• I started pulling my kids out of school for travel when they were little.
• Traveling out of regular vacation meant I spent less money on tickets and hotels.
• Now that they are in high school, academics and sports are more important.

Growing up, I did not miss school. Maladies like Chickenpox and raging stomach bugs that didn't respond to ginger ale and saltines were the only acceptable reasons for being absent. Vacations were for summer and the occasional Christmas visits to grandparents.

My kids — the youngest two are in high school — have had unarguably cooler traveler experiences. Pulling them out of school to see the world was never the goal; it just sort of happened.

It started with living in Europe while my daughter was in elementary school. I discovered low-budget air carriers with cheap weekday flights from Frankfurt to London. I decided that seeing the crown jewels with our eyes was better than seeing pictures in a book and that missing a few days of third grade wouldn't hurt anything.

Traveling during the school year means extra savings

When my sons were in first grade, I learned I could save a substantial chunk of change by traveling to the Caribbean in early fall instead of late summer. Cruise lines, theme parks, and other vacation spots catering to families charge more in the summer, and I found I could save almost $3,000 by moving my early August cruise to late September. I decided my kids would probably still get into college if they missed a week of first grade. The verdict is still out on that one — they're halfway through their freshman year, but things are looking good.

Offseason vacations are just better. Resorts and flights are less chaotic, and we escaped the really hot part of the summer. Missing school in the elementary years was easy to navigate, and my kids did well with keeping up with their classes. Our travels were usually well-received by teachers, and we worked to keep the communication flowing and stay on everyone's good side, although sometimes only just. Our district policy allows up to nine unexcused absences per semester — anything above that, and we'd have to make our case to the administration.

We were close to the limit on the number of absences a couple of times but never hit the magic number nine.

They started asking not to miss school

But, as my kids got older, we encountered more teachers who were less than thrilled with our way of managing family travel. We managed to smooth things over when necessary and taught our kids to be proactive about requesting work in advance. When that wasn't possible, we helped them stay on top of their makeup work.

As they hit middle school, I noticed my "Hey kids guess where we're going!" announcements weren't being met with as much enthusiasm. Instead of excitement about seeing someplace new, the first question became, "Do we have to miss school?"

We now prioritize academics over travel

As my kids got older, they worked harder in school. Teachers are more heavy-handed with homework and projects, and once they hit high school, each grade becomes part of the bigger picture.

My kids became more aware of the ripple effects of not getting a good grade and began understanding the importance of cumulative learning. Missing a week of algebra and having to catch up on what you missed without falling further behind the rest of the class caused my kids stress. My kids don't struggle academically, but playing catchup wasn't easy after a certain point.

My boys are also athletes, and absences weren't winning them any points with their coaches. One of my sons is a starting pitcher and missed practice due to travel, and was subsequently benched for one game. These things started to take a little bit of the shine out of exploring the world together, and I realized we needed to change how we planned to travel.

I don't love that my kids talk about how their performance in ninth grade will impact getting into their college of choice. Part of me wants to whisk them away to Disneyland, the Canadian Rockies, or the Great Barrier Reef and tell them they have lots of time to worry about being adults. But really, they don't.

Now, I plan travel during school breaks, just like everyone else

I lament that I'm now a "regular mom" and not a "cool mom." Now, I plan our family vacations around school vacations, just like everyone else. Mostly. I'll still tack the occasional Friday onto a holiday Monday, but I'm more thoughtful about it now.

I'm not going to lie; I miss the days when I could pull them out of school because I saw a great deal on airfare. They've learned about fine art and architecture by visiting an art museum with a moveable sunscreen on the roof and practical things like how to exchange currency and navigate a major airport. They're also not timid about trying food that's not mac and cheese.

Most importantly, travel has taught my kids that the world is big and helped them be more open-minded about other cultures and viewpoints. Traveling as a family has strengthened our bond and taught us cooperation and problem-solving skills. I wouldn't have done things differently.

• I had my first child when I was 24 and raised her as a single mom.
• I met my now-husband when my daughter was 14, and I was 41.
• We adopted two boys at the age of 3 and 2, and despite knowing more, it was still hard.

I had my daughter when I was 24. I raised her as a single mom and met my now-husband when she was 14 and I was 41.

Thanks to uterine fibroids, I no longer possessed the baby-making parts. My husband had never been married or had children, so we adopted two little boys. There's an 18-year difference between my youngest and my oldest. People seem to enjoy pointing out that this is a large difference, which, yes, I realize.

When we adopted our boys, they were 2 and 3, respectively. I'm embarrassed to say this now, but I thought round two of parenting would be easier because I knew what I was doing. I was experienced.

Not even close.

Adoption adds another dimension to the complexity of ordinary parenting. While we had some adoption-related struggles with bringing our two boys into our family, the ordinary parenting stuff was hard. I knew what I was doing on some level, like how to diaper a butt, but the notion of "Oh, this will be easy because I'm experienced" flew out the window fast.

Parenting philosophies changed between my 20s and 40s

Views toward child raising have shifted between 1992, when I had my first baby, and 2012, when we adopted our 2-year-old, now 14. As a '70s baby, I was encouraged to be a "clean plate club" member and punished for "sass talking." While I adopted what I thought was a more modern view of parenting when I first became a mom, the script changed again. Parenting blogs taught me about gentle parenting, and social media was in full swing, with strangers telling me how terrible I was for letting my 2-year-old sip my Diet Coke.

I eventually found my way and a balance of trusting my instincts while remaining open to new ideas. I never jumped on the gentle parenting bandwagon, but I've learned it's important for my kids to question the world around them. I try not to use "because I said so" as a rationale for decisions they don't like, but sometimes, I hear my mom's voice when I open my mouth.

I'm the older parent

When I had my daughter at 25, other moms were my age. One of the first things I noticed with round two was how young other parents were compared to me. Not only that, they were in a different life stage than me. I had to work a little harder to make friends — I remember being called "Ma'am" by one of my son's friends at the playground — but eventually, I did. Nothing brings people together like conversations about puke and ear infections.

My friendships with other Gen-Xers fizzled. Most were childless or had older kids long past the "Mickey Mouse Club House" and day care struggles season of life. While there was no conscious ending of friendships, I now gravitated toward people who had younger kids, even if I had less in common with them outside parenting. If they were up for chatting about developmental milestones and perpetual tiredness, that was enough to spark a friendship.

My body is also older

I was a young 40-something, just as I'm a young 50-something today. Maybe this is something I tell myself to reinforce the illusion but it seems to be working. I've always been health-conscious, but when I knew I would be an "old mom" of younger kids, I resolved to keep moving and do everything I could to take care of myself. I also work hard to stay mentally young and be willing to challenge my beliefs and try new things. I told myself I wouldn't be that old woman complaining about "The good old days," and so far, so good.

But no matter how much I exercise and how many supplements I take, my body is older. When my kids were little, things like bending over to give them baths made me realize that although I might feel young, my back said otherwise. There's no bouncing back from a sleepless night - I'm wrecked for at least a day.

But just because parenting the second time around was a little — OK, maybe a lot — harder doesn't mean I have regrets. My sleep patterns are forever trashed, and there are many times when my response to the onset of teen shenanigans is, "I'm too old for this." However, my decision to have more kids a little later in life, while maybe unconventional, was the best decision.