Finance/Children

Hey Taylor: Is it worth buying holiday travel right now? I feel like it’s not necessarily safe to board a plane, Taylor but that could Kovar change in a few months and the prices I’m seeing are hard to beat. Should I take a chance?

Hey Dave: Great question, and one I’ve been thinking about myself over the last few months. If you weigh all the pros and cons, you might be able to save a lot of money on plane tickets that normally suck your bank account dry. But is it worth it?

Safety. This needs to be your primary concern, of course. You can’t put anything above the wellbeing of you and your family, not to mention everyone else you’ll come in contact with. As we’ve seen over the last five months, no one has had much success predicting the end of this pandemic. It’s best to assume we’ll still be taking a lot of precautions in December of 2020 that we weren’t thinking about in December of 2019. Major airlines have taken a lot of precautions to ensure flights have people distanced and masked. Before purchasing tickets, go to the airline’s website to read up on the steps they’re taking to mitigate risk.

Refund/exchange policy. When things first shut down, refunds were handed out readily. From what I’m seeing, airlines are still accommodating changes in a way they never would have precoronavirus. That’s another thing to read about on the company’s website, but you might want to take the unprecedented step of actually making a phone call to talk to customer support before buying. Travel policies have been changing by the day so getting verbal confirmation from an airline employee might offer the best guarantee.

Planning ahead. Before you get excited about where you might go in December, take stock of what’s going on with your job and your family. Make sure you can afford to travel, even if the tickets are cheap. Think about your schedule and the schedules of whoever you might be visiting, since this year’s holidays will be unlike any we’ve seen before. If you’re thinking about Christmas the way you used to, consider a holiday season where people already have the flu and other sicknesses, now with a global pandemic mixed in. You can’t predict the future, but you can assume things will be different this year and you’ll want to try to account for that.

Start by listing all the cons for buying plane tickets now. After that, if it still seems like a worthwhile booking, I say go for it. Just be ready to change your plans if circumstances demand it. Safe travels!

Legal Disclaimer: Information presented is for educational purposes only and is not an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. To submit a question to be answered in this column, please send it via email to Question@GoFarWithKovar.com or via USPS to Taylor Kovar, 415 S 1st St, Suite 300, Lufkin, TX 75901.

"With a united effort we can make the place in which we live clean, wholesome, attractive. We can make the crowded city dweller homesick to come back to us and real living. We can bring new life, new business, new beauty, to the little towns." - Mame Roberts

As just about everyone who has lived with a child for more than two years knows, the most potentially John dangerous thing Rosemond one can say to a toddler is “no.” That single syllable strikes deep into the core of the reptilian portion of the toddler brain, arousing a reaction that dwarfs Godzilla’s most destructive rampage.

“Should I simply ignore my twoyear-old’s tantrums?” a young mother asks.

“Can you?” She ponders that for a moment or two. “Not really.” Ignoring is about as over-rated as it gets, especially when it comes to toddler tantrums. Nothing brings out a toddler’s inner Godzilla like being ignored. That same mother, for example, reported that when she ignored a tantrum, it quickly escalated into hitting, biting, and head-banging. If she began walking away, her live-in maniac would wrap himself around her leg, shrieking like a banshee.

“What do I do then?” she asked.

“Either stand there until he lets go or drag him around with you.” “I tried that once and sprained my leg.” A perfect illustration of the fact that there is no perfectly reliable form of discipline with a toddler. Most important, regardless, is that he fails to get what he wants. Not even one teensy-weensy smidgeon of it. If he thinks he can wear you down in increments, the tantrums will escalate in intensity and increase in frequency. When my daughter began her toddlerhood, albeit belatedly, I came up with a solution for her tantrums that has provided many a parent with significant relief. It begins with buying a 4’ x 6’ (or thereabouts) rug from your local box store. Spread it out in a relatively out of the way place in that part of the house that most of said tantrums occur (we put our daughter’s tantrum rug in the downstairs bathroom). Tell your toddler something along these lines: “The doctor says you need a special place for your tantrums because they are so many and so big! So, this is your new special tantrum place! When you want to throw a tantrum, just come here, lie down and begin screaming and rolling around until you feel better. If you need help getting here, Mommy will help you.” Needless to say, your little one will need “help” getting to his new tantrum place, at least initially. When the next screaming episode begins, simply say, “Oh my! That’s a big tantrum! You need to be in your new tantrum place, so let’s go!” Carry or drag as necessary.

If after you deposit him he gets right up and runs after you, just put him back. The important thing is that you keep your cool in the process. At first, said process may last up to thirty minutes. In the meantime, be calm, be purposeful, and be happy.

This, too, will pass.

Family psychologist John Rosemond: johnrosemond.com, p arentguru.com.

John Rosemond has worked with families, children, and parents since 1971 in the field of family psychology. In 1971, John earned his masters in psychology from Western Illinois University and was elected to the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society.