As a mom on the go, it seems like we are always hauling around backpacks, bags, and beverages! But there are a few things I have learned to ALWAYS keep in my vehicle to avoid disasters and to make life just a little bit easier when we aren’t at home. Here are 10 things I love to have for those “just in case” moments.

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It’s summertime and all of a sudden I feel like the gear and “stuff” we are hauling around suddenly grew by 10x.

Chances are, if you’re a mom, you may already have some key “ingredients” that live in your vehicle. But I’m learning in real time that summer is a whole new beast that comes with a lot more contingencies to plan for.

It’s also a great time to be spontaneous and adventurous. Here in the Midwest, summer is short so there is always something going on or an event to check out. There are endless amounts of farmer’s markets, food truck festivals, playgrounds, splash pads, garage sales, pop-up shops, and lakes to check out.

Many times I find we are doing these types of things on the fly, totally unplanned, or as a last minute decision because we were invited by friends or happened to drive by and decide to stop.

I realized pretty quickly that there were some things that added weight or took up space in the backpack, purse, or other bag that I wanted to have with us but didn’t want to continue hauling in and out of the truck after every errand, outing, or trip.

So, I came up with the plan to keep a “car kit” (or “truck tote” for us): A few specific items that will stay in the truck for those just-in-case, freak accident, or we-use-this-all-the-time moments.

A dry change of clothes. This has come in clutch for me twice now, and has allowed us to be spontaneous with things like splash pads or a lakeside beach. Viv decided last minute at the playground the other day that she wanted to check out the splash pad next to it.

We didn’t have swimsuits or towels with us because we weren’t planning on getting wet. I loved being able to say “go for it!” knowing I had a dry change of clothes for her waiting in the truck. And she loved it because I didn’t say “no, you can’t get wet.”

I keep a t-shirt that is too big for her from an event we attended, and a spare pair of shorts that I bought doubles of last year, plus a pair of clean underwear. You could even use hand-me-down clothes, secondhand, or ones that are stained but still fit.

The reverse also works for you to change your kiddo out of their nicer, every day clothes if they want to go, say, play in the mud or do the paint activity you didn’t know was happening at the library today.

And hey, if packing clothes feels like too much for you to keep in your vehicle, grab a towel or old blanket you don’t care about. That way you can at least dry them off or have them wipe off mud or paint or whatever else they got into when you glanced at that text message you just got.

I like having the change of clothes vs the towel because then I don’t have to clean or dry out Viv’s car seat on top of the wet/dirty clothes.

Don’t forget an extra top or shorts for yourself if you’re planning on joining in on the fun!

Tissues + a roll of paper towels. After the last round of head colds Viv and I had, I am not without tissues in the vehicles EVER. Not only does she hate having snot dripping out of her nose, but so do I, and now that she’s old enough to wipe and blow her own nose, I can hand them to her so she can handle her nose.

I like the travel sized packs. You can get 8 small tissue packs that fit in a purse nicely, and this way I can toss a few into my center console and not have a battered up tissue box floating around the truck or getting stepped on and buried under backpacks and bags.

I also like that I can just grab a pack and toss it into my purse if I run out without having to remember to grab it from home.

I also learned to keep a roll of paper towels in one of the backseat doors after the chocolate donut mess of ’24. For those messy moments or spills, it’s nice to have them available should you need them.

Wet wipes come in handy too for car messes like this, and the wet wipes are nice to wipe down car seats and sticky, messy hands. If your littles are still in diapers, then you probably already have wipes with you, which is sufficient. If yours are potty trained like mine, add a travel pack with resealable top to your grocery list.

I keep both in my truck, but I definitely recommend having something to help clean up messy hands or sticky residue.

A ball cap. Two years ago I left a hat in my truck by accident and it ended up staying there. But I never took it out because it has actually come in handy occasionally and I’ve used it a handful of times now.

Bad hair days, windy days that suddenly made it a bad hair day, unexpected rain, humidity, disguise yourself from someone you know at the same place you are and want to avoid them recognizing you (kidding, sort of), or just because you feel like wearing a hat suddenly.

