This Pop-Up Play Yard Is Going To Be A Summer Must-Have For You & Your Babies

I live in Georgia, which means right now is the sweet spot for enjoying the outdoors with my two little girls before the sweltering heat and bugs become an issue. I'm especially worried about how my 5-month-old will do outside this spring and summer. I mean, I can coat my 4-year-old in all the non-toxic bug spray I can find (and she moves so much I doubt a bug could actually land on her), but the baby? That's a different story. I know I'm not alone, which is why the Veer Basecamp could be the ultimate summer must-have for those with young kids.

OK, obviously the easiest option is just to keep everyone inside until the fall when the mosquitos disappear, but where's the fun in that? If you want to have any type of adventure with your littlest ones, the Basecamp can make it happen. It's a fully assembled play yard that opens with just one hand and locks itself in place in just seconds. It has a removable SPF 50 sun/rain cover, and the screen walls give you a 360-degree view of your kiddo. Whether they're sleeping in it, playing, or just having some downtime with a snack, you'll know they're safe from bugs and harsh sun rays inside their own little tent. Bonus: the item description notes that the Basecamp can hold up to two to three children from newborn to 5 years old. So count it as an extra babysitter.

Every summer, my husband and I take our little family to the beach, and we've been sort of at a loss on how to handle a baby on our vacation this year. The first time we took our oldest, she was almost 2, so there wasn't quite the fear of her shoveling handfuls of sand into her mouth. But with a baby who won't turn 1 until the fall, it's obvious we'd need some kind of ... container ... for her. (OK, container sounds weird, but you know what I mean.) The Basecamp is the perfect accessory. We already have the Veer Cruiser, and the basecamp can store in its bag and attach right to the Cruiser, which makes hauling all of our stuff — and our children — down to the beach a breeze.

But the Basecamp can also be used for camping, an outdoor picnic, your own backyard — basically anywhere that you need to place your baby so they can be protected from the sun and the bugs. I'm imagining it this summer when my oldest wants to splash in the sprinkler, but the baby needs a nap. Or at our Easter celebration when all of the little babies in our family need a break, but the big kids still have a million eggs to hunt. (When will I learn to not put so many out? I was finding eggs in August behind our bushes last year.)

It's a great summer accessory, and because it's so easy to pop up and fold away, you know you'll actually use it. Honestly, the more I look at it, the more I want to climb inside and take a giant nap outside — with the bugs nowhere near me.