Weekend Whimsy: Planning for a Scrappy Vacation (or Crop!)

As our annual weekend crop is coming up quickly... I had a moment of panic when I hit the one month countdown mark earlier this wee.... I have nothing ready, no kits packed!  So I thought I'd document my yearly struggle to plan ahead in enough time, pack efficiently and not take an overweight bag with me again!  Where to begin with this, but at the beginning....

April/May 2007, Fairplay, Colorado:

In short, I over packed....  By a LOT. :)

But it was a productive, insanely fun weekend, so totally worth it!  Evidence?

April/May 2008, Union Pier, Michigan:

I overpacked.  No photos of that this time, but I will say that I was charged a $50 overweight fee for my luggage... ai yi yi!

And I bought so much at Becky's local scrapbook store... well... I ended up bringing home a new scrappy tote and checking a second bag.  I lucked out on the way home and the United Airlines staff took pity on my barely over the limit re-packed suitcases and didn't charge me the $50 overweight fee. whew.  But I did have to pay for a second bag so.... my lack of planning ahead, packing and, well, scrappy shopping got me again!

April/May 2009, Aptos, California:

This was a little different because I was co-hosting the crop!  We rented a beach house, made all the food and I literally packed up half my scraproom to the beach house....

 

It was a completely unproductive scrappy weekend for me, I got no sleep, but I had a great time!  Best part of the weekend?  It convinced me that I didn't need to bring much of anything with me in order to scrapbook and have fun! 

April/May 2010, St. Augustine, Florida:

I packed much better this time.  Too much still, but very productive.  Didn't help that we were in the vicinity of Flamingo Scraps and Suzanne & Susan were our fabulous hostesses... because they brought me a box of goodies from the store!!  Again, I had to ship a box home... this time I even had put some pajamas in the box home!  oops!  I also ended up running out of pictures.  And while I did have some with me on a thumb drive, it resulted in lost time going to the drug store to print them...

This April/May?  The return to Union Pier, Michigan!  I'm so excited I cannot wait!  Which leads me back to the beginning....

Lessons I have learned from all this?

• I need to pack some kits.
• I need to have all my pictures ready.
• I need to have my pages planned.
• I do not need to go to Hobby Lobby.  Note to girls: do not take me there.  Even if I beg you! :)

So, I've started down this path and next Saturday, I will show you what I am doing to prepare myself for this annual scrappy weekend getaway... and share with you a few great resources that will help me to pack!

Do you have any that I need to check out?  Any hints, tips that can help prepare for a crop or a weekend scrappy retreat?  Please share, as I am mid-pack and looking for help... clearly I need it!!! :)