Stop. Pause. Journal. It's Summer Holiday & Expat Dilemma Time.

The summer break is coming up and that means exotic trips, palm trees and cocktails, plane journeys to far off places, lazy days on the beach soaking up the sun - or in our case cramming as much crap as we can get in the boot of the car and then squeezing three kids in the back seat hooked up to a DVD and Nintendo intravenous drip feed and heading off to Germany.

It's always hard to plan a summer break when you are an expat. On the one hand I want to see my friends and family who are back in Britain, on the other hand the world is a big place so heading back to the same town in the same country every year gets old when you have done it year after year. Nearly Irish sums it up beautifully in her post she added to the monthly #ExpatLifeLinky.

Since having children we have tried to combine a summer break with a visit to loved ones back in Blighty. We've been to Cornwall, England for the past three years so we thought we'd try somewhere else this year. It's a surprise for the boys what exactly we'll be doing - but I do know it will be lots of fun. But the new destination means skipping a trip to England. Living a life overseas makes vacation time a little more complicated - there's always a destination dilemma to deal with!

On the other hand, our unchartered destination this year, means I get to fill my "The Great Journey" travel journal with completely new things this summer. I have kept a memento of our holiday using Gadanke's crafted gem for a few years now - but last year I couldn't help but think that I had probably filled in the same details the year before....

But I won't be able to say the same this year! The journals are a great way of capturing the moments that make up a fantastic family vacation: the sights that mesmerise, the smells that overwhelm, the colours that fill your children with wonder, the new tastes they can't get enough of, the giggles you share as a family. There's room for photos and postcards, hiding places for those special museum tickets or train ticket stubs. It becomes a homemade time capsule to look back on with your children as they grow. These Gadanke journals give me my 'me moments' whilst away, my relaxation moments which allow me to be creative.

Keeping a travel journal whilst on holiday has become an obsession a habit I love. (If you love journaling too head over and take a peek at the many Gadanke free workshops for great tips and advice.) It makes me pause and take in the world around me, really soak up my new environment. And that is what a summer holiday is all about - stopping, pausing - wherever you head, whoever you spend it with. Right?

How do you record your summer holiday memories? Do you keep a travel journal? Turn your photos into a photo book?