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The other day on the radio, I heard the announcer guy ask listeners, What’s worse than the month of January? and the answer was: February! I hate to say it, but I have to agree. By February, I have definitely got a case of the winter blah’s.

One way I get myself motivated for the final push through winter is to start planning our family’s Spring Break trip. It is really nice to have something fun to look forward to!

My family loves to travel. Late last year, we took our kids outside of the USA for the first time ever (to Italy!!!) It was a huge trip that took quite a bit of advance prep. That experience taught me a lot about how to plan family vacations. I want to pass a few of my best tips for planning family vacations on to you.

Tips For Planning Family Vacations 

Pick a destination and research it online. Get familiar with all of the family activities and attractions available in the places you will be visiting.

Let the kids help you plan. Get their input on what kinds of vacation activities and experiences they want to do the most.

Make hotel and transportation reservations in advance. This saves time and frustration. You don’t want to reach your destination and find out all the hotels are booked out and no available car rentals fit your family’s needs. If you are taking other types of transportation (trains, bus, etc.) you will want to familiarize yourself with its schedule.

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Plan a flexible daily itinerary with built-in downtime. Travel can be tiresome for everyone, especially the kids. Don’t try to pack too many activities into one day. Prioritize 1 or 2 things you want to do each day and shoot for those first.

All this talk about planning family vacations has got me ready for a mini-escape at home. One of my favorite ways to enjoy a little Me Time is to turn my bathroom into a spa. It’s an easy way to treat myself. I run a warm bath and add aromatherapy bath salts for a relaxing soak.

One of my hobbies is making my own bath salts and body scrubs. The latest one I whipped up is for Pina Colada Bath Salts, inspired by the scent of my clean laundry washed with Gain Tropical Sunrise.

Are you ready for a tropical at home spa treatment? Give my Pina Colada Bath Salts and Body Scrub recipe a try.

PINA COLADA BATH SALTS RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups Epsom Salts
• 6 Tablespoons Fractionated Coconut Oil
• 2 teaspoons Vitamin E Oil
• 15-20 drops Pina Colada Fragrance Oil
• optional: 1-2 drops Yellow Soap Colorant
• optional: Wilton Pineapple Sugar Sprinkles

Directions:

1. Add Epsom Salts to a mixing bowl and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine Coconut Oil, Vitamin E Oil, Pina Colada Fragrance Oil, and drops of yellow coloring (adding color is optional.)
3. Add the oil mixture to the Epsom Salts and stir well to combine. Optional: Top with Wilton Pineapple Sugar Sprinkles. The mini pineapple sprinkles are for decorative purposes only.

To Use in the Bath: Dissolve bath salts in running bath water.

To Use as a Body Scrub: Apply bath salts to wet skin and gently rub in a circular motion. Rinse skin thoroughly.

Store unused bath salts in an airtight container.

How do you escape the winter blah’s? Do you enjoy planning family vacations? 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Gain at Walmart. The opinions and text are all mine.