Toddler Summer Safety Tips {Plus Real Shade Kids Sunglasses Giveaway}

With the heat set to break a record this week, I’ve got keeping my kids cool on my mind. Sure we’ll spend a great deal of our time indoors, but if I know one thing, it is that we can not stay home all day everyday. My kids are better citizens of this world when they’ve had a chance to get outside and play. We keep our summer simple and head to the playground most mornings.

Toddler Summer Safety Tips

1. Get to the park early, before the sun is strong. Getting to the park early is a double bonus, you’ll beat the heat and crowds.
2. Keep everyone well hydrated– make sure have you water for everyone and that everyone is drinking.
3. Never leave your child (or pet) in the car alone with the windows up. 
4. If boating or near water, make sure your child has on a life jacket.
5. Put sunscreen before you leave the house. I just started doing that this year- it makes my life so much easier. When we get to our destination, we’re ready to play and I don’t have to chase kids around trying to get them fixed up!
6. Use a sunhat. Lola refuses to wear one but Malone wears a baseball cap almost every time we’re out.
7. Make sure your child goes down the slide with both feet straight out in front – there have been a ton of cases of broken legs from improper sliding (a leg can break if it is caught behind). 
8. Test the surface of the slide or swings before you use them. It doesn’t take long for those areas of the playground to get really hot.
9. Take extra caution when buckling your child into his or her car seat– the buckle is often really hot!
10. Serve fruits with high water content as a snack (watermelon and grapes are great).
11. Dress in cool fabrics such as cotton or linen. 
12. Protect your child’s eyes with sunglasses.

Just in time for the second half of summer, my friends at A Child’s Garden in Northampton, MA has offered two pairs of Real Shades Kids Toddler Sunglasses for a giveaway.

To enter, use the widget below.