snack attack

I always swore I'd never be the type to ply my children's silence with snacks.  That was before I had children, of course.  Now, like any sensible mother, I realize that having the right type and quantity of snacks is key to the success of any outing.

Sitting in church?  You need Cheerios.  Trip to the mall?  Don't forget the Goldfish crackers.  Long plane ride ahead of you?  This particularly special occasion calls for M&M's.  If there's one thing my Bunch has taught me, it's that food, while primarily serving as sustenance, can also be equal parts entertainment and distraction.  A few lessons I've learned over the years:

1. NEVER leave home without it.  I don't care if you're just going down the street to the park for half an hour.  You never know who is going to suddenly realize they are starving and get dropping blood sugar or fall and injure themselves or refuse to walk home until they've had a snack.  Do yourself a favor and stash a few single serving sized bags of Gerber puffs, pretzels, dried fruits, granola bars, and other healthy and age-appropriate foods in your purse, diaper bag, car, and stroller.
2. Pack a lunch instead of buying whenever you can.  Most of the food offered at children's attractions, as well as drive-thrus, is expensive and bad for you.  Save cash and calories by brown bagging it whenever you can.  Sure, it takes a little more planning and organization, but it saves you from having to stand in line for food while your starving Bunch wines at your feet.
3. Pack twice as much as you think you need.  Seriously.  When my gang heads out for a picnic lunch and an afternoon at the park, you'd look at our food stash and think we were heading into a bomb shelter.  But 9 times out of 10, we come home with very few leftovers.  Sometimes we stay longer than planned and need another snack.  Sometimes we end up sharing with friends.  Sometimes the ants attack somebody's lunch or someone steps on it and I have to pull out the backup lunch.  Sometimes someone refused to eat breakfast and they eat two lunches.  I've learned that it's always better to have too much and it's always a crisis not to have enough.
4. Don't forget the drinks.  I carry water cups for all kids and myself with me at all times.  It's kind of annoying to drag beverages all over the city, but sometimes hunger masquerades as thirst and you can head it off with water.  Other times, gobbling down a snack leads to parched throats.  Either way, there's nothing worse than being stuck on the freeway with everyone whining about how thirsty they are.  (Except for being stuck on the freeway with everyone whining about how they have to pee, which is sure to follow soon if they're sucking down drinks).
5. Don't forget the baby's food.  I cannot tell you how many times I have walked out without a bottle.  I mostly nurse, but have a hard time nursing and supervising two other children in public, so I try to plan bottles or solids for baby if we're going to be out over his mealtime.  Babies (and some toddlers, still) have special needs for food, so be sure you've got age-appropriate goodies for everyone (including Mom) in your bag.
6. If you're going somewhere that requires silence, bring a new or "special" snack.  Now that my kids are a little older, our special snack is the gummy-like fruit snacks.  They're kinda sugary and junky, but not so evil that I feel bad letting my kids have them once in awhile.  The kids, for their part, adore them and are willing to do pretty much anything to earn a package.  When the charm of the fruit-shaped ones wore off, I started buying them in CARS and Nemo shapes.  A little novelty (and sometimes even some sugar) goes a long way in buying good behavior.  This works even for the very little ones.  I serve the baby little puffs at home and save the wagon wheel shaped ones for when we are out and about so he can while away some time examining each spoke and trying to figure out how to get the whole thing in his mouth.

Happy eatouting!

Comments

[Lisa]

I've also learned to pack snacks and treats for my husband as well as the kids. A well fed family is a happy family I now like to say.

[Linda]

All so true! I'm so glad to read this. I have been TRYING to convinced my husband that this is the BEST way to a happy family outing. If they have munchies in their mouth, they are less likely to complain and full bellies lead to less whining....usually. I like to keep Dum Dum lollipops on hand as well.