The Summer We Finally Became a Beach Family

 Living in LA, more specifically on the Westside, we're completely spoiled by the nice, cool weather all throughout the year. Summer is relatively cool, winter is relatively warm. The temperature hardly ever goes above 80 in the summer, and it hardly ever goes below 60 in the winter. It's comfortable year-round, and there's always that cool sea breeze even on those what-we-call "hot" days.

So yes, we're spoiled.

Either because we're so spoiled that we never felt the need to go cool off, or because we're just simply too lazy, we had never taken our kids to the beach that's only 3 miles away from home.

Not until this year.

Our older boy wanted to have a playdate with some of his classmates over summer break, and one of his friends convinced her parents that she absolutely needed to have a proper summer - aka, a day at the beach. So we decided to give it a try.

Because we're only 3 miles from the coast, we have quite a few beaches to choose from. Our pick for this particular playdate was El Porto. I had always known El Porto as a surfers' beach, but had never actually been there myself. It's located just a little north of the famous Manhattan Beach, but has much less of a crowd and has a nice cafe and clean-ish bathrooms right by the parking lot.

And from the moment we got there, we had one thought:

Why have we never come here before?

The kids didn't even hesitate. They ran straight toward the water.

At first, they just dipped their feet in. Then they got a little braver and went in up to their waists, trying to catch the waves. They'd come back out and play in the sand for a while - digging, burying things, making who-knows-what - and then they'd run right back into the water.

And they did this over and over and over again.

For almost five hours.

We had to force them to take a short break in the middle just so they could eat something. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure they would have kept going until the sun went down.

There were three families total, six adults and six kids, so while the kids went completely wild, the adults got to sit around, catch up on each other's summers, and enjoy some nice cold drinks from the coolers we had all brought. Honestly, it was a pretty perfect summer day.

Of course, we also brought approximately half of our house with us.

We packed a 13x13 camping canopy, camping tables and chairs, beach towels, snacks, drinks, and all the other things we thought we absolutely needed. Everything went into our wagon, which seemed like a great idea until we actually had to pull the thing through the sand.

It was heavy.

Like, really heavy.

Setting everything up wasn't too bad because there were six adults, but hauling all that stuff from the car to the beach and then back again was a workout of its own.

The other two families kept things much simpler. They brought beach towels, a small cooler, and a couple of beach chairs for the adults. They kids were apparently expected to just sit on the towels.

Naturally, our kids - and eventually their kids - ended up sitting in the little chairs we brought.

So did we bring too much stuff?

Yes.

Did we regret bringing it?

Also yes.

But by the end of the day, I was very glad we had everything we brought.

Having a proper table for the kids to sit and eat was especially nice. Otherwise, I swear they would have eaten more sand than actual food if they had to sit on a beach towel with their snacks.

And the canopy was worth every bit of the hassle. One of the other families had brought a small beach cabana, but with three families and six kids, it simply wasn't enough shade for everyone. Our giant canopy gave us a proper shaded area where we could all hang out.

So, was hauling all that gear through the sand a pain?

Absolutely.

Was it worth it?

A big yes.

Because the kids were actually playing. Like, really playing. Nothing but water, sand, and each other kept six kids entertained for five straight hours.

I honestly didn't know my kids would love the beach this much.

We had been to beaches before - Hawaii, Mexico, and other places - but either they were too little at the time or maybe the vibe was just different. They never seemed particularly excited about the beach. My younger one, in particular, used to actively protest putting his feet on the sand. I think he just didn't like the feeing of it.

But this time?

He was ALL over it.

At one point, he literally asked my husband to give him a "sand bath," and completely buried himself under the sand.

I couldn't believe I was looking at the same kid who used to refuse to put his feet on the beach.

And that's when we started feeling a little guilty.

We live three miles from the ocean.

Why had we never brought them here before?

The best part was that being so close meant we didn't have to turn a beach day into some huge vacation-day production. We didn't have to drive an hour each way. We could just...go.

So we went again.

Two days later.

Round Two: We Learned a Few Things

This time, we went back to El Porto with another family.

We had learned from our first trip, so we trimmed down some of the gear we didn't really use. We still brough the canopy, table, and chairs, but instead of putting the canopy inside the wagon, we carried it separately from the car. That made the wagon much easier to maneuver through the sand.

We also gave each kid something to carry. The younger one got a snack bag, and the other one carried a folding chair. 

Suddenly, the adults weren't responsible for carrying everything.

Brilliant.

We also had the kids help set up the canopy. This time there were only three adults and four kids, so we had no choice, but the older kids were actually surprisingly helpful. They helped put the legs in the right spots, extended them when needed, and secured the poles with the Velcro.

And of course, we brought pizza from Costco for the kids to share.

This time, I also went into the water with them.

And wow.

I really regretted not doing it the first time.

The water was cool but not too cold, and feeling the waves hit my body was so unbelievably soothing. For a few minutes, I honestly felt like I was a little kid again, playing in the ocean without thinking about anything else.

Meanwhile, my husband discovered something else.

Clams.

He started digging around in the sand in the water with his feet and suddenly found one. Naturally, everyone wanted to try it. Soon, all the kids and adults were digging around with their feet, and by the end of the day, we had a bucket full of clams.

