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3litttlebirds
member
xp: necessity of the diaper bag?
3litttlebirds
member
Most diaper bags look huge to me and like just one more thing to have to lug around. Do you really need the equivalent of an overnight bag for a trip to the store?
STM- what all goes in a diaper bag that you have to have a separate big bag for? If I have a larger purse, can I get away with putting the bare necessities in that?
I'm also thinking I can just keep a stash of supplies in the cars, so I don't have to tote around so much when I'm out and about.
Thanks!
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Re: xp: necessity of the diaper bag?
I've always carried tiny purses (like, just barely fit wallet, keys and cell phone) so I did need a bag. With a newborn you carry quite a bit, then it gets to be less over time until you're potty training and need a second set of clothes everywhere. After the kids are potty trained then you need enough room for a water cup and snack and nothing else really.
When I have a newborn I carry:
3-4 diapers
diaper changing pad
wipes
diaper cream
2-3 spare outfits (my kids were prone to blowouts!)
bags for dirty diapers
nursing cover or blanket (if you FF you'll always want at least one bottle with you wherever you go in case the baby is hungry at an odd time or you're delayed getting home)
Now I carry:
1-2 pull ups (my 3 year old stubbornly refuses to potty train)
wipes
bags for dirty diapers
a water cup for each kid (snacks are now at set times, so we don't carry them with us and the kids often carry their own water at this point)
tiny thing of hand sanitizer (I don't love my kids using it, but if we have to use a really nasty bathroom or port-a-potty at the park it's the best option available)
tiny first aid kid with a few band-aids, sterile alcohol wipes and bacitracin
During the nb stage we had diapers, wipes, bags for dirty diapers, change of clothes, changing pad, bottle, diaper cream, tylenol, sun screen, a couple toys, pacifier, bibs, a divided container of formula once I stopped bf.ing. Mum mums or snacks when he got old enough.. an extra blanket.
A lot. To me I needed all the extra pockets my purse didn't have, as well as something easy to wipe down if milk or anything was spilled on it or leaked. I kept my wallet, phone and stuff in it too instead of carrying a purse also.
W : 01.11.13
#3 : due 11.02.15
My DD is only 3 weeks old and I can promise you that I've needed, and used, everything in my diaper bag.
- diapers (4)
- wipes
- disposable diaper sacks
- changing pad
- nursing cover
- 2 extra outfits for DD
- extra shirt for me (needed several times, DD has reflux)
- 2 burpclothes
- blanket
- hand sanitizer
- plus a few things for me (wallet, keys, cell phone, lip balm)
It kind of depends on where you go and your lifestyle. I know people in big cities who have to pack everything in their diaper bag because they leave their apartment, take public transit, and aren't home all day. They need a larger bag since they have to keep everything with them at all times. Where I live, my car is always within short walking distance of where I am.
I prefer to bring my regular purse with the bare minimum in it to stores/restaurants/dinner parties/etc. and I keep everything else in the car. I use the Skip Hop Pronto to hold diapers/wipes and slide it into my regular bag. I just head to the car any time I need something that isn't in my regular bag. If I'm going to be somewhere all day (like the zoo, a festival, or theme park), of course I pack a larger diaper bag and put all my stuff in there. This has worked well for us for the past 2 years.
I alternate between a regular diaper bag (messenger style; not overly big) and using a tote bag style purse. When I'm just running to the store, I throw in a diaper pod with a few diapers, wipes, and changing pad plus I keep a burp cloth, pacifer, and at least one little toy/rattle in the tote bag with the rest of my regular "purse" stuff.
But, when we're going to be gone for the day, we need all of that plus more diapers, bottles, formula, blanket, extra clothes, extra toys, etc., my diaper bag makes life so much easier with all of his compartments.
I went from using my diaper bag to exclusively trying to use my tote bag, but it ended up driving me crazy that it would take me forever to find what I needed. The compartments in a diaper bag are really handy. I'm not sure how much you want to spend, but Kate Spade has some nice diaper bags that look like pursues, as do many other brands. Maybe that's a good solution for you?