Whatever the reason, I have just found it extremely helpful to have a hat on occasion. If a ball cap isn’t for you, maybe it’s a bucket hat, sun hat, trucker hat, or some other kind of head wear that you would find stylish and useful in a pinch.

Similar, but different…a handful of ouchless hair ties and a few hair clips or bobby pins. Since Viv has had hair long enough to put up, she mostly chooses not…to put it…up. And it’s bit her in the butt a few times when we’ve been out and about, especially at playgrounds or splash pads when the sun is out, because girl gets HOT quickly.

For this reason, I’m not without them anymore. I’ve let go of the battle of trying to get her to put her hair up when it’s supposed to be hot and sunny, and now I just carry a few with us for the inevitable time she tells me she’s too hot and wants to put her hair up.

I keep a couple in her backpack, the center console of the truck, and a couple emergency ones in my bag so that we always have them. They’re small and don’t take up a lot of space, which is why we keep them in several spots.

Her hair is super fine, so I also pack a couple of clips to help keep the strays at bay and out of her eyes.

These have also come in clutch for me too occasionally, so don’t be afraid to keep some of your favorite around too. I also started keeping a clip so I can just twist and clip it up if I need to.

An umbrella. Remember back there how I suggested a change of clothes for your littles in case they get wet? I know I used the example of an impromptu splash pad, but there is always the chance your littles decide to do some puddle jumping or splashing when it’s raining.

So that you are not also soaked and don’t have a change of clothes (unless you packed for you too!), I suggest keeping an umbrella in one of the doors or behind-the-seat-pockets of your vehicle.

Viv loves puddle jumping. I personally think it’s because she has grown up with Peppa Pig, but whatever the reason, girl has never met a puddle she didn’t want to jump in. And sometimes she wants to do it while it’s raining.

Speaking to spontaneity again, I can say “go for it!” while I stay dry under my umbrella (and also knowing I have that change of clothes for her).

It does not have to be a huge golf umbrella or anything designer or expensive. I think the one in my truck came from Five Below and I only paid $3-$5 for it. This is a contingency umbrella. It doesn’t need to be fancy unless you want it to be. But be mindful of the space you have too. Mine can tuck right into the door in the backseat. It would drive me nuts to have to move it around all the time.

A basic first aid kit. Get ready for all the scrapes, bumps, bruises, bug bites, and slivers that summer has to offer by keeping a very basic first aid kit in your center console.

I actually have two: one that I keep in the truck and one in Viv’s backpack so that we have one that comes with us and a backup one on the off-chance that we don’t have her backpack with us.

You can find a basic, pre-filled first aid kit at just about any retailer. Usually they come with Bandaids, antiseptic, gauze, burn treatment, and sometimes a small tweezers.

You don’t have to buy a kit if you don’t want to. You can make your own, which I actually recommend, because then you can make sure you have exactly the things you’ll need and use.

We went through the contents of one of the kits fairly quickly last year, so I ended up refilling it with things we actually used, and tossed the stuff that we would likely never use (like the burn treatment and temporary butterfly stitches) to make room for the stuff I know we will need.

Our kits have tons of Bandaids (about two packs worth of various sizes), alcohol wipes or spray antiseptic for cleaning cuts and scrapes, a tweezers for slivers, and disposable cold compacts that activate when you crack or squeeze it (like a glow stick).

It may not fit in a kit, but you might also want to keep a bottle of sunscreen just in case you forget or the one in your backpack is running low and you didn’t know until you got to your destination.

Variety of snacks. This one may seem obvious, but I do think it’s worth mentioning. I specifically buy snacks to keep in the vehicles. Things that don’t melt that come in individually wrapped packs.

Some of our go-to’s are veggie straws, goldfish crackers, and teddy grahams. These stay in the truck and are available at all times if we need one to tide us over until we can get home.

