Three Tips for Easy, Relaxing Family Picnics

This post has been sponsored by Canada Dry®. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love picnics. In fact, if I could eat every meal outside, I happily would. (And believe me, when we lived in Texas, I tried!) There is something so refreshing about combining the fresh air and sunshine with good food and good company. I also appreciate the laid back and relaxed atmosphere of a picnic. Through the last couple years, since I identified picnics as something I really enjoy, I have made a concerted effort to picnic more often, which has meant making family picnics as accessible, simple, and wonderful as possible. Here are three tips for easy, relaxing family picnics:

Pack Finger Foods

Rather than the storybook picnics of yesteryear, with wax-paper wrapped sandwiches, pasta salads, lots of preparation, I’ve found the most simple and delicious picnics to also be the easiest. I gather some basics: one pre-sliced meat, one sliced cheese, one finger friendly fruit (grapes, blueberries, etc.) and one finger friendly or pre-cut vegetable. When I add in a crunchy cracker or sweet baguette, we have a complete, delicious spread that caters to any age. In fact, I can pack a blanket and cutting board, then gather everything else on a 10-minute stop at the neighborhood grocery store (ours is Kroger) and pick up the rest!

Finger foods also means cutting out a need for plates and cutlery. We all relax together, eating, chatting, and making memories.

On occasion, with more time or energy to dedicate to an occasion, I’ll elaborate and choose a little more variety or add some unexpected surprises (cupcakes or cookies always win smiles from the kids) but rarely do I put more than a “set it out on the board” amount of preparation into my family style picnics. Simple means we can do it more often, which is what I want.

Choose a Refreshing Beverage

My husband and I don’t drink alcohol, so we fill our cooler bag with water, lemonade, or different sparkling sodas. It feels special and relaxing to have a cold, special drink in hand when we’re out on our picnics. Something about actually taking the time to sit and sip something special while we chat (and the kids run wild in the background) feels like a real connection.

We both really love ginger ale and lemonade on their own (an after-bedtime ginger ale is one of my mom indulgences at home) and when I learned that Canada Dry was releasing a new combination of the two, I was excited to give it a try! It seemed like a perfect, refreshing mixture of flavors. The NEW Canada Dry Ginger Ale and Lemonade is tangy and sweet with that familiar ginger zing. Rather than mixing the two in my own version of a mocktail, which is something I have done before, the convenience of the NEW combo is perfect. You can add it to your shopping list, and find it in the beverage aisle of your local Kroger store!

To celebrate the release of Canada Dry Ginger Ale and Lemonade at Kroger and Kroger flagship stores across the country, there is a sweepstakes happening in which you could win one of several outdoor-inspired branded products, like Adirondack chairs, corn hole sets, or a glassware set. (Canada Dry sent me a hat and some socks for this campaign which my boys promptly claimed as their own.)

Find a Play-worthy Picnic Spot

One of the best parts of a family picnic is the play that naturally happens when we are outside together. We like to either go on a short hike to a river (or lake), picnic at a park with a playground, or sit down in the backyard where they have outdoor toys and games nearby. When we’re in the right spot, my kids run and climb trees. They find sticks to use as pretend fishing poles and sit on the rocks next to the river “fishing” and splashing. We all feel the sunshine on our faces and feel that relaxation, connection, and inspiration that happens when we are in nature.

While the kids play, Dave and I get to do a little relaxing catch up in conversation about life.

After an hour or two when we pack up the blanket, now-empty cutting board, and prepare to head home, everyone feels renewed and happy. Building family picnics into our regular routine has made a positive difference in our life. We are able to easily pull together a simple, meaningful experience with little preparation and little expense. Our kids look forward to going on picnics with us, and we all grow closer as we make time to have such positive experiences together!

I hope you are able to use these easy tips to get out with your family soon and enjoy that sunshine!