Our favorite trick to get out and about is keeping a Go-Bag packed and by the door.
Why You Need a Go-Bag
We love spending time outside and exploring our surroundings – but leaving the house with a baby is daunting, even on the best mornings. Our favorite trick to leave the house?
Keep a “Go-Bag” packed and ready.
Having a bag packed and ready motivates us in many different ways. It’s one less thing we must consider before leaving the house. Plus, packing every night keeps us in an adventurous mindset.
Instead of waking up in the morning, deciding where to go, packing our bag, getting dressed, and getting the whole family out the door, we wake up motivated and packed. All we have to do is get dressed and head outside!
Here are our favorite tips (and supplies) to help you and your family create your own go-bag.
What is a Go-Bag
A Go-Bag is any backpack (or tote) you can always keep fully stocked. The word “Go-Bag” is generally used by people prepping for an apocalypse, and it’s fitting for your baby bag. We believe leaving the house without enough diapers is an apocalypse! Instead of preparing for the world’s end, we’re preparing for a day trip with our baby.
While not having everything you need may seem like the end of the world, I like to remind myself (and you, dear reader) that most destinations will either have a store or have one on the way. If you realize you need more diapers, wipes, or a different outfit, purchasing something is always an option.
Our regular go-bag.
- Water bottle
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- Pacifier
- Sunhat (for baby)
- Emergency money
- 2 Diapers
- Wipes
- Diaper Changing Clutch
- Change of clothes
- Snacks
We re-stock our Go-Bag every night before bed. What goes inside is based on the season, climate, and planned activities. Repacking every night helps us spontaneously decide to leave the house without packing everything.
Adapting your Go-Bag
Go-Bags are personal. You and your family may not need the same supplies as us, and we adapt our go-bag according to climate, activity, age, and food source.
Our Go-Bag Checklist is meant to give you a starting list, add or subtract things based on your (and your babies) needs.
Our general rule of thumb is, if we need it, pack it. If we didn’t, unpack it. Our first go-bag was a massive backpack filled with diapers, toys, snacks, multiple water bottles, and so much more unnecessary weight. We’ve removed item after item, streamlining our bag and getting our needs to the bare minimum.
Your baby and our baby are not the same baby. Ours is okay being dirty, and his parents are fine bringing home a filthy child – so we don’t always pack a change of clothes. Our baby is (fingers crossed!) not a picky eater, so we don’t have to bring a full meal with us everywhere.
Our baby’s lack of allergies means we can rely on stores while out and about to restock our diapers, wipes, and snacks if need be. This is not the case for all babies!
By Activity
I know, you’re probably thinking the whole idea of the go-bag was not to pack based upon activity, but hear me out.
Depending on where you live, how you live, and what your hobbies are, you are going to have different ideas of fun from us. When living in Thailand, for example, our favorite family activity was a beach day. Our Beach Day Go-Bag had towels, swimsuits, sunscreen, and a life jacket. None of which we need in Madeira, where our go-to activity is hiking!
| Activity | Contents |
| Hiking | Change of Clothes: Outer and Inner Layer (Onesie, sweater, pants, tights) Additional Layer Additional Snacks Sunhat or Beanie Wet Bag for Dirty Clothes Changing Mat for Outdoor Diaper Changes Thermos with Tea |
| Shopping | Optional Outer Layer Change of Clothes Handheld Snacks for Baby |
| Beach Day Swimming | 2 Swim Diapers (If swimming in Pools) Towel (1 per family member) Picnic Blanket Sunshade Sunhat Swimsuit Wet Bag for Swimsuits + Diaper Optional: Swim Ring or Life Jacket |
Your destination also influences how much you need to pack. If we’re going to the mall, city, or exploring a nearby town, we won’t pack as many snacks, drinks, or diapers as we would when heading out into the wilderness. Why? Because we’ll be able to purchase those things at our destination. We won’t bring our credit cards with us on hiking trips – the small kiosks we’re likely to drive or hike by only accept cash anyways.
By Weather
Another factor that heavily influences what you need to pack? The weather!
When visiting family in cold Germany, we pack an extra bag filled with clothes. This is because our baby loves to crawl outside and gets cold, wet, and dirty – fast! We bring an outer layer and an inner layer for cold environments – not the middle layer, as this tends to remain clean.
When traveling through the tropics, we pack more drinks, an additional sun hat, sunglasses, and sunscreen. All of which are unnecessary in cold Germany!
