Packing for Many

I feel like I should preface this post with this simple fact: I love packing. Love it. I love making lists. I love doing trial runs. I love organizing things into packing cubes. I love my Vera Bradley luggage. I love thinking about what I will wear when, and on our upcoming trip, my girls and I are planning on subtly theming our outfits and our manicures to coincide with our destination of (more on that later). I hope that this doesn't make me look or sound like a crazy person, but if it does...so be it. I should also mention that I am not always this orderly (read: neurotic) - I seem to be equal parts organzied and relaxed, prepared and fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants...ok, maybe not equal parts, but you get the idea! Traveling with a party of 9, however, is another matter: it requires a bit of preparation to make things run smoothly, and over the years we have picked up some habits that help keep things running smoothly.

• Don't bring too much. I know, I'm stating the obvious here. However, I have been guilty of overpacking and have come to the realization that unless you need something specific (medical equipment, for example) don't bring it, OR bring the smallest version of it that you can. Do I bring the entire first aid kit? No, but my purse always has band-aids and hand sanitizer in it, because, hey, I'm a mom - but I don't bring everything under the sun. I might add to it some moleskin, but this is flat and easily packed. Also, our kids are limited to a small duffel for most of their belongings - these are easily stackable in the back of the van, and slide under the seats easily if necessary. There have been times where they have brought backpacks with them for the road as well, with toys and and other necessities to keep them occupied during our long drive or flight, and then they doubled as day bags at our destination when necessary.
• Division of labor. It used to be that I packed for everyone in our family. Several years ago, I think that I forgot to pack my husband's belt, and that was the end of my packing for him. It was an oversight, I swear. Now, I only have eight people to think about getting packed. It works well, though, because I love doing all the prep work a couple of days before, then the night before, my hubby likes to put the gear in the cargo hold of our van in a very orderly way (as opposed to me, weary from all of my list making and packing to be organized when loading the van, TOO!). He has often said that all those years of playing Tetris really come into play here, so, Dads: you may want to break out the Gameboy before that next family trip. Ditto for the return trip. He unloads, and the kids and I usually do the bulk of the unpacking when he returns to work to get some rest; to pay for the vacation we just took; to start saving for the next vacation; hmm...perhaps I'll just leave it at "when he returns to work"!
• Give kids a list. When everyone in my house was little, as I mentioned before, I used to do all of their packing for them. Now that our kids are a bit older and more responsible, I'll usually pair them up with a packing buddy. I'll pack for the youngest and myself, and I'll give a list to an older child and ask them to buddy up with a younger sibling to be sure that nothing is missed. This has worked well for us as they usually enjoy it - who doesn't relish the excitement of an upcoming trip? When you get to begin packing for it, then it must be getting near and the anticipation only increases! I also think that there are a lot of little life lessons hidden in this task: helping someone less capable than yourself, learning responsibility, thinking ahead, discovering how to be organize
• Ziplock bags are your best friend. When we went to Italy, our kids were all quite young, and we were traveling to several different locations for a total of 17 days. In order to keep 5 little people's (and two not-so-little-people's) items separated and organized in our shared luggage, we packed an outfit per day, per child in a gallon sized bag and wrote their name on it with a Sharpie. Later I would quip that I couldn't figure out where all our socks had gone, knowing that we at one time had over one hundred pairs, yet the children were lamenting their absence of socks! That worked brilliantly for us on that trip, and while I don't go to that extreme now when packing, I do like to bring Ziploc bags for other reasons - they are handy for transporting wet bathing suits, extra toiletries, or to toss into your day bag to toss your cell phone or park maps into in the event of rain. During some seasons, a quick shower is inevitable, but manageable. I'm sure that you can think of countless other good uses for them that I haven't listed here. 
• Consider your destination. I used to suffer from chronic overpacker syndrome. Hard to believe, I know, but it's true. I probably still pack a little more than I need, but I try to keep it to oft used, well thought out items. I am Mom, after all, and when someone has a headache, cut, or tummy ache, I am the go-to gal, so I do like to be able to cover these basic needs, among a few others. When we traveled overseas, I felt the need to be much more prepared than I do on my typical U.S. road trip. I could make a list here of everything that I typically bring on a road trip, but I won't, as your must-have's are likely to vary somewhat from mine. The bottom line is, pack what you think you will reasonably need over the course of your time away from home, items that best suit your family's particular but also bear in mind that when you are visting Disney, you aren't traveling to a third world country - if you haven't packed a common item, it will likely be accessible somewhere on property. Likewise, if you drive versus fly, you can always visit your local Target or Wal-mart for the necessary item. It is also possible that you will also find that you can get along without it.

I hope that you have found some useful information here, especially if you feel overwhelmed by the idea of traveling with the whole family. I am here to tell you that it can be done, that it is managable, and that it can add to the fun of the trip itself!