Spring is in full bloom (our apple tree says so) and summer is on its way. That means it is time to get the family organized and ready for adventures, both planned and spur of the moment. The thing that always throws me off is the kids' snacks and lunches for our adventures. Luckily, Thirty-One Gifts always has my back! Their new Summer Essentials list is exactly what our family needs to get organized for fun!
My first order of business for getting us organized for summer is taking care of the snack and lunch issue. They have a shelf in our pantry that is kid-specific food and dishware. It is lined with baskets for easy prep. The snack mix basket desperately needed a rejuvenation and it started with Thirty-One Cool Zip Snacker ($12.00 and comes in Watermelon, Unicorn, and Shark).
Food safe and reusable, this cute thermal pouch for kids has a zipper top and is available in 3 adorable designs! Choose from our snappy Shark, sweet Unicorn or juicy Watermelon to keep foods cold or warm, and snack in style all season long.
In one basket, I have placed the Cool Zip Snacker, a bag of snack mix I made myself, and toppings for the snacks to sometimes add a little oomph (like marshmallows and craisins).
These are already my favorite gift item of the year. I have already gifted two. One to my MIL. I thought they would be perfect for keeping her pretzels and ginger snaps in to help ease nausea. The other is for my cousin's little girl who is about to have surgery. It will make her smile and when she gets back to eating "normal food," she can keep her snacks in it. Until then, it can keep her yogurt, pudding, and other soft snacks cold.
Snack Ideas
If your grocery bill is anything like mine, it seems like the most expensive items are snacks. Well, one tip to cut down on that bill is to buy large bags of snacks and break them up instead of buying individual snacks (see why the Cool Zip Snacker is a must-have?!) What I have started doing is making my own snack mix- I can control the sugar and dyes a lot better that way as well.
When I first started doing this, I walked down the food aisle in the dollar store and then in Walmart to see what I could find. I ended up with a huge Ziploc bag of snack mix and 2 toppings for $5. Seriously, could you get that deal if you bought it already mixed? I don't think so.
Here are 15 ideas to get you started:
- Fruity loop cereal
- Pretzels
- Cheese Crackers (goldfish, cheese-its, etc)
- Mini Crackers
- Other Cereals (walking down the cereal aisle is fun)
- Marshmallows
- Craisins/ Raisins
- Nuts
- Popcorn
- chocolate chips
- dried fruit
- granola
- small cookies
- Animal Crackers
- cheese puffs
You can also add sprinkles, coconut, grapes, and other items as toppings to give it more oomph!
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