How much do you hate packing?

My mum is amazing. I genuinely don’t know what I’d have done without her to rely on over the past couple of weeks – I know it would have been a lot harder to eat well, have a shower and take a few minutes out, not to mention how I’d have coped without her reminding me that babies do just sometimes cry (and that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m doing it all wrong).

I’ve been asking a lot of her since Minnie was born (thanks mum!) but even I’d draw the line at asking her to run around after me in normal circumstances. And not just because I suspect she’d say no…

But according to a new survey, one in 10 Britons get their mums to do their packing for them. And it’s not toddlers or teenagers, 25 to 34-year-olds were the biggest culprits according to the research by Travelodge. Around a quarter ‘delegate’ their packing because they find it stressful, while one in five say they don’t have enough time and nearly the same number saying they’re just not as organised as their preferred packer, which includes partners as well as parents.

Unsurprisingly, it’s men who wriggle out of sorting their suitcase, with 28% more men than women trying to avoid the packing – more surprising, the Welsh are most likely to get their mum to step in, whereas Londoners pass it off to their partners. And least surprising of all, 59% of partners and parents said getting lumbered with someone else’s packing caused arguments.

As more than nine in 10 who try to escape discover that they don’t have everything they need, perhaps they should take a tip from the 40% of Britons who make a list of essentials to tick off, the third who lay clothes and accessories on the bed as outfits to avoid the stress of forgetting something essential, or the one in five who actually creates a written schedule of outfits to pack.

Meanwhile, Minnie’s got a limited amount of time during which I’ll pack her bags as well as my own!

Image: E>mar/Flickr