Five Things You Should Do Upon Your Return From a Trip During COVID

For a lot of people in the US, travel plans since March 2020 were either cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19. This includes me. Typically, my family and I travel to some destination outside of our home state, at least annually, for some fun and R&R. Sadly, the infamous pandemic interrupted our ongoing tradition.

Recently, my family and I decided to rent an air bnb, which was not too far from our home town, for a quick weekend getaway and to celebrate my bonus mom's and aunt's birthday. We played it as safe as possible, adhering to current guidelines to best protect against COVID.

The air bnb home was huge - every adult or couple had their own bedroom and bathroom - and it had a large indoor pool for the kiddos to enjoy. It was a pajama-themed weekend and all of our family activities took place at the home. In the midst of COVID, my family and I found a creative way to safely enjoy and spend time with one another. Plus, it was nice to just get away and see a different environment. : )

They say that all good things must come to an end.

Upon our return home, my children and I know the drill. For the record, most of my sanitation and cleaning habits existed far before COVID's existence, partly because I have a "touch" of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). Yes, I have a slight fear of germs and the need to arrange objects in a specific manner, but that's not the point here. Stay focused! : )

During the COVID era, I've implemented additional practices to protect our home and ourselves against the virus or other germs. Specifically for this blog, I want to share my routine for returning home from a trip or vacation.

5 Things You Should Do Upon Your Return From a Trip During COVID

1. Designate ONE area to collect all of your belongings, including outerwear, shoes, travel bags and luggage, sleeping bags, blankets, pillows, etc. I wouldn't recommend laying these items throughout your home. Instead, treat each item as if it's full of germs - which is likely the truth. With this in mind, it's best to contain all such items in one spot to make it easier to clean and disinfect your items and home.

2. Immediately disinfect yourself and your family members. If you're fortunate to have some disinfectant spray in your home stock, count it all joy and USE IT regularly. Spray the bottom of your shoes. Spray the inside and outside of your coats and jackets. Spray your clothes. To take it a step further, I usually have each family member remove their shoes and clothes within that designated spot (which happens to be my laundry room) before moving throughout our home. In case you're wondering, everyone keeps on their undergarments. : ) Afterwards, we head to a nearby bathroom to thoroughly wash our hands, using soap and water.

3. Next, you should begin to disinfect your travel bags, luggage, and accessories. I simply wipe down the outside of all bags and luggage with some brand of disinfectant cleaner. For bags and luggage on wheels, don't forget to thoroughly clean those too! To take it a step further, I usually machine wash our travel bags and backpacks once the contents are emptied.

4. Don't set your laundry aside; it's best to start it right away if you can. When I travel, we use designated laundry bags to separate our dirty laundry from our clean items. This simplifies the process for starting my laundry routine later. Further, we take our own bedding and linen, blankets, and pillows to make our stay away from home more comfortable. The disadvantage, however, is that this creates additional loads of laundry to do. Personally, I don't mind the extra work in exchange for my mental health and comfort.

5. Put your items away. As I'm doing laundry, I usually start to put away our hygiene and personal items, hair accessories, unused clothing items, jewelry, shoes, electronics, etc. back into their designated spots. Having existing organizational systems in place makes this process a breeze. Also, I recommend recruiting your kiddos and other family members to assist with the process.

It takes much work and effort, but I love my organized life!

Proverbs 31:27 "She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness." (NIV)