Issue #21: 6 Moms Spill What’s In Their Beach Bags
Sanity-saving essentials, favorite sunscreens, and summer bucket lists!
*If this issue doesn’t load fully as an email, click below where prompted, to view it in full*
Anyone else remember those “what’s in your bag” features from the magazine days of yore? Both of us devoured those details and thought it would be fun to take the concept for a little summertime spin, so to speak. Whether it be by the pool or the beach, we’re sharing our go-to’s for keeping sane by the water this season, and tapped into some chic and organized moms we know to spill their thoughts as well. From long-loved beach memories, to pool aficionados, to our favorite sunscreens to slather on, and all the summer bucket list items in between (plus some great book recs!), we’re dumping the sand from our bags and sharing all the goodies left behind.
Meet Amelia. She grew up visiting Savannah’s Tybee Island and spent family vacations at Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island in Florida (this is also the beach where she got engaged decades later!). While she was in college in Boston, her husband introduced her to the magic of a less humid New England beach day. From relaxing beach dates at Crane Beach in Ipswich, MA to family adventures hauling the beloved beach wagon to Middle Beach (near their home in Maine), she now fully soaks in all the wonder the ocean has to offer.
What season of motherhood are you in right now? When it comes to our time at the beach, we’ve thankfully entered the season where my kids (ages 6 and 9) not only carry their own boogie boards but also eagerly offer to push the beach wagon (game changer!). They love to wear their wetsuits (since the ocean in Maine stays chilly most of the summer) and dive right into the water. They’ve really taken to playing so well together at the beach these past few summers, which is such a joy to watch (and I gladly welcome the momentary peace and quiet!).
What’s a must-have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
Must haves for myself: My favorite beach tote filled with sunglasses that aren’t too precious, a magazine (something easy to pick up and put down) or a book of quick, digestible essays (this funny one is a favorite). Plus hair ties and a hat! We also really love Business & Pleasure Co. for our beach umbrella and chairs.
Must haves for the kids: the sunscreen I swear by, always our Weezie towels, sunglasses, hat, an extra set of clothes, and a bucket and shovel (of course!). My kids also love this toss game set. (Liz: Weezie love always)
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly?
This might sound a little random, but aside from a bucket and shovel, we often bring non-beach toys to the beach. We love these stepping stones to flip over and collect little beach gems, and we’re also big fans of packing a watercolor set to paint shells. I’ve found that having a few toys that offer a break from swimming works for us. (Liz: Yes! We’ve done the watercolor set at the beach too! It occupied my littles for way longer than I thought possible! And so pretty too!)
One more mom hack: often saying yes when the ice cream truck rolls by!
What’s on your summer bucket list this season? I’m excited for our annual visit to Peaks Island off of Portland, Maine. We always have a blast renting a golf cart, strolling along the shore, collecting shells, and grabbing pizza from Il Leone. I’m also really looking forward to our family trip to Norway and Stockholm next month! (Liz: Is it weird that I’m already eagerly awaiting hearing about your Norway and Stockholm vacay!?)
Summer reading…
I’ve been loving the romance novellas from 831 Stories lately. I’m especially excited to check out their newest release, Square Waves, the second installment in the Big Fan series. (Liz: Ummmm, how did I not know that there is a sequel to Big Fan!?)
Meet Liz. She grew up visiting the magical Maine coast every summer as a little girl and is now recreating that tradition with her own kids with an annual August trip to Kennebunkport. And before relocating to the east coast a few years ago, she lived on the northern California coast with her babies, cementing their love for waves and tide pool explorations.
What season of motherhood are you in right now? Bye-bye baby stage and hello fun, fabulous full-blown KIDS! With three boys ages 4, 6, and 8, we are in boyhood and I’m finding so much joy as they age. And honestly, it’s also downright FUNNY. But holy moly, the summer exhaustion. It feels different from past years and I’m not sure exactly why; maybe no more afternoon naps, less simple water table entertainment, much more ACTION, but whatever it is, it’s nonstop. I’m happy, slightly sunburned, and drained.
Are you more of a pool person or beach person? Or both? Any favorite spots to visit?
While the coasts may hold my heart, having a pool now has - dare I say - made me a pool lover too!? When we purchased our current home, and saw it had a pool, I was worried about the liability, the maintenance, etc, but I’ve been converted. It has become such a joy for our family, my boys have become awesome swimmers, and the ease of walking outside to this literal built-in fun can’t be beat; it’s where we spend most of our summer days.
What’s a must-have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
For the beach, I always have my Supergoop sunscreens (this dry oil stick is great for my face and I love their Play sunscreen for my boys and my body). I also bring along this phone case to take pics under water, and baby wipes are always an essential for pre-snack cleansing. I keep anything small in ziplock baggies to make access easy and keep my big bag tidy.
