Organizing Your Summer Fun:
Packing It In

Happy first days of summer! Our summer break started a few days ago, and we’ve already kicked it into high gear with our annual 2-week jaunt to my home state of Texas. It’s an opportunity for my son to grasp his 8th generation Texan roots (snakes, bugs and all!) and spend time with the grandparents, while I unwind, see high school friends and get my fill of Tex-Mex. A fabulous way to start the summer!

As I packed my son’s bag, I thought it would be helpful to show you how I apply my packing tips and use my favorite packing tool (the packing cube), which I wrote about in a previous post.

Questions: What to pack

• How long will you be gone? 16 days
• What kind of trip is this? Pure pleasure!
• What’s the weather like where you’re going? Hot, hot, humid and – did I say it? – hot!
• What are you doing while you’re there? 1 week of golf camp, 1 week of summer camp and 2 weekends of exploring, stargazing and shooting the BB gun on the farm.

Analysis: He needs collared shirts for golf camp, t-shirts for all other days and a swimsuit for every day!

Bonus factor: we can wash clothes so I kept quantity to a minimum.

Result: I selected 4 golf shirts, 5 t-shirts, 4 shorts, 2 swimsuits, 2 PJs, 1 jacket (ha! for a movie theater?), 2 pairs of shoes, underwear, socks, golf glove and goggles.

How to pack

And so the packing begins: I start with the smallest cube and use that for underwear and socks.

Then, the medium cube will hold PJs, swimsuits, rash guards (on first level), with goggles, golf glove and jacket on top.

Finally, the large cube will hold golf shirts, t-shirts and shorts.

Into the bottom of his suitcase go the small cube, medium cube and 2 pairs of shoes in shoe bags – a must! (I have to thank my college roommate Brigitte for introducing me to shoe bags. I can now never pack a suitcase without them – you don’t want dirty soles touching your threads!)

Then the large cube on top, and voilà! We’re packed and ready to go.

What I love about packing cubes is that they keep a suitcase organized – each cube has its role and holds its assigned contents – and when you need to grab something, you know exactly where to go. No more rummaging through a suitcase . . . we’ll save rummaging for outdoor play!

Here’s to happy, hot days ahead!