The boy scout goes on vacation...

While we prepped for vacation, my sister made jokes about my tendency to overpack and over prepare.  She assured me that I really only needed bathing suits and a couple of outfits.  I tried to listen to her, but in the end the boy scout in me won out.  My life tends toward chaos more than order and that is why I always feel the need to be prepared for anything.  In the end I packed less that I would have, but more than she suggested I needed.  It turns out she realized in the first few hours of vacation why I overpack.

I mentioned that Molly decided to order a cranberry juice without vodka on the airplane.  I didn't mention that Molly then spilled said cranberry juice all over herself, her brother and our carry on luggage stowed safely beneath the seats in front of us.  I had to change her out of that berry stained outfit at the airport in Mexico and could no longer count on rotating that outfit in during our stay.

After we arrived at our hotel on the shuttle from the airport, the gracious staff offered us a beverage while we waited to check in.  No sooner had they handed Colin his Shirley Temple did he spill it all over himself and me.  Once again we had to spill something from the red family.  Anyone versed in stain management knows that red does not come out very easily.  Another two outfits that had to be removed from vacation rotation.

Megan then looked at me and said, "I now understand why you pack so much."  The words were barely out of her mouth when Riley decided to shake her grove thing while jumping high into the air.  The shaking and jumping happened to be right under the arm of her mother holding the frozen pink drink Riley had just passed off to complete her jumping grove.  The frozen pink drink flew into the air and landed with a splat on the ground.  Fortunately only shoes were involved, but I think that was the moment Megan realized how hazardous vacationing with the Jensen's can be.  Needless to say, that was only the beginning.  We had plenty of spills all week long.  It turns out we did become friendly with the cleaning staff because wherever we went was a trail of spills.

Spills weren't the only hazards to our wardrobe.  The first morning after the kids finished breakfast, we headed to the beach.  The boys ran in the ebb and flow of the water on the sand.  As their confidence rose, so did their distance from the dry shore.  Zachary was the first to go down!  He was taken down by a wave and sucked into the under tow.  After Megan rescued him, we realized his outfit was completely soaked.  Water dries and he would be fine, but he was also completely covered in sand and salt.  I had only packed one pair of underwear per day for each kid and by 8:30 AM, he had blown that quota! It didn't take long for all of the kids to soak themselves in the serf and this became a daily occurrence both morning and afternoon.  There was no way for the underwear quota to keep up.

I guess, in the end, I learned Megan was right. It is ok to wash clothes in the sink and allow them to dry in the sun.  You can get away with not packing the entire house...just pack some laundry detergent and stain remover!  But I also learned that if you are going to overpack anything...make sure it is extra pairs of underwear!