Keep Your Summer Beach/Pool Bags Organized with a Checklist

Summer is filled with fun outings and adventures. When you head to the beach, the zoo or some other full day outing, you need to pack up a bag with essentials for the day. When we're busy having fun, enjoying the summer and going from one adventure to another, the time isn't always taken to fully empty the bag. Of course wet towels and sand in bags will hopefully motivate you to empty a bag promptly, but sometimes the bag lands at home and sits there until you pack up again. If random items are sitting in the bag, you can lose track of things and that can lead to time wasted searching. So as a rule of thumb, it's always a good idea to empty the bag fully from one trip to the next--even if your going back again soon. That may sound like a pain, but if you keep items handy and easy to get to, it also ensures that each time you go on an adventure, you have all the items needed and you're also not dragging along extras from last week's trip! You may want to keep a check list handy for different outings. This way you can pack up quickly while making sure you have everything you need. Here is the checklist my daughter uses when she heads off to the pool. We laminated the list so she can always keep it in the bag, and she uses a dry erase marker to check off the items. It's a great way help make sure she has everything she needs with her before heading out. Now the bigger problem is getting her to empty the bag afterwards! It's good  to get in the habit of emptying your bag and making sure it is organized and ready for the next fun summer adventure!