Packing is so Much Easier Now!

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was going to give having a "Laundry Day" a try.  It took almost a whole week to catch up on my laundry.  But, since then, it has been going great!  I never have that overwhelming feeling of being behind, we always have clean clothes (too many clothes to fit in the drawers, it turns out!), and I don't even have to think about laundry the rest of the week!  I'm loving it!

Before switching to this system, packing for a trip was horrible!  It was a chore that took days and days.  Because, not only did I have to plan what we were going to wear and actually pack it, I had to go dig it out of the mounds of dirty clothes, wash it, and dry it before it could be packed.  Pure torture for someone like me!

But, this time it is different.  There are no mounds of dirty clothes.  There are just a few loads and they are all from this week.  Since it is only a week's worth of clothes and we have a ton more than that, I knew there were plenty of clean, nice clothes that I could easily go get out of the drawers, make into outfits, and pack in their duffel bag.  In fact, we have enough clean clothes, that I can do this a few days in advance and not be rushing at the last minute.  Especially important since I have to work tonight and they are leaving early tomorrow.

To make it even better, I decided to use my mom's system of packing for kids.  You see, my mom is extremely organized and neat.  I seriously don't know how I ended up the way I am.  If you need something done in an orderly way, call my mom.  She's the woman for the job.  This is just one of the great ideas she had way before the days of Pinterest where I get all my great ideas.

First, I figured out how many outfits each child needs.  I always make sure to pack at least one extra because, well,  kids will be kids.  I laid all the outfit out on my bed to make sure I had everything I need.

Then, I packed each outfit in a zipper bag.  I included underwear, socks, hair accessories, etc.

Then, I squeeze out the air.  This helps save room so that more can fit in the suitcase.

Here are all their outfits, in bags, ready to go.  I put all their pj's in one bag along with their bathing suit.

Now, when Bub or Sis go to get dressed each day, they can just grab a bag and go.  If an outfit was for a special event or outing (eating at a nice restaurant, going on a hike where they are likely to get dirty, etc) I wrote that on the bag with a sharpie.  This will keep them from putting on the nice outfit on they day my parents plans for them to get covered in mud.

This is especially helpful for Sis's patterned shorts that only match a couple of shirts.  I don't want her wearing them with the wrong top and having nothing to match the other top later in the week.  At home, that wouldn't be a problem because she could just choose another top.  But, she won't have that option in Gatlinburg.

Here is everything all packed up and ready to go.  Now, all I have to do is add their toiletries on Saturday morning.   I'm loving laundry day!