beach essentials
We have done the beach with one baby, with one toddler, with a baby and toddler and this year we had the chance to experience it with two toddlers (well... I suppose Birdie is more like a kid at this point) and let me tell you!! It felt like a BREEZE! So much less stuff to carry, fewer humans to carry and almost no panic attacks! It felt downright relaxing!! Our kids are almost 5 and 3 and it's unbelievable how easy going they are at this age; hand them a bucket and some sand and you've got them entertained for hours!!
If you can believe it we only took two one bag to the beach every day (not counting the bag the tent comes in)! The kids carried their own buckets and Kevin manned the beach bag while I got the tent. And set up took no time at all thanks to our amazing Neso tent (not sponsored, just OBSESSED). Kevin said the other day that he would become a salesman for them if they wanted it, he is that in love with the product. It weighs less than 3 pounds, there are three, I repeat THREE pieces to the whole thing and every time it takes us no longer than 6 minutes to set it up or take it down. I can't recommend it enough. Plus it's infinitely cheaper than most beach tents. LOVE.
I also loved the beach bag I got. It was roomy, super light and sustained two weeks of being packed to capacity and toted around everywhere. I also wouldn't go anywhere without our trusty Gathre mat. Unlike towels it's so easy to just dust off if it gets sand or mop up if it gets water on it. Also, life tip - every July or August I buy the kids swimwear for the following year. Most stores are practically giving them away this time of year and I've gotten the best quality rash guards for the kids from Crewcuts year after year for less than $15 a piece! The kids also opted for their Native shoes instead of water shoes and I was happy because they can take them off and put them on themselves!
Last but not least we always pack our favorite Babyganics sunscreen and swim diapers. Oh and I loved our Herschel pouch for keeping our valuables in - sunglasses, watches, phones, keys and wallet.
As far as snacks went this was my process every day:
- small frozen water bottles
- frozen juice boxes
- applesauce and yogurt that I kept cold in the top shelf of the fridge
- chips of some sort and a ziplock bag of whatever cereal the kids were having that week
The water and juice boxes are ready to drink about half an hour after being outside but this way they stay chilled. Occasionally I would bring fruit with us but since we would only pack one bag it almost always got crushed in there so I stopped bothering with it. We didn't need too much by way of food as we would head back to the resort for lunch and afternoon naps anyway.
But that's really it! Not too bad right? Let me know if you have any questions!