It does not matter how many times a year you travel or for how long you are gone. These may be helpful for your 2-week vacation or your weekend away. If you’re anything like me, I live for convenience. I find it much more settling to come home to a few things clean and in order. Here are a few of the things I do before leaving on each trip.
Clean the house – There is nothing like coming home to the house clean. Bonus: set-up your cleaning lady to clean while you are away. Or, just have the house picked up, the dishwater empty, and take out the garbage. It is so calming to come home to a clean house.
Stop your mail – Visit the USPS website. It is very easy to stop your mail. Then, you do not have to worry about anyone getting it for you or the mailbox being full. You can set it up to all be delivered the day you return home.
Have the laundry done – You are already going to come home with a suitcase full of laundry. So, have everything else done – it’s one less thing to worry about!
Clean out the fridge – No one wants to come home to a smelly fridge with bad food. Clean out your fridge before you leave.
Water plants – The day before you, leave water your plants. If you are gone a week they should be good. If not, you might need a neighbor to come by.
Set up your InstaCart order – This is my all-time favorite time and has been a GAME CHANGER in my life. After being in Hawaii for six weeks this last winter, we got home at 2pm and we had food delivered at 4pm. I didn’t have to stress or go out of the house to get groceries. If InstaCart isn’t an option in your area, check for a pick-up delivery for a grocery store on your way home from the airport. Keep in mind – you only need the necessities the first few days you are back from your trip. Along these same lines, plan for simple meals the first few days you are back, too.
Put a protein bar and water in your car for your drive home. No one wants to be hungry, and by the time you get to the car, you are thirsty and hungry after a return flight. All you want to do is get home and not stop for anything. Having this in the car is so convenient. If you live in Minnesota like me, your car will be parked outside your water will be frozen, just remember to fill your water bottle on the way out of the airport.
Put gas in the car. I am about an hour’s drive to the airport and many times I have an early morning flight. As I mentioned earlier, when I am on the way home I do not want to stop anywhere. Make sure the day before your flight the car is on Full and you are ready to go.
Pack for vacation. I know this is obvious, but it’s an important thing I do for each trip. I always follow a packing list and use packing cubes. Pack the suitcase first, then the carry-on.
I know this list might seem a little long. Most of the time, we all come home tired from our fun vacation and a long travel day. These steps set you up to return just a little more at ease and ready to jump back into your daily routine. I would love to hear some of the things you like to do before leaving on vacation – please share them with me!
Coming soon – tips on what I do when I return home from a trip. I will be sharing a shorter list of the things I do to set myself up a bit more on the front-end of my trip so the return is more enjoyable.