10+ things to pack for a day by the lake
We wanted to get away for the day and some friends were willing to take out their boat so we made a quick list in the morning of everything we thought we might need and were surprised that we filled up the back of the truck! We were only going to be away for the day, but it looked like we were leaving for the weekend. Here are the 10+ things we actually used during our day at the lake with our Little:
So. Much. Sunscreen.
My husband is German and therefore sunburns after an hour, even with a full coat of SPF 50. Our Little inherited his skin. Yippee. I took a full bottle of spray for him and I and a full bottle of baby sunscreen for our Little. We reapplied every two hours which was fine for me, but Little and my husband should have had a new slather every hour. Remember that you need to reapply your Little's sunscreen each time he/she gets wet.
Swimsuits, towels, water shoes.
These are obvious, but we also always take an extra towel or two. At least one ends up getting soaked or dirty (or both) so it's nice to have a spare at the end of the day to dry everyone off before jumping back in the car. Water shoes are big for our little because we didn't want to risk her losing an expensive pair of Stride Rites in the lake or chance her running around in bare feet and step in or on who-knows-what out there.
Hats and sunglasses.
Our toddler hates wearing sunglasses and a hat but I keep putting them on her anyway to protect from the sun and hopefully avoid giving her too much of a headache from squinting all day. I have a huge beach hat that I loooove because it keeps the sun off my shoulders too.
Dry change of clothes.
The adults dried in the sun and didn't need our change of clothes after all, but the Littles each went through their wet suits and two changes of clothes in just one afternoon.
Food, snacks & drinks.
We packed all the food we would need plus extra toddler-friendly snacks, which were a lifesaver because our friend accidentally bought hot links instead of hot dogs and it was so delightfully spicy that the kids refused to eat them (more for us!) Bring all the drinks you think you'll consume plus more water than you think you'll need. We chugged the water in the heat of the sun but also used it to wash off fruit, clean Little's hands, wash dirt from the shore out of her hair, etc.
Paper plates, cups & utensils.
I stock up on all this at the dollar store! Just $3 for everything and you've served a group of 10, boom. Throw in some extra Ziplocs too if you think you'll have leftovers from your meal that you want to bring home. And bring some serving utensils too if you want to spare yourself our hilarity while trying to slice tomatoes with a plastic butter knife and serve fruit salad with a single dinner spoon.
Camp kitchen & ice chest.
We just brought a spatula and tongs but I wish I had grabbed my little Camp Kitchen storage bin from our camping gear. It has all the things we automatically reach for when we're cooking outdoors, like matches, a sharp knife, a little cutting board, a serving spoon, foil, a citronella candle, etc.
Paper towels & wet wipes.
Even if your Little is potty trained you'll be reaching for the baby wipes all day. The public restrooms where *cringe* just how you expected them to be and I felt like I couldn't keep clean in there, no surprise. But we also need to wipe little hands before eating and little faces afterward, you know how it goes. We also reached for the paper towels to wipe up spills, use as napkins at lunch, whatever.
Tablecloth &/or blanket.
Our friends brought their own folding table which was great, but I had a tablecloth for the public picnic table which was helpful too. We could have used it for a blanket on the ground too if the toddlers wanted to lay down in the shade and nap but they were too busy to slow down.
Chairs & umbrella.
Our friends brought an easy up which was great for keeping the food table in shade, but it's also nice to have an adjustable beach umbrella that you can move to keep the kids in shade as needed (or in my case an overheated pregnant mama hiding from the sun!)
Outdoor games & a book.
It's fun to have stuff for the adults to do but entertaining the Littles was easy with cornhole, horseshoes, that ladder toss thing and even a bucket of sand toys even though our shore didn't have sand. My Little is an avid reader (even though she can't read yet), so we brought along one of her favorite books to sit down and "read" through. I also brought a book for myself because I was hoping for some quiet time in the shade by myself and a cold drink while everyone else was out on the boat and/or while the Little napped (and I say book instead of tablet because we didn't want to risk losing it or getting it wet or having it die and I'd be left with nothing to do if I did get that quiet time I craved... Sometimes a good old fashioned paperback is all you need!)
Bluetooth speaker.
We wanted to listen to our own music but another group down the way was blasting their music so loudly we could barely hear ourselves think... And it was NOT our style for a relaxing day by the lake. So bring along some music to set the mood, but be conscientious of your volume, please and thank you.
Life vests and/or water wings.
Our friends had their boats so we needed life vests for every person on board, including infant and toddler life vests (you can see our almost two year old was still wearing an infant vest with the flotation flap behind her head because she was still under 30 pounds at the time). But even if you just plan on spending the day by the shore, make sure your littlest Littles have something to help them float and never take your eyes away from kids in the water.
BBQ and supplies.
My husband wanted to take his grill, and if you want to do the same then remember everything you'll need to bring with it, including coals (or propane), lighter fluid, a lighter, plus a steel bucket and water for the hot coals afterward. He also needed a spatula, tongs and aluminum foil.
