Family Responsibilities On the Road

Living on the road can be a fun and exciting experience; however, there are a few responsibilities with family and pets that make traveling more difficult. These issues depend on your age and your situation. If you are retired and your children are grown with children of their own, then the RV lifestyle may not be too difficult for you as you can visit them whenever you like. If you are a young family and you want to travel with your children, then you will have a different set of responsibilities that you will have to cope with while on the road. Pets, whether you are retired or not, only add to the RV lifestyle and can be enjoyable or difficult.

Traveling and living the RV lifestyle as retirees is completely different from traveling as a young family with children. As retirees, you may pick your next trip to be near your family and you are able to correspond events with your itinerary. You will have the flexibility to pick up and visit any family that you want and work them into your vacations. If there is an emergency and you feel that you must go visit family, you have the flexibility to do so. Sometimes you may be too far away from family, but with technology you can easily call them from cell phones or email them. Many retirees will allow their children to travel with them for summer vacations and this is a great way to spend time with your grandchildren if they are old enough to travel.

Traveling with children full-time is a completely different story. Children have many needs and these will have to be covered while you are on the road. Many families who have chosen the RV lifestyle like the flexibility and the adventures. Most families also home school their children while on the road. Most people are familiar with home schooling and it has become increasingly more popular and schools are accepting home schooling as well. Traveling to different historical sites and areas also help with education of your children. You will be able to find interesting subjects for your children while on the road. They will be able to learn all the basics such as mathematics, science, history and more. Children will become self-motivated to find learning experiences while they are on the road. They will have life changing experiences that many children are not exposed to.

As the children grow and they want to go to college, they will have to records of their education. You will need to keep records to make their education equivalent to a high school education. More home-schooled children are being accepted into college as they are seen as good students. They do require that they complete a certified home school program and therefore you may need to invest in this area if your children are interested in attending college.

There is also the situation of socializing children while on the road. The advantage to children who travel is that they will meet a variety of different children everyday. They will have plenty of socialization and they will be able to spend time with those children on extend trips. With the Internet and email, children will be able to keep contact with the different children that they meet across the country. You will also be able to discuss their feelings and desires as they grow.

There are many retirees and young families who have pets. They may have them from their previous home and they are a part of the family who couldn't be left behind. The main concern for pets is that they need regular stops to use the bathroom and their size. You are limited on the space and weight in your RV and your pet's size and weight will have to be considered. It may not be a wise idea to travel with two large Labradors, for example, unless you absolutely can't live without them. If you don't RV full-time you may consider leaving pets with friends or family. Pets can be kenneled but the cost of boarding is astronomical for an extended period of time. You will also need to insure that your pets are up to date on vaccinations and that you can provide documentation of that. Pets should also be microchipped in case they escape and are picked up the local humane society or dog pound. They will scan for the microchip and will call you. Pets can also be left in your RV as they would be left in a house. If you are concerned about them being destructive, you can limit their area through the use of baby gates or harnesses. Pets can be great companions on RV trips, just be sure that they are safe and have the appropriate tags and vaccinations.

The RV lifestyle is fun and can be made even more enjoyable with family and pets. Before embarking on such RV trips be sure that you will be able to live in such close proximity of each other and with limited privacy. The close space of an RV puts additional strains on families and you should be prepared for these situations.