Beaching in Huntington Beach

All of our mornings in Huntington Beach (and some in Beverly Hills) were cloudy and a little bit cooler due to "June Gloom" - we didn't mind because dry air in the 60's was actually a treat - each afternoon the sun would peek out and we'd usually hit about 70 degrees.  Our hotel was super family friendly, that's why we picked it - lots for kids to do, options of places to each together, etc.

Saturday morning we rented bikes from the surf shop at the hotel and went down to the bike path to bike a few miles overlooking the beach - we stopped at a playground right at the beach for Tatum to get off and run around a little bit - I thought he looked so cute on the back of Derek's bike and he just took everything in.

We took Tatum to the fish feeding right when we got back that they had for kids and those fish went nuts for the food - it was cool to see.  We decided to just keep it easy and grab an early lunch at the restaurant by the pool - Tatum ate his weight in watermelon I think.

We spent a good bit of time down on the beach during the afternoon - it was a great California beach day and we all loved it.  Walks, playing in the sand, Tatum dug a ton in the sand down by the water and it was cool to see the locals setup for the day around the bonfires (we even went back to check out the bonfires later in the evening).

We finished the day at the pool and the sun was really out for our time there.  I left the boys swimming to go freshen up for dinner and then came out to sit with them for a while more before we all went in to get ready.

To keep things easy with Tatum we decided to go back to Pete's Sunset Grille at the hotel (where we ate the first day for lunch) because you could eat outside and it was right there.  We enjoyed a little happy hour first and also walked over to the lookout above the beach to see the gorgeous sunset.

Since we had a fire pit on our balcony, the hotel had left us a s'mores box in our room with a s'mores kit, sticks to roast the marshmallows and blankets - we'd meant each day to do this with Tatum but he'd get tired or we'd had dessert elsewhere so unfortunately he missed out on this fun but Derek and I enjoyed it on our last night in Huntington Beach.

Sunday morning after some donuts for Tatum we went down to the bike path one last time for a family walk towards the pier and back.

Huntington Beach Boat Cruise

The Thursday after Memorial Day we took off for our annual summer trip to California for eight wonderful days of family time.  To start out the trip we stayed down in the Newport Beach area like usual but tried out a new spot for us - the Hyatt Huntington Beach Resort in Huntington Beach, CA.

I came down with a bad cough on Memorial Day and was feeling better the morning we left but once the five hour flight was over, I definitely wasn't feeling my best!  Our travels were smooth and Tatum was napping so I ran into a local grocery store to pickup Tatum's snacks and get cough medicine to be able to take asap!  Our room wasn't quite ready so we grabbed lunch outside at Pete's Sunset Grille. We unpacked a little and then took Tatum over to the kiddie pool and finished up at the adult pool which was right outside our room!

We decided to walk over to the beach just to check it out and by about 6pm we were all ready for bed, ha!  We picked up a couple pizzas to go from Tower 15 Pizzeria which was right in the little courtyard at the hotel.  We got Tatum cleaned up and fed and he went right down to bed then we enjoyed our pizza out by the fire pit on our patio.

On Friday morning we woke up feeling very refreshed after a much needed long night of sleep.  We walked over to Surf City Groceries in the courtyard for a little grab n go breakfast (which we then did each morning) and then set off for Huntington Harbor for a morning boat cruise.  I had been really looking forward to this activity - we charted an hour boat cruise with Prince Charters and our Captain could not have been nicer! He had a wine and beer waiting for Derek and I and let Tatum "steer the boat".

Next up was over to walk on the Huntington Beach Pier - we strolled a little bit and watched the surfers and then went back to the start of the pier to Sandy's Beach Shack for lunch outside.  People are always playing volleyball on the beach so we watched, watched people on the bike path and the sun had just popped out so we enjoyed the nice weather.

We settled in at the main pool and a nice nap for Tatum while we relaxed.  We let him swim for a little bit and then decided to go over to the beach to go for a little walk and playing.

Tonight was the only night we left the hotel and we went to the promenade to walk around and have grab some Mexican food for dinner.  

Friday Picks: Outdoor Toddler Toys

Summer is here and we are always outside!  Whether playing on the deck with outdoor toys and Tatum's playhouse, sandbox, water table and kiddie pool or at the pool or at the lake or at the beach or at a playground - he screams when it's time to come in!

In addition to his bigger items on the deck, we have a bin out there with little sand and pool toys, trucks, balls and miscellaneous things he can use.  It's all such fun to play with - he plays so hard and just really enjoys himself. 

If you have a 5 Below near you, I get a TON of his pool/beach toys there including floats and a bunch of stuff - they have great deals and it's not the end of the world if you loose something or need to replace something throughout the summer.  I'm sharing a few of our favorites today... 

beach toys set / little tikes picnic table / little tikes cook n grow grill / toddler swim float

babyganics sunscreen face stick / babyganics sunscreen face stick / underwater play sticks /

step2 happy home cottage / little tikes gas n go mower  / step2 water table / step2 play and fold slide

Summer Bucket List

I can't believe summer is already here!  This was our nicest weather for Memorial Day weekend in a while and we jumped right in - playing on the deck, pool days, walks, grilling, etc.  Tatum is at such a fun age right now - I'm really looking forward to this summer with him - he's in full toddler mode and ready for fun!  I love watching him play on the deck, I can't wait for all these other activities in store - he seems to have fun anything we do!

Vacationing in California last summer

Family Fun:

Strawberry Picking

Ice Cream Nights

Family Walks

Deck Nights & Cookouts 

Go to a Baseball Game

Date Nights Al Fresco (or with Tatum)

Shrimp Broil

For Tatum:

Playground

Reading at the Library

Pool Days/Nights + Lunch/Dinner at the Pool

Playing on the Deck & Outside 

Have a Picnic 

Travels:

Annual California Trip

Lake Weekends 

Going to the Shore

Anniversary Trip

Around the House:

Grow a Garden

Get Our Flowers Planted

Paint the Inside of the House