by Lois Breneman, © Revised 2007, Heart to Heart
Lists are great! For smoother planning and packing, why not copy and paste this packing list, then revise it to suit your own family's needs? The best thing about making a master packing list is that you will be less likely to forget something important. This list will fit on one page and can be filed in your "Vacation" or "Packing List" folder for easy access whenever you need it. I also keep a few printed copies handy in a file. There are always "Last Minute" items to pack the morning you leave - things that are being used until the last minute. Add those at the bottom of the page where designated. If you need to make arrangements to hold or cancel your newspaper, add the local phone number to your master list.
If your husband does his own packing, help him make a list of his own. This brings a smile to my face as I think back to one summer day when my very organized engineer husband and I were leaving the house for a relaxing day of sailing at a nearby lake. We were a block away from home when I went through a memory check list, asking my husband, "Do you have the life jackets? U.S. flag for on top of the mast? Wind gauge? Bungee cords? Sails?" You should have seen the look on his face! We died laughing, because he forgot to load the sails on the boat! Just imagine! Going sailing without the sails! We went around the block and back home again to get the sails, laughing all the way! He has a sailing list now that he checks before leaving the house, but we still laugh about that day! I told him he's a good sport for allowing me to share this example with you. He said I could write, "Used by permission!"
If your children are old enough, have them make up their own packing list. This is a practical way to teach them responsibility.
For shorter trips, you can use the same list and cross off all the things you don't need, unless you want to make a shorter version.
Lists are great! For smoother planning and packing, why not copy and paste this packing list, then revise it to suit your own family's needs? The best thing about making a master packing list is that you will be less likely to forget something important. This list will fit on one page and can be filed in your "Vacation" or "Packing List" folder for easy access whenever you need it. I also keep a few printed copies handy in a file. There are always "Last Minute" items to pack the morning you leave - things that are being used until the last minute. Add those at the bottom of the page where designated. If you need to make arrangements to hold or cancel your newspaper, add the local phone number to your master list.
If your husband does his own packing, help him make a list of his own. This brings a smile to my face as I think back to one summer day when my very organized engineer husband and I were leaving the house for a relaxing day of sailing at a nearby lake. We were a block away from home when I went through a memory check list, asking my husband, "Do you have the life jackets? U.S. flag for on top of the mast? Wind gauge? Bungee cords? Sails?" You should have seen the look on his face! We died laughing, because he forgot to load the sails on the boat! Just imagine! Going sailing without the sails! We went around the block and back home again to get the sails, laughing all the way! He has a sailing list now that he checks before leaving the house, but we still laugh about that day! I told him he's a good sport for allowing me to share this example with you. He said I could write, "Used by permission!"
If your children are old enough, have them make up their own packing list. This is a practical way to teach them responsibility.
For shorter trips, you can use the same list and cross off all the things you don't need, unless you want to make a shorter version.
Some headings I include in our "Packing List" are the following:
Personal and Toiletries
Clothing
Winter/Summer Items
Items to Keep Handy in Vehicle
List of things to do before leaving, such as Vacation Stop for the mail and newspaper, water plants, unplug computer and sewing machines.
Clothing
Winter/Summer Items
Items to Keep Handy in Vehicle
List of things to do before leaving, such as Vacation Stop for the mail and newspaper, water plants, unplug computer and sewing machines.
You get the idea. Make a one-page packing list for yourself and make copies for each time you go on a trip. I keep a copy on file in my computer so I can print off a copy before packing. It helps knowing everything I need is on the list. Of course, every now and then the list needs a little tweaking.
MORE TRAVEL TIPS
Used by permission
Activity Bag for Each Child ~ Before leaving on a long trip, pack an activity bag for each child. It will help transform long boring hours into exciting, fun and more peaceful hours for the entire family. Enlist your child's help, asking for ideas of some favorite small toys and supplies he would enjoy playing with while traveling. Sneak out and visit a dollar store without the children and choose other things they would enjoy, but keep those items inside your own little surprise bag! Pipe cleaners are a suggestion for forming into people, flowers, animals, cars, bicycles, etc. Decide when you want to dole out your surprises during your trip - maybe one a day. A padded desktop makes many activities easier while traveling. Take a lengthy book that would interest your children, and read aloud, a chapter at a time, while riding in the car. Take audio tapes or CD's of music and stories as well. Notes: If you take crayons that would melt in a hot car while you're out doing something else, just stick them in the cooler with the snacks. Some other items that will help make your trip more contented are the following: wipes, antibacterial hand cleaner, note pad and pen, small trash bag, pillow cases for hanging at windows if too sunny.
Traveler's Alert ~ If you are like me and do not fly much, you sometimes are not sure what you can take and not take on the plane. I had knitting needles with me on one trip and they were allowed, but then on another trip, they were denied and my boarded bag had already gone to the bottom of the plane. Now, I carry a self-addressed envelope with me so I can mail the items back to me without a financial loss. - Susan W. - www.stretcher.com
Airlines - Carry-On Restrictions ~ Use these key words to do a search for the airline you are using - before packing - ie: http://www.united.com/page/article/0,1360,1032,00.html
In Case of a Lost Suitcase ~ My son and daughter-in-law are traveling to Rome in a few weeks and are allowed only one suitcase each. They are packing half of her clothes and half of his clothes in each of the suitcases just in case one is sent to some other airport. They are also carrying a backpack for passports, a change of underwear, their medications, and the rest of their pockets' regular contents. Hope O. in Charleston, SC - www.stretcher.com
The Trickle Down Method ~ This spring I have been collecting plastic water bottles. I poke a small hole in the bottom (for slow drainage) and plant them in my garden, just deep enough that I can fill them with water. This way I am recycling and I use less water in the garden. The bottles allow the water to get to the deeper, more vital roots of my vegetables. It works great! - Katy W. - www.stretcher.com (Note: This would work well to refill jugs before leaving for vacation too!)
A Little Vacation Humor ~ Pat and his wife, Martha, were getting ready to leave home for a vacation. Martha started out the door, then stopped and said, "Pat, this time you check to see if the coffee pot is off, television plugs are pulled, burglar alarm on, doors locked, and I'll go out and blow the horn." - Cited on WITandWISDOM - http://www.witandwisdom.org
