Beach Must Haves

The beach is one of my favorite vacation spots. With a big crew, I find that being prepared is absolutely necessary. I keep beach bags already packed in my closet (hey, at least if I get a last minute chance I’m ready). I have a large Bogg bag and a smaller one as well. I also have two bags dedicated to towels.

Photo credit: Bogg Bag

In the larger bag I put sunscreen, towels, a first aid kit, a little kit with disposable cutlery, Lysol wipes, and hand sanitizer. In the first aid kit for the beach, I have BleedStop, bandages, tweezers, gauze, Benadryl, wound closures, aspirin, antiseptic wash, antibiotic ointment, itch cream, jellyfish sting spray, and steri-strips. I know this may seem overboard, but with our parents being on blood thinners, fall risks, and highly allergic to various things, I just want to be prepared.

I also keep another First Aid kit in the house. I make sure that as soon as we unload the car the kit is somewhere centrally located, and that everyone knows where it is.

I also have a travel bag that comes with me EVERY SINGLE TIME we travel by car. It has Dramamine, Advil, Benadryl, Sharpies, Ziploc bags of various sizes, collapsible containers, sweeteners, snacks, sewing kit, disposable cups, cutlery, paper plates, and Lysol wipes and spray.

Photo credit: Lilly Pulitzer

I also always pack a compact bag that can be unzipped to become a large tote. These are always one of my favorites.

Photo credit: Lilly Pulitzer
Photo Credit: Lilly Pulitzer

I know that for us school has already started, but I’m looking forward to fall break in a few weeks. These are just some tips and tricks I find invaluable when planning and executing a vacation with multiple generations and lots of people.

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Best Beach Towels {Dock and Bay}

It’s sadly been too long since our beach vacation, but I did discover the best beach towels ever before our last visit to my favorite place. They are from a company called Dock and Bay. The towels are ultra light and fast drying. Personally, I cannot stand coming out of the pool to find my towel is still wet from the last time I used it. It doesn’t get me dry or warm like that. I have bought too many towels over the years trying to find just the right ones. Finally, after way too much money and time, I think I’ve found it! They come in several sizes and shapes. They also come in a variety of colors. I love that they are soft to the touch and the colors are vibrant. Each towel comes in a canvas-type carrying case. We monogrammed the cases so we could keep up with whose was whose I also loved, loved, loved how they were packaged!! The plastic is biodegradable and says you could even eat it, but the directions say it doesn’t taste good so you shouldn’t. I just loved everything about these towels and the company. If you’re lucky enough to still have a vacation planned, go check out Dock and Bay Towels.

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Staying Keto on Vacation

So many diets allow cheat days or cheat meals. The keto diet is not really one of those. You are either in ketosis and burning ketones or you are not. Coming out of ketosis and then trying to get back into ketosis can send a person right back to the days of the “keto flu” where they might experience headaches, nausea, extreme tiredness, and other unpleasant feelings. For me, each time I would take a vacation week off of keto, I would easily gain 8-10 pounds. I’ve been on three trips since starting back on 100% keto again. I easily stayed keto in Las Vegas. I ate wonderful meals consisting of things like cheese omelets with avocado, salmon, crab-stuffed trout, sautéed spinach, steamed broccoli, and Caesar salad. When I visited the beach I ate things like: grilled salmon and shrimp, buffalo burgers with cheese, avocado, and bacon, lovely gourmet cheeses, omelets, creamed spinach, crab, and a low carb peanut butter pie I made while I was there. On my trip to Disney World, I struggled the most to find Keto friendly foods. I did a lot of intermittent fasting through the day. We ate sausage without all the toppings in Animal Kingdom. We had the ribs twice in  Animal Kingdom. I would eat cheese back in the hotel. I also brought almonds and Keto bars as well. I had fish and steamed broccoli at the Skipper Canteen restaurant in Magic Kingdom. I bought Babybel cheese and boiled eggs at the Contemporary Hotel. We also had a lovely charcuterie tray at the airport.  I didn’t go off the diet even though it was pretty hard to find Keto friendly meals in Orlando.

I hope that this post gives those on a Keto diet encouragement that even on vacation, you can still stick to the plan. I guarantee that you’ll be glad you did!