Packing with Kids

Taking your kids on vacation and packing what they need can be challenging at the best of times. Throw in a casual two year pandemic and make this your 19 month old’s first trip ever and your 3 1/2 year old’s first trip since January 2020 when they were the same age as the baby, can feel like A LOT. Oh and then why not just be pregnant while you’re at it to keep things interesting. That is where we are at but I have to be honest I am also so excited to be able to finally get away and enjoy a sunny getaway for the first time in over two years. I am a huge planner so making sure I started planning exactly what we would need to pack and how we would do it early was the key to my success. I know overpacking can be a huge issue for people (guilty) but I have gotten so much better, I swear. Kids obviously require A LOT at the best of times so depending where you are going can also impact what you have to bring. We have rented a house with laundry which is definitely making our lives a little easier on the packing front but the added need for car seats, a stroller, and my husbands travel golf bag, makes for a fun game of pack the car on the way to the airport so the people can still fit in.” Anyways, here is a step by step of exactly how I prepared to make this trip as easy on us (me) as possible.

I started with making a list. I love a list and if you don’t you probably are a much more sane person than I am but I like a list for a list and that is just who I am. So, anyways, I started with a list of everything I thought we would need and went on from there. First of all look at the big things. Do you need car seats, do you need a pack-and-play (or something for any of the littler humans to sleep in), do you need a stroller? Etc. Start with the big things and work your way down. For this trip our house does have the amenities we need for sleeping, ie. crib for Watson and a smaller kids bed for Beau, which made my stress level over sleeping issues ease. We will however be bringing both car seats. The last time we travelled it was just Beau and I actually had my parents purchase a car seat before we arrived (they were there first) as it was cheaper, and in my opinion safer, than renting. Renting can be tricky and often unpredictable as you don’t know what you are getting. It is also expensive AF if you are gone for a good chunk of time. The times before that Beau was still in his baby seat which simply attached to the stroller, so baby-baby travelling, in my opinion, is the easiest in terms of the big things. But, I digress. We are bringing both car seats and will be checking those the minute we walk into the airport (this is free FYI). I will say the car seats are a bit of a pain but in the scheme of things not a huge deal. Short term pain for long term gain (and saves on the cash money). We will also be bringing our travel stroller. We have a lighter, double stroller, that was also a more inexpensive one to our main stroller. The airlines can be a little rough on your belongings so keep that in mind when you will at some point have to leave them to be thrown under the airplane.

Once I had decided that was all we would need for big things it was onto the little, non clothing items. Baby monitor, diapers, snacks, bottles, etc. For us baby monitor is key to any travelling success. If you want to be able to enjoy some adult time by the pool or hottub at night it is so great to have your monitor with you so you aren’t constantly having to check if that creak in the floor was one of the children waking up. Our monitor has two cameras which is also great and means both the boys can be in separate rooms so to not wake up the other. We are travelling somewhere that we are able to purchase diapers and wipes when we arrive so we don’t have to stock up for the entire two weeks. This saves a huge amount of room in the suitcase. We will bring enough for the day and simply grab what we need when we arrive. Snacks for the travel day are obviously essential, pack anything that is easy, not messy, and most importantly pre-packed (even if you do it yourself, make sure everything is all set and easily accessible). Watty still has a bottle (just of milk) before bed so that is easy peasy to bring. If you require more like formula for your little babe just remember to leave room in the diaper bag and keep those essentials on your person, never in your checked luggage.

Next up clothes. How many bathing suits for a 3 year old is too many? No, really I am still working to figure this out LOL. Laying everything out and planning outfits for each day really helps. We are going somewhere that we have the ability to do laundry so I packed each of the boys outfits for a week knowing we have the ability to wash everything whenever we need. Remember too when you are going to a tropical destination there will be so many days where a bathing suit (or in the case of my children, nothing) will be worn for the majority of the days. You won’t likely need as many changes of clothes as usual because they won’t be destroying their outfits in the same way. I checked the weather on and off for the last week to know what to expect in terms of coolness for the evenings but again the boys are young and aren’t going to be late nighting often so just a few sweaters and cozy sweats were packed, plus the warmer clothes they will be wearing on the plane.

A few things I missed in the not clothing department were sunscreen, toothbrushes, hats. We will be bringing their toothbrushes and hats we already have of course but since it is not the summer and we don’t have baby sunscreen on hand we are going to purchase that when we arrive with a few other essentials. Again this is all for the sake of having less in our suitcases. More room to shop right? Just kidding (not ). I think if I can give any advice it is just research where you are going, what you have access to, and start planning ahead of time. There is nothing worse than rushing / panicking the day before and day of any type of travel. Oh and always be sure that your carry-ons have a few extra outfits and a bathing suit in them because in the worst case scenario you just never know if your bag, god forbid, could be lost.

I am definitely feeling more nervous for the actual travel of this trip than any trip in our past. I know once we are in it the anxiety will fade away but for anyone else in the same boat I think after everything we have been through in the last 2+ years all the feels are valid. Send me your vacation must haves for your family when you go away over on the gram. See y’all in a few weeks! Don’t worry instagram will likely be annoyingly filled with vacay updates. Happy Valentine’s Day my loves.

xo