The boys always need a shovel and bucket for every beach visit as well to assist with their seaside scavenger hunting.
I currently use an old Sea Bag with a fun lobster claw design but it’s felt a bit too small lately so I’m on the hunt for a bigger bag. Maybe I’ll splurge on a XL Sea Bag on this year’s Kennebunkport trip (I love the brand and designs) but I’ll check out any good beach bag recs in this issue first ;) (Amelia: I’m a Sea Bag fan too! They feel so Maine to me, and I love that they’re made from actual recycled sailcloth. )
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly?
Other than ideal weather (for the beach, a light breeze, partly cloudy; for the pool, a light breeze and higher temps), I believe that the key to success is incredibly organized packing (aka why I need a bigger beach bag stat). Having your dry clothes tidy, toiletries all together, sunscreen not leaking, snacks prepped and stored properly, drinks chilled, toys in a mesh bag, towels rolled and ready… it all makes such a difference.
Oh, and wetsuits for the chilly east coast waters are game-changers for my boys. Sun, temperature, and rock climbing protection all in one.
What’s on your summer bucket list this season?
A few goals for this summer: we’re investing in private swim lessons to take my boys’ abilities up a notch! It’s only been a few weeks and already seeing an incredible difference. We’re also really excited to visit Maine later in the season for lobster rolls, endless tide pool crab searching, lots of ice cream, and lighthouse sights.
And we crossed one bucket list item off already: the boys’ first Red Sox game! It was a sweaty blast of fun where one child cheered nonstop and the other ate nonstop and puked up those Dippin’ Dots later that night. Memories.
Summer Reading…
In terms of my reading, I’m excited for some solid beach reads (aka the new Carley Fortune summer romance romp, and Maine Characters with the prettiest hot pink cover) as well as some deeper, literary stories; I have The Compound, Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar, and The Names on top of my towering TBR list at the moment.
Meet Hannah. She’s a mom of two girls, ages 8 and 6, and works full-time in public school administration. She lives on Boston’s North Shore, grew up visiting the nearby beaches and is a total ice cream connoisseur. I - Liz - can attest to her refined frozen palate abilities and we look forward to crossing off a mutual summer bucket list item when we go check out Salt & Straw’s first New England outpost in Salem, New Hampshire before school resumes. (Amelia: Ooooooh! What is Salt & Straw? I’m intrigued.)
What season of motherhood are you in right now? I feel like I’m hitting my stride, my girls are 8 and 6. Independent enough to do something on their own, but still cuddly and wanting to spend time with us.
Are you more of a pool person or beach person? Or both? Any favorite spots to visit?Pre-kids, beach, no question. Post-kids, pool, no sand! Now that the girls are a bit older, I am starting to want to go back to the beach more. Growing up, I loved going to Wingaersheek in Gloucester. At low tide, it feels like you can walk out forever, and when the water is higher, I loved swimming out to the rocks and jumping off.
What’s a must-have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
My girls are hydrated queens in stark contrast to the 2 teaspoons of water I drank from a hose the entire summer of 1993. They are Stanley and Owala users respectively, but I think the best water bottles for kids are these Yetis. I’ve never had a leak, ice and water stay cold all day, and they are basically indestructible. I recently upgraded my Owala to the new version which has a lock and is tapered to fit in cup holders. (Liz: I’d just like to state that the sentence “My girls are hydrated queens in stark contrast to the 2 teaspoons of water I drank from a hose the entire summer of 1993” might be the best sentence ever written in this newsletter.) (Amelia: I second that!)
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly?
I’m not sure if these count as hacks, but here’s what helps me:
There’s strength in numbers. My kids are infinitely more entertained when their friends or cousins are around. They have more stamina for beach walks, collecting shells, swimming in the pool, really anything. (Liz: YES! AMEN!)
This happens way before a beach or pool day, but the Easter bunny brings bathing suits, goggles, and sunglasses every year. This sets the girls up for the summer and keeps our house from getting even more cluttered than it already is.
What’s on your summer bucket list this season?
We’re headed to the Outer Banks with my husband’s family. My kids are beyond excited to spend time with their cousins. Nearly every day for the past year and a half, I’ve heard “Hey Google, how many days until…”. Following that we have a few days on the Cape, just the four of us, which will be a nice reset before we launch into the chaos of heading back to work and juggling camp pickups.
Summer Reading…
As a fellow reader, I (Liz) had to ask Hannah her summer reading TBR and she happily obliged me… Long Bright River and Wild Dark Shore are up soon on her list, and she’s also about to dive into The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus (title very fitting for this beach-inspired newsletter theme).
Meet Beth. She’s a mom of three and lives on the Connecticut coast. She owns her own wedding planning company and thrives on travel, tip-top organization (she’s an insanely amazing wedding planner after all), and an superb sense of humor amongst all the craziness.
