A few weeks back, my husband and I each took a kid away for the weekend. He took our 3-year-old son to see grandparents in another state, and I took our 1-year-old daughter on a girls’ trip.
I was in charge of packing mini suitcases and backpacks for both kids, for some reason.*
*The reason is that I’m the mom and therefore only I know the ins and outs of both kids’ clothing and preferences and the whereabouts of all their things. Moms are the ones expected to hold everything in their head, which isn’t really fair. I think plenty of dads also hold a lot of these things in their head, but pretend not to when it comes time for things like packing. And honestly I’m not putting dad in charge to make a point anytime soon. Ever sat on a plane without your toddler’s favorite blanket?
As I was packing, I started giggling to myself about the sheer ridiculousness of toddlers. Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we cry.
My packing list for two toddlers:
Flower blanket (pink NOT multicolored)
Bottles for 1 year old, and, embarrassingly, bottles for 3 year old
Blue and silver Superman t shirts
Red Superman t shirt (in case of emergency)
Cape (Superman not Batman)
Baby’s baby
Baby’s baby bottle
Elsa/Anna blanket
iPad (loaded with Spider-Man The Animated Series, NOT Spidey & Friends)
Big brown bear (maybe small brown bear too? Ask son) (Actually don’t ask, just bring the small brown bear, too)
Clif bars (chocolate chip NOT peanut butter) (adult Clif bars NOT child) (but the adults better not take even one bite of them)
Truck pillow and car pillow
Mom’s pillow (not for mom)
White cheddar popcorn for 3 year old, white cheddar popcorn ground into tiny bits using a mortar and pestle for 1 year old (sigh)
Extra outfits for plane, both kids (so as not to repeat this plane ride from hell)
…And you better now forget any of it
Oh, and anything the parents may need, I guess. If there’s room in the suitcases.