The Village

In this beach house, we've got two couples, two moms traveling without their husbands, a grandmother, and five children -- a 4 week old, a 4 month old, a 10 month old, a 3 year old and a 4 year old. The kids keep us busy, but when one of the parents needs a break, there is someone on hand to pick up the slack, and everyone is able to get time in the water or time on the surfboard or time in the sun or enough naps or whatever they need. We take turns cooking dinner and cleaning up and watching the kids in the water. We talk about buying a huge house somewhere, in which each family has their own wing for privacy yet there are common areas for eating and playing, and we are only half kidding. Because this kibbutz-style life is seriously the way to go.