Mum things I can’t live without

I don’t plan what the three of us are doing at the beginning of the week. I can never decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing, but I love the variety. My Mum often says that I need to make the most of my freedom before I am tied down to a school routine, and that is exactly what I try and do.

Our Monday, Tuesday and Friday mornings are spoken for, but the rest of the week I play by ear. Weather is an obvious factor in what we decide to do, and often I’ll ask Winston if he has anything in mind. I always pack our bag the night before, then I don’t have to think about it in the morning and we are ready to go.

Aside from the usual nappies, wipes and water essentials that I always have on me, these are things I could not live without. They make our days more comfortable and (I feel) much more flexible.

LunchBots

I’ve written about LunchBots before, but I love them so much and we use them all the time. Winston has the Trio, Rufus has the Duo and I have the Uno. They are compact, sturdy and can be packed with so many different foods. Sometimes I pack a lunch just in case we stay out longer than expected. It means I don’t have to stress about finding a cafe or a shop.

Oi Oi Compact Changing Mat

I’ve never owned a nappy bag or baby bag. I don’t like the look of (most of) them and I didn’t ever want to carry around unnecessary things. Before children my handbag was kept quite tidy, and I didn’t have loads of random things in it. I pack nappies, wipes, bags and spare clothes in the Oi Oi changing mat which means I just transfer it from bag to bag. I change the bag I use every few weeks. I don’t consider myself a tidy person, but maybe I am? You can see it peeking out of my bag above.

The Body Shop Hemp hand protector

I wash my hands so many times a day, and this is the only cream that I’ve found stays on after lots and lots of washes. My hands (and lips) are very prone to cracking, particularly in cold weather and this does the job wonderfully. It isn’t the most feminine of smells, but I’ve come to love it. It’s really good stuff.

A camera

We have a small digital camera that I carry with me most of the time. When we’re out at the park or have gone for a day out, I leave my phone in the car, so I’m not distracted or checking it out of habit. The same reason I have recently started to wear a watch.

A cheap holiday buggy

We only bought a cheap fold down buggy before going to Spain in 2013, but I wish we’d bought one as soon as Winston was 6 months. They are so useful for keeping in the car and you can pack so much on them. It can easily fit into our boot along with our double buggy. They are so practical.

A baby carrier

Again this is something I wish I had bought sooner with Winston. If I start thinking about how much easier my life would have been I start to feel angry! I don’t carry Rufus very much now, but I carried him a lot as a baby. It made the transition from one to two children much easier, and meant I had two hands whilst trying to catch a straying toddler. When Rufus was newborn we had a Moby and now he’s bigger we use the Ergo. We bought both from eBay – the Moby was £12 and the Ergo we got for around £55. The picture below is from our recent trip to Berlin – Rufus is asleep in the Ergo. Nowadays I use it if he’s over tired or ill.

What items can’t you live without?

E xx

This is not a sponsored post.