A Beautiful Disaster

That's what I would refer to my motherhood as...

When we leave the house Bryan always laughs at me because I have a whole mess of stuff neatly packed into my diaper bag that never seems to be big enough.  "We'll only be gone for 20 minutes."  Being the overly prepared mother that I am, I know better than that.  You never know when you're going to need a change of clothes for a dirt lovin' toddler, or if the weather changes from 90 degrees to freezing (evidently I'm prepared for natural disasters too), or even when you'll need to change a diaper.  Then there's snacks for baby, mom, and dad, along with a sippy cup and a water bottle; Bryan is always lecturing us on the importance of hydration ("My leg hurts..."  "Drink Water.").  You can't forget the fundamentals; wallet, keys, phone, and sunglasses (that go into a case that's way to bulky).  I even have hand sanitizer, lotion, a pen and notepad, a few First Aid items, because you never know when dad will need pain killers, ointment, and band aids, and how can you forget a few basic beauty essentials for mom; chapstick, lipgloss, bobby pins, and a manicure set.  Besides, it's better to have something and not need it than need something and not have it, right?  Please tell me I'm not the only obsessive compulsive parent out there...

After having gone through many diaper bags over the past year, it's obvious, I'm picky.  If it lays wrong, if I don't feel organized, it just doesn't work out.  So I took to making them.  The most recent one I made lasted for well over 6 months and I wonder how.  With no zipper, drawsting, or cinch, it was open for the world to see what I carried around with me and worse when it was placed on a flat surface.

Before:  Open for all eyes to see

New and Improved!  A cinched tote with room to spare, and it's reversible!  My husband called it my Santa Bag, I guess it's pretty big.  The tutorial I used for this oversized tote I found at This Big Oak Tree.  Although it doesn't say it's reversible, it's pretty easy to make it.  All you have to do is flip it right side out and weave the belt back through the button holes on the outside.  Just make sure to use two different coordinating fabrics, that you will enjoy!  In my case, I've been looking at these two silk pillow cases for a couple of months now.  Mark it up to my frugality!

After:  Privacy