Sand Castles at the Beach - Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday...  Sand Castles at the Beach...

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Kool-Aid Fun Fizz- My Kids Love it!

Summer is here!  That means lots of trips to the beach, pool, park and other fun places.  In our house, we don't allow the kids to have sodas, very occasionally we allow the kids to have decaffeinated sodas like root beer or 7-up.  It's mostly water, milk and the rare juice for my boys.  But I always try to mix it up when we have a special event, like a BBQ. 

A couple weeks ago Kool-aid Fun Fizz sent me an advance sample of the new Kool-Aid Fun Fizz drink drops.  My kids were so excited because they had already seen the commercials.  So what did we do when they arrived?  We headed to the beach of course.  Talk about handy!  We grabbed a couple water bottles and once we got to the beach dropped the tablets in each water bottles.  The kids loved them giving them 2 thumbs up.

My opinion?  They are a great way to make water fun, especially if you have a kid with a picky palate!  We'll definitely always keep a few on hand when they kids are bored with water!  They are available at most grocery stores now, but you can find more information here.

(and by the way the photo above was from the day we headed to the beach!) 

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And that is why... Wordless Wednesday

You don't swim in the outlet of the creek at Aliso Creek Beach...

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Sunset at the Beach - Wordless Wednesday

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Wordless Wednesday...

Because I can't get enough beach pictures in...

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Wordless Wednesday Aliso Creek Beach

My boys showing off the coconut they found at the beach earlier this week.

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What Refreshes You?

Today we stopped by Aliso Creek Beach in South Laguna Beach and took these videos.  Not sure if the large waves were from the storm we just had or from the storm coming in later this week, but they were definitely mesmerizing!  I could watch/listen to the videos over and over again.  :)




There's just something soothing to me about listening to the ocean. All I need is a few short minutes at the beach to feel rejeuvenated. What rejeuvenates you?

Please share!

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Hyatt Recency Huntington Beach Spa Discounts for Beach Clean-up

One of the biggest draws of people here in California is its’ beaches. But unfortunately from time to time people forget that the beach doesn’t clean itself! I can’t tell you how many beach clean-ups I have participated in over the years (I started waaaay back in Middle School!). It’s always been something I loved doing (any excuse to go to the beach!) but am always saddened to see the junk that people leave at the beach. Kinda leaves you wondering if people forget what the garbage cans are there for! I’ve personally found everything from syringes to wrappers to hundreds of cigarette butts to let’s just not mention… Gross!!!


When I found out that the Pacific Waters Spa at the Hyatt Regency in Huntington Beach Resort & Spa would be offering fantastic discounts to participants in the upcoming OC Coastal Clean-up Day on September 19th, I knew I had to share it! Volunteers who take advantage of the Pacific Waters Spa discount will have access to the resort’s 20,000 square foot spa that includes a full-service beauty spa, 24 hour health club, Jacuzzi, steam room, sauns, outdoor co-ed relaxation garden with waterfall and a spa retail store! They are offering a drastically discounted rate of $99 (normally $145!!!) for the Pure Results Facial for participants in the Coastal Clean-up effort! What a deal!! To get your coupon click here and for more information about the Coastal Clean-up click here.


Get your kids started in volunteering early and teach them some great personal responsibility at the same time!

For more information about the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach click here.

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Tide Pooling Times for 9/2/09 - 9/9/09

Here are some of the photos from our last time tide pooling (at Aliso Creek State Beach) and the high/low tides for the next week (including the best times to go tide pooling here in Orange County, CA). Be sure to pop back on and post a comment if you did go tide pooling during one of these times and how it was! A quick reminder that the best time for tide pooling is when the tide is going out after a particularly high tide. You want to catch it before the new tide starts to come in.

There are some great ones over the next week, all of them falling in the afternoon to early evening. I’m highlighting & staring the best times to go tide pooling because there are so many of them! Click here for a post about our favorite beach to go Tide Pooling – Crystal Cove State Beach, Newport Beach, CA.


9/2/09
High 9:15 am & 8:41 pm
Low 3:01 am & 2:36 pm*


9/3/09
High 9:35 am & 9:12 pm
Low 3:23 pm & 3:06 pm*

9/4/09

High 9:55 am & 9:43 pm

Low 3:44 am & 3:38 pm*

9/5/09

High 10:17 am & 10:16 pm

Low 4:05 am & 4:12 pm*

9/6/09
High 10:40 am & 10:52 Pm
Low 4:26 am & 4:49 pm*


9/7/09
High 11:06 am & 11:32 pm
Low 4:47 am & 5:31 pm*


9/8/09
High 11:35 am
Low 5:08 am & 6:21 pm*


9/9/09
High 12:23 am & 12:11 pm
Low 5:30 am & 7:25 pm

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Waves From Tropical Storm Ignacio

Just had to share some of our pictures from Aliso Creek Beach earlier this evening (yes that is an adult in the photo!)... The waves are huge from Tropical Storm Ignacio just off the Baja California Coast is bringing in the large waves and causing dangerous rip currents - so be careful!

For more information about the wave warnings click here.

Happy wave watching!

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Best Times to Go Tide Pooling in Orange County August 15 to August 22, 2009

The best times to go Tide Pooling in Orange County are August 20th at approximately 3:30pm, August 21st at 4:30 pm and August 22 at 5:20 pm. One of our favorite locations is Crystal Cove State Beach (click here). Enjoy!


