You don’t realize just how easy traveling is when you are single until you have your first baby. Something to note: now that I am married and have a baby, my definition of ‘single’ has nothing to do with my love life status. For me, ‘single’ now defines any being who is not responsible for a smaller being. When I was single, I could stuff a few necessities into my backpack and leave the house on a moment’s notice to just about any destination. Now enters Arlo – and traveling isn’t nearly as carefree as it used to be. But it’s also not nearly as burdensome as some people make it out to be. If you plan ahead [and enjoy the occasional glass of wine] you will find yourself pleasantly surprised at what you can accomplish with your traveling tot.
Having lived out of a backpack on more than one occasion, I had already picked up a trick or two on how to maximize my luggage space.
I love packing cubes. They make my life so much easier when traveling with Arlo. Do you know just how tiny baby socks are? And how hard they are to find when they are floating in a sea of other tiny baby clothes?? Well, let me save you the headache [and loads of time otherwise spent searching] and recommend that you convert to organizing your suitcase with these packing cubes. They keep everything splendidly in order AND they save you a ton of space. Need to see it to believe it? Check it out.
YES. All of those clothes in the first picture were strategically rolled, tucked, and folded into only those four packing cubes. To give you a numerical value… [For mom] 2 sweaters, 4 pairs of pants, 7 shirts, 3 tank tops, 2 bras, 2 sports bras, 2 maxi sundresses, and a pile of underwear. [For Arlo] 12 onesies, 2 sleep sacks, 5 pairs of pants, 3 swaddle blankets, and an extra crib sheet. These cubes are legit. Also something to note, I hadn’t even used the expandable feature on these cubes. Which means that if I did, I could have packed even more clothing in them.
2. Sea to Summit eVent Compression Sack
Another nifty little bag is this compression sack. Which I have utilized as my dirty laundry bag. Why? Well, it’s waterproof. Which might seem silly wanting to keep my dirty clothes safe, but quite the contrary. I am most worried about keeping any poop explosion or pee soaked clothes from contaminating things outside of the sack – i.e. the clean victims awaiting the wrath of Arlo or that one clean shirt of mine that I have successfully kept poop free. The sack also compresses. This equates to saving more space – rejoice!
Now, for my suitcase of choice…
3. The Traveler’s Club 32in. Compactable Rolling Duffel with Side Pockets
Super basic. And super handy. Days before our trip to Denver, I had a coupon to Bed Bath and Beyond [20% off, they hand those out like candy] so I decided to see if I could find some luggage there. I stumbled upon this duffel bag and what really sold me was that it was compactible. Do you see a theme here? Compatibility is the key to traveling bliss 😉 The material is very thick and durable and I thought for $20, why not give it a shot? So far, it has been great! After a 2 week road trip to southern California and a trip to Denver, there is no sign of any wear and tear. And literally everything fits into this duffel bag. All of our clothes for the trip, Arlo’s diapers, play mat, toys, breast pump, and everyone’s toiletries all fit into this one bag. It was so convenient! Sounds heavy right? Good thing this bag has wheels – another perk!
If you have any questions, feel free to comment down below!
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