"Day at the Beach" Vacation: Avoiding Beach Blunders

Today, I sit at the beach as I have many days since we moved to Florida. And, I am reminded of a conversation I had with my 12 year old son about 6 months after moving here. He started in by saying, "I know how to tell tourists from a local." This went on to be a very funny conversation that ranged from observations of tans, bike type, shopping bags, to even cigarettes. It was really cute. But as I sit on the beach, I see many tourists and they truly are easy to spot. Mainly because they make what I like to call common "beach blunders."

I say this in total love, because it took me a year to learn what some tourists figure out in days. There are lucky visitors, who come every spring break or summer that have it down to a science and I should have taken note a lot sooner. But raised in the Midwest, beach visits were a huge ordeal. And honestly, after moving here, I made all the mistakes my mother did growing up...but was too busy being a happy kid to think them erroneous. Now, I realize that a day at the beach could have been a lot more of a vacation (for my mom - Ahhh, the joys of hindsight!)

So, here are a few tips to make your trek a restful, playground of fun as you seek serenity by the shore! (And yes, I am a mom - and contrary to what happens all too often...I pray for a little serenity on vacation, too. After all, a mom of all people deserves it!)

Luxury Towels are Wonderful...in the Bathroom

Everyone loves a thick, luxurious towel. Though very comfortable on a deck by the pool, a heavy towel has no place on the shore. For starters, it will get full of sand and sand clings to fabric. So, if you are hanging it to dry over a deck or banister later, sand will still be in it tomorrow without a good wash. And a sandy towel is just bad. Second, thick towels hold a lot of water and don't dry fast. Being wet and full of sand, they are also excessively heavy to heave home. So, here's a cost saver - cheap towels rock!

Cheap towels can be easily discarded and left without a feeling loss (Everyone knows something always gets left at the beach. Assume it will be at least one towel.) Cheap towels are often woven lighter, so they dry faster and don't hang on to sand like a good weave. Last, they are lightweight to carry. So, pick a cheap towel with a good design and move on. Remind yourself that you don't know these people around you and pretention only exists if you allow it! So, don't. That is why they call it Vacation! Right?

RECOVERY: One note on towels - highly regard a single towel per family. Keep it dry at all costs. No matter how many times I go to the beach, I wish for a dry towel at some point. A simple, protected no salt water added, sand-free, light weight, warm for snuggling, clean, drying agent.

The Rub Down

Most know SPF 900 is a good idea and it is - especially close to the equator where a burn can happen in 20 minutes. But applying the lotion on the beach is a bad idea, specifically on little ones. Kids see the water and they want to play, not get rubbed down for 15 minutes in front of their friends or wait their turn in a line of siblings. Second, when sand mixes with the lotion (no matter how careful you might be this tends to happen) it feels like you are rubbing your kid with greasy sandpaper. Kids hate it (and little ones cry.) Last, your less apt to miss a spot when your not distracted by friends, wind, sand and excited kids. And nothing makes you feel like a bad mother faster than your crying kid in the bathtub who is charbroiled in one spot, and bone white in another the exact shape of your hand! Easy fix: Apply lotion before heading to the sand.

Bonus Suggestion for Cost Savings and Skin Protection : Spray-On lotions generally blow away entirely before hitting the skin, in a beachy wind. You will get your money's worth of spray at home!

RECOVERY: Hit the ground running and enjoy every minute, lotion-up before the sand storm.

Princess Pack-It-All

There is a fine line between being prepared...and being ridiculous. Taking too much to the beach is a classic mistake visitors make. This is especially noticeable with children and even more with small children. The family will haul everything but the kitchen sink for a day of fun.

Shorter Load for Shorter Ones
Reality Check: if there is a member of your party under the age of 2, odds are...someone will be going home a lot sooner than they thought. Whether it is sunburn, jellyfish sting, sand or water there is usually a force of nature that creates a storm for little ones. There are very lucky families that have small kids they can coerce to take a nap on a towel, I've just never been one. So, if you have a little one, just pack a little (and predetermine who goes home early with Junior to avoid argument. Don't worry, most men would rather sit in a dark living room and watch football or take a nap than spend more than 2 hours trying to skim board anyway.)

Woe is Mule
No matter how many hands help carry things to the beach, there will likely be only two hands that carry IT ALL home. Coming home from the beach, kids are wiped out! They are hungry, tired, soaked, cold, crying...you name it. No secret, most kids are in a lot better spirit coming than going. And yes, this usually translates to mom relieving the burden where she can - and that is all too often in the form of freeing up everyone's hands but hers. Yes, you will feel like a pack-mule and look like one if not careful. (Plus, if your husband left with Junior 2 hours ago, you may be crying with the kids by the time you get home.)

Borderline Full Monte
Clothes can also add to the burden. Wet clothes pose an even heavier problem. Take heed, most everything worn to the beach will be carried off the beach. No one wants to shimmy into dry clothes in a wet suit. Plus, sand cannot be removed while ON the beach which makes putting on clothes just yucky. So, unless it is a lightweight, spaghetti strap cover up for girls (that adds less than a pound to total body weight) leave it at the rental.

RECOVERY: This totally excludes flip-flops/footwear. Sand and walkways can get extremely hot. Carrying a baby and a toddler 30 feet in sand is no vacation!

Food, Glorious Food (and Toys Sh-moys)
The first time my sister-in-law visited she wanted to spend the whole day at the beach. She insisted we bring 400 toys to keep her toddler busy and 2 coolers of food. Lord have mercy! For starters, if you live on the beach, why not go home to eat? Can you not walk right back out? Anyway...same applies for renting/hotel by the shore. Plan to eat offshore.

First, food gets hot. Second, a cooler is too heavy. Third, a kid doesn't really need a sandwich, Goldfish will do. Fourth, I'm not carrying it! Bottom line, it's all too much. And with a toddler, as mentioned earlier...she will fall apart LONG before anyone gets hungry.

Second, as you have probably heard, kids can play with a cardboard box. So goes the ocean. Sand, water, crabs, birds, fish, shells, rocks...all of these things provide infinite possibilities with a little attention. There is no need for an arsenal of construction toys, balls that blow away, action figures that get buried...etc. You will lose more toys than you take. And...the more toys, the less you are encouraging imagination. In my opinion, a lot of toys signify a mother's lack of ingenuity. You are at the beach to play with your kids. So...play! Sit, bury, dig, build, use sticks, rocks, shells, sand...whatever it takes - have a blast. This is your time to create a memory. Handing a kid a Polly Pocket or bucket is not a memory.

RECOVERY: Bring water. Freeze bottles of water the night before and bring them. Reserve one bottle for salt water overload to eyes or hand cleaning only. Skip the food...don't forget the fresh water!

There you have it. These are all great ways to minimize your stress and maximize your fun - not having to worry about things unexpected. Cheap towels, the home rub-down and avoiding the princess-pack-it-all syndrome: you are so on your way to being an expert and unrecognizable to "a local!" Now, enjoy your vacation, mom. You've earned it!