Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Hello from the Cape and a GIVEAWAY for the Summer Sun

I've been MIA for the last month or so.  There are several excuses reasons - three children, lack of school, the new season of Orange is the New Black, laziness, a health scare, and most recently, vacation.

Hello from Cape Cod.  

Mayo Beach, Wellfleet, Cape Cod
We come for two weeks every year.  And I spend the rest of the year looking forward to it.  It is, quite simply, my favorite place on earth.  (As I've previously written about here and here and here and here).  I've been drinking way too much and eating way too much and avoiding any and all work/stress/responsibility.  It's been absolutely wonderful.  

With all this beaching and swimming and relaxing we've been spending a lot of time in the sun. And we are pale.  Every last one of us.  Pale, pale, pale.  (I'll still be pale at the end of this vacation, by the way.  That's the goal.)  The fact that this is considered something that we should work on or rectify by laying in the sun and exposing ourselves to UV rays so that our skin will change to a darker shade is nonsensical, sad, and a topic for another day. So we embrace our pale skin, seek out shade, and layer on the sunscreen, almost obsessively.  I am proud to say that my kids have never ever had a sunburn.  But it's a pain, and a constant anxiety.  

Through this whole blogging thing that I do, I occasionally get offers to promote products, get free samples, etc.  I usually ignore them - not so much because I am so above it all, but because that's just not really what this blog is.  But occasionally, one is just to apropos to ignore. 

Such as Sunscreen Bands.

  
The bands tell you when you need to reapply sunscreen, and when you have had your max sun exposure.  Another tool in the artillery against sunburns?  Sign me up!  Here's how it works:  

Step 1:  You put on the band before you go out in the sun.  



Step 2: You expose the band in the sun until it turns dark purple.  (Kids love this, btw).  



Step 3: Once the band turns purple, put sunscreen on the band (as well as yourself).  

Step 4: Go have fun in the sun.  


Step 5:  Check the band.  When it turns light purple, reapply the sunscreen.  



Step 6:  Have some more fun in the sun.  


Step 7: Recheck your band.  If it has turned white, it's time to cover up and get out of the sun - you've reached your max sun exposure for the day.  


Lucky for us, our bands turned white just as we were heading home.  

So here is my attempt at a professional product review.   I am going to be very, very professional.  

I loved these bands.  First, because my kids loved them.  They loved the fact that they changed color and they kept checking them throughout the afternoon, announcing every change in pigmentation.  Their only complaint was that they were a bit big for them - the bands adjust, but for small wrists there is a long section that sticks out.  I ended up cutting off the excess, but only after Braden had a complete meltdown whenever the scissors came within two inches of his hand.  (I ended up having to take it off of him, estimate how much to cut off, and then put it back on him, once he stopped screaming.  Fun times).  

Second, the bands confirmed that I am not a crazy paranoid freak.  I was surprised at the fact that we needed to reapply the sunscreen as soon as we did (about 1.5 hours after being at the beach). The fact is, I would have done this anyway.  But I always thought I was being crazy and anal and anxious and OCD.  Turns out I was actually doing just what I should be doing (much to my husband's chagrin).  Also, I was surprised that we reached our maximum sun exposure after about three hours in the sun.  On vacation, we definitely exceed that amount.  But what to do?  We are pale.  Pale.  Pale.  (And proud, by the way, pale and proud).  

I recently read about a sunscreen available in Europe that lasts up to 10 hours.   Maybe I'll have to check that out next.  Until then, I'm going to incorporate these bands into our daily skin protection regime.

Would you like to try some of these bands this summer?  Enter the GIVEAWAY!  Just do the following:  

- Like me on Facebook (if you haven't already) by clicking here.
- Leave a comment (either here and or on my Facebook page) with your email address.  

The giveaway will close on July 16th.  The winner will be picked randomly and notified by email.  

Happy sunning!

[On a completely random note - if I lived in Southeast Asia full time, I would be the most envied person ever.  Apparently over there, it's the cool thing to be pale.  I received many such comments on my paleness when I was traveling there back in 2005.  I even got a massage there where the masseuse kept complimenting me on my "white, white skin."  She also told me I had a "tall, tall nose."  Sigh.]

3 comments:

  1. My email is arogers58@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. A brilliant thing to have. calgrl76 at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  3. This is great for little ones, thanks! mbb216 at aol dot com

    ReplyDelete


 
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