A Picnic On The Beach (With Stanley)

Sponsored by Stanley.

I love a good picnic. If given the choice, I’ll choose to eat outside, every time. Even in winter, I have a cabinet full of these guys just waiting to be filled with something warm & yummy. We’ve had picnics out of the back of our car, on our porch, and at the park. I turn almost every hike into a picnic (for me, it’s more about the food than the views), and when the kids were little, we had near-daily picnics on the living room floor.

But one of my very favorite places to have a picnic is the beach.

cooler backpack | yellow water bottle | white water bottle

Beach picnics aren’t always perfect – I don’t want to do them when the beach is packed, or at high noon with intense sun, and even in the evening hours there’s sometimes too much wind. But every once in a while the stars align, and there’s nothing better than a beach picnic.

I’m not a fussy picnic-maker, but I do like a beautiful spread. My usual move is to pack a cooler-backpack with a few tupperware containers filled with food, and slide in one of those really thin cutting boards.

cooler backpack | yellow water bottle | white water bottle | can cooler cup

There’s been a lot of chatter about the value of “romanticizing your life” on social media, and I realize that my picnic-making is a good example of exactly that.

It’s just a little way to make dinner – which can often feel like a chore – a little more special. Celebratory, even.

And while life can be hard (ridiculously so, sometimes), I always come back to that Walt Whitman quote I love so much: “We were together. I forget the rest.”

And while you don’t *need* anything fancy to make a picnic happen – a beautiful spread can be made from literally anything – if you happen to be in the market for a few picnic-perfect pieces, I recommend taking a look at Stanley. And right now, Stanley is offering our readers a special 20% off with code: TME20 (exclusions apply).

cooler backpack | yellow water bottle | white water bottle | can cooler cup

Stanley’s roots are deep in the everyday adventuring game – the company was established over 100(!!) years ago, in 1913. Their products are tough, and built to last – hence their Built For Life™ products. Yet Stanley has gone through a rebirth of sorts, and lately the product line is as beautiful as it is tough (and the color palette alone is a dream).

white water bottle

But they do perform. The boys and I have spent a ton of time on the beach this week, and these Stanley water bottles kept our water ice cold, even while in the hot sun all day. And while Raines and I prefer drinking out of a straw (making the Stanley IceFlow Bottle With Flip Straw our top choice), Pax and Mike hate straws, so were thrilled with the Stanley IceFlow Bottle With Fast Flip Lid.

It’s also great for pouring drinks, FYI. 😉

But the product I’ve personally been the most excited about is the Stanley All Day Madeline Midi Cooler Backpack. While it boasts a 20-can capacity, I don’t really care about that. Instead, I’ve been packing it full of tupperware for beach picnics (the cutting board does fit in there, albeit just barely), and using it instead of a beach bag during the day.

cooler backpack | yellow water bottle

Not only does this backpack keep my beach snacks cool, but I love that my sunscreen bottles aren’t getting so hot, as well as my Kindle. This cooler backpack also fits a ton of turkish towels, sunglasses, and a plethora of other things, and is comfortable to carry (even on bare skin).

can cooler cup

Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Stanley Everyday Can Cooler Cup. It works great to keep cans of sparkling water cold, but since this product also comes with a top & straw, we’ve been using them for smoothies, too. The lid isn’t leak-proof, but it’s enough to grab & smoothie and go.

Anyway, we’ve been really happy with this little set of products. I’m tempted to bring the cooler backpack with us to Cyprus, using it as my carry-on (it does fit my laptop + all of my travel essentials), and then we’d have something to bring to the beach, too. Hmmm.

xo,

S

A huge thank-you to Stanley for sponsoring this post! I’ve been a huge fan for years, and love how your products help our family spend more time outside. As always, all thoughts, opinions, and product choices are my own. And readers, thank you for your continued support. It doesn’t go unnoticed, and is so very much appreciated!

photo credits: Redfield Photography (love you guys)