Part One.

6. Related: Search for the best price. This falls under the previous two points as well. By planning ahead, you can set a budget and find the best price on travel related items. When searching for good airfare, don't always rely on places like Expedia. Check the airlines themselves as they will sometimes have better deals than the bigger "catch all" sites. The same goes for hotels and rental car places. (We recently... more

As I said previously, traveling long distances for visits involves some planning on the parts of both sides of the adult triad. Just like any other trip, making your plans far enough in advance can help lessen the stress the comes when the actual travel dates arrive. Over the past three years, we've learned a little about traveling, both by vehicle and air, and have a few things to pass on to others. While not steadfast rules of dos and don'ts... more

Munchkin's family does not live in the same town as our family. While they lived in the same state when we placed, it was on the opposite side of a very, very wide one. To top it off, I moved another hour away, into the middle of Ohio. That means our visits aren't as simple as picking up the phone, saying, "Want to meet for lunch," and getting in the car.

There's the looking at the calendar, two or three times. Rescheduling because you forgot that x-kid has y-appointment on z-date that falls, of course, directly in... more

Ideas 10-6.

Here are five more ideas for a great visit.

5. Other Indoor Activities of Fun: bowling. (We went bowling on our first visit and boy, was it a hoot.) Shopping; you don't have to spend money to bond over time spent in a shopping mall. Roller skating; though, I don't know if many other areas still have a real roller skating rink. Are we old? Ideally, avoid Chuck E. Cheese and the movies; neither provide a good... more

I'm starting off this ongoing series with a list of ideas for those who have visits in their open adoption. First and foremost I must say that all adoptions are different and what works for one might not work for another. This list of 10 ideas will feature ideas for both short visits and long visits. I realize that not all families visit for a week at a time and may just have a day visit. I hope to include ideas for either situation.

Furthermore, these aren't really in order from least great idea to greatest idea. Though I do like Number One. :) I couldn't... more