Saturday, February 21, 2009

DIAPER BAGS...HELP!!

I need some help, people. I have felt discontent with my "bag" situation pretty much since Bennett was born. I've tried lots of different ways of carrying around my stuff and his and have never found a system I've been satisfied with. Now that #2 is almost here, I'm totally unsure what to do, and thought I'd pay a visit to the blog world to see if one of the many mommies out there (especially those with 2+ kiddos) has it all figured out.

Here's the deal: I do NOT like carrying around a gargantuan diaper bag that's stuffed to the gills with everything you could possibly imagine needing. I stopped doing that very quickly with Bennett. But of course I want to have the essentials for both kids, which will include a lot more for an infant to begin with. I also really miss feeling the feminine aspect of carrying around a cute purse, but can't figure out how to claim that back and make it work. What I've been doing with Bennett most recently is carrying around his mini backpack that he also uses at school. In this I keep his snack, diaper/wipes pod, a drink, and my clutch which contains money, cell, keys, etc. This is okay, but I don't really want to use it when baby comes along because a) it's primarily Bennett's bag, and his school bag at that, and b) it would be miserably full of stuff with both munchkins' supplies to carry around.

So here's what I want to know:

1) What kind of bag do you carry for your kiddos and yourself? (diaper bag, purse, etc.)

2) What size bag do you carry? (small, med. or large)

3) How many bags do you carry? (for example, do you have a separate bag for each kiddo, a bag for them and a purse for you, etc.? and also, what do you do when they go to church and both have to have their stuff?)

4) What things have you found are true necessities and what are the unneeded extras to carry around with both an infant and a toddler?

5) Do you have a specific bag that you just LOVE and would highly recommend? (I'm on a budget people, so a little realism taking into account our one income family would be greatly appreciated :) ). I really don't want something gigantic, and I really don't want to switch bags around all the time - I'd love to have one system to stick with. Anybody figure this out yet?


Thanks ahead of time for your help and suggestions! I just can't get it together with deciding which direction to go with this, and it's driving my ordinarily organized brain INSANE.

5 comments:

Lori said...

I totally feel your pain sista! My current plan is to use my diaper bag that I used with Annalee (a cute large Vera Bradley bag...not technically a diaper bag, just a cute bag with lots of pockets inside) for both of them when we go places together. When it's time for church or other places where they'll be going separate places, I'm just going to pack a much much smaller bag for Annalee (maybe her backpack for school) and put it inside my main bag. I will definately be checking back on your comments to see what everyone else does!

Amanda said...

1) I carry one bag for everyone. It has my wallet, phone, and keys; diapers and wipes for Sydney and Molly; enough room for cups if needed.

2) I would classify the bag as large, but it's cloth that has been laminated for easy cleaning, so it's not hard to carry or very heavy.

3) One bag when we'll be staying together. Sydney has a little backpack for church and school that carries her cup, diapers, and wipes. Gracie Claire only gets a bag at school. I don't even take one to church for her anymore. So, the majority of the time...one bag.

4) Diapers, Wipes, and a Cup. Depending on how long you're going to be gone--maybe a small snack...which I hardly ever carry. For baby, maybe an extra onesie in case of explosion. :)

5) I'm pretty sure that someone made this bag, but I've seen them on Etsy for reasonable prices. They're not complicated. No pockets (which I rarely used anyway when I carried the giganto diaper bag.,) and easy to wipe down. It's very easy to throw what you need into and go. Hope some of this helps! :)

Leslie said...

I have no good advice, but ill be checking back too because I am interested. I am only dealing with one child and still hate all my diaper bag chaos. I have a Petunia Pickle Bottom, but it gets dirty so easily and I hate to clean a silk diaper bag. ugh

Emily said...

I think it'll be easier when Bennett is potty trained. I always carry an extra outfit for Maelie in the car. The most we ever carry in somewhere for her is one cup and maybe one toy if we're going somewhere she needs entertainment. So that just leaves one diaper bag for new little bit and I'm planning on just carrying the mini-purse that Traci bought me in it. BTW, I have a laminated one, too, and LOVE it. It is a little more expensive, but that's what I had for Mae and it is worth it.

Unsinkable Kristen said...

1) What kind of bag do you carry for your kiddos and yourself? Right now I only carry a purse for most things (errands, dinner out). I just toss a diaper in for Little David and some wipes and that's all.
However, when the kids were little I carried this (http://unsinkablekristen.blogspot.com/2007/05/life-of-diaper-bag.html) and it was perfect for that stage. I'm probably going to go back to it when #3 is born as well. All around perfect diaper bag for the bigger kid/newborn stage.

2) What size bag do you carry? My purse is medium sized and that diaper bag is in between small and medium.

3) How many bags do you carry?When the kids were little I would carry that one diaper bag everywhere, except church. Then, because both kids needed a bag for their class (they were both in diapers), I had two little canvas bags that held only what they needed for church time. So, I ended up carrying a purse and two small canvas bags for awhile, which was super annoying, but there wasn't much way around it when everyone needed their own stuff. I just tried to make it as small as possible.

4) What things have you found are true necessities and what are the unneeded extras to carry around with both an infant and a toddler?

True necessities for Toddler:
Diaper/Wipes
Sippy Cup
Snack
Small toy

Anything more isn't really needed. However, the longer you are going to be gone, the more stuff you need and the more likely you'll need it.

True Necessities for Baby:

- Feeding Stuff (bottles if you're doing that, nursing stuff (a cover for you, etc) if you're doing that)
- Diapers/Wipes (and they can poop a lot)
- Extra onsie (they will explode on you at sometime)
- diaper cream
- pacifier
- little blanket

Again, the longer you're gone, the more you'll need. Baby tylenol and mylecon drops are nice, but if your
baby rarely gets sick and rarely gets gas, then there is no need to carry them around if you're only going to get some milk. On the other hand, if your kid is a dependable exploding pooper, then I would make it a habit to carry enough to deal with that, no matter where you are going.

5) Do you have a specific bag that you just LOVE and would highly recommend?

The Eddie Bauer bag I mentioned up top is hands down the only diaper bag I've ever loved completely. It's gone through both of my kids and is in perfect shape for #3 and it was only $15. It's not fancy, but it's very durable and practical.


Hope all that rambling helps. You're kids will go through a lot of different stages, and your diaper bag needs will change, so remember that what works now may not work in a few months and that's just fine.