Packing is on my mind right now. I am starting to think about what I SHOULD and what I SHOULD NOT bring on our trip to AZ. The truth is I don’t like packing, however the up side is it is good practice for my mental strength! J It is a time for me to strengthen my happiness muscle and either find a new outlook on it, or get good at saying positive mantras while I am doing it.
Traveling with kids, especially young ones, well I say especially because that is all I know. Traveling with teenagers is foreign to me. It is a difficult thing to do. I’m fortunate because my husband doesn’t mind packing, so he does the majority of it. I try to do some of the brainstorming ahead of time, and then discuss with him what he thinks is necessary to bring.
I also have another plus on my side. My husband’s parents are EXTREMELY helpful in picking up things we might need to help cut down on the amount we need to bring. Not only do they stock up on cloths and food for the kids, they also have provided the essentials: crib, highchair, car seats. Thank goodness for that or I don’t think we would be able to fit on the plane :-/ They deserve a BIG THANK YOU!!!
In thinking about what to bring for myself I started to ponder what shoes I should pack. Now if you know a woman, and I am sure you probably do, you’ll know packing shoes is a challenge. Not only do we want our shoes to match our cloths, we need different shoes for a variety of activities.
A common complaint I hear from my husband is “Why do you need to bring 85 pairs of shoes? I am packing 1 pair, and wearing the other. That is all you need!” Sound familiar? You are either a man and have said the exact same thing, or you have watched a woman pack.
Here is my condensed shoe packing list, and this is VERY condensed for me.
· 1 pair of sneakers - these will be my all-purpose shoes, and probably the ones I will wear on the plane. Usually I would bring my golf shoes as well. Oh how I love my golf shoes! You will be missed. But as my husband said I will live if I just wear my sneakers golfing, and like usual, he is right.
· 1 pair of dress shoes – cut down from 1 black and 1 brown (ladies you understand!), not to mention any colors.
· 1 pair of sandals – I’m hoping this one holds up! I don’t know if I can do it. Usually I would like to bring 1 black, 1 brown, and my crocs to wear by the pool because they are great to get wet. Is it bad if I am already seriously re-thinking this one? Stay tuned, my will power is feeling weak!
3 pairs, that’s it! OK, so I am going to call it a GOAL, but even if I miss by one, it will still be good for me.
It’s all about baby steps...
Did I forget to mention my husband and I have already been thinking about bargain hunting for a pair of everyday shoes while we are down there to replace the ones we have run into the ground? I LOVE Vancouver, but not for good shoe prices. The mark-up coming across the border can be wild.
For some reason it is easier to spend $ to buy a pair of dress shoes for a special event that you probably won’t wear very often, instead of shoes for everyday even though half the leather is worn off the toes. Anybody else have that problem?
Help! What are your shoe packing strategies?
A special thank you my friend Tina from Carrots-N-Cake whose documentation of packing improvement over the last 2 years has helped to motivate me!
Traveling with kids, especially young ones, well I say especially because that is all I know. Traveling with teenagers is foreign to me. It is a difficult thing to do. I’m fortunate because my husband doesn’t mind packing, so he does the majority of it. I try to do some of the brainstorming ahead of time, and then discuss with him what he thinks is necessary to bring.
I also have another plus on my side. My husband’s parents are EXTREMELY helpful in picking up things we might need to help cut down on the amount we need to bring. Not only do they stock up on cloths and food for the kids, they also have provided the essentials: crib, highchair, car seats. Thank goodness for that or I don’t think we would be able to fit on the plane :-/ They deserve a BIG THANK YOU!!!
In thinking about what to bring for myself I started to ponder what shoes I should pack. Now if you know a woman, and I am sure you probably do, you’ll know packing shoes is a challenge. Not only do we want our shoes to match our cloths, we need different shoes for a variety of activities.
A common complaint I hear from my husband is “Why do you need to bring 85 pairs of shoes? I am packing 1 pair, and wearing the other. That is all you need!” Sound familiar? You are either a man and have said the exact same thing, or you have watched a woman pack.
Here is my condensed shoe packing list, and this is VERY condensed for me.
· 1 pair of sneakers - these will be my all-purpose shoes, and probably the ones I will wear on the plane. Usually I would bring my golf shoes as well. Oh how I love my golf shoes! You will be missed. But as my husband said I will live if I just wear my sneakers golfing, and like usual, he is right.
· 1 pair of dress shoes – cut down from 1 black and 1 brown (ladies you understand!), not to mention any colors.
· 1 pair of sandals – I’m hoping this one holds up! I don’t know if I can do it. Usually I would like to bring 1 black, 1 brown, and my crocs to wear by the pool because they are great to get wet. Is it bad if I am already seriously re-thinking this one? Stay tuned, my will power is feeling weak!
3 pairs, that’s it! OK, so I am going to call it a GOAL, but even if I miss by one, it will still be good for me.
It’s all about baby steps...
Did I forget to mention my husband and I have already been thinking about bargain hunting for a pair of everyday shoes while we are down there to replace the ones we have run into the ground? I LOVE Vancouver, but not for good shoe prices. The mark-up coming across the border can be wild.
For some reason it is easier to spend $ to buy a pair of dress shoes for a special event that you probably won’t wear very often, instead of shoes for everyday even though half the leather is worn off the toes. Anybody else have that problem?
Help! What are your shoe packing strategies?
A special thank you my friend Tina from Carrots-N-Cake whose documentation of packing improvement over the last 2 years has helped to motivate me!
