How We Turned a Stressful Summer into Our Best Family Tradition

It was August and we were at the beach with our two young kids who were sunburned and whiny, and avoiding the beach.

My husband and I had been half working, half vacationing, in that way you do when you don’t feel able to turn off from work.

Nothing felt fun, and we were all crabby — for so many reasons.

We already wanted “next summer” to be different. So we began to brainstorm about the pros and cons of changing the plan for next summer.

There were some things we could change, and other things we couldn’t:

• Late August was a good time because daycare was closed and work was slow.
• We didn't have to go to the beach next summer.
• We needed more fun reasons to unplug from work.
• A wishlist item was that we didn’t have to cook, shop or clean up food.

Later that night, I sat down and googled: "Lake, meals included, kid friendly, no wi-fi" and up came Timberlock, a rustic (no electricity, no kitchens, wi-fi or cell service) lakeside family camp in upstate NY.

They had one cabin left for the following August, so I booked it.
And exactly one year later, as we were driving away, our son said,

"That was the best vacation we’ve ever had."

And it really had been. We had finally found a place where we all could have fun, and we truly unplugged.

Here’s what made the new place work for us:

1. We Planned Together: Before booking, we talked about what we all wanted and needed from the trip.
2. It Matched Our Needs: The camp fit our idea of fun perfectly. Parents got to play and skip kitchen duties (they fed us!). Kids had the water trampoline, tech-free activities, and other kids to play with. Without Wi-Fi or cell service, we unplugged and really connected.
3. Less Stress, More Fun: The setup made life easy—no cooking, no decisions about when to eat (a bell rang to signal mealtime), no battles over screen time (no signal!), and no bedtime fights (it was dark, no electricity). We didn’t realize how much we needed this until we were there!
4. We Were Open to Trying Something New: We all went in with low expectations, which made it easier to have fun and enjoy the experience.

Going in with low expectations is key to having fun with your family.

Our kids were also pleasantly surprised to find other kids to play with and plenty of fun activities they could do on their own. The wood shop was a big hit too, adding an extra layer of excitement for them. Meanwhile, my husband and I finally got the rest we needed—no cooking, no stress.

It was a win-win. Case closed.

Where do you go to escape the grind of working and parenting?

You don’t have to head to a rustic camp like we did, but you do need to be intentional about creating those moments of fun and relaxation for yourself and your family.

What's your family's idea of “summer fun”?

think forward…

• What can you eliminate around the pressures of work or caregiving to truly slow down?
• How can you balance everyone's ideas of fun with more realistic expectations?
• What are you willing to compromise to make the summer feel great for everyone?
• What kinds of experiments could you try?
• What kinds of work norms could you begin to establish now, with your team, to make next summer better?