If you have been reading my blog, you know that I am a Disney obsessed, odd thought processed, dress my kids at WDW alike, type A nerd. I have a box where I keep all my Disney travel stuff together for the next trip. I also keep one in my closet to toss in the newly purchased supplies for months before our next vacation.

Here is a list of the odd things (and not so odd) you will find in my suitcase:

Laundry detergent, dryer sheets, mesh bag – for doing laundry halfway through my vacation – who has enough clothing to sweat and change 2 times a day?

Rolls of Quarters and Pennies – my kids love the penny press machines all over the parks and hotels. We have a collection book we are trying to fill. Having them separate is much easier than rooting through my wallet looking for the right change. I also need the quarters to do my laundry!

A Giant Black Sharpie (Super Sharpie) – This is my favorite pen for autographs! All characters can easily hold this compared to normal sized pens.

Glow Bracelets – I buy glow bracelets, necklaces, wands at the dollar store and store them away for our trip. At night, when they roll out the cart of expensive glow supplies, my kids are happy with what I brought!

Drinking supplies – I bring aluminum water bottles, kids water bottles & straw cups. I fill up the water bottles in the park with fountain water, add a single serve lemonade and fill up the kids cups. When it gets warm, it gets dumped out and I start all over again. It saves our snack credits for churros & Dole Whip!

Dishwashing detergent – I pack a small travel bottle of Dawn to wash my cups and water bottles in the evening. I found a squeeze bottle in the travel section and I just fill that up for each trip.

Cooling fans – Yes, it was so hot last June that we bought the kids the $15 cooling fans that Disney keeps on ice and tempts you with. But now that I have them, I bring them with us on any trip in the heat. I wish I would have packed them in December because it was in the high 80’s on Christmas Day!

Snacks & Juice boxes – I pack more snacks than we can eat but I also include breakfast items and juice boxes for everyone to have on the way to the park. Each kids (and mom/dad) get a baggie they fill up the night before with the snacks. They can pack what they want, but that is all there is for them to snack on the next day. No complaining that someone else ate all the goldfish!

A Small Nightlight – My kids can’t sleep in total darkness and I can’t sleep with the bathroom light on all night. Our compromise is to bring a small nightlight.

A Plug Strip – I bring a plug strip because at the end of the day, we have 2 phones, a video camera and other various electronics that need charging overnight. There are never enough outlets at the right time. Don’t forget your chargers too.!

Small First Aid Kit – I bring a small first aid kit with band aids, spray on antiseptic, gauze. I also pack pain/fever reducer (adult & children), anti diarrhea meds, Tums, etc.

Ziploc Bags (all sizes) – I can’t stress enough how handy a bag of different sized ziplocs comes in handy. I use them to keep things separated in the suitcase, split up snacks (like popcorn) in the parks, wet clothes, leftover carrots from kids meals. The list goes on and on…

The obvious that don’t need explanation:

• extra pair of comfortable shoes for everyone
• batteries, chargers, memory cards for cameras
• baby powder and aquaphor (everyone can get chaffed from walking)
• chargers for phones and other electronics