Kids picnic party

It’s party time!
it’s picnic time!

A kids party is much more fun if it’s a kids picnic party. That’s because children just love eating outdoors. It’s different, it’s a great escape from the confines of the house and they can make more mess without being scolded!

It’s therefore much easier for Mum or Dad too. No messy house to clean up afterwards! No worries about spilled drinks, crumbs in the carpet or sticky finger marks on your upholstery.

Choose a location for the kids picnic where there is lots of room for them to run around and make a noise without disturbing other people. Check your picnic list and ensure you include the first-aid kit for grazed elbows and knees as well as plenty of wipes, tissues or kitchen towel for sticky fingers and faces.

You’ll also want to add to the list any equipment you need for the young childrens picnic games or the picnic games for 5 – 12 year olds

Your picnic equipment should include small, brightly coloured plates and cups and maybe some curly plastic straws to drink the home-made lemonade through.

(You might want to include a bit of alcohol to add to that – just for yourself and the deserving adults who are helping you with the picnic!)

Put together a menu that is easy to eat with little fingers but keep it simple, with food that the children will recognize.

This is not the time (as I know to my cost!) to offer gourmet delicacies! They might taste amazing but not many kids will be keen to find out!

Back in 1900, Mrs Beaton knew what the children wanted! Little sandwiches, cake and fruit. You can't go far wrong with that.

Keep the food simple but the presentation exciting, using twists of paper napkins or foil. Little nibbles on cocktails sticks are very attractive but only if the children are old enough to avoid stabbing themselves, or others, with them!

Cocktail sausages are always popular and tiny sausage rolls, small slices of cold pizza and little sandwiches without crusts (why do children dislike crusts? Don’t they know they make their hair curl, as my father used to tell me?!)

A whole or even half a Scotch egg might be a too large for one child to finish but quail eggs wrapped in the same casing would be about the right size and the grown-ups will appreciate them too!

Tiny cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks and cubes of cheese might get eaten but, as it’s a kids picnic party, you’ll have to include crisps or kettle chips!

I’d recommend not trying too hard to provide too many healthy things to eat because most of it will end up in the bin bags (another thing to make sure is on your list!) if you do. At a kids party the majority of little 'uns just grab the crisps and cake!

Fruit kebabs with little marshmallows, small jam tarts, fairy cakes and iced cup cakes - all these are easy to transport and look attractive.

Older children might like larger pieces of fruit and a toffee or chocolate dip for apples or strawberries is fun.

Finally, at a kids picnic party, it’s a good idea to get each Mum or Dad to send the child with a change of clothes in case they get too hot, too cold, too dirty, too wet etc.

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