backyard season supply basket

every spring, as we spend more time playing in the backyard, our sunscreen and insect repellent usage goes up tremendously. most of the year i store those two things under the kitchen sink. but when i find myself reaching for them under the sink again and again, and putting them back again and again, i know our Backyard Season has begun.

to help us remember to apply sunscreen and insect repellent before going outside, and to make it easily accessible, i put the sunscreen and insect repellent on the windowsill by the back door. it stays there- in a pretty little basket that i found at the Target $1 section- from mid-spring to the end of summer, which is sometimes late September. 

it's not the prettiest accessory of our home decor but it's one of the most functional, that's for sure. both of my kids know before they can go play outside they need to stop at the basket for sunscreen and insect repellent application. even DaddyHall knows right where to go to put on his sunscreen and bug spray before doing yardwork, and then the bottles get tossed right back into the basket. easy!

inevitably, the longer it sits there, other little summery treasures find their way into our Backyard Season Supply Basket: dandilion heads, lost bubble wands, sunglasses, water balloons, pet rocks. the basket becomes a little catch-all of reminders of hot summer days. 

the Backyard Season Supply Basket works for me! where do you store your sunscreen and insect repellent for easy access?

by the way, please make sure your sunscreen and insect repellent is not expired. if the bottle isn't marked with an expiration date, call the 800 number and someone can help you determine when the product is no longer effective.

also, please check the Environmental Working Group 2010 Sunscreen Guide. the sunscreen we were using was in their "Hall of Shame" so we promptly switched to one of the "Best" sunscreens. i think you'll be surprised at what makes a sunscreen good and bad, and how difficult it is as a consumer to determine that from the bottle label.   


Happy Backyard Season!

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this post was originally published 16 June 2010