UPDATE: Beach Babies

When I wrote the original Beach Babies post, we’d not yet taken Doodle to play in the sand and splash in the water.

Well, Spring Break in Naples finally got hubby to the beach with us and Doodle down in the sand and water.  He was tentative at first but okay in the water until a larger wave splashed up to his tummy and he was done!  He wanted nothing to do with the beach after that.  He didn’t want to touch the sand and even sitting on a towel was not happy!

The girls are starting to enjoy the amazing possibilities of the sand, though.  When they were younger they would try to build sand mounds if we suggested and helped, but in Naples they initiated the building of a coconut sand castle all by themselves (and even worked together nicely to build it!)  They are also getting braver in the water, going deeper into the waves and not freaking out if they get splashed.  Hopefully this summer we’ll get a little more beach going in than we have in the past!

Heading for the beach with the babies?  Here’s my suggestions for beach going with a baby:

• Leave the buggy at home!  You won’t be able to push it on the sand and it’s going to get filthy, carry baby instead!
• Bring lots of towels.  You’ll want to sit on them to keep from getting too sandy but will also want to dry off with them and wrap the kids in them if they get cold after being in the water.
• Bring a change of clothes for the kids (and don’t forget underwear and/or extra diapers!)  Most public beaches will have a shower where you can rinse off the kids after the sandy time.  We always rinse and the little ones get changed into dry clothes before heading home.  If you’re having an older one change after rinsing off, all those extra towels will come in real handy as makeshift dressing rooms!
• Don’t worry about the swim diaper.  I always keep my kids in a regular diaper at the beach.  They don’t get nearly as wet as when swimming and a regular diaper keeps sand out of the bum much better than a swim diaper (plus swim diapers don’t absorb water so you’ll avoid any unnecessary pee-soaked towels!)
• Sunscreen!  I’m not an avid sunscreener, I believe in vitamin D and don’t use sunscreen daily but I always do when heading to the beach since it is hotter, there is no shade and the sand and water can sometimes magnify the sun’s effects. (Don’t forget to slather the face, ears, feet–tops and bottoms, and baby’s head!)
• Go early if you can.  The sun will be less intense, the temperatures will be lower and the sand won’t be as hot.  Plus the kids won’t be as tired, hungry and/or fussy.
• Put hats and glasses on the kids if they’ll tolerate it.  We remove these items when in the water and sometimes just wear them for the walk over but definitely have them on hand to protect all sensitive bits from excessive sun (we also always try to do this when walking outside on a daily basis).
• Water for everyone!  We always take at least one bottle/cup of water for every person when going to the beach.  The heat combined with the walking and fun makes for thirsty, tired people and hydration is important for everyone!

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