What should I pack for taking baby to the beach?

[marinkitty]

We are going to Portugal in a couple of months and will be staying near the beach for about a week. The villa we are renting is about 10 minutes from the beach and I think we will be going for a few hours each day. DD will be 15 months and the DS of the other couple we are traveling with will be 12.5 months. Besides bathing suits, swim dipes, sunscreen, hats and towels, what else should I plan to bring?

Do you have recommendations for good beach toys for that age? Should we bring some sort of sun shelter (and are there ones you have used and like that pack small)? What about beach shoes - any you recommend?

Also, do you think at 15 months DD will eat the sand?

Thanks!

Holly
Mom to Mia (3.17.03)

[caleymama]

We live near a sandy lakefront beach and spent a bit of time there last summer. DD was a little younger than your DD or the other child, but I would imagine some of the same things would apply. Other than what you have mentioned, I would make sure to bring: snacks/water (DD was always extra thirsty)
some kind of cover up (we used a hooded terrycloth bathing suit coverup that matched DD's suit) - paired with a hat or with the hood alone, this was essential for giving DD's skin some time out of the sun

For toys, DD really liked:
a small toy watering can
stacking cups (in the water - she didn't actually stack them but they were a better size for her at that point than a traditional bucket)
a shovel

Yes, she did eat some sand but she could not have cared less and I wasn't worried because it wasn't a huge amount. Also, we didn't use any kind of water shoes and she was fine - nothing against them, just didn't use any. We also didn't use any sun shelter, but there was an area of the beach that was in the shade so we were able to sit there if we wanted too.

If I think of anything else I'll add it. Have fun!

[marinkitty]

Thanks for the reply. A watering can is a great idea - I bet DD would love that!

Was your DD walking last summer? I don't want to get water/beach shoes if they are unnecessary but I figured the sand would hurt her feet if bare and I wouldn't want her regular shoes to get soaked.

Are you getting shoes this summer if she wasn't walking last year?

Holly
Mom to Mia (3.17.03)

[egoldber]

I think that minimal toys are required for the beach. A watering can and a small pail (Target has a REALLY nice small pail right now) and a shovel are really about it. Cups or something else to stack sand with and make "castles" are also fun, but you can just use empty fast food cups or plastic yogurt cups that you get once you are there. My DD can spend forever chasing seagulls and picking up shells. :)

I actually prefer to let DD wear just a T-shirt and swim diaper at the beach. I find that the bathing suit just gets filled with sand and is PITA. And once they become wet, diaper changes are terrible!

I also really like water shoes. I prefer the pull-on kind (Target has some cute ones by Speedo), but my DD has a really wide foot and they generally don't fit her. This last year I have had to scour the earth to find water shoes that have velcro for the front and back of the foot.

I think that mobile kids don't generally stay under a shelter. Your best bet is to keep a good hat on them and slather on the sunscreen.

And I'm quite jealous of your trip. Enjoy!

HTH,

[JLiebCamm]

We have the sun shelter that LL Bean sells and it packs up nicely in a long bag, similar to those fold up chairs. It's a great size for day trips to the beach, but I don't know if you want to drag it along on an aiplane. Is there any chance you can rent a big umbrella on the beach there the way you can here or is it fairly non-commercial?

[caleymama]

DD was walking last summer and we chose not to get shoes. If the beach had been particularly rocky or full of shells (those can be sharp!) I might have considered it. Or if we were going to a pool that had a slippery deck or area around it. She was totally fine on the sand and in the shallow water. I don't plan to get shoes for her this summer, either. I did purchase some her some Nike sandals that could be used in the water should I decide we need them (similar to these: http://www.nearlyperfectshoes.com/chnislsa.html).

I found the watering can at Target - they had a good selection of beach and outdoor toys for really cheap last year. The stacking cups weren't special for the beach. I just grabbed a couple of the ones we already had and threw them in the bag at the last minute. Glad I did because she loved them! Edited to add that Beth's right - any smaller cup would do. Since you'll be travelling overseas, I would think you would want to pack as light as you can and I wouldn't waste the space on stacking cups.

[marinkitty]

Thanks so much for the insights. I think we'll skip the shelter and perhaps we'll be able to get an umbrella there, but I suspect Beth is right - she won't stay put under there anyway!

I'm going to stop at Target tomorrow and check out the toy and shoe situation.

DD has five (yes 5!!!) bathing suits already and I think they look like a pain to take on and off (I haven't actually tried them on her yet). Four were gifts from grandparents and other family so I feel like I need to hang onto them for this summer up at their cottages up north, but I think a swim dipe and tee is such a better idea, especially given how fair DD is.

You should wait to see how jealous you are about the trip till I come back and tell you all whether she slept a wink or not. DD isn't a great sleeper, particularly when her schedule gets messed up or we are away - so this will either turn out fabulously or be a very long, expensive experiment in sleep deprivation!

Holly
Mom to Mia (3.17.03)

[luvbeinmama]

BRING BABY POWDER! When you are leaving, strip DD, sprinkle the powder liberally on the wet sand sticking to her and it will brush right off. Then dress her in dry clothes. Voila! Minimal sand in the car! Have fun!