Can't we just transport her room?

We're about to embark on a journey, and we'll be adding a new first to Brooklyn's list. We will be flying the friendly skies heading down south to Arkansas for a week and we're very excited. We got all the plans in place for who will take us to the airport, who will watch our house and who will puppysit our beagle. I talked to our friends last night who we will be visiting and we have a couple tentative plans in place as to what our days will look like. Sounds like everything is all in place, right? WRONG!

We still have to finish our packing. Let me just say that I make a list of what to bring and then check them off as I packed them. A little obsessive some might say, but it has worked and I never left anything essential behind. When we went to Hawaii last year, we had everything we needed, even an extra set of clothes if our bags got lost - which mine did. Packing for Kevin and I is a cinch. But, let me just say that packing for Brooklyn has added a new challenge for me. How do you pack all her toys, her books, her CDs, her clothes & shoes, blankets, stuffed animals and exersaucer? Simple answer: You can't.

You have to make choices and decisions. And, since she's not old enough to say "Mommy, can I bring Glow Pooh Bear?" I have to make that choice for her, so I have been watching the past few weeks the toys that make her the happiest. But, in the back of my mind, I keep asking myself "Will this toy fit on the airplane or in the suitcase okay without taking up too much room?" Sad? Yes. Her books I have covered: get her favorite ones (ones that we read to her nightly) along with a selection of others. Her clothes: this little girl has so many clothes (thanks Grammy!) so it was pretty easy to figure out what to bring. If an outsider was watching though as I did this, they might have laughed. I put her to bed and then snuck in there with a flashlight in hand to select those favorite outfits and loaded Kevin's arms up with them. We brought the selected into our room and took them off the hanger. There were a few extra shirts (5 or 6) that we had to make decisions on. I held two out at a time and had Kevin pick his favorite, sometimes I wouldn't agree and we would go with my choice!

As I was talking to my friend last night, she reminded me that she has toys, books, high chair, crib, extra girl clothes, and a washer and a dryer - after all she does have two kids! So, if all else fails, we'll have back-up. But, just for my sake, I'm starting to make that list. Let's just hope I don't forget my curling iron in the freezer like I did on our honeymoon!