Diaper bag for daycare

[c2lane]

I am going back to work at the end of April and need a diaper bag to send to daycare or do I need one?
I was thinking about either the LE Do-It-All or their deluxe backpack. I figure that we could use either for trips and/or leave it in the car on the weekends as an emergency bag.
For those of you who send your children to daycare, what do you use?

~Carrie
mommy to Dillan Rose 01/02/04

[Chelsey333]

When I used to work, I would drop my son off at my sil's house. I used a Gap diaper bag. It probably cost me about 40.00 and has some nice pockets in the inside, black microfiber or nylon on the outside. I wouldn't spend too much $ on something you are leaving at daycare. I don't know much about the LE bags, so I can't help there.

[hoffdna]

Did you get a couple of free bags from your doctor's office or the hospital, maybe from Similac or Enfamil? My daycare keeps DS bottles, formula, diapers and wipes at her home, which we only need to replace occasionally. So I only need to provide a few things such as clothing changes, bibs, and burp cloths on a daily basis, and I use one of my free bags. I wouldn't spend much, either!

[slknight]

I just have a basic LL Bean boat and tote bag. I just toss everything Alex needs for the day in there and unload it into his cubby (or the fridge) when I drop him off. I don't really see the need for a fancy diaper bag for daycare. I like the tote bag because it stands up by itself.

[kelly ann]

DS goes to a group daycare center. On a daily basis we just used a small cooler, but we only had to bring bottles of milk. They supply bibs, burp cloths, food, etc. As for diapers and wipes, they only needed refills every few weeks so we just carry that stuff in by hand as needed.

[parkersmama]

I also recommend the freebies from the hospital. When we were doing daycare, they provided bibs, feeding stuff (bowls, spoons, etc), wipes, blankets, and so on. We provided large packs of diapers when he needed them and kept a spare change of clothing there. The only things I really brought everyday were his bottles of EBM, a pacifier, and if he had something specific needed (blankie, etc). HTH!

[MamaKath]

It depends partly on your daycare. As the others mentioned, sometimes you don't need to pack diapers, food, or other items. When my first was little, she went to a home setting where she was the only daycare child. We packed everything she needed for that day. We tried a variety of bags from diaper bags including backpacks and Land's End bags, but settles on putting everything in a Vera Bradley Baby Bag, including all her food, etc. It is a larger bag, and comparable in size to the LE Do-it-all (older version), and it really was only used in their home so there was little concern about it.

Later when we had her and ds in a different home setting with multiple kids we left things like diapers, etc. For that care situation, I bought canvas totes at a craft store. I personalized them with fabric paints and foam stamps, then added their name. These were handy since the provider was not doing outings, etc. and could see easily which bag would hold each of my children's individual items.

Even now, if I know one of mine will be in a nursery situation, we pull out their mini totes to put a sippy, diapers and wipes, and a toy. I don't use these in overly public settings where their name on it might be of concern. I do have a couple friends (one has triplets in childcare) who use childrens backpacks that are color coded for each child and have their last name only embroidered on the back.
HTH~

[Kimberly H]

Mia is in group daycare where they keep the big packs of diapers and wipes in her cubbie so I only have to refill those occasionally. They provide bibs and such and I leave several changes of clothes and a spare blankie and jacket.

On a daily basis, I use a Target purse/tote. I bought it for me several years ago but it's the perfect size to use for daycare. Most days I carry Mia's breakfast to school in it and on Mondays it has her freshly washed blankie and whatever they were low on at the end of the previous week.

I think I paid less than $10 for the bag so it's great for me. There's a zipper on the outside, where I put the daycare check every other week, and the bag is very soft and just one large pocket. I can pretty much crumble/fold it up - no support at all, but I don't need it.

[c2lane]

Thank you all for your great suggestions. I do have a diaper bag that we received from the hospital which is good size. This whole daycare thing is really stressing me out. I'm really dreading going back to work.

~Carrie
mommy to Dillan Rose 01/02/04