I was going to add something about “Surviving” travel with children… but we barely survived so I am not close to being able to give advice on that front.

In her defense, Ramsey is working on molars right now. But it was a comically awful flight to Texas.

Organizing is a never ending passion of mine and it’s taken me decades to figure out these traveling hacks that have truly saved my sanity. And they work for adults and children alike.

Packing cubes. WHAT?!?

Depending on the length of the trip depends on how I pack these guys. With the girls, I typically pack everyone’s PJs together and each girl gets a side. There was a lot of swimming on this trip so I did the same with suits and coverups. With outfits each girl gets a separate cube. Shoes that are actually walked in (River’s) are packed in shoe bags.

I love these cubes because they have clips holding the rolled clothes and outfits into place and mesh tops on most to see what you are working with. As you remove an outfit they stay in line (mostly) and easy to see until the end. This also makes picking out bows and shoes to travel with way more simple.

Now for me:

I get what’s left of the cubes and Justin gets… well, he hasn’t complained and I don’t pack for him so he just gets a side of the suitcase and to live and not complain another day. To accomplish all of this I only bought two sets of these puppies. Get yours HERE.

This time I packed outfits in one (shorts didn’t fit so they are out free to roam about the cabin). Swimwear, cover ups and (unused) workout clothes in a cube, PJs in one and underwear in its own. For shoes I packed sneakers and flip flops and wore my most bulky shoes (these fabulous and inexpensive espadrilles I have in two colors). Gotta keep the weight under 50 pounds and suitcase real estate is premium.

My other best packing hack?

Checkable laundry bag.

Yep.

Put all the dirty clothes in as you go and if you’re flying, check it and forget it. This works best if your bags fly free. Obviously. I’ve also been known to use a trash bag and just stuff it in the eventually empty suitcase. We always seem to bring back more junk than we take so the extra room is nice. Also, when you get home you just dump the laundry bag in the laundry room and there’s one less step involved when you start reorganizing your life.

There’s a lot of things you can’t guarantee when flying. Teething baby is something you can absolutely bet on. Have a flight? Pack Motrin. And wine. Have a 12 year old? The law of flying mandates that even a 12 year old will find a new tooth or a new way to make your trip miserable. Jk but my kids always seem to pop teeth when we travel and only when I don’t bring {legal} drugs.

Happy travels. Cheers!