Special needs may put a particular challenge on travel, depending on our child’s needs. Our son Joey (age 41) has always been quite a good traveler, but could be (for the duration of a trip) distracted, side-tracked, and out to get that one fly that is following us around. Ask us about it sometime! And we would love to hear your story, because we are pretty sure you have one (or more!).
While there are places many of us can take our kids, there is the realization that sometimes we might have to say no to a lot of things we wish we could do. On the other hand, sometimes we can say yes! A dear younger-mom friend of mine and her husband, along with their two teenage daughters—who both need 100% full-time care in wheelchairs, and fragile medical gear—just got back from Europe. They even traveled with the girls a few years ago to Hawaii. Hearing that might make you have a twinge of jealousy, but honestly, my only thought is that they are my heroes! Traveling with a registered nurse is a must, but I give them so much credit for working through feeding tubes, seizures, lots of special needs gear, diapers, and much more. All the gusto of living life to the fullest!
For those who can’t travel with your child or loved one with special needs (for whatever reason), I have another idea. The young mom I mentioned in the previous paragraph and I have had seasons of life when we, as parents and couples, couldn’t travel. Perhaps that’s where you find yourself as well (especially with gas prices and other traveling expenses that are high right now). So several years ago, we decided we needed to be creative in this pursuit of travel. I made us both pretend passports, and since then, whenever we get a chance, we find a restaurant with the cuisine of a place we’d love to travel to. I do a little report on the location, and we spend a few hours catching up! We stamp our passports until the next time we get to travel.
Photo by GeoJango Maps on Unsplash
While this is something we’ve enjoyed for a while, I think it could be fun to do as a family. Here are some ideas of how you may also think outside the box with these home-made passports:
Have each family member make their own passport choosing a picture they want to use!
Maybe we can't go across the pond, but we can go to Little Italy, walk the streets, and enjoy gelato on a hot summer's day.
Visit a garden (or garden center) when things are in full bloom, then choose what country you are visiting, and learn about their local plants and flowers!
Going to a particular cultural center and meeting people of that culture could be an educational and fun experience.
Attending local city concerts may allow us to move around the periphery where the sights and sounds are not as overwhelming. Think of the possibilities of where the concert songs might help you travel!
Outdoor venues like hiking (paths, of course), ponds, etc. may allow you to make up where your destination is: the Finger Lakes of New York? Great Lakes in the northern USA (we live by Lake Erie)?
Do these not seem to work for you? Get a "Things to See" guide from a local city, or go online and request the same. See what might work for you. The possibilities are endless, if you begin to think outside the travel box. Get creative to find places to see and people to meet! Have fun! Do not forget to stamp your (fake) passport and send someone a postcard!
Dr. Joe and Cindi Ferrini share their newest book: Love All-Ways: Embracing Marriage Together on the Special Needs Journey (order at www.cindiferrini.com). They are authors, speakers, and bloggers for several blogging sites on marriage, family, and special needs. They speak nationally for FamilyLife Weekend To Remember Marriage Get-a-Ways, authored *Unexpected Journey – When Special Needs Change our Course; and have been interviewed on Focus on the Family, FamilyLife Today, Janet Parshall at “In the Market”, Chris Brooks of “Equipped” and various other radio and television venues. Connect with them at: www.cindiferrini.com, and via social media at: www.facebook.com/cindi.ferrini, www.facebook.com/UnexpectedJourney/, and www.facebook.com/MyMarriageMatters/.
