Knowing that the majority of the time on our recent trip would be spent at the pool or on the beach (and with kids – back and forth and back and forth), I wanted to find a few great cover-ups and a quality tote. The bright stripes of this super casual dress caught my eye right away when shopping online, and I wore it pretty much every day. It was so easy to throw on, and paired well with any suit. I had a more difficult time finding a good tote – there were several rounds of purchasing and returning for that item. There were bags that I loved (like this Tory Burch one), but that just weren’t practical for the trip. No longer am I toting magazines, lip gloss and a bottle of water to the beach for the day. My bag has half eaten suckers, kids’ googles, and sticky sunscreen spray. I can’t spend $300 on a beach bag that will end up with a melted Rice Krispie treat stuck on the inside. I ended up grabbing this Old Navy one at the last minute and it was one of my favorite purchases for the trip.

Kerry’s outfit details and links: Ann Taylor cover-up dress (Cyber special today – 50% off and free shipping) | Old Navy tote (now only $25, plus an additional 40% off orders over $50, today!) | Tory Burch shoes | Kate Spade sunglasses
Taylor’s outfit details and links: Hanna Andersson swim trunks, rash guard and swim hat (20% off nearly site wide)

Reality Check. It’s definitely a bit of a bummer when I grab these links on a later date for a post and see how much I could have saved had I purchased at a different time!