I choose ones that aren’t really affected by temperature and are easy to open, with portion control, versus a bag of something that my kiddo would eat the entire bag of, or spill everywhere.

I also pack myself snacks to keep in my truck.

My snacks stay in my center console and are unavailable to my kiddo. These are mine. Not because I’m not willing to share, but because she has her own snacks to choose from. Mine are also usually more expensive.

If you are not keeping a snack for yourself, I highly recommend it. I don’t know about you, but I’m usually the last one to be fed in this house. Occasionally I’m running on caffeine, sunshine, and a prayer, and on those days when I leave the house and then realize when I’m halfway to our destination that I didn’t grab something to eat…I can grab something from my stash.

I also choose things that aren’t affected by temperature, or that are moderately, but I can eat carefully enough to not make a giant mess (unlike my kiddo).

I keep things like mixed nuts, trail mix (without chocolate), granola bars (again, sans chocolate and usually no peanut butter), or lunch pack sized bags of chips.

I have also, on occasion, kept a box of Crystal Light packets, or something similar in case I want a quick beverage and we’re sick of water (these are especially nice after a beach day).

We think about our kids all the time. Don’t forget to have what you might need too.

Plastic disposable bags. Think Target or Walmart bags that you don’t need after shopping. These can come in clutch for a variety of things and I always keep a couple tucked in the pocket behind my seat.

They can be used to put wet clothes in (remember the impromptu splash pad?), get rid of something yucky, sticky, or extra garbage you’ve got piled up, if you need to pick something up without touching it at a park, as an emergency dog poop bag, and–I cannot stress how helpful this has been for this one–a puke bag.

I especially like these bags because you can tie it up, and dispose of it easily.

Doodle board, car bingo, or wipeable drawing board. There are days when Viv is just sick of being in the truck. She’s restless, impatient, tired, or a combination of all. Having a doodle board for her with a stylus pen for her to draw on has been great.

I’m not above screen time in these instances either, but sometimes I don’t want the noise either and when she doesn’t need any additional stimulation, I can hand it to her and ask her to draw me a map to help me get home.

Sometimes it only buys me a couple of minutes. Sometimes she draws on it then entire time we’re in the truck. All I know is that these types of reusable entertainment are very helpful to keep things from getting loud and preventing whining and meltdowns.

I also keep them in the truck so they don’t lose their appeal playing with them all the time. They are special “just for the truck” toys.

Then when we get home, I tuck it back in the pocket behind the seat where I can easily grab it for her again next time.

Cash money. I’m not talking about leaving a fat stack in your vehicle. I don’t want to get you robbed, okay? I’m talking like $5-$10 worth of dollar bills and a variety of coins, especially a few quarters and pennies.

Not only is it lemonade stand season, but also garage sale season. Maybe that’s not your thing (it’s truly not mine), but having a few dollars comes in handy.

Ice cream truck that shows up at the park, fountain to toss a coin into to make a wish, farmer’s market, random cupcake and cookie pop-up fundraiser in the grocery store parking lot…I could go on and on. Lots of places have some type of digital payment now, but there are occasions when they only take cash.

This has come in clutch for me so many times, especially the coin tossing into the fountain, oddly enough. Viv now asks me, “Mom, do you have any coins I can use?” because she knows I started keeping them in the truck for just such the occasion.

I also keep a few quarters so that, as a surprise and inexpensive treat, we can use one of those little toy vending machines that are always in the grocery store entryways or exits to get a little toy necklace, temporary tattoo, or handful of M&Ms.

Kids love it and it usually only costs two quarters.

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There you have it–the ten things that I am never without that stay in my truck at all times. Maybe you already have all these things in your vehicle too. Consider this a reminder to check and make sure you are fully stocked!

I usually check once every other week to make sure we don’t need to replace anything that we may have used, and if I know we need snacks, it gets added to the grocery list immediately.

Summer is such a fun and busy time and this is one way I can make sure we make the most of it by not letting the minor hiccups stop our fun and experiences.

I hope you found this helpful!

Until next time,