Simplifying your housekeeping and giving your kids a chance to thrive? Yes please. Here’s how we keep family mealtimes easy.
As a mom, I struggle to keep things balanced. One trade-off I constantly wrestle with is spending quality time with my family versus keeping up on the chores to make a pleasant living space for them.
Unfortunately, our kitchen doesn’t overlook the yard, so I can’t watch them play outside while I clean it (six or eight times a day, as you moms know).
Last summer, I found a secret to easy family mealtimes that has been working very well for us: picnics.
What a Picnic Life Looks Like
We try to picnic at a park at least once a week, and we eat outside almost every day.
When we’re going out, sometime in the mid-morning when the kids are playing nicely, I throw some food in the picnic backpack. I usually aim for fat, fiber, and protein, so that typically means some kind of dairy like cheese or yogurt, lots of fruit and vegetables, perhaps lunchmeat or sandwich ingredients. Nuts and dried fruit are easy sides. Often we take leftovers.
I don’t usually prep the food anymore; I just bring a (sheathed) knife and cutting board for fruit or whatever other tools I need.
Then we hop in the car and go to the park! We play until lunchtime, then I set up the picnic and we eat together. Usually the kids play some more while I clean up, and we head home for nap.
Why Picnics Make Family Mealtimes Easier
Having a picnic creates limits around lunch: both the physical mess and the possibilities.
First, we are limited to the food we bring. I can’t just keep pulling out different kinds of chips, or cut up apples for one child and bananas for another. I’m not constantly jumping up from the table to get this or that. We have only the food we brought, so we sit down and eat it together. And we aren’t tempted to just add a scoop of ice cream at the end because we’re tired.
We really don’t end up eating any more processed food than we would at a normal, indoor lunch, either.
Second, the mess is minimal because I don’t have a table to clean, and all of our dirty dishes are in one spot. I prepped the food at the picnic table and packed up any knives and cutting boards, too. I can basically just drop the cooler at the sink, and the rest of the kitchen is still clean—at least as clean as it was before.
Quality Time
Because I’m spending less time prepping and cleaning, and no time running too and from the table to serve everyone, I can spend our lunch time actually talking and playing with my kids. Even when I’m preparing the picnic table, they are out running and playing and climbing in the sunshine and fresh air.
I’m so happy to be able to give them time outside testing their limits, exploring, and burning energy. And I don’t have to sacrifice the clean kitchen to do it!
I give them a warning so they know when time’s almost up, and when they can do one more thing. Sometimes they complain, but I’ve never had any major difficulty getting them to get back in the car.
Lunch at Home
When I don’t have time or energy to drive out to the park, we load up a big tray I got at a garage sale and have an easy family mealtime out on the deck or the porch. Then the kids play when we are done until I say it’s nap time.
It’s slightly more prep and risk of having to run in and out for things. But, again, there’s no table to wipe off and the mess is confined to the tray.
Materials for Your Easy Family Mealtimes
You can make this easy family mealtime system work without fancy gadgets, but I find it’s nice to have a good idea of what you will need for a given picnic and go through a quick checklist as you pack.
- Picnic basket, backpack, insulated bag, or cooler that works for your family (we use this one)
- High chair for toddlers (we have something like this from a garage sale)
- Water bottles
- Rags for wiping fingers (or napkins). Can be wet with water bottles if needed.
- Cutting board and knife for any fruit that needs to be sliced
- Tablecloth and clips (optional)
- Picnic cutlery
- Plates (for kids and adults) and any additional dishes needed
- Thermos, depending on what you are having
- A little first aid kit with band-aids is never a bad idea, too.
- Hand sanitizer
- Sunscreen, hats, diaper bag, and general necessities you use for any outing.
Mixing it Up?
My kids are relatively early risers, so I’d like to start trying to get out for breakfast picnics now and again. We try to get to daily Mass a couple of times a week, so that won’t be possible every day, but I think it might be fun and the playgrounds will be much cooler.
I’m also hoping to have more dinners outside. The more easy family mealtimes we have, the better!
I’ve found this is such an easy way to get the kids moving and happy.
Does your family enjoy picnics? Comment below on how you balance work and play!
You can make some summery cookies to bring on your picnic with my nasturtium crinkle recipe here.
Leave a Reply