In April 2014 I participated in the A-Z Challenge. Every day (except Sundays), I wrote a post on planning tips or memory keeping ideas.
I’ve compiled those here.
![A-to-Z Reflection [2014]](http://travelturtle.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/A-to-Z-Reflection-2014-300x142.jpg)
Recap of my A-Z Challenge Experience for 2014
Before I get to that, I want to write a recap of the experience.
On the suggestion from DJ at Dream Euro Trip, I signed up for this challenge the weekend before it started. I was a little nervous about it. Writing 26 posts in 1 month when I probably only wrote 2-3 posts in the previous 3 months? Plus, April was a busy month for me. I had plans. I was going on a mom’s trip to London and then my husband was going to leave me with the two kids as he went to the US for work for two weeks. But, I signed up and went for it.
I made some quick decisions at the beginning. I was going to keep it on the family travel theme, but anywhere from the planning to the memory keeping aspect of it. I was not going to allow myself to get too caught up in everything. I wanted to write 26 posts, I didn’t want to write 26 blogging masterpieces.
I pulled out a spread sheet and came up with an A-Z list of family travel topics. Out of all my pre-planned ideas, I only stuck with two “R is for Rest” and “X Marks the Spot”.
The rest kind of just happened.
I realized early on that I wanted my posts to go live the same time every day. 7am. Done.
I wanted to connect with other travel bloggers. Done.
I wanted to post every day of the challenge. Done.
I wanted to get better at social media. Done, but not as much as I would have preferred.
I wanted to write without too much worry about photos and perfection. Uh- yeah, definitely no perfection here. Done.
My favorite parts of this challenge was starting a new day and seeing what some of the people wrote about. I liked the camaraderie with the participants. I appreciated all the comments, especially when my topic doesn’t apply to some of the reader’s lives. They still humored me, left thoughtful comments, and were very encouraging. Thank you.
I also liked just the actual writing of posts. Getting it done. Mosts of these things were things I wanted to write about anyway. The challenge gave me a reason to.
I will definitely participate again. While I still don’t want to write 26 masterpieces, I will add photos to my posts, pin some of those photos, and take part in more social media. I’m hoping that my next theme focuses on places instead of just travel tips. Oh, and I definitely want better titles. (If there’s one thing I learned, I’m not a title writer.)
Some things I’d like seen done differently? Perhaps a link-up for each day and letter. That way it would be easier to keep up with people who were participating, but maybe we had missed in scanning the sign up sheet.
Overall, I highly recommend this to anyone looking to have some fun while also being challenged.
And without further adieu…
The A-Zs of Family Travel
A is for Airplanes with Small Children
B is for Breakfast while Traveling
C is for Count: Children and Bags + Learn Numbers
D is for Disney and Disney-fication
E is for Emergencies while Traveling Abroad
F is for Favorites
G is for Gear Suggestions for Traveling Families
H is for Hotel Alternatives
I is for Instagram Travel Thursday
J is for Jokes while Traveling
K is for Kids Love to Travel
L is for Listen to your Kids
M is for Money
N is for Nail Clippers and Packing Lists
O is for Over the Counter Drugs
P is for Parks, Playgrounds, and Picnics
Q is for Queues with Little Ones
R is for Rest Planning
S is for Scavenger Hunt
T is for Touristy Attractions
U is for “Unknown” Destinations
V is for Volunteering Trips for Families
W is for Water – Water – Water
X is for X Marks the Spot
Y is for Yucky Food while Traveling
Z is for Zoos and Science Centers
![survivor-atoz [2014]](http://travelturtle.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/survivor-atoz-2014-300x150.jpg)
Ann, I thought your posts were fantastic. I don’t have small kids of my own anymore, but I always seem to have a few tagging along anyway…I know, I know, but it’s fun! Congrats on reaching all your goals!
Glad you decided to join the challenge, it’s been fun reading your posts. Congrats on making it to the end.