I first begin by researching weather patterns for our destination. I'll be honest and say that most of our trips nowadays are to Southern California but the weather there can be finicky at times. Take a look back several years for the approximate days you'll be there and then average them. Uh Oh- math?!? For vacation?!? Yep, just do it.
Now that you know the average temperatures of your trip you can fill in the blanks.
#1- What is your itinerary?
Here you need to think about how many days you'll be gone, what activities are you doing while on vacation and how you will be travelling. Why is this last one important? Well travelling by car is MUCH different then going by plane and requires a completely different outfit.
For example, when in the car I prefer to have flip flops and typically yoga pants and a sweatshirt or t-shirt. Comfy. But when going by plane, you should ALWAYS wear sturdy, closed toed shoes. Did you know that? Yep- think worst case scenario and you're stranded somewhere or something falls from the overhead compartment- flip flops will do NOTHING to protect your feet.
#2- Will you need anything special or out of the ordinary?
Perhaps you're going on a cruise and they require a suit jacket or fancy dress. Or maybe you will be at a family reunion and your Mom wants to do a big photo shoot. Ugh- Moms. So just spend a few moments and think about things out of the ordinary daily itinerary.
#3- Write it down.
Should it come as any big surprise to people that I do this? Since my ultimate goal when travelling is to take as little as possible, it's easy to mix and match pieces when you write it down. It should look something like this-
Monday: Boot cut jeans, white t-shirt, grey cardigan and grey flats. Bra & undies. Museum.
Tuesday: Zippered jeggings, pink top, black Chinese Laundry sandals. Bra & undies. Family dinner.
Wednesday: Black bathing suit, pink cover up, swim bag. Beach/pool.
Thursday: Black skirt, white t-shirt, black Chinese Laundry sandals. Bra & undies. Shopping w/girls.
So you get the idea here....you can easily see where items are repeated, what's on the itinerary for the day and then what needs to be in your suitcase. Meaning- don't forget the bra and undies!
#4- Wash & Prep.
Now that I have my list of items, I typically wash and prep them two weeks out. I also pull out our suitcases and any other travelling bags and get those ready. As we wear something that's on our list, I then wash it and instead of putting it back in the drawer or closet- I simply fold it up and place it in the suitcase.
This means that I'm NOT doing a whole bunch of laundry right before our trip. It also means that everything we want to take is clean and ready to go. Perfection!
To prep your suitcase, pull off any old airline tags, make sure your name and address luggage tag is firmly attached and also take a moment to write your name and contact phone number on a piece of paper and slip it inside your suitcase. Why? Well what happens if your luggage tag is ripped off by the airlines? Oh yeah...
Don't forget to also prep your bathroom bag! Many items can be packed ahead of time and then you can add the last minute items right before you leave. I have a family bathroom bag that stays packed with our essentials and tucked away in our linen closet. It contains razors, deodorants, toothpaste and toothbrushes, mini bottles of lotions/hairsprays/shampoos, medications, tampons/pads, sunscreen, small sewing and first aid kits etc. Then I simply add my makeup and hair curlers/blow highly recommend you take some time to build your own family travel bathroom bag- such a easy way to ensure you don't forget a thing!
dryer/straightener to the bag and away we go. I
#5- Lay it out and take a photo.
Oh boy....yes, I really do this. Once everything is clean and in the suitcase, I then lay it out on the bed, group the outfits/pieces and decide on what accessories to take. This is also the time to make any final decisions about items you may have been on the fence about.
Perhaps the biggest benefit to doing this is towards the end of your vacation when you're packing up to go home. You don't want to forget a single thing laying about your hotel, so check your packed bags against the photo's you took at home. Notice a shirt missing? Or how about that pair of flip flops?
A few tips:
You will always need more socks and underwear then you think. I always pack 3 extras of each for every person.
Always bring a pair of flip flops even if you aren't going to a warm weather/beachy location. These come in handy for quick trips out to the car, walking about the hotel or early morning breakfasts. Plus they take up hardly any room in your suitcase. Alternately- you could choose to bring slippers instead but I think it's super tacky to walk about your hotel in slippers.
#6- Pack it, pull it, write it.
Once you've made your final decisions on your clothing, you'll need to pack up your suitcase. When travelling with a family- do NOT have everyone have their own suitcase. Besides the fact that you'll pay a buttload in checked baggage fees, if a particular persons bag gets lost, they are out everything! Instead separate each person's clothing among all the bags you'll be taking. This way if Moms suitcase got lost, she still has something to wear from another suitcase. Genius!
If you are going on a road trip, pack one bag that is your "overnighter". Meaning if you're just staying one night in a hotel on your road trip put together one bag that has everything your family will need for just that one night. Bathroom bag, pj's, outfits for the next day etc. This means you don't have to go digging through all your luggage to find just the essentials needed for one night.
