Packing Nirvana

As @girlmeetswriter (our 11 year old) has indicated, our next adventure is a 15 night epic road trip to a number of national parks, beginning with Glacier National Park. We are flying into Kalispell, MT and will drive over 2,400 miles in total as we cruise around between places like Glacier, Yellowstone, Canyonlands, Arches, Dinosaur (for the 7 year old dino lover!), Antelope Canyon, Grand Canyon, etc., ending with a 3-night vacation-from-the-vacation stint in Las Vegas. (For the adults among us, the pool and spa idea sounds amazing – even if we’re not in to the strip or gambling!).

Many people have asked if we’re renting an RV or camping. The short answer is “no.” I’m a bit of a safety nut, and we still have two kids in booster seats. After doing some research, I determined that RVs – besides being total gas hogs! – are not really meant for people who have car seat or booster seat concerns. Additionally, our intent is to traverse Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, and let’s face it – while the view is supposed to be amazing, it’s not a small challenge to drive. Me behind the wheel of an RV on a tight curve hugging a major mountainside isn’t my idea of fun driving. So…we’ve chosen a mix of hotels, VRBO properties, and bed & breakfasts, depending on the city. Our longest stay is three nights, and most are two or less. This means we’ll be moving pretty much constantly. And this means packing/repacking so many times that it could drive a mom of four pretty much crazy. 😉

Enter a life changing FB post from my friend L, who took her kids on a 20 day European tour earlier this summer and packed her family of four in only backpacks. She posted pics of her packing cubes – and I was hooked pretty much instantly. We have plenty of adventures ahead, so I ordered a set for each person in the family. At about $22 each on Amazon (for four different sizes cubs + a small lightweight laundry bag), the investment seemed like it was worth it.

Well. I couldn’t be happier with the packing results. I let each kid (plus Dad, the biggest kid!) pick a color and gave them two different shaped medium cubes to pack up. I gave them a very specific packing list, which included the following for our 15 night trip:

• 3 pairs shorts. Two for hiking, one you could wear to eat out at a restaurant in.
• 3 short sleeve shirts. Two for hiking, one you could wear with “dressier” shorts above in said restaurant.
• 1 long sleeve shirt.
• 1 pair of jeans.
• 1 pair of yoga/workout pants.
• 1 dress for the girls.
• 2 bathing suits.
• 1 rash guard/UV hiking shirt.
• 1 pair of pajamas.
• 3 pairs of underwear/undergarments.
• 1 sweatshirt/hoodie.
• 1 rain jacket
• 1 fleece or layering jacket.
• 1 pair of hiking shoes.
• 1 pair of flip flops.
• 1 pair of sandals/shoes to go with dressier clothes.

All of these things were rolled neatly and placed in packing cubes; the kids packed their own with the exception of the 7 year old and a little bit of checking/course correcting here and there as required. We aren’t backpacking, but didn’t want our minivan to be overloaded with baggage. We fit all 12 cubes into two pieces of checked baggage with a plan to wash clothes every three days.

** Note: @HorsesMeetsWorld wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of wearing the same clothes in all of her Insta pics, so she let us know her cubes actually fit more clothes than what was specified on the packing list. I couldn’t argue with that, so her list is a bit expanded but still fits in two cubes.

The kids are super excited about these cubes. I am super excited that they might have an interest in keeping things neat and organized and that these might be just the right manageable size to inspire them to pack up quickly and efficiently. Will be sure to update after we see how it all turned out. 🙂