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You are here: Home / FOOD / The secret ingredients to the perfect family picnic

The secret ingredients to the perfect family picnic

June 15, 2017 by Molly Leave a Comment

I should start this post with a disclaimer. As with all things kids-related, I’m pretty sure perfection is a myth that doesn’t exist. So the “perfect family picnic”, for me, is not your typical Instagram-friendly, Pinterest-perfect affair complete with ten different types of sandwiches and those posh mini quiches I always see recipes for in the free supermarket magazines.

At this time of year we have family picnics at least once a week, usually on days out, but sometimes in the garden. And in my vast picnicking experience with young children I’ve come to find there are a few secret ingredients to making it a successful meal – and it’s not about how many different types of sarnies you pack.

1. Be relaxed

Picnics are fun, especially when you’re two and a half. The very novelty of eating outside and not being tethered to a high chair is bound to be pretty exciting for a toddler. It’s an ongoing family joke for us that whenever we have a picnic I’m the only one who actually sits down on the rug and eats. The rest of my family (including the husband) will often be found roaming around the edges of the blanket, standing up, sitting down, fidgeting, running about. This sometimes annoys me (WHY CAN YOU NOT JUST SIT ON THE BLANKET WITH ME?! etc) but generally I’ve come to accept that, for us, this is what a family picnic looks like. And as long as everyone is eating and enjoying the food – sitting down or standing up – then that’s all that matters.

2. Don’t rush

In the same vein as the tip above, I tend to find my kids approach a picnic in stages. At first they’ll enthusiastically rummage through the hamper of food, devouring sandwiches and snacks with gusto. Then their interest wanes until they’re more intent on exploring the picnic area than actually eating the food.

HOWEVER, pack the picnic away too early at your peril! The chances are, as soon as I start to clear up, my girls will find the second phase of their appetite. With this in mind, we always allow for at least half an hour to an hour for food – sometimes longer. Of course this doesn’t matter if we’re just at the beach and not actually moving from our picnic base, but if it’s a day out exploring then we need to remember to either leave enough time to each or to make sure we have snacks and leftover picnic food ready to hand for when that phase two appetite kicks in again.

3. Variety is good, but don’t go crazy

Tip: no one’s really interested in the sandwiches. The last time I packed more than one different type of sandwich I just came home with a tonne of leftovers. My children will tend to eat a couple of small sandwiches then immediately move onto the “more interesting” stuff. They’ll rummage for cheese, fruit and snacks before considering another type of sandwich. I now know the ideal picnic, for us, is one type of sandwich, plus a selection of picky snacky type foods. Houmous with chopped up cucumber and carrots is always a winner, along with my girls’ favourite Organix treats (they particularly love the cheese and herb puffs and the carrot cake bars at the moment).

Here are some more great tips from the team in the know at Organix…

If you want to see one of our typically fun and chaotic picnics then check out my latest YouTube video. Proof that I’m often the only one who manages to sit on the picnic rug for more than five minutes!

 

To find out more great tips for eating with kids check out the Organix website. I’m working with Organix as an ambassador this year as a No Junk Mum – check out my other posts below:

Take your toddler to work day – celebrating 25 years of Organix

Healthy party food and a toddler tea party

The reality of cooking with kids

Eating well on a budget

 

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For more information about how I work with brands check out my Work With Me page. 

Filed Under: FOOD Tagged With: baby-led weaning, family recipes, healthy eating, No Junk Mum, Organix, picnic

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Hello and welcome! I'm Molly Forbes - podcaster, presenter and blogger with a passion for positivity, confidence and body image chat. Regularly writing and vlogging about empowering female issues from a motherhood angle, I also cover lifestyle and fashion topics for like-minded mums who want to rediscover themselves after having children. Thanks for stopping by! Read More…