Oh, and I keep a stash of extra clothes, blankets and burp cloths in the car for those "just in case" times too.
This is what I do
I HATED carrying that much crap around. I was sure I was going to lose something.
I was never much of a diaper bag girl with my first, and we did just fine. For short trips, I would just throw a couple diapers and a couple wipes in my purse or pocket. Maybe an extra onesie if she'd been having blowouts lately. That's literally all I needed. If the baby really threw up all over me, I just understood I'd have to go home and change, just like I would if I got food poisoning and threw up all over myself. If the baby got a fever while we were out, I'd go home and let her chill. We'd have Tylenol there, and we could call the doctor if necessary.
For longer days out when it would be extremely inconvenient to have to go home early, you might want to pack more stuff like PPs suggested, but by the time you'll be taking long trips with the babe, you'll know exactly what stuff he's likely to need.
All of this. I also carry pacifiers and pacifier wipes. We also FF so i have the bottle cooler too. I was like you, OP, at first. On our first trip out I tried to carry only the "neccessities" and DS immediately had a poopie blow out. Boy did I wish I had the extra outfits then. I've stopped carrying a purse unless I'm out without DS.
I don't do multiple bags. For the first 8 months, I just used a large bag that I had owned for years. It worked, but was kind of a PITA. It only had 2 pockets on the outside. Nothing to organize on the inside.
About a week ago, I FINALLY bought a diaper bag and I LOVE it! It is the only bag I carry. I keep my wallet inside of it with the other things I would normally carry in my purse. (I'm normally a medium sized purse kind of gal.) I plan on buying a wristlet soon, so on the rare occasions that I get to leave the house sans baby, I can just grab the wristlet from the diaper bag.
What I love about having an actual diaper bag vs. using a regular bag is:
Keeping a stash of baby items in your car is a good idea, but keep in mind when you are in the mall, store, etc, it will be a pain to run all the way out to the car to get something. I keep always keep diapers, wipes, disposable bags for soiled diapers & clothes, an extra outfit, extra pacifier & clip, diaper changing pad, a few toys, bottle(s), sippy cup, burp cloth, plus my purse items in my diaper bag. Sometimes I carry more stuff, depending on the situation.
If you use a regular bag, I HIGHLY recommend getting stroller attachments. It is so much easier getting stuff in and out of a bag hanging from the stroller handle rather than pulling the bag from the basket underneath.
I rarely actually take my diaper bag, unless we are going out for an extended period of time. I have a diaper "wallet" that holds just a changing pad, a few diapers, and a small case of wipes that I typically will throw into my purse for short trips (or leave it in my car even) like this: https://www.amazon.com/JJ-Cole-Diapers-Wipes-Circle/dp/B003KN27B4/ref=sr_1_8?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1344734388&sr=1-8&keywords=diaper+wallet
Normally when I leave the house what I need at this point is a diaper, a small thing of wipes, a sippy cup, and some portable snacks. That all fits easily into my purse.
When DD was brand new, we did need more stuff, but not a ton more. We changed diapers a lot more frequently, so we usually had about 4 diapers, a small case of wipes, a burp cloth or two, a bib, an extra onesie, a travel container of hand sanitizer, and sometimes a bottle and small toy. Plus I would use my diaper bag (which was not huge and looked like a purse: https://www.zappos.com/skip-hop-studio-diaper-bag-indigo-dot ) as my purse, so it had to fit my wallet, keys, & phone as well.
The plus to an actual diaper bag is that it has a million more pockets than a regular purse, which is super-helpful. Plus mine had a built in changing pad and 2 insulated pockets which were great for bottles. Not to mention that it was made of a material that you could easily wipe down to clean.
I think you can definitely just use your purse as they get a bit older, but for the first 6-10 months, I would suggest trying to find an actual diaper bag that you like, perhaps one that looks like a purse and isn't huge. There are a lot of great options out there!