Frugal Family Fun - Picnics

Over at Money Saving Mom, Crystal is asking about our favorite frugal activities for the summer.

There are a lot of things I love to do in the summer, generally getting outside is the theme. We are loving having a backyard, however small, and a covered patio. We have been eating almost all of our meals out there.

For a great change of scenery, we enjoy going to one of our nearby state or local parks (there are several within 10-20 minutes away) and having a picnic dinner. I'll prepare it, and as soon as my husband gets home we head out. This makes a great date night for us. After dinner, we take a walk in the park before heading home. We love it.

If you have kids, choosing a park with space for them to run around, or perhaps better yet, a play area, would make it even more fun. That way, mom and dad can sit and chat and finish dinner while the kids play.

What to bring? We enjoy simple meals that are a variation on bread+cheese+fruit/vegetable. For example, this week we had Italian bread, asiago cheese, olives, artichoke hearts and caponata. Next week I'm thinking of French bread, brie cheese, grapes, whatever else looks good. I'll usually bring a little chocolate for dessert if we're not having fruit. This is relatively non-messy and easy to prepare.

Just for fun, I pack it all in a picnic basket I picked up on sale for $15 many years ago. Mostly I like that it is pretty, but it also is convenient. It includes cups, plates and plastic utensils.

Until it gets too hot to stand it, we'll probably do this once a week. It's a lot of fun.