Beach Bag Essentials (and Giveaway!)

We are a beach-loving family…I mean how can you not be?! Sunshine beaming in your window as soon as you wake up, nature’s playground to keep you entertained all day long, and relaxing nights where your kids are so worn out that they actually go to bed without fighting you! I grew up spending a week at the beach every summer as a child and am thankful that we have been able to share the love for the ocean with our children. We have already enjoyed two vacations to the North Carolina beach and have LOVED every minute of it, even with three little kids in tow.

Today, I’m sharing with you our Beach Bag Essentials! When I pack for the beach, I pack as light as possible which still means a lot when you have three kids, four and under! We also have to carry down some sort of tent for shade, chairs for mommy and daddy to sit in, and any other fun items needed for a few hours in the sand. We honestly look like a circus heading to the beach with our arms completely full and three kids hanging off of any body limb they can still grab onto!

Beach Bag Essentials

i play Swim Diaper: One of the BEST summertime products for little ones out there. Read below to find out more details!

Baby Powder: Rub this on your child’s hands to quickly remove sand. No more sand in my box of crackers or bag of chips!

Snacks and Water: Most snacks that we like to take are either ones that we can enjoy as a family: bags of chips or boxes of crackers (And remember we are on vacation, so these parents can eat whatever they want!) or individual snack sized packages that are easy for on the go: fruit pouches, boxes of raisins, fruit snacks, snack-sized bags of graham crackers or Goldfish. Our favorite water bottle is the Thermos Foogo because the water actually stays cold all day long AND it does not spill!

Sand Toys: Find toys that interest your child! A good bucket and shovel are a must and for my boys, several good digging trucks keep them entertained for hours! Some of the ones that I found on Amazon that look great are: Beach Set in Bag, Kidoozie Little Tuffies Trucks, and Melissa & Doug Sand Cupcake Set.

Sun Hat: For little ones, a sun hat is necessary for their eyes. We love the wide-brimmed hats for our sweet girl.

Sunscreen: Dolphin Organics is one of our favorite brands in this house!

Towel: One of our favorite beach towels comes from Pottery Barn Kids, but I just read on another blog that they love the look, comfort, and price of the towels from Land’s End so I may have to try these next!

Shoes: Anything that is easy to take on and off. My four year old loves his flip-flops from Crazy 8 and they were only two dollars!

Now, I have to share a little more about one of my favorite products: the i play Ultimate swim diaper. I hate the cost AND waste of the disposable swim diapers when many times my little ones didn’t even get into the pool or wore them for less than an hour, so I started to research alternative options when my oldest (Aiden) was just a baby. I decided to try the i play Ultimate swim diaper and fell in love with it.

I have used these for the boys, both as babies and toddlers. They are softer than the disposable swim diapers. There is triple layer protection that prevents leakage. And I love how you can just throw them in the washing machine and have them available again for the next day. It’s a eco-friendly and wallet-friendly purchase that I recommend to all moms.

There is a wide variety of swim diaper options that i play carries. Someone gifted this adorable strawberry tank suit swim diaper for Abby to us, where the swim diaper is built into the swimsuit. I love this for really little ones because I only have to worry about one item to put on a little precious wiggle worm. For boys, there is board shorts where the ultimate swim diaper is built in so again you only have to put one item on and you are ready!

When my boys were around 18 months, I loved the ultimate snap swim diaper. It’s super easy to get on with the side snaps, especially with a resistant toddler who wants to run away from you any time you are trying to change them!

And now that Andrew is 2 1/2, we are using the pull on swim diaper which looks “underwear” just like his big brother wears (and hopefully he will soon!).

Since the swim diapers are reusable and last through many washings, you can also pass them on to future children. There are several gender neutral options that could be used for boys or girls. There is a great variety of options from i play and I highly recommend that you head on over to their site to look through.

We are excited to announce that one of our readers will win an i play Ultimate Swim Diaper! The winner will choose which color and size that they would like. Enter in the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win and good luck!

We were not compensated for this post. We did receive an i play swim diaper to review. As always, all opinions are our own.