Planning, packing and shopping for a beach vacation are necessary when traveling– with or without children. What can’t be planned are the little things that can change an entire agenda. Such as trips to the emergency room for your little one who could have possibly broken his foot.

Heading to the beach is a favorite vacation amongst all of the little people in my house. On a previous vacation, I had everything set and ready to go. All plans for our accommodations were arranged, I had family and friends coming over to pick up our mail, take care of and use our pool, and just keep an eye for anything while we were gone.

The day before we left my kids were in the kitchen eating breakfast at the table. The twins were sitting nicely (for the time being) next to each other on the bench seat we have. Every once in a while they get a little carried away playing around with each other. My son is always in some sort of costume, whether he is Darth Vadar or pretending to be a knight. He constantly has on a disguise and is utilizing his amazing imagination.

On this particular morning, he decided to stand up on the bench in the costume he was wearing and sway a foam sword in the air. I repeatedly told him to sit down and while he listened for a moment, he did it again when I turned my back. But when he did, he fell, and the bench fell with him, on top of his precious little foot. He was screaming and his foot instantly swelled and turned a deep purple. Not good. I thought he broke his foot, immediately took him to the hospital and after a couple hours of poking, prodding and x-rays they revealed that it was badly sprained and he had to wear a mock cast that looked like a boot that tied up his little leg.

When we got home and settled later that evening I kept thinking and stressing out about how I could take my most energetic busy body child to the beach with this contraption on his foot for the next week. This child of mine is a mix between Evil Knievel and Dennis the Menace, he is non-stop and I wouldn’t change him for the world!

We went anyways and his foot actually healed faster than I thought it would, they told me that he would be able to put normal pressure on it once it was healed. He sure did. He was frolicking in the ocean and playing in the sand like normal in no time.

It was all just another little reminder that you cannot plan anything, ever. Things don’t always go the way we’d like them to we just have to pick ourselves up and make the most of every situation. Especially when you’re a parent because the unpredictable happens all of the time.