I’m talking Summer Must Haves with Banana Boat as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars #BestSummerEver
Summertime at my house is all about the outdoors. We love going on adventures, and on any given day you can find us doing things like hiking on a mountain, digging for crystals, or relaxing in a homemade fort. We are a highly active family, and so I feel like we are always on the go. It’s super fun, but this kind of lifestyle requires some pretty careful planning to ensure we always have the necessities with us. I’m sure there are other active mamas out there just like me, so I created this list of items that are perfect for on-the-go families to keep around for anytime adventure strikes!
Snacks
The first thing I have found useful to always have handy is some sort of healthy, protein packed snack. The sun is incredibly draining when you’re out in it for more than a few minutes, so replenishing snacks are a must. And lets face it, how often do we take time out for ourselves and actually eat a full meal? Rarely, right? Some of my favorites to keep in my on the go kit are naturally sweetened granola bars, trail mix and mixed nuts. I don’t know about yours, but my kids give me a workout almost daily! From running around the yard to climbing the walls, they’re balls of energy. And if I don’t keep nutritious little pick-me-ups around I fall behind.
Hydration
Spending any amount of time outside right now will give you a serious need for hydration. We don’t usually have enough hands or even space to bring a bunch of water bottles on the go with us, so my absolute favorite way to carry necessary hydration is in a wearable reservoir. Being a hiker, I’ve always carried one on the trail, but it’s equally useful for family outings to the park and the beach as well – it saves a lot of space, most are insulated and most importantly carrying it on your back frees up your hands! How’s that for efficient?! Reservoirs range in price form $20-$100 depending on your size needs and brands, and when you’re not using the water portion you can even use it as a regular backpack!
Sun Protection
Sun protection is extremely important when you are spending time outdoors. There’s a huge variety out there to choose from, but for me, I always stick with Banana Boat because it is a brand I trust and I have used them for many years now. I always make sure I have a bottle of sunscreen with me for the entire family, but while the kids wear SPF 30 and above, I like a little sun on my skin so I choose a dry oil with a lower SPF. My product of choice this season is Banana Boat® Dry Oil Clear UltraMist® Sunscreen in SPF 8 – it gives just enough protection to get a sun kissed look, but also includes amazingly fragrant argan oil to really nourish my skin.
This is a newly reformulated product with Argan oil to leave skin moisturized, but it still provides broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection too! Plus it’s water resistant for up to 80 minutes so I don’t have to worry about reapplying. Oh, and I’m already messy enough having two kids, so the last thing I want is to have to rub in sunscreen. With Banana Boat’s spray that is one less thing I have to worry about!
Creative Activities
Even when we don’t have adventures planned, we can still have fun in our back yard! Some of our favorites are sprinkler play, treasure hunts, bug hunts, hide and seek and more. The great thing about getting outside in the Summer time is that it doesn’t matter if you get wet, so why not pull out the sprinkler and make some stomping puddles? We LOVE those! Need more inspiration? Check out this easy watermelon drink recipe for a little refreshment.
Special Moments
Lastly, I have to have somewhere to keep all my memories that we make on these adventures. As you know I’m a sucker for sentimental stuff, and I’m sure by now you have heard the story about my blog name a million times already. I like to collect and keep all of these moments with me so that I can look back on them, and while I’m not really a “scrapbooker” I do love having a physical place to store my memories. A few weeks ago I made Judah a nature book to keep all the cool stuff he finds out about nature in, so I thought why not do one for me as well? So I got a binder, whipped up a few cute pages and put them all together. Isn’t it lovely?
Now what are you waiting for, go out and have some fun in the sun!
