Traveling is supposed to be a fun and exciting time. Families look forward to getting some time away from their real lives and just relaxing. Whether it be on a beach somewhere, or somewhere more historic, they are excited about the change of scenery and exposing their children to some culture and a whole new world. Activities are planned, restaurants are mapped out and the family is ready to go. Well, almost. Before any trip happens, a lot of work needs to be done and a large bulk of the time is going to be spent packing. When it is just a couple packing for themselves, it can be overwhelming, but then you add children.

When mom has to pack for all of her children, it can be a little overwhelming. Is she bringing too much? Or not enough? Even when she thinks she has everything mapped out, there are just so many things that it can be hard to stay organized. Mom wants to make sure she knows where everything is so that she can grab it if she needs it. She also does not want to arrive at her destination and has to spend a lot of time trying to organize the items then.

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While it can seem impossible, there are ways to stay organized when packing for a family.

Make A List

According to Emily M Krause, the most important thing that mom needs to do is make a list. Once the trip is booked and planned, start making a list of every single thing that you will need to bring. Make sure the list is for both yourself and your children. Mom doesn’t want to spend all the time on her children, and then forget to pack for herself. A lot of moms may think they will remember everything that they need, but that is nearly impossible, and making a list will help.

Spend some time and sit and write a list of everything that you will need. Start as soon as you know where you are going, and you can add things as you think of them. Also, write down any special containers, or packages, you will need to buy to put the stuff in. That means when it comes time to start packing, all mom has to do is go down the list and cross things out.

What Do Kids Want?

When packing for children, mom has to think about what her children will want to bring. It is reasonable to believe that children will want to bring some toys with them. Whether it for a road trip, train trip, or plane trip, they will need things to do to entertain themselves. Having one specific bag for toys can make packing easier and can limit the amount that they want to bring. However, how can mom make sure she packs toys that don’t take up too much room?

According to Frommers, the first kind of toy you want to run to are books, coloring books, and crayons. These are items that are compact and can be packed efficiently without taking up too much room. It may be wise to leave some budget for purchasing new ones. This way you can buy and pack right away, and they are new and will hold your child’s interest for longer.

When it comes to other toys, mom may want to consider inflatable toys. Pool toys can be used for more than just a pool, and when they don’t have air in them, they fold down pretty flat.

The Essentials

Clothing items are essential items, but since they are essential, they can take up the most room. These are the items that will take up the most room, so mom needs to get creative when packing them to make sure she can take advantage of more space.

According to AirTreks, a good rule of thumb is one bag per person. This is important because children will likely be too small to carry their own bag, so mom has to make sure that she, and her partner, can carry the weight.

When packing up the clothes, take advantage of rubber bands. It always seems that no matter how hard you try, you always open your suitcase, and clothes have rolled into one massive blob of fabric. Instead of packing normally, pack outfits together. Take a shirt, pants, and underwear and layer them on top of each other. Then roll them up and secure them with a rubber band. This way when you open the suitcase, you will have these small rolls that are already a perfectly compromised outfit. These rolls will take up less space in a suitcase, and can allow mom to really maximize her space for other items.

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Sources: Emily M Krause, Frommers, Airtreks