What season of motherhood are you in right now?
I’d say half surviving, half thriving!
Right now my kids are 3, 5, and 7, and it’s been a wonderful transition out of the baby phase and into the kid phase. They’re becoming more independent and it’s allowed me to focus a tiny bit more on myself and my needs, which has been refreshing! But don't worry, it's still chaotic.
Are you more of a pool person or beach person? Or both? Any favorite spots to visit?
We live 10 minutes from the beach, so we’re there several times a week. But my kids love a pool!
We travel a lot during the summer to see family, so we're constantly swimming at pools, lakes and beaches. Our favorite place in the world to visit is Dennisport in Cape Cod. We visit every summer and stay right on the beach. This summer will be our 16th year!
What’s a must-have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
Just for me, I always have Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen 50 SPF, as well as my favorite Yeti for ice cold coffee or rose. Our beach wagon is another must-have; it carries all of our beach chairs, toys, cooler, umbrellas, you name it!
For my three kids, I use a Target mesh beach backpack with beach toys; it allows all of the sand to fall out before I toss it in the trunk! We love the Supergoop Play Sunscreen and of course, boogie boards.
Last but not least, cold fresh fruit in our cooler; it’s all they crave when at the beach and helps hydrate them at the same time! (Amelia: This is our go-to too! We always load up on watermelon, cherries, and peaches.)
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly?
I pack a change of clothes for each child, and leave them in the car. Then we change each kid in the trunk before we pack up the car, and brush all the sand off. This way when they get home they’re not changing out of wet, sandy bathing suits in our house!
Also - pack ahead of time! I set a time to leave for the beach, and then I start packing one hour earlier. Pack the car, pack the snacks, fill the water bottles, pack the towels and extra sunscreen and clothes. Once everything is packed, I tell them to get in the car. That way we head out (relatively) easy!
What’s on your summer bucket list this season?
Traveling to our usual spots in Cape Cod and the Adirondacks, and unplugging while on vacation with the fam. And read more books now that they’re slightly older!!
Summer Reading…
And on Beth’s summer reading list, she’s excited to dive into The Wedding People and Maybe Next Time. (Liz: Let me know what you think of The Wedding People; I loved it! And curious about Maybe Next Time!)
Meet Tricia. She’s raising her two daughters in Atlanta, GA with her husband (one of Amelia’s oldest childhood friends!). Originally from New Orleans, LA, she spent summers in Florida’s Destin/30A area, a slice of heaven she now loves sharing with her husband and their girls. (Amelia: I visited the area for the first time while celebrating Tricia and Blake’s wedding, and I can confirm, it’s soo beautiful!)
What season of motherhood are you in right now? This summer, my daughters are 7 and 3 and a half. It feels surreal, but our oldest starts 2nd grade in August, so we’re really trying to enjoy all the time we can with her before school starts again. I feel like we’re in such a sweet spot—our girls play so well together (most of the time), and I just love watching their imaginations at work! Whether they’re setting up an imaginary restaurant or a make-believe grocery store, they genuinely enjoy each other’s company.
Are you more of a pool person or beach person? Or both? Any favorite spots to visit?
Beach, 100%! Sadly, my girls prefer the pool, so we spend most of our time there. But if it were up to me, it’d be beach all day, every day. I’m fortunate that my parents live full time in the 30A area of Northwest Florida, so any chance we get, we make the six hour drive down to visit. I’ve vacationed every summer in the Destin/30A area since I was a baby, so I’m biased, but I really do think the beaches are the most beautiful in the world. (Liz: It’s on my travel bucket list! I keep hearing - and seeing! - such beautiful things about this area!)
That said… if I could go anywhere sans children, it would be St. Barth’s. French cuisine and culture plus beautiful beaches? The perfect combo. (Amelia: Tricia and Blake just celebrated their 10 year anniversary with a magical trip to St. Barth’s. Their pictures were amazing!)
What’s a must have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
For me only - a riveting novel!
For the kids - snacks on snacks on snacks!
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly? Long sleeve rash guards are the best. They cut down dramatically on the amount of sunscreen we need. My girls will only wear them now because they hate having sunscreen applied!
And snacks! I swear by snacks everywhere, but especially at the beach or pool. Pack more than you think you need. No one wants to make the trek up a million stairs over sand dunes with a hangry toddler in tow.
Summer reading…
I just finished re-reading The Firm. I also have Dial A for Aunties and The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion at the top of my list!
Meet Alex. She’s raising her two daughters in her hometown of Duxbury, MA, with her husband, and their adorable dog, Simon! Alex works at Flock, a women’s clothing store in Boston’s South End neighborhood.
What season of motherhood are you in right now? I’m in a real sweet spot at the moment, my girls are 6 and 8. They don’t need me for the little things like grabbing a snack or filling a water bottle, but they still think I’m cool and want to hang out with me. I’m holding on tight to these days when family is still the center of their universe—because I know how quickly that will start to shift. Watching them grow and change is the most beautiful (and bittersweet) experience.
