Keeping your diaper bag stocked and ready to go makes outings easy, yet we all have those days when we find ourselves madly sorting through the laundry basket looking for a clean cover as we're trying to get out the door. In an effort to make life simpler and more organized, here's a list of items we recommend you make sure you toss in your diaper bag (or preferably, pack ahead of time) - just to make life easy. Diapers: You should always have 1-2 diapers in your diaper bag ready to grab, but if you're going to be away from home for more than an hour or two, we suggest tossing in a few more to cover you (or better said, your babe!) for as long as you'll be out. Also, make sure these are your easiest-to-use diapers! (All-in-ones and pre-loaded pockets are especially popular.) You never know where you're going to end up changing your baby when you're out and about - be in a public washroom, the back of your car, or a living room floor - and you need to be able to change quickly. If your baby is old enough to be rolling or finds the change area to be fascinating, you may also need to be able to change the diaper one-handed. A change pad: Since you don't know where you'll be changing your baby during each outing, it's a great idea to keep a change pad in your diaper bag to use under your baby. This can be as simple as  a prefold diaper or it can be pad specifically designed for that purpose - some diaper bags come with a change pad included. Wipes: Wipes are an absolute necessity! Not only are they handy for diaper change time - sticky hands and runny noses benefit from having a stash of wipes on hand, too!  Pack as many as will fit in your wipes container - a repurposed travel-size disposable wipes container or an extra travel-size wetbag both work well. You can choose to wet them ahead of time or use them dry. A note however - if you tend to keep the wipes ready-to-go in your diaper bag and you also like to keep them wet, make sure you change them out every 2-3 days, as otherwise they may mold. If you want to wet your diapers as you go, this is a great time to stock up on Taslie Cheeky Bum Wash - you just spray the mild wash solution directly on your baby's bum and wipe it off. No worry about keeping wet wipes on hand and you've always got a spray for making sure all the uric acid and other rash-inducing substances actually get cleaned off the skin! A travel-size wetbag: Travel-size wetbags make bringing home the dirties a cinch. If you keep two on hand, it ensures that you've always got a clean one ready to go in the diaper bag. Toss the dirty one into your diaper pail along with the dirty diapers when you get home and replace it with clean wetbag and you'll never be hunting for a plastic bag to use when you're out and about. Extra accessories: It's not necessary, but it's definitely handy to keep extra accessories on hand specifically for keeping your diaper bag stocked. If you keep an extra Snappi and an extra tin of diaper balm in your bag, you'll never be left wanting when you're away from home and neither will you ever have to rummage around once you're back home and half-way through a diaper change before you remember you left the Snappi or Bum Bum Balm in the diaper bag. A toy or other diversion: Once again, since sometimes you end up changing your babe in an unexpected location, have a little toy or other distraction item in your bag ready in case your baby isn't that excited about being changed in a new place. A familiar or at least distracting toy can give you the minute or two you need to complete the change without having to wrestle a fussy babe.

Here's hoping your diaper bag gets to go with you on some amazing life adventures! Do you have any tips to share with the larger New & Green community for keeping your diaper bag organized? Please leave a comment!

Photo Credit - jencu

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