High Tides/Low Tides

August 15
Highs 7:34 am & 5:25 pm
Lows 12:24 am & 10:25 pm

August 16
Highs 8:07 am & 6:31 pm
Lows 1:18 am & 12:04 pm

August 17
Highs 8:37 am & 7:27 pm
Lows 2:02 am & 1:10 pm

August 18
Highs 9:07 am & 8:17 pm
Lows 2:42 am & 2:05 pm

August 19
Highs 9:39 am & 9:05 pm
Lows 3:19 am & 2:55 pm

August 20
Highs 10:11 am & 9:52 pm
Lows 3:55 am & 3:43 pm

August 21
Highs 10:45 am & 10:37 pm
Lows 4:29 am & 4:32 pm

August 22
Highs 11:19 am & 11:25 pm

Lows 5:02 am & 5:23 pm

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Tide Pooling Time in Orange County!

One of our favorite family adventures in Southern California is Tide pooling. I’m always surprised to hear how many SoCal residents haven’t taken the time to go. Maybe it’s because I’m such a beach lover that it has naturally rubbed off on my children, who knows. But I’ve always found that I start to get the itch to go to the beach if it’s been more than a week or two. There’s just something about the sound of the waves crashing on the beach and the sweet smell of the ocean mist. Whatever it is – I’m hooked!

As I was “surfing” through the App store on my iPhone I found this really cool App called Tide Graph by Brainware. I downloaded it and have got to say it is pretty cool! Whether you’re a surfer, beachgoer or boater, this little App will definitely come in handy. What it allows you to do is find the tides according to your location (using GPS) and it tells you in real time where the tide is at (in feet) and shows you the wave curves so you easily know whether the tide is coming in our going out. No more guessing or having to look it up on the internet before going to the beach – it’s all right there on your phone!

And for those thinking “Oh, Cool! ... but I don’t have an iPhone!” Here are a few of the best times to go tide pooling here in Orange County, CA over the next week or so. (I’ll try an continue to post these under the Tides archive tag, so check back if you’re looking to go tide pooling.)

-Saturday 8/8/09- Low tide is at 5:04 pm and the tide will have dropped about 3 feet from it’s peak, so it should be a good one.

-Sunday 8/9/09- Low tide is at 5:30 am and 5:45 pm. If you’re game to get up early, I’d head out there at 8 am, the tide will be coming back in, but will still be pretty low after a high tide overnight.

-Monday 8/10/09- Almost the same as 8/9/09 with the tide not being quite a low.

-Tuesday 8/11/09- Low tide is at 7:43 pm and this is following a really high tide, so there should be some really cool tide pooling and a beautiful sunset to match!

Happy Tide Pooling!

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It's Wave Watching Time for Orange County!

**First off, let me put a warning out… ocean waves can be very dangerous and what I am recommending is NOT swimming in them right now, but merely checking them out for the fun of it from a safe viewing place!**

With monstrous waves heading at the OC beaches right now, I thought it would be fun to try and catch a neat sunset at Aliso Creek Beach tonight. Well, I managed to get one out of two of those goals accomplished tonight (the cloud cover had come in so the sunset was obscured). I must say the waves were pretty cool and are predicted to remain this way through Saturday. Apparently there was a large storm in Tahiti and the waves are now reaching our shores as a result of it.

Well, whatever the cause it made for a total spur of the moment fun adventure for our family tonight! At about 7pm we decided to head down to Aliso Creek State Beach and check them out for ourselves. When we first arrived, the waves were okay… not too large, but not small either. Then shortly after I took this picture (sorry for the blurriness – I took it with my phone and was getting ready to run from the wave as it came at me!), I started to see the waves increase dramatically within no time. It was pretty cool, yet humbling at the same time. I would have gotten more photos, but there wasn’t enough light to capture anything by that time.

The waves kept getting larger and we moved off the sand just as a wave completely engulfed the entire beach area below the sidewalk! It was amazing, but eerie at the same time. We retreated to the play structure where the boys informed us that we were now playing “Deadliest Catch” and welcome aboard their sailing ship! And yes, I was busting up laughing at that. Love those moments!

Below is another photo I got of the campfires at the beach (brings back so many memories from my childhood!), I’ve wanted to have one with the boys, but just haven’t gotten to putting a check mark next to that one. For those keeping tabs… the waves came right up to these campfires about 15 minutes after I took the picture and everyone took cover on the sidewalk!

So, my recommendation? Go find a safe vantage point and check out the waves over the next day or two!

Have a great weekend!

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Aliso Creek State Beach

Aliso Creek Beach, Laguna Beach

Why we love it: Because it has a great playground adjacent to the beach. While the kids are playing on the elaborate play structures, you can enjoy the views of the beach and soothing sound of the waves crashing on the beach. There are two play structures- one geared towards 5 and up, the other for younger children. There are two standard swings but aren’t any bucket swings for young toddlers. It can get busy during the summer season, so it’s best to go on a weekday. Watch for dolphins, whales and lots of ocean life out in the water. We’ve seen all of the above over the years. Take the kids just before sunset on a summer night. The kids will have a wonderful time and you can enjoy the breathtaking sunset.

Be sure to bring: A couple dollars to pay for parking. Its $1/hour and you can only use the vending machines- cash only. It is patrolled daily- don’t get caught without the parking validation in your window! Make sure you lather on the sunscreen, there is very little shade. Flip flops or sandals if you decide to venture down to the water. During the summer the snack shop on site is open. There are restrooms on site as well as lots of picnic benches.

Appeals to: Toddlers and up. The play structures are nautical themed and children love pretending they are sailing the sea on the ship/playground. You do have to keep an eye on younger children being so close to the beach and near the busy parking lot… but the ambiance it well worth it!




Location: It’s off of Pacific Coast Highway in South Laguna Beach. Here’s the link to Google maps for the precise location: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Aliso+Beach+Park,+CA&sll=33.509572,-117.751443&sspn=0.005367,0.008508&ie=UTF8&ll=33.510556,-117.752194&spn=0.021469,0.034032&z=15&om=1

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