Adventures in Travel: Lennon Party of Two - Part 2
For the last few years, my husband and I have taken mini trips with each of our three kids. It's great one-on-one time, making each feel special while escaping our normal routines for a brief time.
This summer, we added a new twist. Each child had to plan their trip, staying within a $500 budget. The budget covered transportation, lodging, meals, and entertainment. For simplicity, we conceded that the budget did NOT have to cover gas, tolls, taxes, or tips.*
Each kid started out all over the place on where they wanted to go, how long they wanted to stay, and what they wanted to do. My son (13) was the second child to plan and go on his Lennon Party of Two trip this summer. Little Man's grand vision of a week in California was smashed when he realized $500 wouldn't get two travelers coast to coast and back again.
Next, he wanted to go to Louisville to tour the PRIME hydration drink factory and was willing to accept an 11-12 hour car ride in each direction to do it. Whether they actually offer tours? Still unclear. To help shape a plan, we honed in on the question, "What's most important to you?"
Other than a Starbucks White Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino, he wanted adventure! Like his sisters, he'd loved the boats we'd taken on our family vacation. We toyed with Annapolis and other mid-Atlantic bodies of water, looking to charter a boat tour. He didn't want just an hour or two, but longer charters started to blow up the budget. We needed a different plan.
I asked how important the hotel component was to him and if he'd consider staying with a friend or family member for free if it meant he had more budget for activities and adventure. That resonated while narrowing down destinations. He texted my sister, explained the trip and the budget, and asked if we could stay at her house for two nights. She agreed. They spoke on the phone and he came away with several ideas and a plan.
Our ultimate budget adventure itinerary was packed:
Day 1: Meet Papa (my dad) at the Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum. Watch an IMAX ($17), ride two flight simulators ($44), and let Papa show us the plane he flew with the Marines. Free admission; $15 parking.
After the museum, we stopped for the Starbucks grande White Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino ($6.45 + tax) he'd been going on about on the drive up. We split it, and though I'm not much of a cookies and cream kinda girl, I admit it was mighty tasty.
We got back to Aunt Sarah's house and we went in on pizza with Aunt Sarah, Papa/Nana, and cousins at home (our share was $11 after coupons and discounts).
After hanging out and watching an episode of Big Brother with the cousins, we turned in for the night.
Day 2: After a bowl of cereal (and a cup of coffee for me) at home, we filled up our water bottles, packed the sunscreen, drove to Old Town Alexandria, and parked ($17.45). We'd scheduled a narrated Potomac River boat tour up the river ($70), taking us past all the iconic sights of Washington DC, and docking us at Georgetown Wharf. He suffered through my photo-taking and enjoyed how incredibly good Miss Vicki's salt and vinegar potato chips are - our snacks onboard ($6).
Aunt Sarah and cousin Natalia met us for lunch at the iconic sandwich shop, Wisey's, where we got takeout ($32.12) and walked uphill to Georgetown University. Sarah was a campus tour guide during undergrad and gave a mini tour as we walked to the student union building to eat. She showed us panoramic views of DC and Arlington on top of Village A student housing and took us down the Exorcist stairs from the famous 1973 horror flick.
Sweets followed, with a key lime cheesecake from Georgetown Cupcakes for me ($3.95 + tax), and banana splits for the others at Thomas Sweet Ice Cream shop ($10.25 + tax). We boarded the return boat and cruised back down the Potomac to Old Town.
With several hours of daylight remaining, we headed across the river to Maryland's National Harbor, parked ($20), and rode the Capital Wheel ($30.50 + tax). Little Man was nervous and excited - it was fun to see the raw emotion and the little kid peeking out of my newest teenager. The views were fantastic, and although we were a little ahead of the sunset, it was breathtaking.
He chose a sports bar for dinner, watching pre-season football and enjoying wings (his all-time favorite), tots, and a French Dip ($44.99 + tax & tip). A competitive game of cornhole followed before driving back to Virginia.
Day 3 started again with breakfast at home, before we said our goodbyes and headed to King's Dominion ($99.98 + $30 parking). Having learned about the season pass trick from the neighbor after Wee One's LennonPartyofTwo trip, I had purchased him a season ticket good through 2025, and just a regular admission for me. While it didn't actually save us any money on this trip (maybe cost $10 extra at the end of the day), it was worth it for future optionality.
We hit traffic on I95-S, and it was noon when we approached the park. I asked him what he wanted to do about lunch - we could stop for McDonald's (a very rare treat), or he could eat inside the park at a higher price. He opted for McDonalds ($9.31) and ate while I got through the parking scene.
Inside the park, we went on every ride he wanted to do. I rode everything with him at least once, opting out only on the repeat scrambler and spider rides. Our unexpected favorite was a 302' tall twirling swing ride - offering amazing views of the park and surrounding areas from 25-30 stories up.
We got boardwalk fries and an Icee ($19.78 + tax), then two insanely large desserts - an apple pie funnel cake sundae for me, and a deep-fried Oreo sundae for him ($24.55 + tax). These prices included a 10% discount with the season ticket pass.
He spent $20 between two carnival games, winning a mushroom plushie after popping 2 of 3 balloons with darts, and winning two basketballs after sinking 2 of 3 shots in a basketball game. I was expecting nothing, and he impressed me. We stayed later than planned and grabbed fast food takeout again after leaving the park ($5.27 + tax).
On our drive home, I asked him to order his favorite parts of the trip. King's Dominion and specifically the tall whirlygig ride was #1; wandering the Air and Space museum was last (I was not surprised). Our total expenditures totaled $455.15 plus taxes and tips, excluding parking fees ($82.45).*
This ultimate budget adventure was a BRILLIANT exercise in executive function skill development. We both had fun, while he was inadvertently learning. He frequently asked about his budget and spending, and we often referred to our running tally to make sure we were still projecting to stay within the limit.
If you can make the time and the budget to have your kiddos self-direct their own outings or weekend get-aways, I highly recommend this process! I'd love to hear what's worked for your family.
Thanks for reading, and here's to teaching the next generation critical executive function skills! 🌟
* My husband and I crossed wires on parking. While my younger daughter and I included parking in our considerations; it was later determined to be out of scope, largely due to unpredictability. My son got to utilize the extra parking budget, which [being the DC metro area] would have taken quite a dent out of his spending allotment.
Not sure how to introduce money concepts to your children? Check out my new online course: Raising Wealthy Kids
Stephanie Brooke Lennon is the author of Family Bank Blueprint, GoldQuest, and What Would Water Do? Simple Strategies for Navigating Life's Obstacles. Her titles are available in Paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com. Follow Stephanie Brooke on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitter, Amazon, and at BrookeLennon.com.
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