Ready! Set! Let’s go!
Going to the beach with friends is something we’ve been doing for more than 15 years. After so many trips to the beach, I think we’ve got it down to a science.
In our group we divide up the breakfasts and dinners to be eaten at the beach [each family brings lunch food for their family or we go out to eat]. We assign meals in advance so no one person is stuck with preparing food too often. Each family shops for their assigned meal plus they bring a portion of the “household items” that we’ve found helpful to bring from home. The list has varied over the years, but with rental houses you’re never quite sure the household supplies will be provided. I’ll share the list we’ve formulated over the years for things we like to bring on a beach trip.
- Each family brings their own bathroom soaps and a few rolls of toilet paper
- Dish-washing liquid
- Dishwasher soap
- Laundry soap
- Paper towels
- Paper napkins
- Paper plates
- Coffee filters
- Plastic wrap
- Aluminum Foil
- Ziploc bags, gallon and quart
- Trash bags
- Dish towels
- Sponge
Since we have 4 families in our group, each of us only needs to bring about 3 items from the household list.
In our car, I also make sure to pack stuff for beach fun – kites are a huge amount of fun on the beach, bubbles, sand buckets and shovels, beach umbrella, beach towels, sand chairs
I also pack stuff for fun out of the sun – board games (Apples to Apples is great for a wide range of ages, Monopoly, Chinese checkers…) cards, Legos. Origami instruction books and paper keep us all entertained for hours. Paper lunch sacks and markers can turn into puppets for impromptu puppet shows. I try to make sure the craft items are easy to do and easy to clean so that we don’t damage the property we are renting, of course.
Last year our group of four families stayed in two units at The Commons. It worked out perfectly since the kids are old enough to be in one unit, watching their favorite movies while the adults could be next door enjoying peace and quiet. Those 10” walls worked out great!
Great tips! It’s so smart to work from a list. Love the pic of feet and sand…