Diaper Bags

Friday afternoon I got a bee in my bonnet that I needed a diaper bag right away. I spent a few hours window-shopping online and by the time Chris called me on his way home from work, I could only say one thing: I need a Petunia Picklebottom. “You need a who?” he asked. I had fallen in love with their vintage-looking tweed fabric, not to mention the adorable name (I have to admit that the names of things influence my paint and lipstick purchases as well).

Chris was a real sport to drive to a store in Zionsville with me on Friday afternoon so I could check out Petunia Picklebottom in person. I had called to verify the store hours and that they carried the line. A saleswoman pointed me in the right direction and said the diaper bags were 50% off. I said, “I’m sorry, how much off?” She repeated: fifty percent.

Sadly, I did not care for the Petunia Picklebottoms in person. The fabrics were a bit loud and the bags felt unstructured and had too much velcro. Nevertheless, I spent nearly an hour in the store debating between some models of another brand: DanteBeatrix. Of course, I loved the literary nod of this company’s name and was thrilled to see that they had included a pen pocket in the bag (only later to find out the pocket was for spoons — spoons? — will I really need to carry spoons around in my bag?).

The saleswomen tried to help me decide – one bag was clearly too big for me, as much as I wanted it. The second bag I was ready to purchase until one saleswoman brought out a Vera Bradley bag and tried to sell me on that because it’s washable. No offense to the Vera Bradley fans but it’s just not my style. I don’t want a purse that can go in the washing machine (and looks like a quilt) and let’s face it, a diaper bag is essentially a new purse.

I returned to the store on Sunday, convinced I wanted the big bag. I do, afterall, want to be one of the overly-prepared moms. You need an umbrella? Here it is. You need an apple? Got it. You want a blanket? Covered. You want spoons? Oh yeah, I got that. Surprisingly, the bag was still too big for me.

Before heading to bed on Sunday night, I looked at BabyBargains.com to see what deals had been posted on the message board. One of the deals was for a Fleurville Re-Run Messenger Diaper Bag – on sale online for $45! It’s a trimmer version of their popular “MotherShip” bag (gotta love that name). So, here is my new diaper bag:

And the best thing? The bag is made from recycled plastic and each bag keeps 10 plastic bottles from a landfill.