Ditching the Diaper Bag

It's no secret that I rarely pack around a diaper bag. When I do, my friends are not only astounded, but dig through it to see what I could possibly need in order to need a full diaper bag in my hand.

Don't get me wrong, the newborn phase is different, leaving nothing to the improvising mind and a diaper bag, fully stocked, is utterly necessary. But as Joey got older, I found myself without much need for a full blown "ready pack." 

I started carrying an extra diaper in my purse, a large pack of wipes that stayed in the car, and snacks stashed in every crevice of where ever I was. 

But that backfired a few times. Cue, a very messy banana incident away from the car and a binky thrown out of the window when nap time was right around the corner.

Then, the other day, a freaking cat peed all over Joey's carseat and diaper bag on the porch overnight. After washing the carseat cover and emptying the diaper bag, leaving it to stew in the garage until I could muster up the energy to wash it, I decided to make a change.

Joey has a very minimal amount of essentials. 

Why am I toting around this gigantic backpack full of things that don't fit him, he won't use, and a massive amount of "just in case" scenarios?

I mean, really, it's not like we are going on a trip. The small drive from the house to daycare, the ranch and the grocery store surely don't qualify as needing all the doomsday supplies.

Moving on.

I packed a mini diaper bag today, and I thought I would share what's in it. We are almost two years into this parenthood thing, and a toddler is pretty much self sufficient at this point (cue, major sarcasm).

But honestly, he really only needs a few things, if any really, and my emergency supplies don't need to be prepped for worst case scenario. 

Look at it this way, if he has a blow out at this point, I have bigger problems than needing a diaper, wipes and change of clothes. I mean, he's a real boy now. Ain't nobody got time to deal with that in the trunk of a car.

So, necessities only. And if the worst happens, in his carseat he will go and driving home we will be to deal with the situation. 

In the little mini emergency kit:

• 3 Kirkland diapers
• 1 overstuffed pack of wipes
• Tylenol and measuring spoon
• Lone binky – we use Natursutton
• Spoon
• Cliff Bar
• Squeezer

I got two of these little bags when Joey was born, to put in the diaper bag to stay organized, and have found myself using them for EVERYTHING. I love them. Machine washable, you can see what's in them, they are the perfect size and I love the color.