Shannon Doherty, the mom of four responsible for the popular "At Home With Shannon" TikTok page with more than a million followers, has some ideas to make your time at the shore easier.
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Use baby powder to wipe off sand.
Shaking it out of shoes and off skin doesn't always work, so put some baby powder in a sock and just rub it on your kids, Doherty says. "When you're leaving the beach, all the sand will come off."
Use a laundry basket to shake off sand.
Keep it in the back of your car when you go to the beach and put sandy towels and bathing suits in it. Then, shake it out. It can go right from the car to the laundry. It could not be more efficient, says Shannon, "and you don't get your car full of sand."
Apply sunblock with makeup brushes.
"I have four little ones and they don't love applying sunscreen," Doherty said. "So put it on makeup brushes and makeup sponges ... your children will have fun putting on 'makeup.'" Doherty also recommends setting a timer or an alarm to help remember to re-apply sunscreen.
Bring a small bucket to create a foot-washing station.
Pack a bucket that can double as a little seat or sandcastle building tool. You can also fill it with clean water to easily rinse off sandy feet before kicking back on a blanket or sheet.
Use a fitted sheet and beach bags to create a sand-free area.
Instead of a flat sheet that flies up in the wind, use a fitted sheet and weigh down the corners with heavy objects like a beach bag, bucket, purse or cooler.
Use a cup as a phone speaker.
Just place the phone in an empty cup with speaker pointed toward the bottom.
Flip flip-flops over to keep them from getting too hot.
Turn flip-flops upside down with the soles pointing upward. That way, once you or your kids are ready to wear them again, they won’t be unbearably hot.
Dig your own beach chair.
If you don't have a spare chair or forgot to pack one, build one by digging a shallow well in the sand and laying your towel inside it.
Pack sauces in a potato chip canister.
Add condiments to clean plastic containers. You'll likely need more than one sauce cup, so stack them all together with the bottoms up and then slide a cylindrical container right on top before flipping it right side up and popping the lid back on.
Decorate with flowers and food coloring.
For any patriotic holiday get-together, fill mason jars with water and add blue food coloring. Then attach red and white flowers for a fun little centerpiece.