It’s officially SUMMER!!! To celebrate, I’ve put together a list of five of my favorite things this time of year. Enjoy (and be sure to share your own summer essentials in the comments)!
1. Rodan + Fields Foaming Sunless Tanner
With skin like mine, you have to become kind-of an expert at sunless tanners. I’ve tried a lot of different kinds, and this is – by far – my favorite. It is SO easy to put on, smells good, and looks super natural. It’s also pretty reasonably priced at $26.00. (Hint: a R+F consultant once told me to put a light layer of regular lotion on over my sunless tanner to help even everything out and prevent streaking. It works!)
2. Target Black Bathing Suits
You really can’t go wrong with a black bathing suit, you know? This year, I bought this one and this one. (P.S. All Target swimwear is Buy One Get One 50% off right now // and the girl at the checkout told me to keep my receipt because Target will honor the sale price on all merchandise for up to two weeks. Woot woot!)
3. Salt Water Sandals by Hoy
I’ve been amazed at how often my feet get wet in the summer. (That’s not a joke. It’s weird, I know, but true.) Water-proof sandals are essential, and Salt Waters are my favorite (for me, and Nora). I also have these from Old Navy and these from Jack Rogers (though the Jack Rogers just broke for the 2nd time, so I can’t exactly recommend them).
4. babyganics Sunscreen & Bug Spray
To be honest, I don’t fuss over “organics” and such very often; but, my kids wear A LOT of sunscreen in the summer, so I it feels worth it to me to pay attention to what kind of chemicals etc. are inside it. Not to mention, this stuff is thick and just works better than most other brands I’ve tried. I keep a tube of sunscreen in my beach bag, one in my diaper bag, one on each kids’ dresser, and one of the mini sunscreen sticks in my purse. You can never be too prepared. 😉 I also really like the bug spray and use it on our whole family most evenings.
5. L.L. Bean Boat & Totes
I’ve blogged about my love for these before, but this is 100% unsponsored. The kids and I each have one of these great bags with a zip-top for traveling, and I use one of the giant open ones as my pool/beach bag. Honestly, they are just such good quality – you can’t beat it for the price – and I love how classic/preppy the look is. 🙂
And, finally, I’ll call the rest of these things little “bonuses” since I care enough about alliteration to keep the list itself at only five but goodness knows I love a bunch of other “summery” things.
- Baby Powder (for sand removal at the beach)
- SPF sun hats and rash guards for the kids (I’m a big fan of iPlay brand, and I love Nora’s one-piece suits from SwimZip and Mini Boden)
- BB cream/ tinted moisturizer (I’m using something random that my sister got me right now…)
- La Croix (duh – I like plain old grapefruit the best)
- Stearns Puddle Jumper Life Jackets
- Turkish towels
- Kindle (this is a favorite of mine year ’round, but I especially love it in the summer when I have time to read and can download a new book in an instant/ don’t have to travel with a bunch of bulky books)
Now it’s your turn… Tell me: What are your summer essentials?!?
Have a great weekend!
E