Are you more of a pool person or beach person? Or both? Any favorite spots to visit?I’m more of a beach person, but I love a good pool day too. The most perfect day has both! We’re lucky to get a lot of those combo days. We live in Duxbury, a small town halfway between Cape Cod and Boston, where we have access to a drive on beach—perfect for the 12 hour beach days my whole family loves. (Amelia: We have visited friends who have a home in Duxbury. I agree, it’s such a special spot!)
What’s a must-have in your beach tote just for you? Just for the kids?
For myself, I pack Tower 28 SOS Face Guard, a baseball hat, my Owala water bottle (they really never leak!) and whatever I’m reading at the moment.
For the girls, I pack Sun Bum Sunscreen (I always grab the face sticks—they make reapplying so easy!), Welly Waterproof Band-aids, endless snacks (they love freeze-dried strawberries and ZBars), Wadoba lacrosse stick and floating ball set, and an old Welly Band-aid tin to put sea glass in. (Amelia: I’m a huge Tower 28 fan too! The idea of using an old Welly Band-Aid tin to collect ocean gems is *genius*!)
Also, don’t forget giant hoodies if you’re staying until the sun goes down.
What’s one mom hack you swear by to make a beach or pool day go smoothly?
I’m a firm believer that the less you pack, the happier everyone will be. The beach is full of things to discover—get out there and get into it—and leave the thousands of toys behind. (Liz: Love this as well. Find some “toys” in the tide pools:))
Pool visits do call for a bit more: goggles, sinkies, pirate treasure, and you can’t go wrong with a noodle or two. I promise your kids will get along better with less stuff.
What’s on your summer bucket list this season?
We just finished two weekend getaways to the mountains, and are ready to head full throttle into a glorious east coast summer.
Summer reading…
Broken Country has definitely been my favorite read of the summer so far! I’ve also thoroughly enjoyed Deep Cuts, Heartwood, One Golden Summer and Atmosphere. On deck I have The Berry Pickers, Wild Dark Shore and The Life Impossible. (Liz: Alex, I think you and I may be book twins! All of these I’ve either read or want to read!)
Catch up with some past newsletter topics:
And a special shout-out to our friend Lindsay with her recent published article on The Everymom, all about her COVID baby starting kindergarten this fall!! (Amelia: I loved this!)
Rose:
Amelia - *Read Thorn* My husband and kids (along with friends and family!) have really shown up for me these past few weeks. Thanks to them, I’ve been able to prioritize the rest I need post-concussion. (Liz: I’m so, so glad you’ve had such amazing family support as you recover. I know how hard it’s been for you and send extra hugs your way xo)
Liz - We had a really fun 4th of July festivities-filled week, from the Red Sox game to visiting our beloved Rockport, a pool party we hosted for a big crew (with fireworks!) and a beach day complete with lots of crab searching. It may have took us all week to recover but it was totally worth it :)
Thorn:
Amelia - I had a freak accident at the end of June that led to a concussion. Ugh. Recovery has been slower than I expected (or would’ve hoped) but I know it’s part of the healing process. I’m grateful to my past self for batching some of my newsletter work ahead of time at least.
I’ve been holding my kids even closer this week after the heartbreaking news following the flash flood at Camp Mystic / Kerr County. I donated to The Kerry County Flood Relief Fund and hope you’ll join me.
Liz - I’m at a loss for words with the horrific flooding in Texas. My heart breaks for the campers, the parents, and all those affected by this tragedy. It’s truly nightmares becoming reality, and I, too, encourage anyone to donate if they’re able to.
Bud:
Amelia - I’m looking forward to a slow weekend at home (the theme as of late!). The kids will be happily occupied with time with friends, birthday parties, and the Red Sox game. I revisited our birthday issue to remind myself of Liz’s great gift ideas for my son’s friend’s 6th birthday (I went with the Klutz LEGO Race Car set!). (Liz: Yes! We love those sets!)
Liz - We’re in upstate NY for a week to visit lots of extended family (there’s a family reunion with over 40 people attending!) and it’ll be amazing to see some relatives that I haven’t seen in years.
** If you enjoyed this post, can you please HEART it (just click the heart icon below!) —it’s a free way to help more people find our writing! Thank you so very much!
Thinking about you, Amelia and remembering our classic beach day in Maine. The beaches in Maine are really my kind of beach…cool and breezy! One feature about the newsletter I love is getting to know so many other moms in this community. Loved seeing a recent photo of Tricia and her girls! Look forward to reading along on the next issue! Speedy Recovery!
Great issue! I loved all the linked recommendations as well as the book suggestions. I'm so sorry to hear about your concussion, Amelia! I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly.