Sunburn Relief

We should have eased ourselves into the sun on our first day at the beach, but that is hard to do when you are having fun.  Even with high SPF and rash guards we all suffered some degree of sunburn.  I especially feel guilty about little George, he was well covered except right around his eyes, I figured he'd be in the shade under the umbrella most the day (which he was) with a hat on and I didn't want to risk him rubbing sunblock into his eyes.  But I under estimated the intensity of the reflective sand.  A week later he still has raccoon eyes.

He doesn't look happy here but the sunburn actually didn't bother him as much as it bothered the older kids.  For some reason the sunblock did not hold strong on the back of their legs and they were fried to the point of immobility.  

I put aloe on their burns but it wasn't as soothing as I hoped.  My sister in law Kaley soaked some wash cloths in apple cider vinegar and placed them on the boys legs - it stung for a bit but did offer a little relief.

I also emailed Linda Diane Feldt, a practitioner from MI and here is her response: 

A compress of stinging nettles infusion would be safe and soothing. 
Urtica is the latin. If there was a health food store with stinging 
nettles just make a tea steeped at least 20 minutes, 3 hours would be 
better, and put it on a cloth.
Aloe - straight gel - would be safe and soothing.
Burdock leaf is what you are thinking of. It does seal in bacteria, 
but will also provide instant relief for a burn. Mash the leaf, 
chewed or crushed, and apply. Not sure if they have burdock growing 
there, and you won't find the leaf in a store. Only the root will be 

sold. 

I never did venture out to try her suggestions beyond aloe, I just couldn't find a convenient health food store.  But next time we're off on a sun adventure I'll not only prepare with more careful sunblock but also a few herbs on hand.