Prepare for a Trip

I got back from Seattle a few days ago and am still kind of digging out. The time zone adjustment seemed like it’s be easy the first day back, but we were just exhausted from the trip home. It was a bit rougher this morning… I will share about my trip soon, but for now some tips for preparing for going away in case you need them.

How to prepare for a trip K-couple style:

1. Make plans in advance to have your pets cared for. (a big, huge thanks to our friends who are fed, watered, scooped and pet for us).
2. Make plans for the house. Our friends are also taking care of bringing in the mail for us.. otherwise there isn’t much that needs done.

   

3. Clean the house. I know that some people don’t get why it matters to clean the house before you go away, but a clean house makes returning from vacation a bit more pleasant. No dirty dishes, no overflowing hampers, swept floors… it’s nice.
4. Pack. Our bags flew for free (whoo hoo!) so packing was not a stress. We’ve gone on week-long cruises sharing one roller bag before so having our own suitcases was a treat! Even though we each had a bag, we split up our clothing so some of Brad’s was in my bag and some of mine was in his, so that if one bag gets lost in transit we at least had a change of clothes. (Packing is easier if you make a list too.)
5. Eat all of the food in the fridge. The last thing you want to do when you return home from a trip is have expired food sitting around. We plan out meals to use anything that will be bad by the time we get back. Before our trip out o Seattle, I accidentally bought milk that we didn’t need so I gave the new half-gallon to our kitty caretakers.

When I started writing this list, I thought it would be longer… but honestly the hardest part of preparing for a trip is figuring out where you’re going, how you’re getting there and wrapping things up at work before vacation (that proved to require more effort than I originally thought it would).

How do you prepare for a trip?