Here I thought traveling cross-country with a toddler would do me in. I was wrong. While a 2-year-old can be placated with a bottle, pacifier, soggy Cheerios or empty DVD case, calming a cranky teen requires quite a bit more finesse… and patience. It’s true; the one thing worse than dealing with an irritable toddler on vacation is finding ways to handle a crabby teenager. I learned this a couple of weeks ago when I hitched a ride to Chicago (for a “working vacation”) with a pal and her teenage sons. I won’t get into the gory details regarding our … Continue reading →