Here we are the night before another adventure and we still haven’t packed. Don’t get me wrong we did the dishes, laundry, cleaning, shopping, and got gas in the car…

We have done everything except pack. I’ve always been a last minute packer and now that I have kids I’m still a last minute packer. Nothings changed.

However, we always get packed and have what we need so here are a few things we do to help us keep organized and pack efficiently.

1) Team Work.

In our house we all help get ready to go. Whether it’s gathering shoes or packing travel backpacks everyone is doing something even our two year old.

2) Wash all the clothes.

I always wash all our clothes before starting to pack. This prevents me running around looking for that one shirt or an extra pair of underwear.

Bonus: We come home to empty laundry baskets too!

3) Gallon Bags.

When all the laundry is done we take a gallon bag for each day of travel and do one outfit per bag for the kids. It works great for allowing the kids to grab an outfit bag out in the mornings on our trips and dress themselves. Each bag has a full outfit and accessories too.

4) Laundry Bag.

Another thing we pack is a laundry bag in each suitcase so all the dirty clothes don’t go back in the suitcase. Because let’s be real our baggy packing is great but we do have three little kids so sometimes things find their way out of the baggies and things get mixed up. With the dirty clothes in the laundry bag and clean clothes in the balloon bags, we can also use the separation in the suitcase now for clothes we might want to wear again like light layers or jackets.

This process of packing is effective for everyone and helps us get our family of five packed in no time.

I love hearing about your packing tips too so be sure to let me know in the comments section below if you have anything that works well for your family!

Safe travels!

The Curious Crew