Friday Favorites – Live from the Beach
Summer is just not summer to me until I’ve made it to the beach! Call it complete as I’m waking up this morning to the sound of the waves rolling in. You can bet there will be toes in the sand most of the day and lots of great laughs.
I’ve been going to the beach every summer since I can remember as I grew up just an hour from the coast. My dad was always the best at setting up camp and cooking ranch style beans right in the can on his grill. Ahh….love those memories! Here are a few of our favorite things to take along to the beach in the current century!
A pop up canopy
is a must to offer a retreat from the sun. Everyone loves to be in the water and building sandcastles but having a place to sit in the shade while eating a bite or just catching a quick nap is a must for me. Be sure to take something to use to weight it down because it is typically windy at the coast. A 5 gallon bucket always works well and we just fill with water and tie to the tent. We also love this one with the zip up storage bag with wheels.
is a must to offer a retreat from the sun. Everyone loves to be in the water and building sandcastles but having a place to sit in the shade while eating a bite or just catching a quick nap is a must for me. Be sure to take something to use to weight it down because it is typically windy at the coast. A 5 gallon bucket always works well and we just fill with water and tie to the tent. We also love this one with the zip up storage bag with wheels. 
We were always able to drive right onto the beach and I believe we can at this location too but we do have a boardwalk across to the beach. I’m really thinking our utility wagon is going to come in handy. We actually have this utility wagon
with the smaller wheels since we mainly use for sporting event but a friend recently bought one with these large wheels
which would be much more conducive to sand.
with the smaller wheels since we mainly use for sporting event but a friend recently bought one with these large wheels
which would be much more conducive to sand. 
Where there is water there will be mosquitoes. I saw this Bull Frog Mosquito Spray Sunscreen with Insect Repellent
not long ago on another blog (oops can’t remember which one) and it seemed genius to me! Knock out two birds with one stone.
not long ago on another blog (oops can’t remember which one) and it seemed genius to me! Knock out two birds with one stone. 
One of my kids favorite things to do is walk along the beach at night looking for little sand crabs. When we vacationed in Destin years back, we noticed the little kids club babysitting group headed to the beach each night with flashlights. Before that we had no clue! So much fun.
For the adults, I am partial to getting the day off on the right foot with a little vitamin C….that is if there is Malibu rum in it! Mix this with orange juice and it’s the perfect drink before noon.
Any book by Elin Hilderbrand is perfect to read at the beach! I grabbed Nantucket Nights a week or so back and I might find a little time to read a few chapters.
If you have a beach trip planned, you definitely want to hop on over to my friend Holly’s blog and read all about the Beach Bucket List she put together for our fun getaway. Everyone needs a friend who can pull something like this together! We can’t wait to cross everything off our list.
Of course there are all the basics, sand toys and boogie boards and snacks you don’t allow yourself to eat anywhere else! I can’t wait to share all of our pictures when I catch back up next week! If you are dying with anticipation you can be sure to follow along on Instagram or find me on Snapchat queeninbetween1.
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Enjoy your little beach trip !
I love the beach, but we hardly ever go down to Galveston. What do you think is the best Texas beach? Hope you have a wonderful getaway. Malibu brings back lots of memories of my 20s…ha, ha!
Eeeekkkk!!! This post just made me even more excited for vacation, how is that even possible? Love your bucket list so many of those I already wanted to do.
I could spend everyday at the beach and it is always better with some coconut rum! I started Elin Hilderbrand's book – Matchmaker – last week and I love it. Enjoy you time away!!
Hmmmm…I just finished Pretty Girls so I guess I could use a little lighter reading this time around! Enjoy the beach!
You know I love my beach time and give mama some rum on the beach…even better!! My husband and I have been wanting to get one if those utility wagons..so practical. Have a ball sweetheart…you deserve it!!
OH my goodness, bucket of water to hold down canopy…You = genius! Like seriously! Have so much fun at the beach! I haven't stayed at the beach in forever, just day trips, might have to add that to one of our summer trips one of these summers.
How in the world have I missed the deet free sunscreen bug spray combo!! I definitely need to find that! I hope you guys have a great trip full of relaxation!
I had never seen it either Emily! How smart is that?!! We had an amazing trip!
Haha…not really genius but definitely have learned over the years! Sand works too! We had so much fun!
The beach is my favorite vacation Andrea! We had so much fun! I can't believe it took us so long to buy a utility wagon but this year all of the parks Dillon has played at have had a good hike from the parking lot to the field so we finally decided it made sense. It really came in handy at the beach!
Wasn't it terrible but captivating at the same time?!! I could not put it down! I'm not super impressed with this Elin book…not my fave.
Me too Jessica! It's my favorite vacation. After we ran out of OJ we found mixing fruit punch gatorade and malibu is DELISH! Plus we figured it was a win win since we were also hydrating…haha. I wish I had chosen Matchmaker..this one is not my favorite Elin read.
The beach is the best Beth! You guys will have so much fun!!
Tanya I have not been to Galveston in years! South Padre was probably the most like Florida beaches I've ever been to but it is just so darn far. We almost always go to Matagorda because it is close to my hometown but not alot of options for lodging. We really enjoy Port A because the beaches are clean and there are other things to do nearby. Still not a weekend trip….I would need at least a 3 day weekend to make it worth it.
We had so much fun Kimm!
Yes, I read Silver Girl by Elin and felt the same way, no too impressed but I've liked some of her other books. Probably didn't help that I had just finished reading The Nightingale so maybe after reading something so deep it felt a little too light. I want to read Liane Moriarty's new book next!