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***jessie'sgirl***
I wanted to update you on the toddler beach advice:
Buy the beach tent. It was a life saver. We got this one which was incredibly easy to use and large enough for me, DH and DD. DH set it up himself. Coleman Instant RoadTrip Beach Shade DD even napped inside.
Inflated baby pool (remember to bring a pail large enough to bring water up from the shore to the pool though) day 1 we had this tiny pail that took a bizillion trips. We brought a beach umbrella too to keep the baby pool water cool and a sandy play area shaded.
Baby powder. Best sand remover ever!
Squeezable pouches of applesauce. They stay ice cold and perfect beach snack- don't get sandy.
Skip Hop Pronto Change Mat. It is huge and waterproof. I also used this in the nasty rest stop changing tables. It folds up and easy to carry.
If you don't have a huge sun hat with SPF for Cora buy one. I have a water wear iplay one for M that protected her head, face, neck and shoulders.
Double the amount of sunscreen you bought for toddler. We made a Walmart run half way through the trip because I had not brought enough. I forgot how much more I would be using for the beach- reapplying 500 times.
No matter what toys I brought she just wanted to play with whatever the kids around us had. She did love the baby beach bag that held her toys which she proudly carried to the beach herself and dragged around the beach.
Every day seemed different in terms of water. first day she was crazy with the waves and ran right in. Other days she didn't want to go in. I bought a floatation swimsuit. Never used. Will return it.
We tried out different times. Sometimes we timed it so she would nap on the beach after lunch depending if we got up early. We took one day off mid week and went shopping- skipped the beach. I think we probably could have done that another day as well.
Since we have SO much stuff- I bought the beach cart but left it at home since we literally ran out of space in the SUV. Next year we will bring it for sure.
Saltwater sandals and Timberlands are the only water shoes M could walk in. The standard ones hurt her feet and she refused to wear them. If you already bought some for Cora, try them now and see if she likes them if you haven't had her wear them before.
Reminder: Swim diapers do not hold pee. DH got peed on... twice :-)
Before we left the beach I would strip off the bathing suit, use baby powder to get off the sand,put on a fresh swim diaper, and leave her in just her zipped upbeach cover up. It was much easier to rinse her off in the beach shower and no chance of any left over sand rubbing in the wrong places when she walked back from the beach.
Forget the book, the relaxing, etc unless you have more than you, and DD with you. I think I got maybe 1.5 hours to just chill since it was chase chase chase, change, entertain, chase some more the whole time. But the look on her face the first time she saw the ocean, put her feet in the sand, and hear the waves crash made it all worth it.
Have a GREAT trip! (Sorry for the book-I had written this out for another friend too!)
