A Touch of Sanity...: Picnicking and Car Tripping - How to Keep it Real on the Run!

Summer can be tough! That's when things tend to be more spur of the moment! And convenience foods...well, they are NOT your healthiest option! Here are some tips on how to get around that!

One of my favorite pics of one of my favorites ;)

We are a boating family! We hit the water every chance we get...I mean how many people get the opportunity to live a mile from the water? So, we drink it up!

No matter where you live, Summer is the time that you are really out and about, constantly on the Go! And even when we are car tripping, I pack food for everyone! I don't pack for just us and rely on fast food for my kids, we try to do everything as a group! Yes...they totally have fast food every now and again, but honestly it's much cheaper to pack your own food! It saves $ and keeps you from putting crap into your body! Let's be honest...if I am going to splurge I want it to be on something that I choose...not something out of convenience!

What makes a great on the go snack or meal to help keep you in check? I'm a high protein fan, so I try to keep all our snacks and meals loaded with good protein! As always, I build our meals with protein, fat and a clean carb! But, when you are on the go it needs to be easy, not messy, and either shelf stable or fit nicely into a cooler and be something that's best eaten cold. But, a main thing I concentrate on is simplicity! I like things that don't require me to take along spoons, forks, etc. With 4 kids and 2 dogs always with us, who needs ANYTHING superfluous? I rely on food for forks! Apple slices, carrots, pepper slices, bibb lettuce, even chunky slices of grilled chicken..all these things make for great scoopers or mouth delivery tools! ;)

Tuna, pepper relish, avocado, pepper slices.

I know for us, the cooler is usually maxed out with hydrating beverages to beat the heat, leaving us with little room for food! So, I like these flat, BPA free , dishwasher safe containers made by Sistema. I order them on Amazon. They work perfect in the kids' lunch boxes too and are even liquid tight! So if you want to make a yogurt, banana, pineapple, walnut sweet treat, all good! ;)

Tuna, apple slices avocado

Grilled Chicken Breast, almonds, grapes, carrots.

Stay Active

On the go tips! When you are at the beach, park or pool...we try to stay active with the kids; when you're active, you are less prone to getting bored and thinking about snacking, right? So get moving! We love hopscotch, paddle ball contests, races, catch and even shell hunting!

When you are stuck in the car, everyone gets antsy! We like to stop at the big rest areas, which always have a large grassy area or somewhere to run. After everyone hits the bathrooms, we take 15 minutes to play tag, i.e. catch Daddy, and then everyone usually does 20 push-ups and jumping jacks! It helps to get your blood flowing and gets some of those wiggles out...then to the car for a packed snack!

Getting it together - We always start with start with water! We pack the cooler with waters, leaving room for our food and then take along extra waters that we can fill in as we drink what's cold! I am a water freak, my husband makes fun of me all the time, but I just don't feel good at all when I am not properly hydrated and this girl...sweats a lot! Just keeping real!

*We usually pack one Gallon sized Ziploc bag filled with sandwiches for the kids and use it as our trash bag after they have finished the sandwiches!*

The Secret Weapon - On our last car trip (2 days) we ended up drinking 2 whole cases of bottled water! But where there's water, you can have a nutritionally balanced, protein packed shake in seconds! We always pack our shaker cups and a bunch of shakes when we travel and even take them with us on the boat! They don't take up room in the cooler and can be made anywhere in seconds! In fact, I keep a clean shaker cup and a shake in my car at all times...I mean, no matter what the day brings, you can always stop and grab a bottle of water, and voila! The ones we like contain 36 grams of undentured whey protein ,so even without a blender, they whip up like a real deal shake! Bonus: This much protein will keep you full for quite a while, even at the keeping up with 4 kids activity level!

Other Great Examples:

Turkey Avocado Apple roll-ups, you can always stick some cheese into those too!

Homemade Trail Mix - We take our trail mixes everywhere! Just remember if it needs to beat the heat, leave out anything that might melt! So, X the yogurt covered anything, white chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips! That kind of messy is just not that fun, especially when it's all over a kid strapped into the WAY back seat...yeah...no...but there are ton of other options!

Anti-pasta Salad - So, yeah...it requires and actual fork, unless you want to use your hands...but honestly I love this stuff SO much, I totally would forego the fork, as long as I'm at the beach and can just wash off, lol. It's so good cold and such a refreshing snack while I am sitting on the beach, so I do pack this one for the boat regularly!