Beach Day!

In a happy break away from the usual (home all day, making due with the same games and shows and routines), my little girl and I set out to the beach with a couple of good pals and had some fun in the sun. Some [terrible! horrible!] tanning was done, as well as copious splashing and - you guessed it - sand! Sand, everywhere! Unfortunately, the sun got to be too much, and we beat a hasty retreat after about two hours. But let me tell you, my child is still full-throttle. Beach days are the best!

In addition to being fun, there are also a couple of cool benefits. Not only is a trip to the beach easy on the wallet, but there are also some pretty cool health pluses associated with splashing around in the sea. Most specifically, sea water serves as an antiseptic and pro-healing agent, and as a sinus reliever. I've also read that tomatoes grown using diluted sea water contain a higher amount of antioxidants than normally-grown tomatoes, but that's more an interesting tidbit than a relevant fact. I can, however, personally attest to the happy effects of sea water on the body. I had a split cuticle that was painful and scabbed when we arrived at the beach this afternoon, and now the scab is gone and the area no longer smarts! How's that for cool? (I also got hit in the face by a particularly tumultuous wave and got lots of sea water up my nose. Sure, it cleared my sinues, but getting hit in the face by a wave is NOT COOL!)

I also like to put off any real showering after a beach visit until right before bed. As gross as that may sound, I find that it's really nice for my skin. I'll simply rinse off at the beach showers just to get all the sand off, and then lounge around in shorts and a t-shirt for a few hours after arriving home. That way, I get to enjoy the smell of the ocean that lingers on my skin, and I always notice that my skin is much softer and not as dry as usual.

Cheers!