Last week, we had to be down in Lansing for Israel’s ordination review.  So, our whole family took the long drive downstate.  This time was different, though, because it was our first trip down with all 5 of us.  We decided not to take Leon (our conversion van) since he doesn’t have snow tires and his safety ratings aren’t the greatest.  So, Israel installed our car top carrier on the Freestyle and we loaded it up.  I started packing several days before our trip to make sure we wouldn’t forget anything. 

It’s amazing how my packing mentality has changed throughout the years.  When I was single, it was all about trying to bring as much as possible.  I wanted enough options with my outfits, although I was usually limited to how much trunk space would need to shared.  Once I got married, it was even better.  I had half of the car to pack my stuff.  Israel and I would just throw our stuff everywhere and anywhere in the car. When Imanuel came into the picture, three-quarters of our car was dedicated to baby stuff and we downsized our belongings.  I packed Imanuel’s stuff with the worst-case scenario in mind.  I would bring a minimum one outfit per day (-but typically a few extra outfits “in case we get stranded”) and enough diapers to last an extra few days.  (I hadn’t yet realized that our destinations did have stores that sold diapers and the like.)  I would pack items such as the baby bathtub, a big bag of baby first aid supplies, baby laundry detergent, etc.  The addition of Micah forced us to cut down so I began to eliminate obvious items that I could do without or never ended up using.  This included my number of outfits & shoes, amount of toiletries, the baby bathtub, the stroller if it was winter, and also the excess of diapers.  I would only bring the number of diapers I would need for the trip and maybe a few extra.  I also began to pack just one outfit per day.  I limited their belongings to one bag each.  This would include their diapers too.  Then, they would share a backpack with their books and toys.  We made a big cut-back when we only needed to bring one pack ‘n’ play since Manu graduated to sleeping on the floor.  Our compact double stroller was also a great investment when Micah was old enough to sit in it.  But even still, our family of four could easily fill the entire car top carrier and any extra space in the car.

So this last trip, I officially became a self-proclaimed packing genius.  My favorite word has become “consolidate”.  Here is the general breakdown:

– Total of 4 travel bags:  1 for Manu & Micah, 1 small bag for Ty, 1 for me, 1 for Israel
   My bag included the following:
     – 1 toiletry bag for me & the boys
     – 1 small bag with emergency medicine/supplies for infants, toddlers & adults
– Israel’s backpack:  all electronics, computers, worship books, kids’ books, toys, & DVDs
– My hand bag:  doubled as a baby bag
– Ty’s stroller & travel bassinet
– Blankets for the car
– 3 water bottles & a bag of snacks for the road
…and that’s about it!

I’ve become so obsessive with packing efficiently that when we stop at gas stations to fill up, I get this refreshing feeling as I throw away all the wrappers/trash from the snacks & diapers.  I feel like our car gets lighter and less cluttered as we go.  And on the way back up, I try as much as possible to keep the same number of bags.  We turn one of the travel bags into our family laundry bag and we distribute the rest of our clothes into the other 3.  If we plan on stopping by a hotel, we’ll turn our smallest travel bag into an overnight bag for the whole family.  To answer your question, yes, Israel thinks I’m crazy.

I’ll never forget the night when were moving to the U.P. from downstate.  The moving truck had gone before us with most of our stuff.  In our car, we had 6 month old Imanuel, 1 year old (crazy) Bentley & his dog cage, Aroe & Chance and a litter box, along with a few travel bags.  We stopped by a hotel on the way up.  Israel ran in to see if they allowed pets.  They said yes.  First, Israel brought in Imanuel who was in his car seat and I had Bentley on a leash.  The lady at the front desk smiled at us.  Then, Israel ran back out and came back in with the two cats in his arms.  The lady gave him a crazy look.  Finally, he brought our bags and the litter box.  We all slept in one hotel room that night. 

I’m just imagining how hilarious that would be if we had to fit all five of us, plus Bentley and the cats in our car.  Then, how crazy it would be if we had to stop and get a hotel!  Anyway, I’m going off on a tangent…

We are now safely back and almost unpacked.  It was a super-fun trip and we’re so glad we were able to spend some time with family and friends.  Wish we would have taken more pictures!  But it was so nice having everyone meet Ty.  It was also really awesome that we got to see Ian again…and I was finally able to hold him!  He’s so adorable!  Well, I’ll end this with a video clip that I took on our trip.  Manu and Micah’s car seats are in the way back of the car and Ty is the only one in the second row.  I caught the boys in the back in one of rare moments when they weren’t napping, bickering, or telling on each other.    (It’s sideways and I don’t know how to rotate it!)

Until next time!