What would you add to this list? Find me on Facebook and let me know!
www.Facebook.com/ListsForLittles
So. Much. Sunscreen.
My husband is German and therefore sunburns after an hour, even with a full coat of SPF 50. Our Little inherited his skin. Yippee. I took a full bottle of spray for him and I and a full bottle of baby sunscreen for our Little. We reapplied every two hours which was fine for me, but Little and my husband should have had a new slather every hour. Remember that you need to reapply your Little's sunscreen each time he/she gets wet.
Swimsuits, towels, water shoes.
These are obvious, but we also always take an extra towel or two. At least one ends up getting soaked or dirty (or both) so it's nice to have a spare at the end of the day to dry everyone off before jumping back in the car. Water shoes are big for our little because we didn't want to risk her losing an expensive pair of Stride Rites in the lake or chance her running around in bare feet and step in or on who-knows-what out there.
Hats and sunglasses.
Our toddler hates wearing sunglasses and a hat but I keep putting them on her anyway to protect from the sun and hopefully avoid giving her too much of a headache from squinting all day. I have a huge beach hat that I loooove because it keeps the sun off my shoulders too.
Dry change of clothes.
The adults dried in the sun and didn't need our change of clothes after all, but the Littles each went through their wet suits and two changes of clothes in just one afternoon.
Food, snacks & drinks.
We packed all the food we would need plus extra toddler-friendly snacks, which were a lifesaver because our friend accidentally bought hot links instead of hot dogs and it was so delightfully spicy that the kids refused to eat them (more for us!) Bring all the drinks you think you'll consume plus more water than you think you'll need. We chugged the water in the heat of the sun but also used it to wash off fruit, clean Little's hands, wash dirt from the shore out of her hair, etc.
Paper plates, cups & utensils.
I stock up on all this at the dollar store! Just $3 for everything and you've served a group of 10, boom. Throw in some extra Ziplocs too if you think you'll have leftovers from your meal that you want to bring home. And bring some serving utensils too if you want to spare yourself our hilarity while trying to slice tomatoes with a plastic butter knife and serve fruit salad with a single dinner spoon.
Camp kitchen & ice chest.
We just brought a spatula and tongs but I wish I had grabbed my little Camp Kitchen storage bin from our camping gear. It has all the things we automatically reach for when we're cooking outdoors, like matches, a sharp knife, a little cutting board, a serving spoon, foil, a citronella candle, etc.
Paper towels & wet wipes.
Even if your Little is potty trained you'll be reaching for the baby wipes all day. The public restrooms where *cringe* just how you expected them to be and I felt like I couldn't keep clean in there, no surprise. But we also need to wipe little hands before eating and little faces afterward, you know how it goes. We also reached for the paper towels to wipe up spills, use as napkins at lunch, whatever.
Tablecloth &/or blanket.
Our friends brought their own folding table which was great, but I had a tablecloth for the public picnic table which was helpful too. We could have used it for a blanket on the ground too if the toddlers wanted to lay down in the shade and nap but they were too busy to slow down.
Chairs & umbrella.
Our friends brought an easy up which was great for keeping the food table in shade, but it's also nice to have an adjustable beach umbrella that you can move to keep the kids in shade as needed (or in my case an overheated pregnant mama hiding from the sun!)
Outdoor games & a book.
It's fun to have stuff for the adults to do but entertaining the Littles was easy with cornhole, horseshoes, that ladder toss thing and even a bucket of sand toys even though our shore didn't have sand. My Little is an avid reader (even though she can't read yet), so we brought along one of her favorite books to sit down and "read" through. I also brought a book for myself because I was hoping for some quiet time in the shade by myself and a cold drink while everyone else was out on the boat and/or while the Little napped (and I say book instead of tablet because we didn't want to risk losing it or getting it wet or having it die and I'd be left with nothing to do if I did get that quiet time I craved... Sometimes a good old fashioned paperback is all you need!)
Bluetooth speaker.
We wanted to listen to our own music but another group down the way was blasting their music so loudly we could barely hear ourselves think... And it was NOT our style for a relaxing day by the lake. So bring along some music to set the mood, but be conscientious of your volume, please and thank you.
Life vests and/or water wings.
Our friends had their boats so we needed life vests for every person on board, including infant and toddler life vests (you can see our almost two year old was still wearing an infant vest with the flotation flap behind her head because she was still under 30 pounds at the time). But even if you just plan on spending the day by the shore, make sure your littlest Littles have something to help them float and never take your eyes away from kids in the water.
BBQ and supplies.
My husband wanted to take his grill, and if you want to do the same then remember everything you'll need to bring with it, including coals (or propane), lighter fluid, a lighter, plus a steel bucket and water for the hot coals afterward. He also needed a spatula, tongs and aluminum foil.
What would you add to this list? Find me on Facebook and let me know!
www.Facebook.com/ListsForLittles
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