GRAND Magazine - May/June 2019 - 11

travel
different than the towns she had previously visited in Summit County,
Colorado. Finding a rental property with enough space for everyone was
more difficult than I originally anticipated. Our time in Crested Butte coincided with the popular wildflower season. Larger homes with four king or
queen beds, four bedrooms, four bathrooms, and two family rooms were in
short supply since we were booking within three months of arrival.
Fortunately, a rental home meeting all of our criteria appeared on the
HomeAway website and our refundable deposit was immediately sent.
The three-story floor plan and pertinent details were forwarded to everyone for their final okay. I breathed a huge sigh of relief when our sons
and their significant others agreed to go ahead. My only fear was that the
house description and pictures didn't match up with the actual property. I
held my breath as family members toured the slighted dated property after
arrival.
With so many dietary preferences, it wasn't practical to coordinate the
food items that everyone would be packing in their respective cars. Having
an oversize kitchen with a built-in Sub-Zero side-by-side refrigerator
offered plenty of cold storage space for family members with diverse diets.
Each family member prepared his or her own breakfasts and lunches for a
day of hiking or biking.

By far my best memory is the day
we hiked together as a family

My great idea was on the verge of igniting before it materialized.
Finding a mutually convenient destination became a source of family tension. After flying halfway around the world, it wasn't practical to subject our
two-year-old grandson to a long road trip. Without having any prior experience traveling with young children, our childless sons couldn't foresee
any issues with subjecting a toddler to sitting for an extremely long period
of time. Fortunately the desire to get together outweighed the selection of
a destination. We agreed to travel to Crested Butte, a four and a half hour
drive, instead of the original idea to drive eight hours.
To maximize the quality of our interaction time, we rented a mountain home. Our Indian daughter-in-law wanted to experience something
11 GRAND

MAY JUNE 2019

Daily activity preferences and differing abilities to cope with the high
altitude resulted in three cars heading in multiple directions. Everyone
was free to choose his or her preferred destination and the amount of
time away from the rented home. We coordinated with our expat son and
his family since they were passengers in our car on the way to and from
Crested Butte.
In addition to the proximity to Denver, we selected Crested Butte for its
family friendly trails and hospitable environment. We were able to select
easier terrain that offered engaging points of interest for a toddler-pinecones, rocks, sticks, crawling bugs, butterflies, birds, wildflowers, waterfalls,
fish, and lakes with towering mountains in the distance.

Hiking with a young child presents its own set of concerns. To protect
him from the high altitude sunshine, he wore a wide brimmed hat and was
covered with sunscreen. Closed shoes replaced his everyday sandals. His
parents' backpack was loaded with plenty of water, snacks, an extra outfit,
a coat, rain gear, and sanitary wipes. Like most young kids, our grandson loved picking up just about everything, especially pinecones, that he
saw on the path. He smiled throughout our wilderness adventures and
was most content walking at his own pace rather than being carried. His
displeasure only became apparent when wipes were used to remove the
remaining traces of the treasures he held during our treks.
One of the main ingredients for our successful intergenerational trip
was the mixture of flexible time and scheduled events. Everyone chose
their daily activities and determined their start and end times. We occasionally regrouped in the afternoon for a brief trip to a nearby coffee shop
or shared homemade snacks in the family room. The logistics of a mega
sized home provided ample space for everyone during their respective
downtime. As a family, we dined at some of Crested Butte's notable restaurants. One evening, we had the rare opportunity to celebrate our grandson's upcoming birthday by singing "Happy Birthday" and eating a cake
prepared by one of his aunts.
By far my best memory is the day we hiked together as a family. While
our grandson's pace was incredibly slow, everyone appreciated his fascination with nature and his perpetual smile. Our photos of this Crested
Butte retreat inspire me to plan our next family vacation. A double dose
of patience will be required as I attempt to coordinate a more complex
scenario. Our next intergenerational trip will address the needs of five
grandchildren.

Traveling grandmom,
Sandy Bornstein, is a freelance travel & lifestyle writer, content
coordinator & content writer for Golden Living Award-Winning .
She was recently awarded the Silver Award from the North
Travel Journalist Association She is the author of May This Be
the Best Year of Your Life.
Learn more about Sandy here and here.

https://www.facebook.com/GRANDmagazine/ https://www.twitter.com/grandMmagazine https://www.homeaway.com/?k_clickid=Cj0KCQjw-tXlBRDWARIsAGYQAmd8xXiDkf-ErCvkQzVgE1lrhyCb4uyl4ZG42fq-89c77vjECzMS6vsaAlGiEALw_wcB&ds_cid=71700000022084415&ds_kids=p27525127886&ds_kid=39700027525127886&ksprof_id=700000001548159&ksdevice=c&ktarget=dsa-378722391583&kloct=&klocf=9012131&ds_aid=58700003523743830&ha_t=1t1:g:&gclid=Cj0KCQjw-tXlBRDWARIsAGYQAmd8xXiDkf-ErCvkQzVgE1lrhyCb4uyl4ZG42fq-89c77vjECzMS6vsaAlGiEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds http://www.thetravelingbornsteins.com/ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1478198052/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=grandmagazi0d-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=1478198052&linkId=f9d0a26cffe47a3ef91cef04c3d0e61b https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1478198052/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=grandmagazi0d-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=1478198052&linkId=f9d0a26cffe47a3ef91cef04c3d0e61b http://www.sandrabornstein.com/ http://www.thetravelingbornsteins.com/

GRAND Magazine - May/June 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of GRAND Magazine - May/June 2019