Every mother knows that just because you may not be carting around a newborn or infant anymore doesn’t mean that you don’t need an arsenal to get through a day or outings with a toddler. Anything could happen at any moment and your space between skipping merrily through your errands with smiles plastered on your faces and a full blown complete meltdown is what you choose to carry in your bag. Call me MacGyver, baby. Today I am going to share with you what’s in my bag and what keeps my toddlers and I happy and sane while on the go.

I have to say, I pride myself on having four children who have not once thrown a full blown tantrum in public. Yes, of course we have the occasional tears over not getting something they ask for or because they are exhausted, but this says nothing of my mothering skills I’m sure and more because of my kids temperaments as well as what I have on hand at any given moment to keep the tears at bay. Before having kids, I would sometimes come across a screaming toddler at the store and think – my goodness, how can you not keep your kid happy? However, after 11 years in motherhood and the things we ask our little ones to sit through (grocery shopping, dressing rooms, driving from errand to errand) I totally get it. I mean, sometimes I myself ask for a lollipop from the bank teller to keep my own tears at bay from absolute boredom. Of COURSE our toddlers will go through the same emotions, am I right?

Okay, let me give you the rundown of what I’m carrying with me in hopes of helping my fellow mothers out who may be venturing into that older stage with their little ones. And remember, you want to double up on any of the kids stuff because if you have two little ones they will always want what the other one has. Guaranteed.

• Amazon Fire Kids Edition tablet – each of our kids got one of these for Christmas. The little ones go the kids edition and they are BRILLIANT. I love that they are not as expensive as Apple iPads, they come with the kid proof case as well as a 2 year worry-free guarantee, and they come in a kids mode which means they cannot access anything like YouTube or other more mature content. I love to have them available for when the care ride gets a little too long.
• My Bullet Journal – if you have followed me for awhile, you know that I never not have this with me. I also make sure I am carrying my favorite pens on me as well.
• Books – I carry one for each kids for those waiting rooms or car washes we have to sit through.
• My iPhone
• A healthy snack bag for me and I love the Planter’s Protein Packs
• Wet Ones hand wipes – these come in handy for sticky hands and even shopping cart rub downs
• Purell hand sanitizer
• Sunglasses + Eyeglasses
• A snack for the little ones
• Water (we live in Arizona so hydration is #1 at all times)
• My wallet which I always make sure includes quarters because who can pass up those little quarter machines at the grocery store that will give you a brand new bouncy ball?
• Toiletry bag
  • In this bag I carry a small hairbrush (I have two girls and all three of us have long hair), extra hair ties, Band-Aids, Neosporin To-Go, a pack of Colgate Wisps, pocket pack of Kleenex, a lipstick and some cover-up

Now, what good is all of this if you don’t have the right bag? I actually don’t switch out my handbags. It’s either all or nothing with me. If I’m out during the day with my kids, I’m using the same bag because it means everything is already packed for the most part. Ain’t nobody got time to re-pack a handbag every day, am I right? If I’m out with the hubby for date night, I hand him my ID to carry in his wallet and I leave my lipstick in the car and carry nothing with me. So I literally wear my day-to-day bag out until there is nothing left. While I want it to look great and go with my own wardrobe, more importantly I look for something sturdy, well-made and that comes with all of the bells and whistles I need to get the job done. A diaper bag without looking like one.

I was so excited when The Baby Cubby reached out and sent me the Rachel Satchel by Timi & Leslie to try out. This bag is not only gorgeous, but it gets the job done.

As you can see from the very first picture in this post, even with all of the things I pack in it, there is still plenty of room so it doesn’t feel like I am hauling luggage. The caramel color is one that I find goes with everything I wear and the amount of storage inside is unbelievable. For those of you who have newborns and infants, the Rachel Satchel comes with an insulated bottle tote, a changing pad and even a zippered sack for soiled clothes. For my fellow moms who are in the toddler stage and past potty training, all of that can be removed and you are left with tons of pockets to keep things organized while on the go.

And be sure and visit The Baby Cubby online for so much baby must-haves and for my Utah friends, you can visit them locally in Lindon. I love that they are not just another baby store. Their team is made up of parents who have been there and get it. I love that they price match, even with Amazon finds, they offer free shipping over $49 and they only carry the best and safest baby gear so you can rely on them to have done the research and testing which makes shopping for Baby so much less stressful. Because let’s be honest, after bringing baby home or entering the next stage with your little one, the last thing us moms have time for is researching every piece of gear out there. I would rather catch up on showering. Or even better, sleep.

This post was sponsored by The Baby Cubby. All opinions are my own.