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Trying this thing where I live in the moment, cele Trying this thing where I live in the moment, celebrate my wins and stop focusing so much on my fails. I’ll let you know how it goes 😬✨🤞
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[Image description: Molly in the bath with pink water, holding a glass of prosecco. She has her eyes closed and is smiling.]
The self-isolation ends today so I’m planning a The self-isolation ends today so I’m planning a hike this weekend with my favourites. I don’t even care if it pours with rain, everyone is grumpy and I can’t open the thermos cos my husband’s screwed the lid on too tight. 
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I’ve missed the outside and it’s only been for two weeks, which feels pathetic to admit given that so many people are trapped at home perpetually, either through lack of accessibility, having to shield, or having little or no support for chronic health conditions or mental illness. 
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I’m so aware of how privileged I am to be able to go outside and stand under the sky on top of a big hill this weekend. I won’t forget it, or lose sight of that, for a minute. ✨
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[Image description: Molly and her two daughters, age 6 and 10, stand on a hiking trail with a valley behind them. They all wear outdoor hiking clothes - boots, jogging bottoms and jumpers - have their arms in the air and are smiling.]
Hey! Are you a teacher in a school with dwindling Hey! Are you a teacher in a school with dwindling budgets? Or maybe you run a kids’ club or youth group that relies on donations to keep going? Then I’m looking at 💥YOU💥
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On Tuesday November 3rd I’ll be hosting a ✨FREE✨ Body Happy Kids workshop at 2pm. There are 10 places up for grabs and you can apply via the link in my bio. These places are reserved for those that can’t afford the regular sessions (which cost £25 a place / £125 a group).
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It’s a one hour, evidence-based interactive workshop giving an introduction to body image and children, how it intersects with well-being, safeguarding and attainment and what you can do to make your setting a “body happy” one to give kids the best chance to thrive. 
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You also get a free course notes booklet, activity pack and attendance certificate for CPD journal purposes too ⚡️
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So far this workshop’s been delivered to over 150 teachers, lecturers and youth workers both in the UK and further afield, since it launched back in June.
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If you do have the budget then you can book onto one of our paid sessions now via the Workshop link in my bio. (Shout out to the brilliant team helping to deliver these sessions @effinitupfaye @amysnellingpt @bodyconfidencecards & @lottie_storey !) 
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Hopefully one day we’ll be able to deliver these in person, but for now they’re all taking place on Zoom.
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Tag someone you think could benefit from the opportunity, or let your kids’ school know! (PS there’s a downloadable info doc on the website you can send them for more info 👀) SWIPE ➡️ for testimonials 💕 #BodyHappyKids 
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[Image description: A yellow slide with pink and blue patterns and the logo spelling “Body Happy Kids workshops”]
It’s been a crap day - for no reason other than It’s been a crap day - for no reason other than I’ve hit a wall after 11 days of self-isolation. (Sharing this with the caveat that I know I’m hugely privileged and many others have it far worse, but toxic positivity is a thing and I think it’s important to share the less-than-shiny stuff too, particularly on an app that can trick us into thinking everyone else is living their best life every day.)
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Today I woke up feeling numb. Literally nothing. I couldn’t bring myself to get out of bed. I just lay there looking at the ceiling trying to ignore the daylight outside. Until a huge bolt of anxiety hit and stayed in my stomach all day. Usually I’d go for a walk, or a swim, or just have a chat with a pal on the school run, but that’s obviously not possible right now. 
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This year I’ve invested a huge amount of time, brain space and emotional energy into a piece of work that recently finished. I expected to feel relief when it was done but instead I feel... weird? Like, a bit bereft, lost, anxious. A bit out of sorts, and not sure what to do with myself. 
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I’ve got zero motivation to start the next big work thing on my list but also finding it super hard to just sit still and give myself some time and space. Plus, self-isolation 😬.
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So instead of trying to go all jolly jazz hands and force myself into denying the funk, I’ve decided to sit in it for a bit. Feel the feels, as they say. Allow myself to be grumpy, irritated, anxious and a bit sad and lonely. 
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It’s ok not to be happy all the time. It’s ok to feel the messy stuff. Solidarity if you’re feeling it too. ❤️ #MentalHealthMatters 
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[Image description: A photo of Molly in her kitchen, her face covered by messy hair, holding a mug. Her daughters play in the background and there’s an unemptied food bin on the kitchen counter. She is not smiling.]
(REPOST: I’m reposting this with just the body-s (REPOST: I’m reposting this with just the body-shaming tweet and without the paparazzi photo of Billie Eilish that accompanied it. Someone rightly pointed out that everyone sharing the photo doesn’t help Billie and on reflection I agree - it just gives more power to the person who took her photo without her permission.)
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That said, I stand by the sentiment of my original post. Ain’t nothing wrong with a “mid-30s wine mom body”, or any body for that matter. #AllBodiesAreGoodBodies #BodyHappyMum 
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Thanks to @alexlight_ldn for originally highlighting the absurdity of the original body shaming tweet (written, by the way, by a 29 year old man hiding behind a faceless avatar, which says it all I think). 
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[Image description: A graphic showing a tweet which reads “In 10 months Billie Eilish has developed a mid-30s wine mom body. Next to it is a photo of Molly in underwear with the caption “I’m 37, a mum and drink wine. Here’s my glorious body!”]
Self-isolation uniform as standard ✨ (PS She’l Self-isolation uniform as standard ✨ (PS She’ll always be my baby. May she always know how lovely she is 💕)
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[Image description: A photo of Molly sitting on her sofa with her 10 year old daughter. Molly is wearing pyjama bottoms and a sweatshirt saying “Good Enough”. Her daughter is wearing leggings and T’shirt. They are both smiling.]
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