by Hannah Walton aka The Cheapskate Mom

 Have The Staycation of a Lifetime

I know a lot of us families are on budgets – but that doesn't mean that we don't want to enjoy the age old American Family Vacation that goes along with summer like lemonade and sunblock.  With expensive flight prices and gas prices that make me too upset to even mention and decent hotels being out of the reach of many of our budgets – what's a family looking for a fun and inexpensive vacation to do?

I say this : rethink the idea of the family vacation. Stay at home with a staycation : reduce your carbon footprint and save a lot of money.

Use your imaginations and make this pretend vacation absolutely epic. Ready….set…GO, VACATIONEERS !!

Plan Your Staycation:

Take planning your stay-cation as seriously as you take planning a vacation. Have the kids help with crafts that will make your stay-cation week or weekend extra fun! 

• A few weeks before your staycation – take photos or drawings and make pretend passports for everyone! Here is a fabulous pretend passport printable from Donna Ward !
• Get brochures for area attractions that are within your budget.
• Visit sites like Restaurant.com, Groupon and Living Social for good local bargains.
• Ask friends on Facebook for off-the-beaten path place suggestions to visit
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• Pack your bags – yes – really – pack your bags with the special items you'd like to wear and have during your staycation. It's fun to pack for vacation and think about all of the things you will need for the fun times ahead. Don't skip this step!
• Don't forget to pack the camera! : you'll want to photograph your staycation! Maybe even splurge a bit and buy the whole fam disposables – they'll have fun with it !!  

Check In To "The Home-tel" :

Make your home more vacation – y – with a little imagination and ingenuity. The whole family will love taking a few hours to optimize your home into a resort. Get as wild and crazy as you want with this idea – after all – it's your staycation of the year!

• Assign room numbers and keys
• Make Do Not Disturb Door Hangers
• Have an afternoon manager's reception with a few choice drinks and snacks on a table
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• Make a hotel gift shop – have the kids pick things they don't want anymore and give them prices. You could also make souvenirs to stock the gift shop with! Using monopoly style money – let everyone visit the gift shop at least once.
• Make a game room – set up a room or special space for board games. Kids will have fun with their very own rec room.
• Make a spa – Girls need to rejuvenate after a long day vacationing – put on a bath robe, drink some tea, cut up some cucumber slices – and relax!
• Put out hotel shampoos and lotions- I knew I was saving those travel size samples for something. This makes it so much more fun!
• Continental breakfast – Every morning, put out a healthy continental breakfast on the kitchen table and let everyone pick what they want.
• Mints on pillows – Don't forget this fun, ultra-lux part of being a vacationeer!
• Pool area- Even if you don't have a pool (I don't) – have fun with water. Get a kiddie pool or sprinkler and just have some good old fashioned fun! 
• In Room Movie – take a trip to the movie store or redbox or whatever we do these days – and let the kids pick some "in room movies". Make sure you throw in some popcorn!  

Things To Do:

A key to the staycation is to approach your surroundings the way a tourist does. Tourists are looking for Relaxation, Fun and Adventure – and so are you ! Take a fresh look at where you live : is there a rock you've always wanted to climb? A museum you've never been to? A restaurant you've never tried? A recipe you've always wanted to recreate? An epic dessert?

• encourage summer reading by visiting the book store (aka The Library!).
• a fun part of vacation can be riding in different vehicles – so take a cab ride, take a bus ride – or borrow a car for a day for an all new experience!
• Using photoshop or the free graphic editor Sumo , make touristy photo souvenirs from the photos you take that say things like Vacation 2012 or I Hiked Walton Mountain, etc. 
• Make souvenir shirts ! 
• Cook at home but visit a different city for the night – have french food, chinese food, or even visit Chicago with these mini deep dish pizzas !
• Make art projects during the day – and by night – set up an art show complete with grape "wine" and cheese. 
• Have the kids put on a play – at night – dress up and attend the theatre!
• Make Your Own Bowling Alley with plastic bottles and streamers.
• Go on a tour – of your neighborhood. Have the kids act as tour guides and show you all of their favorite parts of where you live !!
• Borrow a friend or family member's home gaming system (like Wii) for a night!
• Go camping – in your backyard.

Conversation Starter:

What awesome StayCation ideas do you have? Have you had a successful StayCation?