone – Are the Kids Ready? Are You? If you look at the above questions and ask yourself other more personal questions, you’ll know. If you have a responsible, attentive, independent child, and you have the stomach for it, flying alone is a great way to allow your child to experience a bit of independence when they go see a relative or take a short trip with friends of the family. You just need to know you’re both ready!

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Flying Solo – When Is It Okay to Leave The Kids at Home Alone?

Paula — Wed, 02 Mar 2016 16:16:50 +0000

Flying solo. It’s a terrifying thought for many moms. The thought of our kids home alone with no adult supervision is frightening, but it has to be done at some point. At a certain age, we parents have to put enough trust in our kids to allow them to go it alone for short periods. But when is flying solo an appropriate option? Flying Solo Requires Responsibility and Trust Knowing when it’s time to let the kids stay at home a lone is a pure judgement call. It relies on many factors including how responsible your children are, how trustworthy they are, and their ability to follow the rules of the house. Obviously each child matures at different rates, so while one child may be able to stay at home alone at the age of 10, another child might not be ready for that level of independence until they’re older. My oldest daughter was fine staying home alone with her sister for short periods of time from the time she was 12. I only left them for half an hour periods at that time because my older girl had done her Babysitting Course and I was confident she knew what to do in an emergency. My youngest girl is not yet ready to stay home alone. She will be 12 soon, but her impulsivity and unique special needs mean that she gets anxious even at the idea of being home alone. So, I know she’s not ready yet. Payton, now 14, started babysitting at 12 and she loved that so she was comfortable with the rules when she was in charge. Responsibility Gauging your child’s ability to be responsible is one of the key things in deciding when to leave them home alone. You’re not just deciding if they can feed themselves. You’re deciding if they can be left to their own devices for a given length of time. Does your child do their homework and chores without a fight? Do they regularly do that homework and those chores to the best of their ability? If they have extracurricular activities, are they able to juggle those activities and their school work effectively? If the answer to these questions is yes, then they’re already showing a level of responsibility that lends itself to them flying solo for a couple of hours. [tweetthis]How do you know when your children are ready to stay home alone? [/tweetthis] Trustworthiness Let’s face it. Kids don’t always tell the truth. We have to teach them the value of honesty. Some kids learn that sooner than other kids. So you’ll need to ask yourself if you can trust your child to be at home alone. If they regularly do crazy things that they know are against the rules or if they lie to get out of trouble, they probably aren’t ready to be left home alone. You may find yourself coming home to a disaster with an equally disastrous story accompanying it. [tweetthis]Do your tweens follow the rules? Are they responsible? Maybe they are ready for flying solo.[/tweetthis] Following House Rules This could quite possibly be the most important factor in deciding if flying solo is an option for your child. As parents, we know that house rules are there to avoid anarchy and to keep everyone safe. However, kids don’t always see it that way. Nevertheless, if they follow those rules anyway, you can probably feel good about leaving them alone at home for a while. Flying Solo is Natural At some point, flying solo becomes the norm rather than the exception, and that’s okay. It’s a natural part of growing up. The scary part is deciding when it’s appropriate. If your child displays responsibility, trustworthiness, and the ability to follow the rules of the home, you can probably leave them at home alone without a ton of worry. Generally speaking between the ages of 10 and 13 are a good place to start. Just remember to leave a sheet of the rules (see below) to remind them before they being their first foray into flying solo. Personally, I feel better about leaving my kids alone because I have ability to text them from anywhere as well. My older daughter has her own phone and she can text me easily if she has any issues ever. I also have a Withings Home Monitor in my office which means I can watch the office space while I am away. That lends me a certain level of comfort too. When your child, or children are ready to stay home alone, you can give them this handy checklist to follow. [tweetthis]Home alone checklist printable for tweens ready to fly solo. [/tweetthis] If you want to print this out, you can get it here: home alone checklist Paula Just click on the hyper text link above and you can save and print this out. When were your kids flying solo at home? If you are a parent with older children when did you find it was okay to leave them home alone for short periods of time?

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