Think twice before saying traveling stops where parental life begins. Monet Hambrick is a mom who loves to go around the globe and reach new destinations. Rather than abandoning her plans when she had kids, she didn’t stop enjoying what she liked most – to travel. She even turned it into a prolific business! Read on for some of her tips for exploring the globe with kids.

Choose the Right Destinations

Monet, who founded the Traveling Child, shares that the most important thing when exploring new horizons with your children is choosing the ideal destinations. She recommends that parents opt for regions that feel familiar and comfortable as opposed to those that make them feel unprepared. After all, if you’re okay with the destination, your children will be too.

If you decide to go international, it’s a good idea to pick a location where everyone speaks English freely to avoid any tricky situations. Another thing to consider is picking a destination where renting vehicles is available. That way, you’ll be able to put children in car seats efficiently.

Chase the Deal

Do you have a particular destination in mind? Perhaps special dates as well? Leave those aside. Oftentimes, Monet says, finding the right offers for your desired location proves more expensive than most people can afford. There’s another alternative. Look out for different offers and create your travel plans on the cheapest deals, not the greatest locations.

That allows parents and children to see a lot of different locations without breaking the bank. Various mobile apps available allow customers to enter airports on specific dates to get the cheapest deals available for a given period.

Research Is Key to Success

Of course, picking a place to stay is a key aspect of the whole process. Before traveling, Monet advises parents do their homework. She recommends picking vacation rentals having at least 10 reviews, most of which must be relatively recent.

That way, you and your family won’t be the guinea pigs. Finding comfort and convenience is crucial when exploring new destinations with kids, so it pays to do research on the hotel, villa, or any other location you’ve decided to stay at.

As children grow, their dynamic with their parents changes. This means that moms and dads must make adjustments to their behavior to avoid common parenting mistakes and keep up with their kids.

There is no doubt that tweens and teens test the limits of their mothers and fathers. They are moodier and more independent, which is why parents must set new rules to deal with their kids’ ever-changing needs.

While children in their pre-teen and teen ages have a hard time admitting that they need their parents, the absolute truth is that they still require their guidance. But things aren’t as simple as they sound because moms and dads often make parenting mistakes that further complicate things.

Here are five parenting errors that should be avoided at all costs:

Reading Too Many Parenting Books

While it feels like the right call to consult as many sources as possible, each parenting book promotes its own techniques and methods. Reading too many of them can cause confusion, which can do more harm than good. Mothers and fathers should trust their instincts. While there is nothing wrong with getting another perspective or some professional tips, at the end of the day they are the only people who truly know their kids.

Always Expecting the Worst

Parents often expect the worst from their teenagers because teens have a bad reputation by default. They are seen as loud, unresponsive to authority, self-destructive, disrespectful, etc. Setting such standards is a guaranteed path toward several unhappy and unsatisfying years. Furthermore, some studies show that negative expectations lead to negative behavior. Instead, parents should have faith in their kids and in themselves and believe that things will be fine.

Ignoring Important Things

As kids grow, they develop their own passions and aspirations. They forge their own relationships with the people around them. Dismissing their hobbies or problems is one of the greatest parenting mistakes that anyone could make. Kids should know that no matter what happens, their moms and dads will support them.

Being Overprotective

Being overprotective is more harmful than most parents realize. While it keeps children safe from pain, failure, and disappointment, it also takes away the opportunity for kids to learn the realities of life and test their own resilience and ability to cope with hardships.

Believe They Don’t Commit Parenting Mistakes

Even the best moms and dads make parenting mistakes. It’s perfectly normal to commit errors while raising tweens and teens. In fact, being a parent isn’t an easy job and nobody is truly ever prepared for it. Accepting that mistakes will be made is the first step toward being a good mother or father.

Avoiding these five parenting mistakes is of key importance for parents who wish to have a good dynamic with their growing children.