The mission: To fit 2 weeks of what you need for a Hawaiian vacation into my 13 L sized Osprey Daylight pack (in space stars design, because it’s the coolest design I’ve ever seen for this pack).

First off: clothing. We will have access to a washing machine in Oahu and Hawaii islands in the Airbnb’s but not in Maui. We will only be there for about 3 days anyways, so no biggie. Besides, we have the magic of packing cubes!

Clothing: 1 dress, 2 shorts, 3 tank tops, 1 pair of leggings (for sleeping in), bikini top and bottom, 1 Under Armour bra, 4 pairs of socks, 5 underwear (I’m paranoid about running out of underwear for some reason, I can’t be the only one), my Teva Elzada sandals (which are comfy right out the box, no breaking in needed!) and my hat. To wear on the plane ride (and to save packing room), I’ll be wearing my hiking pants and a quick dry shirt, bra, wool socks, sneakers, my flannel button up shirt, and my lovely brand new Arc’teryx Atom LT jacket, which I found at the REI Garage Sale this past weekend for a great reduced price of $180 and in an extra small which is SO hard to find. Why a jacket going to Hawaii?! Because certain excursions will be at the top of mountains/volcanoes and I heard it gets down to 20 degrees. Nope. Plus I can make this my forever jacket for everything in the winters, and it stuffs nicely into a pack for future uses.

Other things I’m bringing: foldable New Outlander day pack (for bringing for our day walks and hikes), a medium-size travel wallet, platypus water bladder (2L), travel towel, sunglasses, mini tripod for my phone, camping light, travel blanket/mat (it folds up to like 3 inches long), book of matches, inflatable travel pillow, headlamp, bandana, first aid kit, and the good ol’ TSA approved clear bag with approved items.

So what items did I put in that TSA bag? Travel razor with razors (I like the Gillette travel mini one!), foldable travel hair brush, toothpaste and toothbrush, makeup (cause I need at least a mascara and concealer for some decent pictures, it is Hawaii after all), bottle of hair conditioner, Wilderness Wash to wash clothes anywhere, Jungle Juice bug spray, travel size deodorant, and travel face wipes.

Now the New Outlander will come with me in my seat. So that bag will carry the wallet, snacks in a stuff sack, notebook, earbuds, my iPad, and a XS size packing cube with phone chargers and medicine. I also brought some extra ziplock bags, cause you just never know when you’ll need them….

I’ve tried the New Outlander pack in the rain, and it didn’t do very well. Amazon to the rescue to deliver this Osprey rain cover in XS for the rainy days we may encounter. Since it’s so tiny, it was no problemo putting it in the daypack.

Next was packing my daughter’s bag. The hardest part was convincing a teenage girl that she didn’t need to bring so much stuff.

She brought a jumper, 3 pairs of shorts, 4 shirts, bikini, 4 socks, 5 underwear, sandals, and hat. She would be wearing her sweatpants, sweater, shirt, and pair of socks on the plane with her sneakers.

Her bag also carried her TSA approved bag with toiletries, travel towel, and a small size packing cube with her goggles, the female products, and a small traveling hair straightener that she couldn’t bear to not have. Compromises, people. ;). All this fit in her REI Flash 22 size bag.

Her little travel bag for her seat is the REI Flash 18 that has her writing materials and things for her to do on the plane, along with her Hydro Flask water bottle. I bought one after a coworker of mine said that it kept her water cold for a whole 8 hour shift in a hot car. Sold!

[A reminder that all our tent and camping equipment is in the luggage, which will have to be checked.]

Our backpacks were so light, even my daughter remarked that they weren’t heavy at all. I wish I had a scale to give you all the official weigh-in, but I don’t own one. Theoretically, we should be lighter when we return due to using the toiletry stuff. For prices on some of the things, check out the budget section.

Tomorrow is fly out day! I hope TSA is good to us but if not, we’re going to be there 2 hours early anyways. Time to dye my hair ends purple to put myself in vacation mode. 🙂