I don’t know about you, but once I have a trip booked, I cannot wait to start packing. I’m like a kid going to Disney. Like the action of packing will make the trip happen that much quicker!

On any trip longer than a weekend, I tend to “stage” my items before I pack; normally several weeks in advance. (I sensed you rolling your eyes!) I start coordinating outfits, shoes and accessories, and all the miscellaneous items needed for said trip. Make a list of items I don’t have, must buy, really can’t live without, and so on. Nothing I hate more than packing for a trip and realize last minute that I forgot something important and have to run to buy it or worse, I don’t have time to order it online and now I’ll have to go without. The horror!!! Ok, just being a bit over dramatic here.

I’ve been reading a lot about the packing cubes, so I decided to purchase some and give it a try. My feelings so far, not bad. I used 3 of the medium size ones and one small for an upcoming week-long trip. I opted for having each cube hold a particular item; one for T Shirts, another for swimwear, etc. Everything fit nicely in my 22″ suitcase. Note that I was only able to add 2 pairs of shoes along with the clothes. I can see advantages: everything is nicely separated. Hoping for less wrinkles. Should TSA open the bag, I hope they don’t pull everything from the individual cubes.

Initially I had purchased the cubes to use on our travel-trailer adventures. Since clothes tend to shift while in transit, I thought this would be a great solution; have everything in place inside the trailer closet. Plus it will be easier to look for things. At the end of some of our longer camping trips, our tiny closet is a mess. Can’t wait to try it out. The smaller the space, the better organize you need to be.

So, here we are about a month or less from our next adventure and yes, I’m pretty much done packing. Just need to add the last minute toiletries to the suitcase, get some cash and we are set to go and have ourselves a wonderful time.

Are you a last minute packer? Or do you prefer to plan things out? Drop a line, share your thoughts.