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Today’s prompt can go a number of different ways — what crossed your mind first? The philosophical or the practical?
I’m mainly curious today about practical things that have “saved you” after reading an interesting comment from a Magpie on my “Beginning to Think about Disney” post. Kelly wrote: “And whatever they wear, I always take a picture of my kids before we go somewhere crowded in case we get separated.” (!!) This had never crossed my mind before, although I probably accidentally accomplish this anyway, as I take tons of pictures every day. But it made me think about the things you do “just in case” that end up saving the day. I know you Magpies will have great suggestions along these lines. What would you add?
A handful of things that we do:
01. Travel with photocopies of our passports, etc, and also scan them and save them in 1Password.
02. More generally, use 1Password — after the initial panic that you might lose the master password, it saves so much time and makes your online “stuff” much safer. I also love that you can share passwords with your spouse and access the passwords from anywhere.
03. Pack a light change of clothes in our carry-ons for longer trips.
04. Bring a full water bottle with me any time I get into the car. I’ve been doing this ever since I read about a terrible accident on 495 in which people were stranded in their cars for hours and hours. There have also been too many drives home in which someone is “dying of thirst!”
05. Related to the above: use the restroom before leaving home.
06. Take a lot of pictures. Of everything. Box arrives in the mail tattered or torn open? Take pictures before opening! Minor scratch appears on the car door? Take picture! (I also photograph things like license plates, receipts that might need to be called up, shipping labels, etc.)
07. Update new addresses in iPhone as soon as I receive notice! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve received a “we’re moving!” card and then neglect to update it in my phone and have a Christmas card returned. Or, worse, I show up at the wrong address — this happened two years ago while I was traveling out of state and I vowed to be better about this!
08. Keep children’s medicine cabinet fully stocked. I always have a back-up bottle of Tylenol, Benadryl, etc, and the minute I tap into the back-up, I re-order another bottle on the spot. The same goes for tissues, toilet paper, paper towels, and wipes. (You’d think we’d be beyond our “wipes” years but we still find them handy for sticky fingers, travel/outings, etc, and ordering a new box as soon as the back up is done is the easiest way to stay on top of inventory.)
09. Keep emesis bags in the car. These pack up compactly/flat but the ring keeps the bag open and makes it easier for little kids to actually throw up in the bag. Gross but so helpful and has saved our car (and my brother’s car, relatively recently) on several occasions. Emory used to be prone to carsickness, so I would also keep big trashbags (for stowing soiled clothes) as well as a change of clothes and a towel just in case any time we were on the road.
10. Having a few important phone numbers committed to memory. You never know when you’ll lose your phone / be without service / run out of battery and need to call for help!
11. Have my children verbally rehearse their address and plan for what to do if there is a fire inside our house. Thankfully these haven’t been needed but I feel at peace knowing they know what to do if the horrible happens.
12. Label children’s clothes. I recently discovered I must also label their shoes when my daughter came home from a field trip with the wrong shoes on, and we couldn’t figure out who had swapped with her. (The shoes she wore home did not fit her — we had to buy a new pair immediately!)
What else would you add to this list?
Post-Scripts.
+An extension of this list: gifts for our future selves.
+A Magpie desiderata. (More philosophical rules of life.)
+What are your non-negotiables?
+Come, share your grooming routines with the group. (Loved the comments on this post.)
Shopping Break.
+Pretty eyelet shirtdress ($156!)
+Love the fit/style of these jeans. I was delighted to find that these also come in a petite inseam but are selling fast!
+Sam Edelman has some fun new sneakers in great spring colors — love these, and these reminded me of my VB Valentinas.
+Some fun Quince new arrivals: a Hill-House inspired “nap dress”; leather wrap sandals that remind me of my pair from Margaux; a sleek one-piece swimsuit.
+Fun gingham midi from Zara.
+New Varley arrivals! I love how they are redrawing the lines between athleisure and everyday womenswear. Love this sleek set and this sweatshirt-material cardigan.
+Just stocked up on some activities for upcoming road trips / travel / rainy days / sick days (I like to do this in batches so I always have something at the ready): road trip table topics (my daughter LOVES these; we have several sets); a book of drawing prompts; a neon hidden pictures book; Usborne activity books of different varieties (doodling, secret codes, stickers); fresh sketch pads and sets of markers; and “Weird but True” Disney facts. (The Disney mania is in full force in our home; my kids are absolutely obsessed with these guide books to Disney World for kids — a Magpie reader rec!)
+While we’re talking kids activities — mine keep coming back to / rediscovering this magnetic story maker set. They mainly use it to string together silly stories but I like the way it’s teaching in its own way the parts of speech and art of sentence and story construction.
+Love this chic vest top from Posse — perfect for pairing with the matching skirt or ecru jeans.
+A very chic suede sandal. I love brown suede — you can wear it any time of year! Transition to fall, transition to spring, even in summer!
+G Label just dropped a new collection and I’m swooning over this perfect shirtdress. They do elevated basics so well.
+The sweetest Mary Janes for a little lady for Easter, First Communion, etc! Emory decided these were too “frilly” for her taste but had to share. I thought these sneakers (also J. Crew Factory) were also adorable.
+J. Crew has some cute athletic wear for little ladies — love these shorts, this ribbed tank, these ribbed shorts.