With summer upon us, we all cannot wait to get to the beach. There's something about the sand between our toes and the ocean coming up on the shoreline that relaxes us and makes us feel at ease.
But, going to the beach can be a huge hassle when you have to drag along your kids and all of the beach gear. Fortunately, we have some ways to make going to the beach a bit easier.
Instead of using a flat sheet or a towel, get a fitted sheet to keep sand off of your stuff.
You can use four things on the corners to make it as though it's its own little room—high enough to keep sand off and clean enough to feel good.
When you and your kids are ready to head home, the last thing you want is to get a bunch of sand in your car.
If you use baby powder, you can quickly and gently get all that sand off of their legs and feet.
Dragging a stroller through the beach is a hassle. No one wants to wheel it through the sand.
If you need something for your youngest babies while you're lounging on the beach, bring a laundry basket with some blankets. It can be a makeshift crib for your baby!
If your kids want to play in the water but you don't want to spend all day in the ocean, get a shower curtain and make your kids a "pool" in the sand. Dig a hole and put the curtain on top, the water stays on top of the shower curtain and it's a fun little pool!
Rolling up your towels can make it easy to save space. The more things you can fit into one bag, the better, especially when you're walking down the sand and carrying everything yourself. If you fold them right, they take up little to no space.
If you are bringing water bottles and other beverages in a cooler, freeze them the night before. Being in the sun can cause any drinks to get warm, but if they are frozen, they will melt and still be very cold to drink.
Ever want to go in the water but you don't want to leave all of your stuff on the sand for it to get stolen? You can bring a clean diaper with you and put all your valuables inside. No one will grab what they think is a "dirty diaper."
No one wants to get sand in their phone—especially in the charging port or the speaker. If you put your phone in a ziplock bag, you can still use it, but you don't have to worry about the sand or the water.
Being in the sun is fun until it's way too hot and you're turning red and sweating. Always come to the beach with some shade. You never know when you need a little break from that blazing summer sun.
Kids always want to go into the ocean but parents can be a bit nervous about the waves and the shoreline. If you have a portable playpen, you can set it up and the kids can play in the water, without the fear of things going wrong.
Bringing your entire family to the beach is a lot because you have to carry everything with you, and also get your kids down the beach. Getting a wagon makes it a bit easier because you can either throw your kids or your stuff in there!
Being in the sun for too long or even getting a sunburn can be super painful. Making sure your skin stays hydrated is important. You can make aloe vera ice cubes and you can use them on your skin and also eat them, too.
Packing food for the beach can make a big mess or take up a lot of space. If you use stackable containers, you can stack your foot one on top of the other and ensure the sand stays out of the food, too.
Buying ice cream and popsicles on the beach can be expensive, but we know kids always want them when we head to the beach. If you pack frozen ones in a tumbler, you can shove them in your cooler and they'll stay frozen.
If you want to hide your valuables, bring an empty food container or even a sunblock tube. People will think it's just food or sunscreen, but really, it has your keys, phone, and wallet inside—they'll never know to look.
