Warm weather means outdoor activities and vacations. Enjoying the summer and taking time be with your family is important and helps strengthen family bonds. Of course, it’s important to remember that meals such as picnics are an essential part of outdoor activities. However, the thought of dealing with the mess of picnics can be a big turn off. Being out in nature shouldn’t have moms busy trying to clean messes. These outings should let her enjoy the day along-side her family. Luckily, picnics with the family can be both stress free and mess free! There are simple and amazing tricks and tips when it comes to prepping and planning picnic with minimal clean up! So hike that mountain, take a trip to the beach, or even utilize these tips if you’re moving along in an RV. Whatever the experience, know without a doubt, we are entering the “mess-free” zone!
Planning & Prepping
First, it’s important to know what meals you’re anticipating on making so you can appropriately plan to store, serve, and clean-up your meal afterwards. Google Docs has an amazing tool called, the Sheets. Utilize this tool to create your own meal-planning log. Make sure to get your list ready of the items you plan on eating. Furthermore, break your list down into categories of what you’ll need. It’s best to ask yourself some questions. Serving sandwiches? What condiments do we need? Are we bringing napkins, utensils, and dishes? How about storing food? All of these questions are issues moms deal with when we plan any type of outing. Making a list keeps us organized and helps us plan out the smallest details necessary to put everything together!
Keep it Simple!
Keeping foods simple and appropriate for the activity is a great idea when planning outings. Spaghetti wouldn’t be ideal for a hiking trip, or eating on the beach. Try and stick with finger foods. Smaller items that are relatively easy to snack, eat, or bite on while on-the-go. Try searching Pinterest for family picnic ideas, there are a ton! Here’s some of what we’ve gathered as the best items for kids and easy clean-up:
- Hot dogs
- Sandwiches – Remember: keep toppings separate to avoid soggy sandwiches
- Mini-foods (cupcakes, cookies, sandwiches, slider burgers, etc.)
- Banana bread
- Dried fruits & nuts, or trail-mix
- Easy to grab pre-sliced fruits and veggies
- Antipasto Skewers
Transporting Foods & Must Have’s
Transporting any food is always a tricky situation. A wonderful idea when taking food on trips is to use carry out containers from fast food restaurants. That plastic rectangle container your sesame chicken came in from three weeks ago is an amazing little helper when traveling with food. The best part, these containers can double as plates/bowls as well as holders for food like sandwich toppings. Mason jars are a great for packing or storing food . Here are the must-have’s when it comes to a mess free picnic:
- Trash Bags – Better yet, reuse grocery bags for your trash
- Paper towels
- Wet wipes (for sticky messes & cleaning faces)
- Coolers with zippers (small cutting boards & knives can safely travel in there)
- Extra Rubbermaid containers
Picnic Tip: Mason jars are also amazing silverware organizers!
Have Fun! It’s Summer Time!
In the end, summer is about enjoying life, being with family, and spending time together. While outdoor activities can be exciting and memorable, some of the best bonding moments on a trip are made while sharing a meal with those you love.
Trips don’t need to be chaotic with over the top picnic ideas or elegant meals. Keep it simple. Bring items that are easy to transport and even easier to clean up. A little bit of planning can help moms plan for tasty and healthy meals and enjoy the day without missing out. These are the moments we want to cherish. Don’t waste them cleaning and fretting!
Do you have any mess-free picnic suggestions or ideas? Please share them with us. We are looking forward to hearing from you.
