New parents may not listen to me, but I have learned a few things over the years about diaper bags.
See, I helped raise my brother and sister from when I was eleven. I had to do diaper changes and midnight feedings, and often times the only way to get to the library was on the weekends (weekdays taking care of two kids and doing homework sucked up a lot of time). I had to take my siblings with me.
Walking two kids several kilometers (or sometimes pushing a stroller) meant that I loathed packing anything more than what was absolutely necessary. This information became very helpful twenty years later when I had my own children.
First off: You do not need a medicine cabinet in your bag. Anything that happens to your newborn will be able to be dealt with within hours, and if there is an emergency baby Tylenol isn't some magic potion that will heal your child, a baby thermometer is only going to tell you if the baby is warm and if you're really that concerned, you want to leave anyway, etc.
See, I helped raise my brother and sister from when I was eleven. I had to do diaper changes and midnight feedings, and often times the only way to get to the library was on the weekends (weekdays taking care of two kids and doing homework sucked up a lot of time). I had to take my siblings with me.
Walking two kids several kilometers (or sometimes pushing a stroller) meant that I loathed packing anything more than what was absolutely necessary. This information became very helpful twenty years later when I had my own children.
First off: You do not need a medicine cabinet in your bag. Anything that happens to your newborn will be able to be dealt with within hours, and if there is an emergency baby Tylenol isn't some magic potion that will heal your child, a baby thermometer is only going to tell you if the baby is warm and if you're really that concerned, you want to leave anyway, etc.
- Here's a quick list of what you need in a diaper bag that will last you for six hours at the longest:
- A few diapers. Three or four, maybe six. You do not need twenty diapers.
- Butt paste. Just one tube. You don't need fifty lotions and baby powder. You aren't going to be giving them a bath while you're out, and really, if they get that messy you're going to be heading home anyway.
- Spare, clean bottle.
- A "quick shot" or reasonable facsimile of formula, or if breast feeding, an Udder Cover
- A bottle of water (in case you can't find a drinking fountain)
- A change of outfit
- A toy. Not many toys, just one. Not even that. Your kids can learn a little patience, they don't need constant stimulation.