10 Simple Rules About Packing

I have one reoccurring nightmare before every trip. My flight is in two hours, I just woke up, I’m in my pajamas, I’m not packed and I’m moving in slow motion.

The packing process gives me the most anxiety. Will I pack too much, will I forget something, and will I give myself enough time to pull it all together before the trip?

So, here are my 10 rules for pain-free packing…

1. Put everything you think you will need on a list, check off items when you pack them, and give yourself plenty of time. This will keep you from over-packing (impulsively packing from the clean laundry pile), or forgetting something.
2. If your trip is longer than five days, plan to do laundry. You should also research laundry facilities locally for each stage of your trip. For example, everything is closed on Sunday’s in Vienna, including low cost Laundromats.
3. For small children pack 1.5 outfits a day. So for a trip over five days, you would pack eight outfits.
   
4. Decide what you can buy once you’re there. Caleb is still in diapers, and our trip will be 12 days long. I figure he uses five diapers a day… so we will need 60 diapers on the trip. However, I’m only packing three days worth, since it will be easy to do a diaper run once we’re in DC.
5. Pack extra underwear in case you can’t do laundry on the 5th day. I’m packing seven pairs of underwear each for the potty-trained members of my family, so if we somehow don’t get to laundry until Day 6, I can be assured that one part of the outfit is clean.
6. If you are sharing luggage, invest in mesh bags for each family member to keep you organized.
7. Adjust the wardrobe for where you are going... What will the weather look like? Will you need a dress up outfit? How do the locals dress? I remember several years ago visiting our friends in December in Southern California. I was dressed in my fashionable Northern California winter grays, all the locals were in tank tops and flower skirts and I thought I’d die of heat stroke.
8. Don’t take whole bottles of hair product, even if you plan to check your luggage. I’ve made it 23 days on a travel-sized bottle of shampoo and conditioner – you can too.
9. Put change of clothing for each kid in the carry on. Last year Xander got sick all over himself in the first hour of a three hour car trip. I didn’t think to pack a change of clothes. Bad, bad mommy.
10. Always, always, always pack rain gear, especially if you are going somewhere that gets rain. When you don’t it rains, and when you do it takes up space in your luggage.

Now, with three days left before our East Coast adventure I’d better get packing.