I just returned from a four day trip out west. It was so nice to travel on my own for a little bit of time by myself. I’m so used to traveling with the kids that five hours on an airplane without anyone to keep entertained was refreshing. Traveling on my own leaves me with time to myself that I really can’t get anywhere else. I have time to catch up on work, a book, and sleep. It’s these moments that help me come home to my family feeling recharged and ready to get back into our routine.

This trip is just the first of many to come for me in the next couple of months. In a couple of weeks we are taking everyone to Florida for the girls’ Spring Break. I cannot wait to get out of this cold and snowy weather and soak in the Florida sun. I get to spend time quality time with my parents and brothers and the kids love getting spoiled by them as well.

The week after that I head out to Scottsdale on my own for a blogging conference.

All of this travel has me living out of a suitcase for the next month. I came home last night reluctant to put my suitcase away because I knew that I’d have to pack it back up very soon. Because I’ve been traveling so often lately, I’ve come to find out what I have to have (and what I don’t) while spending these few days from home. With spring break coming up for most of us and summer break soon after, I thought I’d share with you some of my must-have travel essentials that I insist on taking with me every trip.

1. Frends Headphones: I’ve been lusting over these for quite a while and finally justified getting them because of all of the travel I am doing lately. They are stylish, have a great case to store them in, and I can use them to talk on the phone as well. I love that they match my iPhone.

2. Moisturizer: Flying on an airplane leaves my skin super dry and itchy. I don’t know if it is the recycled air or flying at such a high altitude, but I am always more aware of how dried out my skin gets when I travel. To help alleviate some of my dry flaky skin I travel with a moisturizer, lip balm,  and a moisturizing body wash.  I’ve been using Aveeno® Daily Moisturizing Body Wash during these winter months and have loved it so why not bring something that you love when you travel too? The Daily Moisturizing Body Wash has oatmeal in it which helps keep the moisture locked into your skin. It helps tremendously with my dry and itchy skin, especially when I am traveling. I apply the Aveeno® Daily Moisturizing Lotion on after and between both of the products, it’s helped my skin feel really soft and smooth. And I ALWAYS carry lip balm with me. My lips are naturally very dry anyway, so when I travel, it makes it just that much worse.

3. Mini iPad: I never get to read in my day-to-day because there just aren’t enough hours in the day for me to do so, so I take full advantage of a good book when I am traveling. I am constantly asking my sister for good book recomedations and then downloading them on my iPad. I have several waiting that I haven’t read, so as soon as I hop on the plane I start to read. I just started The Girl on the Train on my way home last night and am now staying up to the wee hours of the morning because I cannot put it down. If you have any good book recs, please let me know in the comments!!

4. Scarf: I bring a scarf with me even if I am traveling in the warmer months. Airplanes can get cold and I don’t like using the blankets that they provide. I bring a scarf that is big enough to use as a blanket, but takes up much less room in my bag.

5. Sunglasses: A couple of trips ago I left my sunglasses at home and never realized what a mistake it was. My sunglasses are now one of the things that I always check for before I leave. I had a passenger on the airplane across from me that has his window shade open and the sun was glaring in my eyes, I immediately had to pull out my sunglasses so that I wasn’t blinded the entire flight.

6. Portable Charger: I use my phone for everything, so when the battery dies, I feel helpless. This portable charger is great because it can help recharge my battery more than once without me having to plug it in.

7. Water Bottle: Airport water bottles are way over-priced. Bring an empty water bottle with you and then fill it up once you go through security. Keeping yourself hydrated it crucial when you are traveling.

8. Snacks: On my flight to LA this week, the airline didn’t have any complimentary snacks to give out. The flight from NYC to LA is LONG. Thankfully I made a trip to Trader Joes before I left and packed my bag with some of my favorite snacks to eat during the trip.