http://www.fridayschildmontessori.com/blog/picnic-perfection/ Anywhere outside on a sunny day is good for a picnic, whether it’s a park, the beach or even your back garden.

1. The Fun Part of Picnics
www.fridayschildmontessori.com

2. The Food

3. For a proper picnic, you don’t take
anything that needs to be cooked.

4. If you want to put sausages in that
you’re going to cook while you’re eating
al fresco, this isn’t a picnic.

5. It’s a barbecue, which is another great
Aussie tradition but not what we’re
talking about here.

7. Food safety is important, so if you do
take cold (cooked!) chicken nibbles on
your picnic, then you will need to keep
this deep in the esky along with an ice
pack or two.

8. The same applies to anything involving
meat, eggs and dairy products (vegans,
you’re allowed to feel a bit smug here!).

9. Avoid anything sloppy or runny that
needs utensils to eat it – finger food is
the order of the day.

10. Sandwiches are always winners, from
the humble Vegemite sammie
through to elaborate concoctions
involving cold chicken, camembert,
cranberry jelly, walnuts and
mayonnaise.

11. Fruit and raw vegetables, with or
without dip, are great eaten outdoors,
as are nuts.

13. If you want a picnic food that’s more
reminiscent of something the Famous
Five would do, then try hard-boiled
eggs.

14. For sweet stuff, cupcakes, scones and
muffins are easier to manage than
larger items that need to be cut up.

15. You often need to provide less food for
a picnic meal than you do when you’re
having an ordinary meal at home if you
have younger children.

16. This is because outdoor locations are a
bit of a novelty, and children always
seem to be more enthusiastic about
running around and exploring than
eating.

18. If you have packed too much by
mistake, then don’t throw it away, even
if there’s a handy rubbish bin nearby.

19. The children will probably announce
that they’re hungry on the way home,
and you can just produce the food
again.

20. In this writer’s experience, attempts to
bring a thermos flask full of hot coffee
or tea have never really worked. What
does work is cold drinks.

21. To get a really icy drink, freeze a bottle
of water or whatever you fancy in a
plastic bottle overnight (remember that
water expands as it freezes, so don’t fill
the bottle right up).

22. Put this in the esky. It will gradually
melt (and help keep your food cool),
and by the time you’re ready to drink it,
it will be deliciously icy cold water
rather than solid ice.

23. Two main safety hazards to
beware of with picnics are
sunburn and insects.

24. T+aking plenty of sunscreen and sitting
in the shade takes care of the first, and
keeping food in containers that can be
sealed easily Tupperware style helps
deter the second.

25. However, it wouldn’t be a real
Gold Coast picnic without ants joining
in, so turn them into part of the fun –
maybe you can put out a crust or a
spoonful of jam for them to share (and
save some other crusts to give to the
local birds).

26. And if you’ve planned your picnic but
the weather turns vile when you didn’t
expect it to?

27. Don’t give up – just have an indoor
picnic on the floor of the dining room
(don’t forget to invite teddy bears).

28. Have fun!
www.fridayschildmontessori.com