I'm getting more confident with my own decisions regarding Elinor. In the beginning, it feels like everything is this giant whirlwind of overwhelming directions and advice and you're fairly certain you'd better follow it all because otherwise you might kill your baby because you don't know what the hell you are doing. Then you realise that you've made it this far without killing her and that you know her better than any internet blogger or preachy book author, so you can stop panicking so much.
At least that's how it's been for me. That's not to say that internet advice isn't sometimes helpful. Today I googled "diaper bag paring down" because I really hate carrying the diaper bag when I walk places with her. Unfortunately, it was a similar experience to googling "inexpensive wedding ideas" and finding suggestions like, "Consider not having monogrammed napkins."
In other words, I discovered that I've already pared down my diaper bag to the essentials according to most women. My diaper bag contains:
1 diaper cover
1 onesie
1 changing pad
cloth diapers - the number depends on how long I am going to be out
a few disposables
1 blanket
A bag of disposable wipes
a washcloth or two
1 wet bag
1 zip-loc bag
A sun hat (sometimes)
Her jacket (sometimes)
A pair of socks
Wallet (mine)
Phone (also mine)
Keys (also mine)
I do not consider chapstick, makeup, hand sanitizer (if baby wipes work for my baby's bum, then they work for my hands until I can get to a bathroom, should that be a difficulty out in the field) or a first aid kit essential although some people seem to. One blog I looked at had a "before" picture featuring 6 Mister Men books. I can't believe it didn't occur to the author that 6 books was a little ridiculous.
2 comments:
I would consider a small first-aid kit essential if I were taking a baby out of my home. I take the basics with me now, sans baby, because I am accident-prone and it's nice to have bits around to patch me up.
Then again, I'm a chronic worrier. So you're probably alright as you are. :)
Eh, babies don't really do much that could result in the need for a first aid kit.
I'm not too worried about scrapes and bumbs either on older children either. Rites of passage plus, I feel that the less of a big deal or production made about things like that, the quicker the kid learns it's not a big deal. Once, I was teaching a lesson to a 6 year old girl who was learning to canter. She took a little bobble in one corner and nearly came off, but righted herself. She was fine until she saw her mother's worried face, who, in turn, realised that her worried face had worried her daughter, so changed the frown to a big smile, which made the little girl smile and pick up her canter again.
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