I used to carry these cute little purses before I had kids. Man – they were all sorts of patterns and shapes. They were just stinking cute!
Then, I had stinkin’ cuties…and something happened. With each child, my purse seemed to enlarge. How big can you go, baby!?
And then Eli came along (#3) and my purse was super big and heavy and I wondered if when we had #4 down the road, would I need to start toting around a small carry-on? A roller suitcase? A wagon? A VW van?
But with Eli, I also noticed something disturbing. My shoulder hurt. My purse had gotten so large and heavy, I didn’t even like to carry it. And I know studies have shown that large purses aren’t good for us to be toting around – especially when we are also carrying children, groceries, and stray animals.
I decided I was done with big purses. I was jealous of those kid-free ladies carrying those cute little messenger bags with two things inside. Why can’t I do that?! Why do I have to carry around the kitchen sink? Band-aids? Toys? Books? Water bottles? Chestnuts (yes, chestnuts)?
I have a friend who just makes her diaper bag her purse. But I didn’t want to do that…because sometimes I want to go out without the diaper bag – like to a hair cut, doctor appointment, or to the mailbox in my pjs.
So, I downsized. And I could NOT be happier about it. My purse is small and easy to carry – and even my children can now carry it without getting a hernia.
How to downsize your mommy purse
Put diaper bag items in the DIAPER BAG.
Well, duh – you might be thinking. But maybe you don’t realize how much that’s in your purse that can really go in the diaper bag. A couple toys? The epi-pen? Wipes? Band-aids? Empty out your purse and put what belongs in the diaper bag in its rightful spot.
Throw out all the trash – and don’t let it back in.
Somehow my purse becomes the trash bin. Really? Do I look like a Hefty bag? Don’t answer that. Teach my kids your kids to put trash in the trash.
Go to ONE wallet instead of TWO.
Maybe no one else is having this problem. But I had two wallets. One that was just mine and one that was our budget envelopes. I decided to downsize to ONE wallet and create a lot of space in my purse. I went with the Savvy Cents budget wallet and could NOT be happier.
If you don’t need it – put it in the car/van.
I had a lot of things that didn’t necessarily need to be in my purse. They could have just as easily been stored in my van – because if I’m out of the house, I’m with my van. And it is almost always readily accessible. Extra pads (yes, I said it), scissors (yes), First Aid items, extra tissues and lip balm, extra keys, chestnuts. So, I went with two smaller zip bags and put items in my van in the glove box and it’s working great!
So what’s in my purse now?
A budget wallet. Tissues. Chapstick. Gum. Pen. Mints. Knife. That’s all. And it smells like teen spirit freedom.
Where did you find the purse?
Now I’m down to a small, lightweight purse and I LOVE IT! I was able to find a Nine West cross-body bag from Thred Up. I won’t lie – some of their bags are HOLY MOLY expensive…but if you like expensive purses, you might want to check it out. However, a $20 bag that I can use for every season is good enough for me. I was tickled I was able to find exactly what I was looking for at Thred Up…as usual (as a side note, if you use my affiliate link right now, you can get $20 for signing up instead of their normal $10!!!).
Won’t you join me in the Mommy Purse Freedom Revolution?! Stop killing your back and start killing stink bugs.
This has been a message from the National Coalition for the Eternal Destruction of Stink Bugs.
Do you carry a Mommy Purse??
I’m a combination of you and your friend! I keep a fully stocked diaper bag in the car at ALL TIMES. It has changes of clothes, diapers, snacks, first aid kit, etc. – everything you MIGHT ever need. It never leaves the car.
I generally just carry my purse into places – wallet, phone, small zipper bag with things like lip gloss and tissues, and my keys.
I have a small Skip Hop animal backpack that I use as a diaper bag if I want to have some things on me plus my purse items. If we are going on a longer errand, I will bring in that bag with snacks/water bottles plus my purse contents – still smaller than a diaper bag, but allows me to have just what we need when my small purse isn’t quite enough.
True about the stocking of the car. I have my car so well stocked, that I really only need to bring my purse with me. Half the stuff I *might* need is in the car. I just bring 2-3 diapers in a wet/dry bag, my wallet, and my phone in my purse. It’s lovely.
I carried a little purse (like so small I clipped my keys on the outside because they didn’t fit inside) until I had a kid with cancer. Suddenly I needed a purse big enough to carry supplies and entertainment (crossword puzzles anyone?) to all those long Dr. appointments. It’s been 4 years now, and I’ve had it! I got a smaller purse. My purse isn’t can’t-hold-the-keys small anymore, but it’s not big enough to cause back pain or store the kids rock and feather collections. : ) Oh happy day!
Oh, so you have feather collectors too, huh? 🙂
As much as I miss it, I admit I’m glad to be out of the ‘mommy, hold my chestnut / rock / mangled flower’ phase hahaha! I carry a purse big enough to hold a small book, my wallet and a few odds and ends like keys, tissues, lipbalm and hand sanitizer. It has lots of pockets so I’m not digging for 5 minutes in a line up. I think I paid $40 canadian a few years ago and it is still in great condition.
I have a purse and a diaper bag. I keep a wristlet style purse (basically a huge wallet) that I use as my wallet and I transfer it between purse and diaper bag. (I refuse to carry the diaper bag as a purse!)
I had to laugh at the hefty bag comment. The amount of straight up trash in my purse was astounding! Like, how did it become my job to be the traveling trash receptical for my entire family?!
I know, right?!
This is great! I carry a purse that is way to heavy. I do notice that it causes my shoulder and neck to hurt. But not having what I “might” makes me anxious. 🙂 I would love to be able to carry a smaller bag. I will work on this.
Yep – sounds like your bag was like mine. I hope you can downsize and relieve your shoulder!
After baby #4 I finally made the switch to a backpack. Diaper bags hurt my shoulder, I wanted my hands free etc and the weight is distributed more evenly. I purchased a super cute printed one on sale with a matching wallet and I love it! I am careful not to fill it with too much but I like that I have a few compartments, I keep a few diapers and wipes in one, snacks and my wallet in another, gum, keys and phone in the front pocket. It seriously has saved my back and I can’t imagine going back! Especially when you have 4 all less than 2 years apart and sometimes need access to those extra diapers or pads while out and don’t want to go back to the car 😉
I switched to a back pack after #2 (we now have 4 as well). Once I no longer need that much then I go back to my (medium sized) purse.
I don’t prefer to have two separate bags – purse and diaper. It feels like more to keep track of or prep. It feels simpler for me to have a purse that can hold a diaper and a snack. I can handle the minor impingement on my freedom. 😉
We recently had number four and I switched to a slightly larger than a wallet purse that can get tucked in the diaper bag. It’s fantastic. When I was going to the chiropractor for some prenatal adjustments, I never felt like I would ruin what had just been done by slinging my purse over my shoulder.
I just recently switched to smaller purses and I love it. I stopped carrying all of the stuff I didn’t need to be carrying with me on a daily basis. I have also been throwing away or managing my receipts daily instead of letting them pile up in my purse. I love watching you on Periscope and I also love your humor. Have a great weekend.
Thanks a bunch! I think I’ll periscope on this. 🙂