Does a decent “changing bag” exist that you can wear as a rucksack?

Mrs S. and I are expecting our first bundle of sleep/money/fun depriving misery joy in a month and apparently we need a nappy bag to, by the sounds of things, literally keep shit in. I was going to hang a carrier bag over the pram handles but apparently you can’t be a yummy mummy (dishy daddy?) and do that. Even if it is a Waitrose one.

Both of us have broken our backs in the past and both have persistent back pain so would like to avoid messenger style bags if possible.

I’ve tried looking for backpack changing bags (preferably with waist belts) that look well made but can’t find much. Basically I want Osprey, Pod, etc. to make a changing bag.

Suggestions and recommendations please or, if they don’t exist, ideas for useful alternatives.

I know it’s a messenger bag but I got the Timbuk2 Stork baby messenger bag. Great and still looks great after 4 years, now just used as a general bag. My wife barely used her designer spotty one and it’s still referred to as the daddy bag.

What was great was the change mat it came with. Padded, space to keep nappies, wipes and nappy bags in it the folded up and slipped in easy. If I wanted a rucksack to use instead I’d locate a good changing mat like that then find a rucksack with a hydration bladder slot that it easily slotted into and that had a few internal pockets and ideally had a large opening front flap bit like my old DaKine Helicopter pack but with space for bottles then also buy neoprene sleeves to keep bottles warm.

With our two kids we found you could just put a few nappies and changes of clothes etc in a normal ruc sac. One with a good wide opening zip works best.

Try a camera bag / rucksack . Lots of little compartments for the pile of junk that you will carry around for the next 3 years and usually have a laptop compartment which will take a fold away change mat.

Good ideas all, ta.

My original plan was to use my old wide opening bag with some alpkit stuff sacs. Seems my plan is stw approved so must be correct. I’ll see how that goes down.

We just use a rucksack with a few pockets. I have seen friends with very expensive changing bags, but generally they didn’t get on with them as they are heavy and bulky.

Remember you will be doing everything one handed, sometimes while holding a screaming child with a leaky nappy in the other hand, possibly a room with a dirty floor and nowhere to hang anything (most motorway service areas), so ease of access to changing map, wipes, nappy and nappy bags it important.
A separate pocket to contain dirty clothes away from the clean stuff is also useful.

Yup no need for a special bag just stick them in a ruck sack.

I used a Tesco carrier bag. It was even free at the time (I think they are 5p now). Excellent carry capability, adaptable handles (hands or hanging off pram), waterproof and many uses for other forms if carrying things.

If you can hang a Tesco bag off the pram why can’t you hang a designer changing bag? Or put it in the “shelf” under the child (basket type area) designed for carrying all the crap you need with kids. I am sure that there are overpriced prams with matching “systems”.

As above

We had a fancy changing bag, I hated it

I had a separate little bits that I would lob in my rucksack and keep topped up
– changing mat
– pouch with nappies and wipes etc
– pouch with spare clothes clothes

Much better. After a while my wife did the same in a handbag or other bag

You can get little roll-up changing-mats-with-pockets that you can fill with the essentials then chuck in any old rucksack. We kept meaning to get one, but got by just putting things in a rucksack when we weren’t using the proper changing bag.

My wife basically used the proper changing bag as a handbag, it’s surprising how much stuff you either need or probably don’t / won’t need but will make your life easier if you’ve got it…

You can spend a fortune on a changing bag, or you can get one without a designer logo on it for a fraction of the price that is practically the same. Ours wasn’t expensive at all, but it was definitely worth it.

Sling a few things in a carrier bag and tuck it in a corner of the pram. There’ll be plenty of room while the sprog is tiny. Then after a few weeks you’ll know that you don’t need half the crap that the books you’ve doubtless read on childcare tell you that you need.

Travel light. No one will care that little Tarquin doesn’t look catwalk ready. He, or she won’t give a damn either.

Spend less time worrying about what other people think. You’ll need all your energy caring for your offspring.

It needs your love and time, precious little else really matters.

Just get a good ruck sack (15/20L or so) with bungee straps on the front and side mesh pockets for bottles as once they have stopped shiting their pants, it will be a good day out bag. My wife just had a really big hand bag so she just used that.

I was all for just a daysack with stuff in but my missus had other ideas. I ended getting her this:

https://m.johnlewis.com/skip-hop-forma-changing-backpack-black/p/3316956

In fairness, it’s pretty decent and fits easily under the buggy.

Just get a rucksack that you like and put your stuff in it.

Buy a good outdoor brand rucksack and buy a pram you can stick it underneath (uppababy vista, you can stop looking). Only reason to get a messenger back is to hang it off the pram handles. But I find them difficult to actually carry when dealing with bra..kids I mean..you can hang rucksacks off the handles too. Risk is prams toppling over because of all the sh#t you carry in the bags. Get a rucksack with waist bands .

Buy good brand.not the best rated “changing bag” on Amazon. Your wife will say “but it has a changing mat and milk warming insulators “. You buy them separate anyway as they will be full of gunk and poo in 6 months anyways.

My wife had quite a nice change bag as in a blue black DPM pattern that I was happy to carry there is not much weight going in so it would not cause a major issue. I/we mostly used my eurohike daysack which I’ve used for everyday life for at least 20 years it has a hood pocket for my stuff wallet keys etc Clean baby clothes in a carrier bag,a fold up change mat , spare nappies inc nappy liner in another bag dirty nappies in a zip lock , wipes all inside in the main bag.used wipes in one side pocket in a zip lock, food and drink in the other side. We used reuseable wipes and nappies for the first few years so carried more shit than most.
Babies are actually quite natural to fit into your life and you don’t need to acquire a load of specialist kit.