How to Pack the Perfect Pool Bag

This conversation is sponsored by Neutrogena Wet Skin Kids sunscreen. All opinions and amazing ideas for things to pack for the pool are my own. 🙂

Ladies and gentlemen – IT. IS. SUMMER.

The (way too hot for me) three months my kids have been looking forward to since the day after Christmas are finally here. And in Texas, most of our summer months are hotter than Hades and full of blaring sunshine. Which is great, because we love our time at the pool. But it also means a lot more maintenance as a parent – I’ve got to keep these little pale-skinned kiddos sunburn-free!

Over the last four years, I’ve become a Pool Bag-Packing Ninja. It’s kind of an art…you want to make sure you have everything you need, but you also want to make sure you’re not overpacking, because no one wants to schlep around a bunch of extra junk!

If you’re new to packing for the pool, let me save you some time! Here are 9 things to pack for the pool (so you’ll always be ready for a swim!).

1. Towels. I know, duh…but really, it’s SO MUCH EASIER if you can just keep the towels in the bag instead of having to grab them every time you head to the pool. I wash them as soon as we get back, and when they’re dry I roll them up and stick them in our bag.

2. Snack for the kids. I keep some pre-packaged peanut butter crackers and granola bars in my bag at all times. Usually, the kids don’t even want to eat when they’re at the pool. But if I don’t bring them? Everyone is starving.

3. Life jackets. I shove these in my big pool bag too. We hang them to dry when we get back, and I replace them when I put the clean towels back in the bag. 

4. Water bottles. 

5. A plastic baggie for your cell phone. 

6. Separate bag for all the little things, like you pool key, car keys, chapstick, etc. I have a little washable makeup bag that I ALWAYS put my pool key in. That way I always know where it is, and I don’t have to work too hard to find it (I should implement a similar practice for my car keys, which I can never seem to find…).

7. Extra sunglasses. 

8. Hair bands. Because there is nothing more annoying than when your rubber band breaks at the pool!

9. SUNSCREEN. We go through sunscreen like it’s going out of style, and my sunscreen of choice for the kids is ALWAYS the spray-on kind. And now it’s even easier – Neutrogena Wet Skin Kids sunscreen line means you can apply sunscreen to the kiddos when they’re wet. 

I have to reapply sunscreen multiple times if we stay at the pool for a few hours. This means getting the kids out, drying them off, reapplying…you know the drill. But when we used Neutrogena Wet Skin Kids Spray (with an SPF of 70+!), the kids were able to jump out of the pool, get sprayed, and return to the fun.

If you have kiddos around the same ages as mine (3 and 6), you know how much of a time and energy saver spraying sunscreen onto a wet kid can be! This is especially helpful in the humid summer months, when no one ever seems to be dry to begin with. The Wet Skin Kids line is also water and sweat-resistant, and stays on for up to 80 minutes. The retail price is $11.99 and you can find it at your local supermarket or drug store.

And if you have a baby or don’t like spray-on sunscreens, you still have options for wet skin from Neutrogena with their  Wet Skin Kids Stick SPF 70+. 

  With your pool bag all packed and at-the-ready and your sunscreen routine simplified, you will have way more time to enjoy the upcoming (hot) summer months.

 

Be sure to follow Neutrogena on Twitter and Facebook for product updates.

Did I miss any pool bag essentials? Where will your family be spending their time this summer?

 

This post is sponsored by NEUTROGENA®. I only recommend products I use personally and believe will be good for my viewers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions (FTC) guidelines concerning the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising. Some of the products mentioned were provided by NEUTROGENA® for this review.