Lessons learned from our (Kate’s and my) first trip to the beach:

* Bring an interesting toy to give to the child in case they should happen to wake up before we get there and be Unhappy.

* I need a new bathing suit that actually fits.

* Put sunscreen on your friend’s back without being asked. Otherwise they will think they got it and will come home with a sunburn.

* Swim diapers do not hold in pee. Do not put swim diapers on your child unless they are actually going swimming. Or you will get peed on.

* Those little beach chairs rock! Much nicer than laying on a sandy towel (especially for someone like me who doesn’t “do” sunbathing).

* So do beach umbrellas. This white chick needs shade.

* Freezing water bottles makes a great ice pack. Unfortunately said ice pack did not actually melt enough to drink while at the beach. Perhaps less freezing.

* Bringing a bunch of fruit for Kate was a good idea, she needs lunch or she gets cranky.

* Sand gets everywhere… especially when the sand-covered child who usually likes to run off and explore suddenly decides that she wants to crawl all over mom. Baby powder, however, gets it right off. Neat trick!!

I’m kind of ashamed to admit it, but I’ve been living here in MA for 6 years and I had never once gone to the beach with the intention of going and hanging out on the beach. Once we took my parents there to walk around and eat seafood, but that was it. And on my honeymoon in Myrtle Beach Den and I did attempt the beach, but it was July in South Carolina and I am Canadian – I walked out onto the beach and said, “Oh hell no,” and spend the rest of my honeymoon in the shade by the pool. Honestly beaches kind of scare me, mostly because of the “burned to a crisp” aspect. Then there’s the sand, the people, the cold water.

It went surprisingly well. Kate did seem to enjoy the sand, though not as much as I would have thought she would – though that may be because I wouldn’t let her to do the fun things, like eat the driftwood and rocks. We had some pails and shovels and she seemed to like that. She had the most fun, I think, climbing onto and off of my darn chair. We went all the way to the beach so she could play with a chair?

I did walk Kate over to where the waves were breaking, and she watched them suspiciously, nervously. Then one little wave crept up to her feet. She fell backwards, landing on her bum, then threw her hands in the air and cried. And cried. I stood her back up, and she still cried, shaking her arms for emphasis. So, does not like ocean waves. It was pretty cold – I certainly wasn’t going to go swimming.

It was a good day, for sure, a good outing with the toddler, but not exactly relaxing either. It’s not like I could read, as I had to make sure Kate wasn’t trying to eat something or walk onto someone else’s blanket. You can occupy them for only so long with their cool toys, next time you glance over she’s taking off again. Thankfully the sand slowed her down considerably! She actually didn’t walk around much for the first hour, but unfortunately for me she figured out how to walk on the sand by the end of the day.

I put SPF 50 on both of us – I did it once before we left the house, more on her when we arrived at the beach, and then put more on both of us halfway through. She looks fine, I’m a little pink. She definitely got some of her daddy’s skin tone – there is some Native blood in him, he tends to tan nicely. Unlike me, who wavers between Ghost and Lobster.