The theme for this week's (late) list of five things is things I forgot to pack for vacation.
1. My sturdy, BPA-free, reusable water bottle: I love this bottle. TSA guidelines allow travelers to pass through airport security with an empty plastic bottle, which can be filled at a water fountain in the terminal. Some airports, including Austin and Atlanta, even have bottle filling stations near the regular water fountains. I like that my bottle mentions my lovely home city of Austin, Texas, because it can spark conversation. I also like not having to buy bottled water if my destination has drinkable tap water.
2. My eyeliner pencil sharpener: Sometimes I'm on a liquid eyeliner kick. Lately I prefer a creamy eyeliner pencil. I had to deal with less than pointy eyeliner pencils near the end of vacation. I love Urban Decay brand cosmetics, because they don't test on animals. Urban Decay brand offers many vegan cosmetics. I like the cheeky names of their products too. My favorite eyeliner colors are called Zero, Smog and Roach.
3. Hat/cap with a brim: I usually remember to bring a cap or hat when I know we are headed somewhere with hiking or kayaking. Chad and I both forgot this time. Chad bought a cap featuring a Salish Native American design of an Orca whale on it while we were on San Juan Island. I wore sunglasses, sunscreen and shaded my eyes with my hands, but wished I had a hat.
4. Reusable shopping bag: I typically have a Baggu shopping bag folded up tiny in my small clutch purse due to the plastic shopping bag ban in Austin. For whatever reason, I didn't have my reusable shopping bag in my purse or my carry-on tote during this trip.
5. Essential oils: Most airplanes and some hotels have a yucky smell. Sometimes your clothes exit your suitcase after the airplane trip with that yucky airplane smell. Essential oils in your favorite scent can remedy the yucky smells. I usually travel with lavender and peppermint essential oils. I sniff them straight from the bottle or apply a few drops to linens. Many grocery stores now carry essential oils.
Those are the five things I forgot to pack for this trip that I really missed. I also forgot to empty the fruit bowl and toss a few highly perishable items from the fridge before heading out the door this time. After a week away from home, we returned to a fruit bowl with decaying limes and the saddest soupy banana. We found dried strawberries and really stale bread in the fridge. Eww.
