By Assistant Editor Erica

As a reformed pack rat, I try my hardest to keep only the essentials in my diaper bag. Lugging a bulky, over-packed bag tends to stress me out, and I try to avoid it at all costs. There are a few items that stick around no matter how many times I organize my bag. All of these items are light, slim, and most of all, super useful. Bonus feature – they are all reusables!

Here are the five reusables I don’t leave home without…

1. Wet bag – Originally meant for reusable diapers, wet bags contain all the wet, soiled things while keeping the rest of your bag clean. Frankly, they are fantastic no matter what kind of diapers your child wears. I’ve used ours for soiled clothes, wet swimsuits, dirty disposable diapers, actual trash, and all sorts of oozy messes created by my toddler. The possibilities are endless!

2. Baggu bag – I love keeping a folded-up bag in my diaper bag because I frequently tack on extra errands or pit stops to our walks and drives. Whether it’s for the library, drug store, or clothes shopping (the best kind of pit stop!), I can bust out my baggu to carry around whatever I need.

3. Food pouch – How on earth did people feed their children before food pouches? Pouches are a staple for our out-and-about lifestyle, but they also can ruin my food budget. Thanks to these reusable pouches that I usually fill with yogurt and applesauce, I can feed my toddler on the go and have room in my budget for important stuff, like Cadbury chocolate eggs.

4. Clear zipper bags – You know those ubiquitous snack-trap cups for babies? In addition to being bulky, ours always spilled the snack all over my bag. Cheerio dust under my fingernails is not my favorite. Thankfully, a friend told me about these clear zipper bags that are basically reusable ziploc bags. They have a ton of uses, are nice and slim, and never spill whatever is inside. I have the sandwich- and snack-sized ones and use them constantly. (I also wrap our sandwiches in beeswax wrap.)

5. Produce bags – Talk about another bag with a million uses! They are great for organizing anything you need, like crayons that never stay in the box and all the tiny toys my toddler loves and loses constantly. Additionally, you could use them for, you know, actual produce. (For bulk bin purchases, I like to use these muslin produce bags.)

Photography by Ashley Aikele

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