Must Have's

Wouldn't you agree? What's inside a woman's purse tells everything about them. It's where we keep all our favorite beauty supplies - things we couldn't possibly leave the house without - and tells a story about our eating habits, shopping splurges and everyday responsibilities.

I thought it'd be fun to show you the contents of my purse (or really my work bag, because it serves as mine). Maybe you'll learn a thing or two about my inner-personality!

1. A can of Red Bull Sugar Free (the 8.2 oz. size because those other ones are just crazy big). Red Bull's the way I've started every morning since I was in college. Always have a can floating around my bag or my car in case the need strikes.

2. Burt's Bees Cuticle Cream is the only way to go for dry, cracked nails and cuticles. I've always had a horrible habit of picking the skin around my fingernails til they bleed. A nervous habit, I guess. This product helps to heal my hands and keeps me from picking - tackles 2 birds w/ one stone, really.

3. Dr. Scholl's Miracle Shield is a godsend and I never leave home without it. Everyone knows that part of being a girl is wearing cute shoes. And cute shoes more often than not = blisters and pain. A couple of years ago I discovered this magical product that protects against shoe rubbing. And it really works!

4. Burt's Bees Lip Balm with pomegranate oil is my favorite. An absolute never-leave-home-without item. I love that Burt's Bees products are all-natural too. I've been thinking a lot more about that lately. While I've made great strides to eat more sustainability this year, I haven't done much in the way of changing the products I use. Like ... I'm going to go ahead and guess that coloring my hair w/ harsh chemicals every 8 weeks isn't so good for me ... ya think?

5. Keys to my car, of course.

6. Photo cord for my camera in case I need to upload some photos while I'm out and about. I used to have a tiny one that was perfect for purse carrying but it was stolen when my car was broken into earlier this year. So now I carry this big not-as-cool one.

7. My eco-friendly notebook, you know for note-taking and such.

8. My wallet that I absolutely love, love, love. I picked it up at Patina - a cute little Twin Cities boutique a while back. It's great to carry just as a clutch (which I do a lot of times when I don't want to carry a purse) or shove it into my gigantic work bag when I'm, well, working.

9. My beloved Blackberry. You are my friend.

10. A pack of gum. This will come in while I'm avoiding food this week in preparation for lake season. The diet has officially begun today, btw.

11. A pen of course. Who doesn't have about a gazillion of these floating around in their purse?

12. My camera and its pretty polka-dot case. I keep it with me always. Unlike most people (ok, I'm going to go with some people as I suspect that you readers probably do this too) Andi and I have daily documentation of our lives. We take pictures of absolutely everything. I see something cute or inspirational - I take a picture of it. A mental work note for later? Pic. Another picture of Chloe sleeping on the couch - absolutely. My camera is my life.

13. A sweet little I Love You note from my husband. He left it for me on the bathroom mirror a few months ago and I stuck it into my purse/bag for safe keeping. I like it when I stumble upon it during the day - makes me smile :)

14. A Band Aid for those darn blisters again. See line #3.

15. My iPod Shuffle which is really my back-up emergency iPod. More often than not, I forget I even have it... and as you can see it doesn't even have any headphones attached to it which really does me no good, does it? But it's in my bag in case I'm running to the airport and forget my iTouch or in case I find myself in need of tunes. That moment may arise, you know.

16. Oakley shades. I alternate between a few pairs of shades but today it's black ones.

17. Sprint broadband card for instant internet access. Actually I carry this with me wherever I go as well but I rarely use it.

Ok, I showed you mine. Now you show me yours. What's in your wallet ... er ... purse? Are you thinking of that creepy viking from the Capitol One commercials? Sorry that was cheesy. I just couldn't help myself :)