Other weather-based additions are sunglasses for the adults, a sun hat or winter hat for the baby, and additional layers. One thing we’ve noticed with our baby is the difference in appetite based on the temperature. We pack more snacks for cold climates and more liquids for warmer days.
| Weather | Contents |
| Freezing (below 32°F or 0°C) | Change of Clothes: Outer and Inner Layer Additional Layer Additional Snacks Extra Hat Wet Bag for Dirty Clothes Changing Mat for Outdoor Diaper Changes Thermos with Tea |
| Cold (below 45°F or 7°Celsius) | Change of Clothes: Outer and Inner Layer Additional Layer Extra Shoes Additional Snacks Extra Hat Wet Bag for Dirty Clothes Changing Mat for Outdoor Diaper Changes Thermos with Tea |
| Mild (45°F – 70°F) (7°C – 21°C) | Additional Layer Rain Suit Sun Hat Thermos with Tea |
| Warm (71°F – 90°F) (21°C – 32°C) | Sunscreen Sun Hat Sarong Additional Water Bottle Optional: Swim Bag |
| Hot (above 90°F or 32°C) | Sunscreen Sun Hat Sarong Additional Water Bottle Additional Fruit Squeezies Swim Bag Optional: Handheld Fan |
By Age
Our Go-Bag has shrunk as our baby grows. This is not only due to us becoming more experienced parents. Until he was 3 months old, our baby needed a clean diaper roughly every hour. That meant packing 4-6 diapers for a 4-hour trip. We also needed more changes of clothes (spit-up accidents were frequent), but didn’t need snacks or drinks for the baby – he was breastfed.
Now, at the age of 1, we focus on snacks for the baby and, honestly, only need to change his diaper every 3/4 hours or after a poo. We do try to change his diaper every other hour, but he doesn’t need as frequent changes. This means we only need to pack 1 to 2 diapers for a 4-hour trip. He also no longer spits up, or smears food in his shirt – so we don’t always pack a change of clothes. He does need snacks and water now, so we always have at least one fruit squeezie and a small container of crackers.
| Age | Contents |
| 0 – 3 Months | Diapers: 1 per 45 minutes Change of Clothes: 2 complete outfits Water + Snacks for Mom Burp Cloths: 2 small |
| 3 – 6 Months | Diapers: 1 per hour Change of Clothes: 1 complete outfit Water and Snacks for Mom Burp Cloths: 1 large or 2 small |
| 6 – 9 Months | Diapers: 1 for every 1,5 hrs Change of Clothes: 2 tops, 1 bottom Water + Snacks for Mom Small Hand Snack for Baby + 1 Squeezy Burp Cloth: 1 large (doubles as Bib) |
| 9 – 12 Months | Diapers: 1 for every 2 hrs Change of Clothes: 2 tops, 1 bottom Small Container with multiple snacks for baby 1 Squeezy Package Burp Cloth: 1 large (doubles as Bib) Baby Spoon |
| 12 months + | Diapers: 1 (if baby has pooed – 2 if not) Change of Clothes: Optional Lots of snacks 2 squeezies Bottle of Water with Straw for Baby |
By Food-Source
One major difference we’ve noticed between our baby and those of our friends? Their food source.
Our baby was exclusively breastfed because it worked for our family. That made packing his food simple for the first six months – as long as Mama was there, so was his food!
Once he started eating solids, our Go-Bag got a little heavier. We began to pack snacks, squeeze packets, spoons, bibs, and water bottles. Now, we’ve gotten rid of some items – like bibs and utensils, but we’ve added in a whole lotta snacks!
Babies who are bottle-fed, formula-fed, or eating solids need additional items packed. Not all these items can be prepared the night before – Do not pack frozen breastmilk in a regular backpack overnight!
Fed is best – no matter how you feed your baby, you’re doing a great job! Some feeding methods require a little more thought than others, but all are filled with love.
Since we exclusively breastfed, I don’t understand the logistics behind bottle or formula feeding, and I can’t provide a packing list based on my experience. Here is one I found through internet research; I hope it’s accurate.
Shopping List: Amazon
I’ve got great news! I now have an Amazon Page where I link all our favorite products. Now, you can click on the list and get our favorite diaper clutch, paci holders, and water bottle. No scrolling and searching necessary.
Here’s the link:
Leave a Reply