Just back from a long holiday on the beach in the sun.Truely wonderful. Really nothing better than making sancastles and bobbing around in the surf with the children. The temperature was about 36 degrees so pretty hot.

What always amazes me is the amount of people that just let their kids run around on the beach in the height of the afternoon sun with no sunshreen or shade available. You can actually see them getting redder and redder as the afternoon temperature increases.Ah what a good parent yopu are as your child crys about being sun burnt.Yes very responsible applying cream to those blisters or pealing skin! They do not know. They rely on you!

To me it not that hard really to work out. Most of us have been burnt in the sun before. Even for an adult it can really hurt.
I understand that a holiday is a place to just kick back and relax and if you have children and particularily if you are a new dad or parent that holiday, when it eventually comes, is all the more important.
It's not rocket science however to work out that no sunscreen or hat and say a 2 year old out in that weather for a couple of hours may result in one sore child. Ironically when you spend most of the night up with your child the relaxation that you were looking for will not happen. That I'm afraid is your fault. Here are my top tips for making sure that your baby/children enjoy the hot weather which ultimately means that you will too:-
1.A baby should not be in the sun. Make sure that they are in the shade and properly protected from the sun witha sun canopy of their push chair or similar. Their skin is just not developed yet to properly regulate its temperature and direct exposure to fierce sunshine.
2.Put on a high factor sunscreen. Whilst you may want to go back a greek looking adonis cover the little ones in a good factor 50 sunscreen.
3.Put on a hat.Caps are good but ensure,especially if you are in very hot weather, that the back of their neck is covered and their ears. One of thoes floppy sun hats or the cool surfy looking jobs should do the trick.
4.Drink. Make sure that they have lots to drink. Little but often is the key.Don't wait for them to ask. This will help keep them properly hydrated.
5.If it is really hot keep that out of the hottest part of the day. You could still be sitting on the beach but why not build sandcastles in the shade of a sun umbrella or tree etc. Kids are happy playing so don't make a big thing about it make it exciting and they will love it. My boys recently dug the "bat cave" in the sand. It took them about 2 hours,bats of course,like batman, loves shade. (I just read my book, wow how often do we get the chance, whilst drinking a beer sitting on a sun lounger!!)
6.If you are going to be out in the sun a lot or your kids are (say in the back garden for example) buy a rash suit with a high factor sun screen built in. My boys have factor 50 suits and these are now readily available in a lot of super markets. We bought ours at pumkin patch.
7.If you are at home and it is really hot how about a little paddling pool (always of course watch young children closely near water)or a game with water pistols.
8. Buy an ice cream or lolly which will help cool them down.
Call me selfish but if my children are happy that means I am often happy also. Had a really relaxing time but my beach volleyball skills still suck.