Can you take a baby to the beach? Of course, you can! We took our daughter Sofia on her first beach trip at three months. It was fun, but it also came with a few challenges.
In this article:
- Beach Day With a Baby Packing List
- Beach Day With a Baby Schedule
- What to Expect When Taking a Baby to the Beach
Why is it so hard to leave the house with a baby? Well, first of all, it requires gathering a Mary Poppin’s amount of supplies. You probably don’t have a magical, bottomless Poppin’s purse to stow it nice and neatly in either. So let’s factor in about twenty minutes of packing the baby gear (diapers, wipes, burp cloth, toys, car seat, stroller, etc.) and loading it all into the car.
I can count the number of outings I made during my first three months post-partum on one hand. But, one morning I woke up and I’d had enough of being stuck in the house. Plus, it was summertime and having grown up near the water, the beach was calling my name.
I wanted to have a beach day as a family so badly. So, here’s how I made it happen with as little stress as possible.
Know What to Pack for a Beach Trip With a Baby
Babies need a lot of the same things everyone else needs at the beach: sunscreen, shade, and hydration. While I packed the usual items I would for myself, here are the additional items I packed for Sofia. I highly recommend packing the night before.
Bookmark this page for when you pack your beach bag and check off each item as you pack it. You may need to add other items depending on your baby’s age and stage.
Beach Day with a (3 mo. old) Baby Packing List
Baby suncreen (I use Raw Elements Baby + Kids Certified Natural Sunscreen Lotion SPF 30.)Baby swimsuit with SPF fabric (Find Sofia’s exact suit here.)
Shade shelter. This can be an umbrella, tent, or canopy
Beach-appropriate toys (ones okay to get wet or sandy)
Bassinet
Towels
Sand mat, blanket, or quilt)
Expressed breastmilk/formula
Spray bottle/misting fan
Swim diaper
Your usual baby bag items (diapers, wipes, change of clothes, etc.)
Some notes on this list: I did not have one of those fancy sand mats, so I just packed a bunch of extra towels and laid those out on the ground. To be honest, they didn’t work that well, and I do wish I had a sand mat. I think a quilted blanket would work as well. Another item from the list I didn’t pack was a swim diaper since I did not plan on getting Sofia wet—just to dip her cute little toes in and let her splash a bit if she was into it.
I also packed regular beach items for my husband and I like beach chairs, a folding table, towels, snacks, and a ton of water.
Choose the Right Time of Day & Plan a Baby Beach Day Schedule
It’s a good idea to plan your trip for the early morning or the early evening when the sun’s rays are less harmful. Infants and babies have extra sensitive skin. While sunscreen can help protect your little one’s (LO) skin, you still want to avoid the hours of the day when the sun is the strongest, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Scheduling a beach day will also be largely determined by your LO’s eating habits. For my 3-month-old breastfed baby who eats about every two hours, this was the schedule I planned out:
The night prior – pack beach bag, cooler, and baby gear
Hour 1 – Feed baby at home
Hour 2 – load up the car and get on the road (baby will fall asleep in the car)
Hour 3 – arrive at the beach with baby napping, setup beach canopy and relax until baby wakes up
Hour 4 – Baby wakes up, feed, explore the beach with baby and hubby
Hour 5 – Baby naps
Hour 6 – feed baby then pack up and head back home
While a schedule is extremely helpful, you don’t have to stick to it perfectly. Not everything went according to schedule for us, but it was still helpful to create one as a guide.
Expect a Few Things to Go Wrong
Here’s what that schedule looked like in reality:
The night prior was a tough one for Sofia and I, with not much sleep. So I didn’t get the packing done. Instead, I packed everything in the morning during her first nap of the day, prior to her early morning feeding.
We didn’t actually leave the house until around 11:00 a.m. However, one thing that did go to plan was that Sofia fell asleep in the car on the way there! Since she was asleep, I was able to get some one-on-one time with the hubby and help him set up our canopy and chairs.
Shortly after we finished setting up, Sofia woke up and was pretty excited by her surroundings. Watching her take it all in reminded me of how magical nature is, especially to brand new baby eyes. Her eyes widened at the blue-green water and little hills of sand, and I felt a deep sense of gratitude inside me for the beauty around us.
My LO was pretty content during the first hour at the beach. I fed her, we played with toys, and dipped her toes in the water. Being there was worth the work of getting there. Looking back, this has become one of my favorite memories of her new-born stage!
After about an hour and a half of awake time, she started to get sleepy. It was nap time, and this is where things got kind of stressful. I typically swaddle her in a blanket for nap time, but it was too hot for that. After 20 minutes of bouncing her in my arms and singing to her, she finally fell asleep. I hoped this meant another hour of beach time for my hubby and I, but she woke up about 15 minutes later.
More people were showing up to enjoy the beach, boomboxes and oversized flamingo floats in tow. Naptime just wasn’t working out. So, we called it a day, packed up our things, and headed home. Even though the beach day was cut short, it was still a great time and a much-needed break from being cooped up in the house.
Recognize the Blessings
If you are thinking about having a beach day with your baby, I say give it a go!
The key to having a successful beach day with a baby is to expect a few things to go wrong and be flexible. Planning a schedule is helpful, but don’t get disheartened if you find yourself running behind or if things don’t go to plan.
The first few months of motherhood are hard. Between the cycle of feedings, diapers, and nap times — there isn’t much time to stop and appreciate the new little blessing in your life. During our beach day, I finally got to do that.
There’s something about being in nature that calls my attention to God’s creativity (literally as our Creator). Looking out onto the water with my baby in my arms put me in awe of God’s work and inspired a sense of gratitude in my heart not only for how beautiful of a beach he had created, but also for my daughter and my husband who were with me.
Ever since God created the world, his invisible qualities, both his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people have no excuse at all!
Romans 1:20 GNT
When we see the greatness of God reflected in nature, we are left with no excuses to withhold our gratitude. Whether it be a trip to the beach, a hike down a trail, or an outing to the park, time spent in nature makes it easier to recognize our blessings.