DeNai Jones, founder of Petunia Pickle Bottom diaper bags and accessories (and mother of two young boys), shares her thoughts on what to pack for a well-stocked diaper bag.
ewborns are so small when they come home from the hospital. Tiny feet and tiny hands all wrapped up in a tiny little bundle. But what isn’t so tiny is the amount of stuff that having a baby can cause you to accumulate. And when you’re heading out and about with your little one, all this stuff can end up making its way into your diaper bag. No matter how beautiful or functional a diaper bay may be, once it’s crammed full, it loses its effectiveness. What good is it if you brought three changes of clothes for the little man if you can’t reach any of them without dumping out the contents of your bag?
A well-stocked diaper bag should have the essentials for mom and baby, room for outing-specific extras, and be organized enough to find everything you packed. Lighten your load and de-clutter your diaper bag by making sure you aren’t carrying around more than you need. Here are some of my diaper bag essentials:
Baby Essentials
DIAPERS & WIPES: It goes without saying, but make sure you have a diaper or two per child and a handful of wipes stashed in a case. I like to err on the high side for bringing wipes, which can also be used to de-germ shopping carts, clean sticky hands, and wipe up any spills.
CHANGING PAD: You never know when or where you’ll need to change a diaper, so be prepared with a changing pad to protect your surroundings from a full diaper or your baby’s backside from whatever is lurking on the mall changing table station.
SNACKS: I never leave the house without a snack bag. If you have a baby that is now eating solids, a bag of crackers can be a godsend when hunger strikes mid-walk, a distraction is required or when you need to rely on good old-fashioned bribery to get him or her in the car seat.
WARDROBE CHANGE: There’s no reason to cry over spilt milk, or juice, or ketchup, if you have a change of clothes on hand. For my infant son, I’ll stash a simple one-piece while my 2-year-old requires a whole alternate outfit between potty training and his tendency to play hard. From snack spills to diaper blowouts, having a change of clothes on hand means an accident doesn’t have to end our outing.
