We are preparing for our annual trip to Ocean City, NJ.  Since we fly cross country to get there we pack as lightly as possible.  The kids get to bring one towel for the beach, which we hang out every night.  Because they only get one, we let them pick out a new one every year.  The ones from previous years live in a closet where they come out for pool parties and Seattle-based beach picnics.  It’s pretty neat because we can see how the interests of the kids have changed over the years.  Nate’s set includes Bob the Builder and Blue’s Clues towels from his preschool years (both of which were actually hand-me-downs from my young siblings). His collection also includes The Incredibles and several Sipderman towels, though last year he went for a polka dot design (boring!).  Kitty’s collection just began two years ago and she chose a Tinkerbell towel both times.  Hopefully she will get a little more creative this go around.

Super-dad and I haven’t had a need for new towels with all of the previous year’s towels around.  This year though, with the plethora of geeky towel options it may be time for us to get some new ones.

This Spider-Man towel from the Disney store is personalizable. When we hit the beach we have about 40 (no exaggeration) family members with us, a name on the towel is a good way to make sure it gets back with its rightful owner.

 Spider-man towel: 11.99 from the Disney Store

Got a Trekkie in your life?  They’d love one of these Star Trek towels from ThinkGeek.  Available in Command, Security or Sciences.

Star Trek Towels $29.99 from ThinkGeek.

This Dalek towel is pretty sweet:

Dr. Who Dalek towel $24.99 available at Amazon.com

I love this Star Wars towel from Pottery Barn Kids because of it’s cool vintage graphics.  So often things designed for kids are super bright and overly stylized.  I have had to say “no” to so many superhero shirts for my kids because the designs were just too gaudy.  This towel, while on the PB Kids website would work just as well for an adult.

Star Wars Towel $26.00 from Pottery Barn Kids.