Summer Survival Kit for Toddler Moms: 17 Must-Haves
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We are so close to summer, and it cannot get here soon enough! My husband had his last day of school yesterday, and I am one week away from an entire summer of quality time with Rae. I cannot wait!
Summer with a toddler is endless fun, and it’s also a fantastic workout and a never-ending adventure. No matter how much you plan, it’s impossible to anticipate how your day will actually go.
I’m finding that they key to fun summer days with your toddler involve preparation and a wide range of activities they love. Items that are easily packed and transported are essential as well.
Here are my 20 favorite summer items for life with a toddler!
1. Sport-brella UPF 50+ Umbrella
This umbrella is amazing! A mom with 2 toddlers recommended it to me while I was pregnant, and I added it to my registry immediately.
It’s easy to carry, casts perfect shade, is a great spot for naps, and even has vents you can unzip to make sure that there is good airflow for your children if they decide to take a nap on the beach.
The umbrella is easy to carry and easy to use. The stakes are easy to put into the sand as well. It’s the perfect beach accessory!
2. Water table
Toddlers love water, and a water table is the perfect way to let them play and learn in the summertime. This particular Step 2 Water Table comes with tons of fun toys. Rae loves flipping her frogs into the water and “drinking” out of the slotted spoon (or her hand).
Water tables hold toddlers interest for a surprisingly long time. They have so much fun splashing and playing, and the water keeps them cool.
You can add some of their favorite waterproof toys to make the table even more engaging! It’s the perfect sensory play for summer!
3. Push car
I don’t know about you, but my toddler does not like being in her stroller anymore. It’s too passive for her, and she gets frustrated quickly. Since I love to take long walks, this is a problem for us.
Thanks to my local mom group on Facebook, this problem was solved by the Step 2 Whisper II push car. Rae loves to feel like she’s driving. She has fun playing with items in the cupholders and hiding acorns in the storage space in the front of the car.
I love it because I can store my water, sunblock, and hand sanitizer in the car easily. It’s light, easy to push and to store, and so adorable!
4. Sunblock stick
Putting sunblock on a wriggly toddler is like trying to trap an actual ray of sunlight. They scramble away so quickly, it’s nearly impossible to keep them safe in the sun.
The sunblock stick is a gamechanger. We use the mineral one from Trader Joe’s thanks to my friend’s recommendation. It goes on easily, and unlike most zinc-based sunblock we’ve used in the past, it actually rubs in rather than leaving us looking ghostly.
Right now, Rae is obsessed with everything related to makeup. I’m pretty sure she views the sunblock stick as her makeup, and she happily stays still while I put it on her. She even grabs the stick out of my hand to put it on herself! So much easier than our old sunblock battles!
5. Baby pool
Another great way for your toddler to stay cool this summer is to invest in a kiddie pool. We got our fancy Intex Jungle Adventure Play Center off Amazon last year, and we can’t wait to bring it out this summer. Rae loves splashing around in it, and we have so much fun watching her enjoy the water!
Kiddie pools can be super reasonably priced. Our local hardware store sells simple ones for $12. You can easily fill even the plainest pool with waterproof toys for hours of entertainment.
6. Life jacket
In the summer, safety is key. With so much access to water during family trips to pools, beaches, and lakes, it’s critical to ensure that your child is as safe as possible in the water.
Even if your child can swim, there is no harm in the extra protection of a life jacket. Tom and I are good swimmers, but we still wear life jackets every single time we go out in our kayaks.
Have you ever seen the pool safety color chart? The terrifying images have convinced me that Rae will only ever wear bright pink or orange in the water.
We just ordered her this life jacket for the summer, and I’m looking forward to giving her a little bit of (heavily supervised) freedom within arm’s reach in pools this summer!
7. Pop up tent
I love Rae’s pop-up tent. It’s so easy to transport, and we brought it with us everywhere last summer. While it’s not made for the beach (it nearly blew away when we tried to set it up at our beach!), it’s perfect for yards, parks, and pools.
Rae loves her tent too. I got it on sale at PB teen, and they have been so wonderful! When it broke last summer, they sent me a new one as soon as it was restocked.
Rae’s tent is the perfect spot for her to play with her toys and read her favorite books. We line the bottom with a blanket or quilt to make it extra comfortable for her!
The only complicated part of the tent is closing it back up. Check out this incredibly helpful video on how to fold a pop up tent for a demonstration!
