In order to make a family trip go smoothly it’s imperative that you take the necessary time to organize. Here’s what I do to make my life easier and my travels less stressful.
1. Get the boys involved with helping out. Have them create a pile of items they wish to bring for entertainment such as books, music or movies.
2. Assign a travel bag for each child (that they can be responsible for). For my family, children age 3 and up can help with at least a small bag.
3. I pack in advance enough, but not too much for the days we will be away. One bag per child helps me to stay in control.
4. Always inquire about laundry services. If readily available, plan to take advantage. This also helps me stay in control becasue I don’t have to overpack. Also, I always wash everything prior to returnung home so when I walk in my door, I have one less thing to do. My only chore is to put things away, which frankly is enough for me.
5. Food. I always pack food and more importantly, plan what food will travel well, yet still be healthy. That’s a tall order as convenience foods are high in sugar (which are not only bad, but will get the kids rowdy) but on a trip with kids, carrots aren’t that much fun.
Well, I’ve run out of time – I’ll write a follow-up to this soon. Do you have travel suggestions? What works for you? We want to hear!
