It was our family's first visit to Alcatraz, Muir Woods, and Fisherman's Wharf. We had arrived late in San Francisco the night before, picking up a rental car and driving into town from the airport to our hotel. The boys had a room of their own, and we agreed to meet in the hotel restaurant for breakfast. When the boys came down for breakfast, I noticed that Jeff, our ten-year-old, was wearing the same clothes from the night before. I knew that ten year old boys have their own dress code, but still wondered about his choice. "Didn't you have those clothes on when we left home yesterday?" , I asked.

"My suitcase is missing", he said. "I have no other clothes."

It was true. After we checked both rooms, and the rental car, we knew we had somehow, somewhere misplaced one of the bags we left home with. We were pretty sure we had done a quick count at the SF airport, and had them all then, but after that it was fuzzy. So Jeff had no other clothes for his week in San Francisco*

Keeping track of luggage, boarding passes, passports/ID's, not to mention kids, is tough. Having the right gear can help you keep things organized.

*On the upside, we Jeff got some great new clothes in SF, and he didn't have to wear the same ones all week. And then later, his suitcase did turn up, just in time for the trip back home.