8. Shorts, skorts, & rompers
As a mom, I am constantly running after Rae. I also bend over to pick up Rae or her toys at least 1,000 times a day. I can’t be worried about showing more than I want to when I’m in the middle of taking care of a toddler.
Once the school year ends, unless it’s date night, I live in shorts, skorts, and rompers. They’re comfortable, easy to coordinate, cool, and functional.
My favorite shorts are my Old Navy linen-blend pairs, but I also love the buttercup shorts from Lilly Pulitzer (you can get them at the summer after party sale and save them for the next year!). Running shorts are great too, they’re perfect for long walks on hot days.
When you’re picking out your shorts, look for pockets because you will always need to hold something for your toddler. Make sure the legs fit well enough to avoid gaping open, but not so tight that they’re uncomfortable.
And if you get a romper, make sure you can actually get out of the romper on your own! There’s nothing worse than spending 15 minutes trying to wrestle a zipper when you really have to pee!
9. Chilled teethers
Teething is always horrible, but teething on a hot summer day is especially awful for our little ones. These chilled teethers from Frida Baby are fantastic. Rae absolutely loves them, and I do too.
They’re super easy to wash, and they even come with little holders to keep small hands from getting too chilly!
10. Snacks in pouches
In the summer, we’re always out and about and don’t always have time to prepare healthy snacks. In these moments, snacks in pouches and tubes are so helpful!
Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods have great apple sauce pouches that are made from purees and not from concentrate. There are yogurt pouches at every grocery store too.
The pouches are easy, mess-free, and perfect for our outdoor on-the-go summer days!
11. Bug repellant wipes & hand sanitizer wipes
It’s so hard to safely spray a toddler with anything, let alone something like bug spray! There are so many brands of bug repellant wipes (including many natural ones) that solve this problem.
The next time you’re enjoying a summer night with your toddler, make sure to pack some bug repellant wipes to avoid itchy bug bites!
Hand sanitizer wipes are perfect for trips to the playground or the amusement park. They’re easy to carry, and once you put them in your purse, you’ll find yourself using them all the time!
12. UPF clothing
UPF clothing is so great for you and your toddler. The sun’s rays can easily come right through clothing, but UPF clothing is able to prevent this. Look for the protection factor right on the label.
Tom, Rae, and I all have a variety of UPF clothing. He wears his landscaping, and Rae and I wear ours for beach days. As someone with a history of skin cancer in their family, I know that we can’t be too careful!
13. Sunhats
I love my baseball caps in the summer, but for Rae, sunhats are the perfect accessory. And they look so cute with her chubby little cheeks! I love this Danmy sun hat from Amazon, it’s reasonably priced and it has velcro straps under the chin.
14. Sunglasses
It’s so important to protect your toddler’s eyes from the sun, and these Wee Farers are adorable! Plus they come with a little strap to keep them on your toddler. I splurged and got Rae the polarized version because she has blue eyes, so they’re extra sensitive to sunlight.
And don’t forget your own sunglasses! You don’t want to spend your time outdoors squinting!
15. Bubble blowers
Rae loves bubbles, and while we love blowing them for her, the bubble machines do a far better job than we do! This bubble machine from WisToyz has over 12,000 positive reviews, and it’s an adorable dog, so what’s not to love!
16. Sidewalk chalk
Sidewalk chalk is the perfect summer activity for toddlers. Rae loves to color whenever she can, and our deck and path are covered with her masterpieces (or scribbles).
We have the Crayola Washable Sidewalk chalk, and Rae loves it! The thick, pencil-shaped pieces are perfect for her little hands. Plus, we’ve left our chalk outside in numerous rainstorms and it’s actually survived!
Rae coloring with her sidewalk chalk 
The aftermath of playing with chalk -she sat in a rainbow!
17. Packable picnic blanket
Packable picnic blankets are awesome! This one, from FabFitFun’s summer box, folds up smaller than a beach towel and is super light and water-resistant.
I love this blanket (and others like it) because they’re so easy to bring with you for outdoor adventures. They’re perfect for picnics, the beach, the backyard, or literally anywhere else!
I hope some of these items help you and your toddler have a fantastic summer! And for more toddler mom essentials, check out the Ultimate Toddler Mom Survival Kit.
What is your favorite summer essential? Please share in the comments below!