This past week, I woke up at 4am to the news that my mom had passed away.  Within a matter of hours, arrangements for our travel had been made and we were on our way to Tulsa...20 hours away.  I didn't get my usual time to make a list, gather what we needed for a trip, and pack.  After making umpteen phone calls, I had about an hour left to pack before we needed to leave.

I realized then how grateful I was for prior planning I had done.  Every time after we get home from a trip, I unpack our stuff and put it away.  Then, I REPACK our toiletries bag and our bin of travel food.  I started doing this some time ago to make sure that we didn't forget things like allergy medicines that we don't normally use, but always need when traveling because of changes in climate.  It also helped spread the cost of food for our trip out over several months...instead of in the month OF the trip...when we're already strapped for cash.

There are some basics that we all use that can be packed for a future trip:

• Toothpaste
• Toothbrushes (we put new ones in a baggie)
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Soap
• Lotion (coconut oil for us)
• Sunscreen
• Hair stuff (ponytails, headbands, bobby-pins, etc)
• Small brush
• Hair gel
• Razor
• Medicines for the trip (For us, that means allergy meds, 1 month of maintenance meds, and extra nebulizer mask for our son.)
• Socks (For some reason, this flip-flop family nearly always forgot socks...so we pre-pack them.  We barely wear them so we've got extra to keep packed.)

We also keep a bin ready with foods that we use for a trip.  I figure out what we're missing & fill it back up in the month or 2 following a trip.  We keep the following items in there:

• Cereal
• Granola bars
• Fruit leathers
• Dried fruits
• Canned fruits
• A small can opener
• Oatmeal
• Bags for trash
• Travel bowls and silverware (we keep a cheap set for travel)
• Extra blender (smoothies are a regular part of our diet & family members don't have a blender so this is a necessity)
• Shelf-stable milk like rice milk (I was missing this for this trip, we took cold milk instead.)

We have a daughter with food allergies so it's vital that we be prepared food-wise.

I cannot tell you how valuable it was to have our toiletries bag almost completely packed and our food and food supplies already gathered in one place. I pulled them out, added clothes for the trip and we were ready to go.  That was more valuable than you can imagine when trying to plan and pack for a 20 hour trip in an hour...while grieving the loss of my mom.