Whenever we leave the house, I’m not quite sure when we will come back home. Due to my husband’s work, we could leave the house for a short grocery trip and get pulled away and spend an extra three hours out of the house. It used to drive me crazy when we first got married (I guess I never lived so spontaneously before), but now with a baby, it is a whole other level of crazy! One time I forgot the diaper bag on what should have been a 20-minute trip, it turned into over an hour in the car and of course, my little one needed a diaper change halfway through. After that, I decided to spend some time setting up a diaper bag that would help me to never worry. Rachel could literally spend two nights straight on the contents of this diaper bag alone (for more on Baby’s Packing List, click here)

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The Bag

• Longchamp Le Pliage Large Tote – this tote got me thru college, vacations, and now, motherhood
• ToteSavvy – I LOVE this product. It has allowed me to fit all of the following in a very convenient tote of my choice

Diaper Changes

• 10 – 11 diapers – these diapers are my favorite, super absorbent and minimal leaking (aka the only leakage is when Rachel has a major explosion!)
• Full pack of wipes – the ToteSavvy fits an entire package of 72 wipes, I also keep a small sample pack of 6 wipes just in case we run out somehow
• Small hand sanitizer
• Bags for dirty diapers – within one week we had already used these bags three times! Without them we would have had to hold on to a dirty diaper and wipes until we were near a trash can, maybe 30 minutes – 2 hours later!
• Diaper cream
• Changing pad – this came with the ToteSavvy

For Baby

• Back up pacifiers – I store these orthodontic pacifiers (recommended by our pediatrician) in a nipple shield case to keep them clean
• Q-tips
• Expressed breastmilk- in the ToteSavvy there is an insulated bottle pocket! We have come home after an 8-hour trip, and when I took out the bottle it was still cool!
• Receiving blanket
• Swaddle – this swaddle is my favorite, one time she pooped thru all her clothes (and backups of clothes) and I had to take her into a very cold organic grocery store with only a onesie on. This swaddle kept her super warm the entire time, she even fell asleep!
• Two onesies, a pair of pants, and a pair of socks
• One burp cloth – these are the most absorbent I have found. My little girl has major reflux, but one of these cloths can last me all day!
• Pacifier clip
• Ziplock bags – any wet or dirty clothes can be thrown in here!
• Waterproof pouch for immunization card
• Baby nail clippers
• Extra batteries – for her portable white noise machine (see section on Baby Carrier)

For Breastfeeding

• Nipple cream
• Nursing cover

*Related Post: How to Breastfeed in Public

For Mama (a.k.a. everything I used to have in my purse)

• Pen
• Wallet
• Sunglasses
• Portable charger – never have a dead phone again!
• Hand lotion
• Keys – the ToteSavvy has a special little clip for these so they always stay at the top of my bag
• Lipstick
• Mints
• Hubby’s business cards
• Acetaminophen

Baby Carrier (I think of it as an extension of the diaper bag)

• Receiving blanket, burp cloth, and swaddle (if it is cold) all placed on her lap
• Soother blanket – this one was a gift from her grandmother. It is super soft and Rachel loves it
• Portable white noise machine – this portable monkey has saved us during long car rides, it calms her instantly and helps her fall asleep if she is tired
• Carrier cover – this cover conveniently snaps on the handle to give privacy if she is sleeping, or block the sunlight, and I love that I can still easily sneak a peek at her!

Looking at it all listed here, I cannot believe it all fits in my bag!

What are some of your diaper bag essentials? Let me know in the comments!