Før vi går ut, legger jeg en smokk i vesken og skyller tåteflasken.

Because Norwegian main clauses usually follow the V2 rule: the finite verb comes in the second position.

Here, Før vi går ut is placed first as one whole unit. That means the verb of the main clause has to come next:

• Før vi går ut, legger jeg en smokk i vesken ...

If you started directly with the subject, you would get:

• Jeg legger en smokk i vesken før vi går ut.

Both are possible, but the word order changes depending on what comes first.

It is a subordinate clause introduced by før, meaning before.

Breakdown:

• før = before
• vi = we
• går ut = go out

So the clause means before we go out.

Because it is a subordinate clause placed first, it is followed by a comma, and then the main clause begins.

In standard Norwegian, you normally use a comma after a subordinate clause when it comes before the main clause.

So:

• Før vi går ut, legger jeg ...

This is the same basic idea as in English:

• Before we go out, I put ...

Gå ut is a very common verb expression meaning go out.

In Norwegian, the verb normally comes before the particle here:

• går ut = go out

So:

• vi går ut = we go out

This is the normal word order. English learners sometimes expect the directional word to behave differently, but in this phrase ut simply follows går.

Yes. Legger is the present tense of å legge, which means to lay / to put / to place something somewhere.

Here it means:

• legger jeg en smokk i vesken = I put a pacifier in the bag

A useful contrast is:

• å legge = to put/lay something down
• å ligge = to be lying / to lie somewhere

So:

• Jeg legger smokken i vesken. = I put the pacifier in the bag.
• Smokken ligger i vesken. = The pacifier is in the bag / is lying in the bag.

This is the difference between indefinite and definite forms.

• en smokk = a pacifier
• vesken = the bag
• tåteflasken = the baby bottle

In Norwegian, the definite article is often attached to the end of the noun:

• veske = bag

• vesken = the bag

• tåteflaske = baby bottle
• tåteflasken = the baby bottle

So en smokk introduces one pacifier, while vesken and tåteflasken refer to specific, known items.

Because the same subject, jeg, applies to both verbs:

• legger jeg en smokk i vesken
• og skyller tåteflasken

This is just like English:

• I put a pacifier in the bag and rinse the baby bottle.

You do not need to repeat the subject unless you want extra emphasis or clarity.

Norwegian often uses the present tense for:

• habits and routines
• general truths
• near-future or planned actions

So this sentence can sound like a routine:

• Before we go out, I put a pacifier in the bag and rinse the baby bottle.

It does not have to mean it is happening right this second. It can describe what someone usually does.

These are childcare words:

• smokk = pacifier / dummy
• tåteflaske = baby bottle / feeding bottle

Depending on the variety of English, smokk may be translated as pacifier or dummy.

I means in or inside.

So:

• i vesken = in the bag

This is used because the pacifier is being placed inside the bag, not on it or near it.

Yes, if you specifically want to say my bag, you can say:

• i vesken min = in my bag

But i vesken simply means in the bag. In context, it may be obvious whose bag it is, so Norwegian does not always need a possessive word if the situation already makes it clear.