Beach Bag Essentials

In honor of Memorial Day Weekend and the thousands of folks who will be hitting the beach, I wanted to share with you some of the items that I consider to be essential to a day of fun in the sun.

Amazon Kindle, Vineyard Vines Under the Sea Tote, Blue Lizard Baby Sunscreen, Neutrogena Pure and Free Baby Sunscreen Stick, Scala Hat, Chloe Oversized Square Sunglasses, Vera Bradley Ditty Bag in Raspberry Fizz, Hanna Andersson Floppy Sun Hat, Nikon D90


Blue Lizard Sunscreen – As you can probably tell from the profile picture on the right, Mrs. Julep is quite fair skinned so some fabulous sunscreen is an absolute MUST. A friend in Virginia turned me on to Blue Lizard sunscreen and I must say it is the best I’ve tried, plus the Baby and Sensitive Skin varieties are chemical-free and fragrance-free, which is great for the minis. I also love sunscreen sticks for coating little faces. This year we’re trying the Pure & Free baby stick from Neutrogena.

Scala Sun Hat (for moi) - My wonderful sister-in-law sent me a fabulous salmon pink Scala hat for my birthday last year. It has a nice wide brim to shield my face and it is completely crushable, which makes it perfect for toting along on vacation. Factor in the adorable color and it was love at first sight.

Hanna Andersson Floppy Sun Hats (for the babes) – In 100% cotton that holds up to repeated washing, these hats claim to block 95% of UVA/UVB rays.

A Wet Bag – As a mom, it is absolutely essential to take an extra bag along to hold wet bathing suits, toys, and the like. Personally, I never hit the beach without a Vera Bradley ditty bag tucked inside my beach tote.

Camera – As a mom, I don’t want to miss a moment of sand-covered cuteness. I’m currently rocking the Nikon D90, but there are plenty of cameras on the market that do a fabulous job of recording those precious memories. (My mom owns a Canon Sureshot that takes great photos.)

Reading Material – My trip to the beach wouldn’t be complete without some frivolous reading material. As a mom, I don’t always get to pull this out as much as I might like, but I still pack it in case a quiet moment presents itself. I love to take a few new magazines and a book (or even better, the lightweight Amazon Kindle).

Sunglasses- Of course, my beach bag wouldn’t be complete without some spectacular shades. Personally, I love the oversized Jackie O. look, as evidenced by the Chloe sunglasses which are pictured above.

What about you?  What are your beach bag essentials?