"Best Of" Week--What to Pack in your Disney Diaper Bag

I am a rather organized person.  I like lists and spreadsheets and doing my research on a given topic.  This even extends to what to carry in my Disney diaper bag.  For months prior to our April 2010 trip, I searched the internet for ideas on what I should and shouldn't carry.  So now the work is done for you.  This list was for a 12 month old child who was still using formula and bottles and ate mostly table food. 

First we should start with the bag itself.  If you look back at my review on my Maclaren Volo stroller, you'll see that I didn't have much storage space available there.  We wanted to travel light anyway.  We've all been guilty of overpacking from time to time, but it pays to put a little extra thought into the Disney diaper bag and pare things down a bit.  I found a good diaper backpack ($10) at a local resale event.  It was a navy blue Eddie Bauer bag with nothing that screamed diaper bag.  This was key because my husband would be carrying this bag most of the time at the parks and it has been designated as his bag when he takes the girl out on Sunday afternoons to give me a break.  It has various sections of good sizes that let us separate different categories of supplies.  For Christmas, I got a backpack for the digital SLR camera on indefinite loan from my father.  I carried that bag with the cameras and my personal items.  I really like it and will review it at some point in the future.  Lowepro Fastpack 100 (Red)

Here are the supplies I packed in the diaper bag and some notes on what did and didn't work.

• antibacterial wipes--I like the regular sized travel packs.  I had gotten some oversized wipes but those didn't fit in my bag and seem like overkill 
• applesauce cup--maybe used one that week
• bandaids
• bibs--disposable bibs are great at WDW!  I had Pampers bibs.
• birthday cards for characters etc to sign (separate post coming)
• bottles--2
• burp cloth--multi-purpose
• change of clothes--never needed this.  Next trip she'll be 18 months, so I'll carry a onesie for an emergency.  If something crazy happens, then I have a great excuse to go shopping.  If we were visiting in the warmer months, I'd take a change of clothes to allow for playtime in the fountains.
• changing pad
• clothes pins--carried these with the intention of pinning a thin blanket to the stroller to make a shade when Tink was sleeping but never needed them
• diaper garbage bags--I always have the version of this without the duck in our diaper bags.  (Thanks Keri!) 
• diapers--I packed about 8 but didn't need nearly that many.
• extra tote bag--One of the reusable shopping bags that folds into a very small pouch.  This came in handy several times.
• formula--Tink was having formula at meals and at bedtime, so I carried two of the single packs that make 4 oz each.
• pen for characters
• poncho--I carried one of the tiny emergency style ones this time.
• rain cover--My stroller came with its own rain cover.  I kept it in the organizer bag on the stroller.
• sippy cup and leash--I put 'no throw' straps on either side of the stroller to hold a sippy cup and a toy.  If Tink dropped her drink or toy, we didn't lose them.
• small blanket--Receiving blankets have lots of uses.
• small book and toy
• snack container--I have a formula dispenser that I like better as a snack holder.  Its three compartments are great for holding cheerios, yogurt drops, etc.  Or the divider comes out and you can carry a large amount of one snack.
• snacks--These little apple snacks are fabulous!  I got Mickey and Princess packs.  They have lots of other fruits but we've only tried the apples.  The Gerber yogurt drops were fantastic on the bus.
• spoons--the take and toss kind
• sunblock
• sunhat
• sweatshirt--I carried a lightweight hoodie jacket but we never used it.  Some places at WDW are really chilly, so I'd carry it again, just in case.
• table covers--The disposable table covers were really handy.
• tissues
• veggie cup (peas)--Don't think I ever needed this.  Tink ate well everywhere we went.
• water
• wipes
• ziplocs--Two large and two medium. One of each to hold items in the diaper bag and then another to hold dirty items. This helped me know what needed to be washed each night.

What else do you carry with you to the parks or just on a long day out at home?  Thanks for sharing your ideas!


This blog post appeared in the 5th DisMarks.com Blog Carnival! Check out more fantastic Disney websites and articles over at the Carnival.