I’ve read so many tips for easing travel with kids, and most of them involved mess or more work for the parents (individually wrapped gifts to be opened hourly on the flight, anyone?) And any parent knows that if your kid is having a certain kind of day, NOTHING you do is going to help.
With something like this, you just have to say a prayer and put on your game face.
There is an anxiety with packing for a big trip. I fear that I’ll forget something that I can’t get while I am away. I might pack things in the wrong bags and end up checking a bag with something I need, keep something in a carryon that airport security will confiscate, or pack something we’ll need right away that ends up migrating in its suitcase and becomes impossible to find.