packing list for vacation - Stuff Parents Need

Thanks to Exorgen for the sample thermometer. All thoughts and opinions are my own, as always. Affiliate links may be included.

I have traveled with my kids on dozens of trips, and there are 3 items that have I have left out of my toiletry bag at one point or another that I have deeply regretted leaving behind. These items might not be on your “must pack” list, either, but I’d encourage you to re-think it! toiletry bag necessities

1. Tweezers

Splinters are highly skilled at making their big move whenever you least expect it. For us it has happened on wooden booths at a restaurant, during nature walks and even at an amusement park. I love our travel pair of tweezers since they are SO easy to throw in your purse, but the truth is that tweezers don’t take up a lot of space even at their full size. You might not need them, but if you do, you’ll be SO glad you have them. They are definitely worth the tiny amount of space they require!

2. Thermometer

Both of my children are extremely gifted at developing some sort of sickness while we are traveling. A thermometer now makes my “absolutely necessary” list any time we are traveling overnight with the kids. We’ve used it moretimes than I can count. We especially love the Exergen Smart Glow Temporal Artery Thermometer because you simply need to swip the device across someone’s head to get an accurate read in just 1 or 2 seconds. The 9 volt battery comes with the device (THANK YOU!) so it is ready as soon as you purchase it, even if you are purchasing it in some random drugstore in a city not well known to you because you forgot to pack yours. Or you can plan ahead now and snag it on Amazon!

3. Chapstick

My lips are super finicky about the weather. If I am headed to a climate that is less humid than where I live, my lips show their disdain almost immediately. They actually seem to get upset no matter where I go. Any sort of change in climate means my lips need extra care. And the apples don’t fall far from the tree, so my kids need the exact same thing. This is another item that takes up precious little space but that can provide a heck of a lot of comfort and soothing. And if you are like me, you already have over a dozen chapsticks at home, so don’t force yourself to go buy lucky #13 while you are away from home! We love Young Living’s lavender chapstick for keeping our lips soft and moisturized!

What are some less common items that you have learned are absolutely critical for your family to pack on vacations? I’d love to hear your ideas!

We are back from an absolutely fabulous visit to my in-laws in California. The journey there and back was very long, but our baby behaved beautifully. We had such a great time; it was the first time in 4 years that all of Tim’s siblings were together, and in that time 4 little girls have hit the scene as cousins to each other. You can imagine the fun we had watching them play!

We packed a lot of things for our baby. Some of the things we didn’t really need. However, there were 2 items that I never even considered packing but that I missed greatly. I’m passing this along to you in case you have travel plans with a baby in your future and are compiling a travel with baby checklist.

1. The Boppy. I always knew that the Boppy breastfeeding pillow was a great product, but I thought that I could get by just fine with a pillow for the trip. WRONG! In the past 12 days I have used a thin pillow, a thick pillow, a jacket and my arm muscles alone, each in an effort to create a comfortable nursing environment for Darah. Quite simply, nothing could hold a candle to the Boppy. The pillows came the closest, but she kept sliding off of them, so I had to wrestle with them each time I fed her. When we got home today I got the Boppy out, and it was the most peaceful feeding she has had since before we left.

2. A monitor. My in-laws have really thick walls, which is terrific for keeping a room quiet during nap times. The down side is that it is really difficult to hear a crying baby if you aren’t really close to the door. I found myself making frequent trips to our room to check on her, and a few times I checked on her only to find her sobbing, which means she had been crying for several minutes (I’m not one to let my baby cry; it’s ok if you don’t agree with me, but it’s how I roll). If I had brought the monitor, I could have been more present at meal times, playtime outside or while watching movies.

Since we already had full suitcases and since these items take up a decent amount of space, a good idea might have been to have had my mother-in-law purchase these items used off Craigslist and just keep them at her house. But as I said, it really didn’t occur to me that I would need them. Now I know!

If you recently traveled, did you leave anything behind that you wish you hadn’t? Did you pack something that you never even got out of the suitcase?