Now that you've packed everything- it should be mentioned that you've pulled your "day of" travel outfit. Place this directly on top of your suitcase so that it's ready to go.
Now take a good look at everything and write down what you will need to add last minute. Typically this would include any phone/electronics chargers, a book you've been reading, your Kindle, hair straightener, food etc. Place this list on top of your travel outfit so that you don't forget a thing.
If you've followed all these steps you have not only saved yourself a ton of work and running about but you've also ensured that you won't forget anything.
A few more tips on travelling with kids and family:
- Plan food. Even if it's just snacks or a few treats, you'll want these. If you're like us- you'll need to pack meals too. When road tripping, I cook and freeze meals ahead of time and pack in our cooler. For airline travel, I pack some items like breakfast foods and snacks in our checked baggage and then arrange a grocery delivery once we arrive.
- Pack each person a "fun bag". For kids this can be video games with chargers, books, snacks and their "lovey" or comfort item. The husband gets a new magazine or two and I make sure to have a book and charged Kindle. We also bring a deck of cards or a card game like Uno to play. You NEVER know when this will come in handy!
- Label stuff. Items have a way of mysteriously becoming separated from you while on vacay so take a few moments and label things. Kids comfort items should ALWAYS have your contact info on it. An easy way that I've done this is by writing on it with a sharpie or getting a dog collar with engraved dog tag for stuffed animals. Suitcases and any travel bags (your purse too ladies!) should have your name and contact information on it somewhere. If your kids are young- you might think about labeling them too! Ha! But seriously, there's a WHOLE bunch of options for this, just consult the Google and you'll find all kinds of ID bracelets, necklaces, tags for their clothes, shoes etc.
- When in the packing/prepping stages, write down items that you'll need to purchase. Then keep this list with you during the couple weeks leading up to your trip. This way, when you're out running errands/shopping etc, you can easily consult your list and purchase items you need for your trip. Then just add them to your suitcase. You'll save yourself the "mad dash" the night before as you try to gather your various essentials.
- Grab cash and check your balances. Don't take too much cash but make sure that you and your spouse have at least $100 in twenty dollar bills. I would also recommend that you break down one of those twenty's for fives and ones. You may need to tip folks or have some cash on hand for parking and such. Don't forget to check your credit card balances and bank account too! Move money from savings now if needed.
- Stop your mail if needed. Depending on how long you're going to be gone, you might want to consider stopping your mail service temporarily. This is easy enough to do for most of us. You can log on to USPS.com and select the option to "hold mail" and enter in your dates. If you're going to be away for several days- I highly recommend you do this!
- Put together a trip book. If you've got a lot of stops, activities, hotels etc then I highly recommend you keep a little notebook for all your plans. I always print out our hotel reservations since these have confirmation numbers, will also put together hard copy maps just in case GPS doesn't work, local restaurant recommendations and other useful information. I separate this by day in a 1 inch binder so I can just flip to each day and have maps, confirmation numbers, address' and any other needed info at the flip of a page.
- Don't forget medications! For us, this has changed in the last few years as we are no longer taking any prescription medications but if you are- don't forget to pack these items in your carry on and NOT your checked baggage. Our list of essential medications includes organic apple cider vinegar, elderberry, a few essential oils and coconut oil. These are items we can NOT live without. However because many of these do not meet the liquids requirement by TSA, when flying we have to put them in our checked baggage. But the good news is that they are easy enough to replace if your bags become lost.
- Plan for your pets. This should be done months ahead of time. Literally, as soon as you've got your travel arrangements booked, you need to look into the options for your furry babies. Set up a house sitter/pet sitter, look into boarding facilities- many of which require exams and shots before hand and consider the options of taking your pets with you. Whatever you decide, you'll need some time before your trip to get everything settled.
- Leave room for souvenirs. If you're like my family- you probably won't be buying much, however you'll probably come home with a few extras. Make sure BEFORE you go that you've got room in your suitcase for those extras- you should never pack your suitcase completely full.
- Clean up your house before you leave. I know you've probably got a million other things to do prior to leaving on a vacation but you really should add a quick clean to your list. There's nothing worse then coming home from a trip to a messy house. I also recommend that you clean out your fridge and make sure to throw away any items that will spoil while you're away.
- Prep a frozen meal. One of the very last items on my list (because it simply isn't that BIG of a priority but still important enough to consider) is to make sure I have a frozen meal ready for us when we get home. If you're keeping a well stocked freezer, this won't be a problem. However you may want to take an hour or so and prep a dinner that can be re-heated and eaten on the day of your arrival back home. Chances are you probably ate out several times on your vacation and coming home to a healthy, home cooked meal will be a welcome treat!
Well...as you can see, I clearly have a problem. But I would much rather be prepared then scrambling at the last minute. At this point, I've got all of this down to a science and going on vacation runs like a well oiled machine. Hope this has been helpful for all of you especially as we head into one of the busiest travel times of the year- Christmas and Thanksgiving!
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