The word vacation conjures images of waves gently lapping at the shore, majestic mountaintops and three-course meals. But if you bring your child along, your days away may be filled with diaper changes, sticky hands and nap time showdowns. Its true that some of these moments may also be memorable, humorous and even fun, but when you travel with kids, you bring the work of parenting along with you. Vacation, some parents say, isnt really the right word for it. Its just parenting in a different place.

We wondered: How long do parents have to wait until a family vacation starts to feel like a vacation? At what point do kids start to safely entertain themselves enough that a parent can lie on a chaise lounge poolside long enough to get through more than a few paragraphs in a novel?

We asked members of our HuffPost Parents Facebook community to share their experiences. Heres what they had to say.