Spring break at the passport office

If you’re looking for an extreme adventure to kickstart your spring break, might I suggest the passport office?

Like most adventures, this one requires a lot of prep work, document-gathering, and planning. For weeks leading up to our trip to the passport office, Tom would tell me he needed to “do passport stuff,” and he’d go upstairs. Maybe this was all a ruse to get some time away from the kids, WE’LL NEVER KNOW! But either way, after about an hour he’d emerge from his office with smoke coming out of his ears and he’d shout something like, “WHAT’S THOMAS’S BIRTHDATE?” Or, “HOW DO YOU SPELL OUR LAST NAME?” And then he’d disappear for another hour.

When it was finally passport day, we arrived at the post office within minutes of opening. We tried to get there earlier, but we just couldn’t do it. We left the house with two kids wearing shoes (I threw the remaining shoes in my purse), only three jackets, and two kids still technically wearing their pajamas. I did remember a baggie of Cheerios AND ALL FOUR KIDS, and that’s something!

We grabbed a number and sat down in seats directly facing a sign that said “NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS.” We had number five, but I’d seen the family in front of us take at least four numbers, so I had hope that we were actually second in line, and despite the gigantic cup of coffee I’d had right before leaving, I was optimistic that I could make it.

If you’re wondering why we didn’t make an appointment at the passport office, this is why: there were no available appointments. As in, making an appointment isn’t an option for a family of six. Ever. If you try to make an appointment and you have four kids, a little error window pops up that says, “Excuse me, how many kids? Maybe international travel isn’t for you!”

Other people we talked to said that they’d tried to make an appointment, but they were booked too close to their travel date. We heard a lot of passport horror stories — if there is such a thing — while we were waiting in line. It’s all everyone talks about. What time did you get here? 8:55? Yeah, we were here at 9:01. 12 people in front of us. See that guy? He’s been waiting since 1992. 

So anyway, I’m sitting there staring at the “NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS” sign when the clock struck 9:00 and a kind woman came over a loudspeaker and said, “Now serving number 93.”

I looked down at the number in my hand. Five. Nope. Not gonna make it.

This whole time I was fixated on the bathroom, Tom was fixating on how to expedite our wait, which was NOT POSSIBLE because we all had numbers, TOM. We just had to wait. But he was sizing people up, trying to figure out how much time they’d each take. If they average four people per hour…

I told Tom that I had to go to the bathroom, so Anna and I left to find some facilities. I drove to a donut shop I’d seen on the drive in where I used the bathroom and had no choice but to buy a half-dozen donuts.

I figured my side trip took about thirty minutes. I would lighten everyone’s mood with a donut, we’d all eat and laugh and high-five and soon enough our number would be called and we wouldn’t even realize we’d been waiting! TIME FLIES WHEN YOU’RE HAVING FUN!

The kids were genuinely excited about the donuts, but what I quickly realized was that it takes about 45 seconds to eat a donut, and that left a cool 90 minutes of waiting ahead of us.

By then it was nearly 10 a.m., and everyone was starting to get a little edgy.

Our biggest problem was that the passport office happens to open at the exact time that every baby in the world needs a nap — 9 a.m. Anna’s getting older, so she’s more flexible about naps, but not when she’s trapped in a government building. When she’s trapped in a government building she really, really needs a nap.

Turns out, spending a morning in a federal government building is kind of like a kid’s equivalent to being trapped on a desert island. Sure, we started with fancy donuts, but by the end of it I was feeding the kids cracker crumbs from a bag I found a the bottom of the stroller.

I had packed a bottle of water for myself, naively assuming there would be water sources available for the kids but NO! There were no bathrooms and no water. I grabbed some cups for the kids back at the donut shop and was rationing water for them from my water bottle (partially because we didn’t have much to go around, and partially because of the BATHROOM situation) and as soon as I turned my head I saw Mary dumping the remaining water in her cup.

“MARY!” I scolded. “That was all the water we had! FOR ALL OF US!”

“I was thirsty,” she responded, batting her eyelashes over her cup.

I had to do some deep breathing while she drank the last of the water, and remind myself that we were not actually on a deserted island, and my 5-year old had NOT just sentenced us all to certain death by dehydration.

BUT!

We were STUCK in a building with four young children AT NAP TIME for an undisclosed amount of time without rations! YOU GUYS! Donuts do not keep you full for very long! WHY hadn’t I gotten something with a little more PROTEIN!?!!?!

We were there for 2.5 hours, and the kids did great. Tom and I did ok. He was frustrated with the process and I was frustrated at him for being frustrated. This is, by the way, how we handle stressful situations. The kids were only moderately impatient, and at the height of that, a little boy with an iPad wandered our way, and all the kids snuggled close to it for warmth.

During our time at the passport office, I solved the problem of the long wait. Why don’t we all just text each other? I have number 5, you have number 6, I’ll text you when my number gets called so that you can go grab brunch instead of sitting here and watching your skin turn grey to match the color of these walls.

In a desperate moment of trying to entertain the kids, I asked them all to name something MORE BORING than the passport office. Cleaning up? Doing chores? WATCHING THE NEWS!??!!? Then I asked them if they’d rather be in school and they all said yes. YES! We’d rather be in school than here in this terrible boring building!!!

That’s how you know you’re having a successful spring break. When the kids are clamoring for it to be OVER by 10 a.m. on day one.