Probably around 30 of them.

The plan was to bring a few home and cook them for dinner. My husband was particularly excited about this. 

Unfortunately, our friend quickly informed us that clams caught around LA can contain harmful toxins and shouldn't be eaten because cooking doesn't destroy the toxins.

So much for our homemade clam dinner.

My husband was very disappointed, and we ended up buying clams from Whole Foods instead.

At least the kids had fun.

The Sand Problem

One thing we hadn't quite figured out yet was how to deal with the sand.

The first time, we tried washing the kids' feet with fresh water right before getting into the car. It seemed like a good idea, but it didn't really work.

We got most of the sand off, but because their feet were now wet, they picked up even more sand - and every other random piece of beach debris - on the way to the car.

The second time, we tried something completely different.

We pulled the kids out of the water a little earlier and let their feet and the rest of the body dry while we packed everything up. Then, right before getting in the car, we had them shake off all the dried sand and dusted them off with dry towels.

We still put towels underneath them in the car, just in case, but somehow this worked much better.

Less mess, less fuss.

And that's the thing about taking kids to the beach. You learn something new every time.

And Then We Tried Dockweiler

By this point, we were officially into beach days.

So the following week, we invited some friends from La Crescenta to come down and join us.

We had actually planned to go back to El Porto, but it was a Sunday and there was some kind of event happening there. The parking lot was completely closed, and if you've ever been to the area, you know how impossible it is to find street parking. If you manage to find a spot, you should probably go buy a lottery ticket and test your luck.

So we headed to Dockweiler Beach instead.

This is definitely something to keep in mind if you're planning a beach day in LA: especially on summer weekends, check for events and parking closures before you go.

Dockweiler is actually a little closer to our house than El Porto. It's just north of El Porto and also has a nice cafe and conveniently located restrooms.

There are three parking lots at Dockweiler, all connected but spread out. We chose the furthest parking lot from the entrance for two reasons: it was less crowded, and the water seemed calmer.

And we were so glad we did.

It almost felt like we had our own private beach.

Even though it was Sunday, it wasn't crowded at all. The waves were low, the water was shallow, and the beach was very close to the parking lot, which meant much less suffering when it came to hauling our beach gear.

There was one downside: the cafe is by the first parking lot near the entrance, so if you're staying at the far end, it's not exactly convenient to walk over whenever you need something.

Fortunately, we had brought enough food to fee both families - four adults and four kids.

Which brings me to another important beach-day lesson:

Always pack more food, snacks, and drinks than you think you'll need.

Kids at the beach are apparently bottomless pits.

We also brought wetsuits for the kids this time.

This was a game changer.

During our first two visits, my younger one had been shivering pretty much the entire time. The funny thing was that he absolutely refused to get out of the water because he was having too much fun. So he was basically freezing while simultaneously having the time of his life.

The wetsuit changed everything.

He was comfortable, warm, and able to stay in the water much longer at a time without turning into a little blue popsicle.

And the boys found something else that day: sand dollars.

I had never actually seen a sand dollar before, so when the boys first found them, I thought they were some kind of fossils. They were so beautiful, and the boys were unbelievably proud of themselves for finding them.

El Porto or Dockweiler?

After three beach days, we definitely developed a preference.

For the parents, Dockweiler was the winner.

The calmer, shallower water was much more comforting with little kids. The beach was close to the parking lot, which made transporting all the gear much easier. And the far parking lot was surprisingly peaceful.

Dockweiler also has fire pits, so if you're looking for a little barbecue or bonfire-style beach outing, that's another big plus.

But interestingly, our kids preferred El Porto.

Of course they did.

My mom brain loved the shallow water and smaller waves at Dockweiler. My boys, on the other hand, apparently preferred getting knocked around by bigger waves and occasionally slammed onto the ocean floor.

So if you ask me where I'd take little kids?

I'd probably still say Dockweiler.

But if you ask my boys?

El Porto. Every time.

One more thing I learned: boogie boards.

We brought them to our second El Porto trip, thinking the kids would have a blast.

They didn't.

For kids this young who don't know how to use them properly, I actually think they can be more of a nuisance than anything else. The boards kept getting in the boys' way and limiting their mobility instead of helping them enjoy the waves.

So unless your kids have some experience with boogie boards, I'd probably save them for when they're a little older.

So... Are we Beach People Now?

Apparently, yes.

Three beach days later, we had completely changed our minds about going to the beach.

I used to think taking kids to the beach sounded like a lot of work. Packing everything, hauling it through the sand, dealing with the water, the sand, the snacks, the cleanup, and then somehow getting everyone and everything back into the car.

And yes, it is a lot of work.

Buy seeing my boys play for hours with nothing but sand, water, and their friends made every bit of it worth it.

We had been living three miles from the beach this whole time and somehow never realized what we were missing.

Now my boys keep asking every weekend, "When are we going to the beach again?"

School has started, and between school, activities, and all the other commitments that come with having kids, we haven't been able to find the time over the last few weeks.

But we will.

After living here for more than 10 year, we've finally discovered our neighborhood beaches. And I don't think we're going back to being the family that never goes.

Turns out, we were never too far from the beach.

We were just too lazy to go.

And I'm very glad the kids finally changed that.