Travel Bags

As soon as our travel plans were booked, my first thoughts went to what I would make for the trip. Of course. Because when you are traveling alone with 2 small children you really need some extra work to keep you busy in preparation. I immediately started listing items to help pass the time and keep little ones busy and my sanity intact(ish). Of course it wasn't enough to make activities for the girls- I had to make backpacks to carry those activities in. And I had to invent my own pattern.

(I know. I have a disorder.)

I made coordinating backpacks for the girls, which I will describe in more detail in another post. I filled those bags with the following things:

-New books (part of a great Goodwill score)

-Crayon Portfolios

-Story Cubes

-Magnetic Paper Dolls

-New Coloring Books

-MadLibs Junior

-Pipe Cleaners

- File Folder Games

-Paper Quiet book (not shown, because I didn't finish it until 1 am the night before the trip.)

I downloaded the paper dolls from here, and then printed them on magnetic paper. I had some old tins from the Dollar Spot which used to hold candy and were the perfect size for carrying them. I made a set of 2 dolls for each girl.

Here is a list of other printable paper dolls. I really want to make the vintage Betsy McCall ones here another time. They have over a decade's worth to print!

I made them each a crayon portfolio using this pattern from GingerCake.  They were really easy to make, but I made a few changes to the pattern. The bottom half of the portfolio has two pockets: 1 for paper and 1 for stickers. The bottom pocket for stickers is empty because I didn't have any on hand.

Can I tell you how much I love having fabric scraps? It is almost the best part of a fabric stash. I love having many different pieces left over from many different projects available at my disposal. I love choosing coordinating fabrics for each project, and I love collecting small scraps, organized by color, to use in future projects like scrappy quilts. Or doll quilts.

This one is made entirely of scraps from their quilts. I love these fabrics, and these color combinations.

I also made them 3 file folder games, from this book. Once again, blogger refuses to rotate my picture correctly. 

Angst.

I made them a paper quiet book from here, which like I said, is not photographed because I didn't finish it in time.

Pipe cleaners, or chenille wraps as my mom calls them, can offer endless opportunities for quiet creative play. We also brought a dvd player to fall back on.

In addition to these things, I also packed their empty water bottles to fill once we were on the plane, an extra change of clothes for each girl, and some special snacks and treats.

I can't say that the day of travel was easy or enjoyable, but I also can't imagine what we would have done if I hadn't made all these preparations. On the way back I will still be traveling with them alone, so in addition to these things I will also be getting a good night's sleep the night before. I failed to do this on the way out, and it definitely made a difference. Negatively. 

I am keeping everything in their travel bags, saved only for the ride home (and our 2 road trips) to maintain their novelty. 

Wish me luck!