If we had to do it over again (which we have to do every five years to keep the kids’ passports current) this is what I’d do next time:

  1. Prepare for the no bathroom thing
  2. Prepare for the no water thing
  3. Prepare for boredom
  4. Tag team waiting. Here’s what I came up with:

The passport office opens at 9 a.m., but you can get in line at 8 a.m. Send one parent to the post office at 8 a.m. to get a number. Then the parent at the office can just text the other parent when they think they should show up. Office opens at 9, there are two people in front of me, be here at 9:30. 

It’d eliminate so much waiting, but more importantly, it’d eliminate waiting WITH KIDS. The parent that got there early could just enjoy a little peace and quiet. This? Waiting without the kids, every caregiver knows that this qualifies at a certified vacation. Even at the post office.

 

Going to the passport office with kids -- tips, tricks, and what I'd do differently

10 Comments

  1. Mim April 3, 2019

    This was highly entertaining! I would like to suggest going to a small town post office where you don’t need and appointment. We live here in VA and thought we would need to go to Petersburg and the wait is two hours. Anyway we ended up going to Waverly and walked right in, the took our children’s pictures and we signed paperwork and we’re out of there. I think it took a total of twenty minutes! Yay!

    Reply
  2. Chris McGinn April 3, 2019

    Good advice. Sounds kinda like torture 🙂 Thankfully my kids are older now and made it through easily when we last updated ours. I like the sending one parent first idea.

    Reply
  3. Supriya April 3, 2019

    Ha ha ha even I would ratherbe in school

    Reply
  4. Gayle Ann April 3, 2019

    AAA can do a lot of the work, like the pictures, and no additional cost, as part of your membership benefits. That divides it into two not so stressful trips.

    Depending on where you are going, I HIGHLY suggest investigating the NEXUS card. We have one for Canada. You don’t need to bring your passport, and you avoid the lines at the airport, or in the car. Depending on when you cross, it can save you an hour or two, waiting in line in the car. With kids, it might be worth the additional expense. It makes you a trusted traveler, so you also avoid the long TSA line. It was worth every penny. Crossing around the Falls in the summer is a nightmare.

    If you are going to Canada, let me know. I can give you some cheap, and nice, alternatives to the normal expensive hotels around the Falls. I grew up in that area.

    Reply
  5. Gayle Ann April 3, 2019

    Just as a reminder, you can now demand that the kids can’t go into the kitchen, or sit at the table, or a variety of other things, because they don’t have a passport. Creating a good one should be good for at least 30 minutes, depending on how it is constructed. Get some stamp from their collection, and stamp it . Or, declare the border to the kitchen is closed. Can’t you see Mary telling her father, as he gets home, that Mommy said the kitchen border is closed?

    Reply
  6. Gayle Ann April 3, 2019

    A know moms read this page, so, if you are vacationing in Canada, and want a cheap CLEAN place to stay, allow me to recommend https://www.stayrcc.com/ I found it one year when I was there for a conference and to do research.

    They take college dorms and turn them into “conference centers” for the summer. When I travel, it isn’t to sit in a hotel or spa. I want a clean bed, and we are usually out seeing things, especially during the day.

    At Niagara Falls, is at Niagara College in Welland, which is the Canadian Culinary Institute. The school has winery, brewery, culinary, and hospitality programs. And, there is a wine store, brewery store, and a restaurant, which features the school’s award wining alcohols.

    The rooms are great for families. Each “room” has two separate bedrooms, with either a double bed in each, or twin beds. They also have cribs. The bathrooms are PRIVATE. Each “room” has its own bath, which is huge/handicapped accessible. It has a shower, no tub. The common area is a kitchenette with a full size fridge/freezer, a full size sink, and microwave, as well as table/chairs. Each bedroom has a small flat screen television.

    A continental breakfast, cereal/pastry, coffee/juice, comes with the room. There is also a grill or two on the patio if one wants to cook dinner. The restaurant serves lunch and dinner.

    There are discounts for staying multiple days. My last stay was around $80/night CND, and we stayed a week in June. No swimming pool, but the beaches at Niagara-on-the-lake are just down the road. One is 10 minutes from the Falls, and roughly the same to Niagara-on-the-Lake. Parking at the Falls is cheapest in the casino parking lot.

    The company uses schools around Ontario. If all you want is a clean room, it is a cheap and great alternative, especially with a family, to the high priced offerings at the Falls, even with Groupon.

    If you want a 5 star experience, it isn’t the place. But, if you spend most of your time out seeing and doing things, and want a nice clean place with a bed, it is great.

    Reply
    • Amanda April 4, 2019

      thanks for all the tips! for our trip we’re visiting my sister in vancouver and we’ll be staying with her. saves me a ton of planning and reserving!

      Reply
  7. Gayle Ann April 4, 2019

    Before you go, check out this site: http://www.whatsfilming.ca/

    A lot of shows and movies film in Canada. You can find out if anything you watch is near where you will be visiting.

    I have a few dream trips. Viking River Cruises, because with my luck, it will lose power, sink, or some other disaster, and it is close enough to shorelines, that I can swim to one. Following the Cleveland Indians on their big 2 week road trip, and visiting the cities and stadiums. And, taking the ferry to Nova Scotia, and then taking the train across Canada, and Amtrak to return. Canada is beautiful.

    Gayle Ann

    Reply
  8. Kristen April 4, 2019

    Lol I have been putting off getting passports for this exact reason! Anyway I love your writing! Very entertaining with some great advice. Thank you 🙂 Glad you survived to tell your tale

    Reply

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