Packing SOS

 

Gone are the days when it was enough to pop your bikini and few dresses into a bag in preparation for a great holiday! If you are a mum of a toddler, you know very well that anything and everything could become useful at any time! Toddlers are as unpredictable as the Irish weather! So if you have a toddler and you travel around Ireland - you really need to plan what to take. So here are some tips that I find useful when packing for any trip:

1. Sorting bags

I think I've bought out the whole stock from Lidl 😁. These seemingly harmless little bags are fantastic at battling cluster and organizing your clothes. I assign a different colour for each family member and then, I divide the clothes into groups; t-shirts, trousers, jumpers and hoodies, underwear etc. This way I can avoid digging through the whole bag or a disorderly pile of clothes. I am always able to find what I need when I need it. I also only pack clothes that go well together so, anytime I pull out a random t-shirt I know that it will match the random pair of trousers I'll grab. It saves me a lot of stress!

2. Crocs.

 Do not underestimate the power of crocs! They are the most versatile shoe anyone can own and definitely when it comes to a toddler. They dry quickly so they are ideal for walking on the dewy grass in the morning. If you find yourself in a situation where, your toddler inevitably spots that one puddle or if they manage to fall into the stream during a trip- you just wipe them dry and keep going. 

3. Always pack more socks then they are days of your trip! And then pack some more!

 You don't want to be in a situation where your toddler has wet socks and you have nothing to replace them with. A cold starts from the feet so it is important to always keep them warm. Pack copious amounts of socks and if they get wet, just quickly put another pair on. If your toddler is wet, they will become cranky, upset and they might even get sick! 

4. Have your special, dispensable "get dirty clothes".

 I have a bag of clothes that we specifically use on our camping trips. These are clothes that I don't worry about, that can get dirty, or can get holes etc. Most of these are camo and made out of fast drying fabrics. Also, since they are our camping clothes, I keep them stored away and only use them for our trips, so I don't waste any time looking for them. After each trip I put them away again so they are ready to go for the next holiday! Stress-free packing 🤩.

5. Wash bag

Similar to the expendable clothes, I have a wash bag just for going away and I never take things out of it. It sits there patiently till the next vacation. My husband insists of having his own bag that he empties after each trip, and I always watch him running around in the morning because he forgot to take out his tooth brush 🤷‍♀️ it's too much hassle! Buy a separate toothbrush! Also, the mini bottles are great. Just top them up after your trips, the less you carry with you the better.

6. Power bank

 Invest in a good power bank, I've come to learn that not everywhere you go there will be access to a socket, and how will you watch cocomelon then?! 😳😜😁

7. Beach bag

 Have a separate beach bag so you won't have your other things completely covered in sand. Make sure it is much bigger than what you assume you need, for some reason there are always more things to carry back from the beach! 🤷‍♀️ Stick a few bin bags in it too so you can keep all the wet and sandy gear separate from everything else. Absolutely everything gets dirty at the beach and we tend to forget about that fact until we get there!