As I write this, we are planning for a road trip. A week before, I generally start making out my packing lists. With large families, packing lists are a great suggestion. With disabled* children, packing lists get even more complex and are definitely suggested. When you have both situations… a large family WITH a disabled* child? Packing lists are the rule! Never a suggestion! A definite must! (*check out special needs vs disabled blog last to see why we use this term)
Before any road trip or vacation, my kids usually ask for a packing list. This has saved my sanity over the years. When they were younger, I had a checklist for each child, I needed to pre-approve their outfits, go through their activity bags, and double check those lists as we packed the vehicle. When they became preteens, I’d let them pack, and help their younger siblings create outfits, which I then approved. This made packing much easier for me! As they got older, I was able to trust them, and no longer needed to approve everything. Then, they started asking for packing lists, as it made it easier for them.
We love road trips for our vacations. We took so many, I had a basic list I kept on my computer, and eventually my smartphone. I simply edited it depending on how many days we’d be gone, then I’d print it out for anyone who asked. They asked for packing lists when going on sleep overs, summer camps, Camp Grandma, and even camping trips with friends in college. It developed into a formula, depending on the length of the journey.
The basic formula is easy. Check the weather for the area. Plan on an outfit per day, extra outfit for backup, dress up outfit, jacket, and walking shoes. Over the years, we have learned the back up outfits were very important. Even when they are well past the need to potty train, we found that accidents can and do happen. A child can get unexpectedly ill, sick to their stomach, eat something wrong, fall in something, or anything else. The stories I have! I just cringe looking back! Sometimes you might be lucky enough to happen to be at a store that sells clothing, but often Murphy’s Law has you out on the highway, or stuck in traffic. So a back up outfit is always a must, no matter how short or long the trip.
If you know of specific events, you can be more specific with some outfits or needs. For warmer destinations, I always suggest shorts and t-shirts, with a pair of pants and a jacket, just in case. For cooler destinations, I always suggest warmer clothes, layerable clothing, and at least two jackets. We always have them each bring a pillow, blanket, and activity bag. The pillow and blanket are mostly for comfort in the vehicle, and for napping, of course, so travel pillows or soft stuffed animals will also work. It’s up to each kid. We have found they come in handy for extra padding, sun shades on the windows, or extra insulation for the cooler. The activity bag is as individual as each kid.
Their clothing may be packed into suitcases, in the shell on top, or stacked in the back of the van, but each kid brings a back pack filled with activities. It depends on what they like to do, but the basic contents are usually a few books, fun workbooks, sketch pad, and pencils, pens, and/or colored pencils. For toddlers, I often bought new simple toys at a local resale shop and hand them out every so often during the trip. It’s like a new present every few hours! I pack away a bag for the trip back, as well. For preschoolers, those magnetic paper dolls, and other magnetic play sets are amazing! And for ages 6-12, magnetic travel games can be wonderful. We found that travel games that were just smaller versions of games weren’t convenient on the road, and pieces got lost quickly, ruining the fun. Magnetic games stayed in place and packed away easily. As preteens and teens, our kids had DSs. As they got older, they played with them much less at home, however, on road trips, they were suddenly very popular again. They had games that allowed for muti-player, so they challenged each other and teamed up against one another. As teens and young adults, they all have their own smartphones, so they play against each other on apps, or send goofy pics and videos back and forth, and yes, they text each other. We have a family group chat that gets a bit crazy during a trip. They now bring their Switch, as well. Some of their favorite vacation memories are the trips to and from our destination!
Do you create packing lists for just your kids, or for yourself, as well? What are your must-haves for travel?
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