Surviving the School Holidays: Perfect Picnics

Survive the school holidays: Great Picnic Ideas

Picnics are a great way to enjoy the great outdoors and let the kids run riot, without any of the mess indoors. As we head into the six week school holidays finding inexpensive things for the kids to do can be a real challenge. Hopefully if the weather gets better, we can spend more days outside, enjoying the great outdoors. (Plus have you noticed how much more tired kids get when they’ve had a good dose of fresh air?). It’s also a good way to catch up with friends and family, so take a look at our top picnic ideas and see what you can rustle up.

Food, glorious food…

Some would argue that the food at a picnic is the most important part. So with expectations so high, your spread better be a good one. But if you don’t feel like spending hours baking in the kitchen, then pop along to your local supermarket and stock up on cooked chicken strips, corn on the cob, coleslaw, bread rolls, cheese sticks, chopped carrots, celery, ready washed salad, potatoes salad, cartons of juice, apples, grapes, bananas, raisins, a few packet of biscuits, and something yummy for dessert.  Stick it all in a cool bag and head off. Or if you want a more romantic look go for a traditional wicker basket. I find it easier to buy lots of plastic plates and cups which can all be thrown away afterwards, that way you won’t have to face a load of washing up when you get home.

If you have a bit more time, then making a range of sandwiches at home is a good money saver. Buy all your favorite sandwich fillers, and then make huge Scooby-doo style sandwiches. You can get the kids involved as well, encouraging them to make them own, and then remember to label them all with names; sticky white office labels stuck onto Clingfilm usually does the trick.

Kids love baking. Why not whip up some easy biscuits or cup cakes, and then let them decorate them? I suggest icing sugar icing rather than a butter one as it will just melt and make a big mess- trust me I have learnt from my own experiences. Pack them all in a Tupperware dish and stick it in your picnic bag.

• Wash and store fruit in Tupperware, so it’s ready to eat.
• Take plastic bags to collect all your rubbish.
• Take blankets/ pillows to sit on.
• Think about taking an old sheet so the kids can make a cubby house for shade.
• Take lots of drinks as you need to keep hydrated in hot weather.
• If you don’t like bugs, make sure you take some kind of bug spray to prevent them coming too close.
• Take some toys- a football, bubble machine, tea cup set, face paints - all go down well when they get bored. Don’t release these time wasting devices all at once as the will lose their power of distraction.
• Take a blank book and pens- and encourage the kids to draw signs of the summer such as flowers and insects- they can take them into school (extra points scored with the teachers).
• Fold up picnic tables are good if you’d rather than not sit on the floor.
• Umbrellas or some sort of shade is also recommended as well as sun cream- remembers to reapply every few hours.

And the rest is all down to the great British weather.

Enjoy.

These top tips were brought to you by Floorell, www.floorell.co.uk