My recent week out of town with the kids has proven one thing: we are never going to tour Europe with two pairs of pants and three shirts each.

Packing went like this: Hey, kids- we need to pack for our trip.

Kids immediately grab their backpacks and cram as many shirts and shorts as they can inside and then declare they are done.

I discretely unpack the backpacks later, only to be discovered by ds, who is very upset that I took everything out and immediately repacks.

End result- the night before we leave I sneak into their rooms with a flash light and pack what they need in peace.

But I still overpacked, and they both insisted on taking their stuffed backpacks. Plus, I had a couple of bags out (for swim stuff, etc) and ds, unknown to me, added what he thought was necessary. He arrived on the trip with five bathing suits, a broken pair of goggles and two frisbees. Dh put the bags in the car, so I never knew they'd been "tampered with " until we got there.

I would call the whole effort semi-organized at best.

What can I do different next time?

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I don't believe in miracles; I depend on them

I used to give my kids a list of what they needed to bring (minimum) the deal was if they still had room and wanted to bring something else they were allowed. It was understood I inspected all bags and had final say.

Well, all I can tell you is what works for us. We've been traveling since the boys were small and I pack light. We re-wear things, esp pants/shorts...sometimes even shirts. My kids aren't spillers, so we're able to make double duty of things if necessary. I also wash things in the hotel sink with great sucess, or use the laundry service. I pack for everyone and use a list that I make up prior to the trip to help me organize how many days worth of clothing we needs, what kind of clothing we need etc It really depends on if we're flying, driving, what the weather is at our destination, what activities we'll be participating in etc

I always wear jeans my bulkyier clothes and that way they are not taking up space. I will re-wear things, back smaller activities. Research what type of clothing you will need. Use the smaller baby gear. Like taking my ergo carrier instead of a stroller. Buying things like groceries when you get to your destination.

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Kimberly Proud Mommy to Bethany Rose April 2006

My kids are into everything and easily can go through 2-3 outfits a day (paint, spilled water, splashed mud puddles, food, etc). I packed five shirts and five pairs of shorts for each, plus two pairs of pajamas. I did laundry nearly every day (stayed at a relative's house). I could have done 4 shirts/3 pants for each, but I was hurting with the PJ's. If I hadn't had laundry access, I would have been in big trouble.

I lugged diapers along for the week- probably I could have bought them there, but I didn't want to arrive saying, "hello- can you take me to target?"

I also brought toys for the kids- crayons, books, a couple of dvds, dd's favorite box of ponies.... that also increased the luggage load but seemed worth it, as I had enough to keep them busy and out of mischief in someone else's house.

Also I brought food for dd since she has her food allergies.... it all just seemed like a lot.

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I don't believe in miracles; I depend on them

I try to pack as many outfits as I can that match the same pair of shoes so that I don't have to pack alot of shoes. Also I have a small bag packed with toothbrushes, deoderant, shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, brush, and all of those things. Otherwise the morning of leaving I'm running around making sure I've packed everything after we've used them.

On long trips too I do laundry when I'm gone. I pack less that way but I'm also bad about liking to wear the same things over and over. Lately for weekend trips for my sons baseball tournament I've been packing 1 suitcase for my husband and I and one of our sons. My other son doesn't like to go with us much. He will go with us on our trip to NYC in a few weeks and I'm sure since 4 of us will be gone 10 days I'll have several suitcases.

I would give them a list of what needed to be packed, and have them put that on the bed, then come and have a look to see if you agree or not - mom has final say. I would also double check the night before - when you put the clothes in the car. If you are traveling via plane, I would weight the bag, once it is packed and once again before you leave. Dont let them go over the alloted weight, actally give them a lower number, cause you dont know what you might have to pack in extra in the last minute.

I realized that when we travel we take a lot of the same things so I made a master list of everything I could think of that I might take on a trip with a few blank spots to add items, and then I photo copied it. So now every time we go on a trip I can pull out my photo copy of my list and go through it and circle what items we will need for this trip. I also keep the list and take it with me so when we are packing to come home I can check to make sure we didn't leave anything behind.

Other tips: I pack many things in see thru plastic zip lock bags, including underwear, that way if our suit cases are gone through at the airport at least it's easy to see and get packed back into the suitcase without under wear flying everywhere. Even if we don't fly I still pack stuff in the plastic bags. Keeps it more organized.

Each kid gets a backpack that I put several things into that I know will keep them busy, plus a couple of surprise treats and items, they can each pick a couple things (small) to put in them too. Once all is in the backpack they are put up high until we leave so nothing else can be added/subtracted and they don't find the extra treats.

Another thing I do so that I don't have to pack all in one day is, I place a laundry basket in my room and during the week or so before we leave I throw things I know we will want to take into the laundry basket, that way a lot of it is already gathered and I don't have to do it all at one time.

Bren

We travel frequently. I hate to lug a bunch of stuff around. It wears me out.

We review what we will be doing each day and what we'll need. We then lay out on our bed everything we intend to bring - each outfit for each day / activity. For instance, if we are travelling to attend a wedding, we put out a separate outfit for that occasion. If we will be swimming, we include a bathsuit and other swimming accessories. If we need jewlery, hair accessories, special underthings, etc, we put those out as well.

Seeing everything out on the bed helps. From there we start switching out to lighter weight items or things that will mix-and-match incase something goes wrong. For instance, my pool cover-up also serves as my bathrobe. My poolside flip-flops are also my slippers for when I'm running down the hall for more ice. DO remove items that you decide you can do without.

We keep most of our outfits within the same color scheme to limit the number of shoes we have to carry and to make the outfits flexible. For instance, I might plan to wear a pair of khaki shorts for two days but if I get a spot on them the first day, I can opt to wear my jean shorts instead because both will match the floral orange t-shirt I had for that day.

Don't forget the comfort items - like a pair of sweats or gym shorts and oversized T-shirt for lounging around in. You have to wear something while the other clothes are in the wash.

My husband travels internationally and has been caught extending his trips far longer than he has planned. In a pinch we can all wear our clothing more times than we are used to.

Now pack while keeping in mind that you will want to pick up some souveniors along the way. There is little extra that you have to bring because you can always pick up an extra T-shirt or sweatshirt and that can be your rememberance of a great trip.

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"I've been rich and I've been poor but independently wealthy is where it is at."

I travel all the time so I've got a good system for myself - and I also like laying everything out so I can see all at once. When you're packing for multiple people I think the list idea is probably best, but walking them through the packing process once or twice would be a good idea too. Also, here's a cool little tool that I've found that helps to keep you from over packing: FAMILY BHG.com Health Travel Parenting Education Kids Stress Vacations Learning Marriage Mind Body Connection Better Homes and Gardens
Its a packing guide that helps make you a list from over at BHG's website thats really good.