Summer Road Trip: Chatham, MA

This summer has been full of fun adventures with my family.  We traveled to Chatham, MA several times since it’s only a few hours away on Cape Cod.  I have been spending summers in Chatham since I was a kid, almost 30 years now, yikes!  The most fun was experiencing all the “firsts” with my two year old son.  I’m so happy he loves the beach and it was a joy watching him run through the waves and throw rocks into the ocean.  Before becoming a mom I would have slept in on vacation, but now that’s not the case.  It’s a good thing that I’m a morning person because the 6am wake up wasn’t too much of a shock to the system, especially since we could be walking the beach together by 6:30am.  I wanted to share some of my favorite images taken to tell the story of our summer at the beach.  Most of these images were shot with my iPhone 6 as I decided to travel light and leave the majority of my gear at home.  I’m also including how I pack for a toddler to help any mom’s out there looking for some tips.

Let me know what you think in the comments and don’t forget to follow @nbedardphotog on Instagram to see more images and behind-the-scence of Nicole Bedard Photography.

First thing first, packing.
I have always used this secret tool when packing for my son, from infant to toddler.  This tool is probably overlooked by most and discarded, so next time you purchase sheets and/or pillow shams, keep the plastic containers.   That’s right, I retained the plastic containers and used them to pack clothes, diapers and a baby monitor.  Why? It’s a lot easier and faster to find what you are looking for when you can see the items.  If you were to pack all the items loosely in the bag you would be digging around and wasting time.  Hope this tip helps!  Happy packing.  (the weekender bag used is by Blue Claw Co.) Here are a few of my favorite images from our family adventures.
Early morning walks and digging.

Digging in the sand with Grandpa

Endless fun in the water

End-of-summer party

Enjoying some downtime at the house

We can’t forget about the food.
Sundae School Ice Cream is a must; Chatham Candy Manor chocolate Shark Bite Pop was too good to pass up; my homemade chocolate chip cookies for a family cookout and the Chatham Bars Inn swordfish tacos!

Thanks for another fun summer Chatham!