Caddy for wipes and care items

Abstract

In accordance with the embodiments of the present invention, a portable caddy for care items is disclosed. The caddy has a container lined with a removable flexible liner. The flexible liner contains a compartment that is sufficiently sturdy to hold and center for balance a wet wipes box in place, allowing a caregiver to open it easily. The liner also can have other compartments of various sizes and can have a plurality of pockets along the sides of the liner to keep organized a variety of care items. The liner can be removed from the container and either washed or wiped clean.

1 . A caddy for organizing care items, comprising:
 a portable container having an interior space;   a handle connected with the container and adapted for carrying the container;   a flexible liner made of at least one flexible material, said liner adapted to line the interior space of the container, the liner further comprising:
 a flexible first compartment adapted for distributing evenly in the container the weight of one of a bulky or heavy care item, wherein the bulky or heavy care item in the first compartment is balanced in the container; and 
 a plurality of flexible additional compartments adapted for holding and organizing other of said care items, 
   
     wherein the first compartment and additional compartments further comprise a plurality of flexible dividers connected with the liner. 
   
   
       2 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein:
 the liner further comprises at least one pocket further comprising:
 a flap of a flexible material attached to a part of the liner that lines a side of the portable container; and 
 an opening at a top of the attached flap. 
   
   
   
       3 . The caddy as in  claim 2  wherein at least one of the pockets is shallower than the other pockets. 
   
   
       4 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the flexible dividers further comprise fabric over a fabric stiffening material. 
   
   
       5 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the flexible dividers further comprise the flexible liner material around thin plastic cards. 
   
   
       6 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the flexible liner further comprises a means for removably securing the liner to the container. 
   
   
       7 . The caddy as in  claim 6  wherein the securing means is a ribbon material sewn into a rim of the flexible liner material, said ribbon material exiting the rim of the flexible liner material so that it can be tied around an exterior of the container. 
   
   
       8 . The caddy as in  claim 6  wherein the securing means is at least one of a plurality of snaps, Velcro®, and hooks functionally attached to a rim of the flexible liner material to secure the rim of the flexible liner material around an exterior of the container. 
   
   
       9 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the handle is flexibly connected with the container. 
   
   
       10 . The caddy as in  claim 9  wherein the flexible connection is a hinge. 
   
   
       11 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the handle is a strap made of a bendable material. 
   
   
       12 . The caddy as in  claim 11  wherein the bendable material is selected from the group consisting of leather, chain, rope, fabric, cord, plastic, or vinyl. 
   
   
       13 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the flexible material of the liner is a fabric-like material. 
   
   
       14 . The caddy as in  claim 13  wherein the fabric-like material of the liner is at least one of cotton, flannel, cotton blends, printed material, solid color material, vinyl, oilcloth, GORE-TEX®, fleece, wool, polyester, washable materials, and materials cleanable by wiping clean. 
   
   
       15 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the flexible liner further comprises five compartments and four dividers. 
   
   
       16 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the plurality of flexible dividers is connected with the sides of the flexible liner. 
   
   
       17 . The caddy as in  claim 1  wherein the plurality of flexible dividers is connected with a base of the flexible liner. 
   
   
       18 . A caddy for care items, the caddy comprising:
 a container having a handle;   the handle connected with the container by a first hinge at a first side of the container and a second hinge at a second side of the container opposite the first side of the container;   a flexible liner adapted to be placed in an interior space of the container and removable from the interior space of the container, with a base of the flexible liner adapted to lie along a bottom of the interior of the container and a wall of the flexible liner lining interior walls of the container, said flexible liner further comprising:
 a flexible material capable of being at least one of wiped and washed cleaned; 
 a plurality of compartments, each compartment having a bottom corresponding to the base of the liner and sides comprising at least two flexible dividers, wherein at least one of the plurality of compartments is adapted to balance a heaviest or bulkiest item in the basket; 
 the dividers made of interfacing inside said flexible material of the liner and connected with the liner; and 
 a plurality of pockets, each pocket comprising a flap of the flexible material of the liner attached to the wall of the liner and having an opening at the top of the flap. 
   
   
   
       19 . The caddy as in  claim 18  wherein the plurality of compartments are of variable sizes. 
   
   
       20 . The caddy as in  claim 18  wherein the dividers are not attached to the base of the flexible liner.