Six Tasty Picnic Ideas
‘Embracing Life with Children in a Cool, Damp Climate’ was my alternative title for this post. However, the notion of picnics brings a smile to my face every single time. Who wouldn’t like a flask of hot chocolate and a rich, buttery chocolate chip cookie or mug of tomato soup and slice of quiche on the side of a hill sheltering from the wind, heart rates up and rosy cheeks?
It is essential, of course, to have a sturdy picnic basket or knapsack ready to fling into the boot of the car at all times. Our car boot also holds a bag of kites, a French set of boules and a frisbee from April onwards. And hiking boots have become a staple under the Christmas tree since moving to Ireland.
In stories we tell our friends of mountain peaks scaled in various counties, we neglect to mention the actual height but focus more on the view, the precipitation, and the discoveries of what works best in a lunchbox.
Pret-a-porter has taken on new meaning to me. From French fashion to ready-to-eat sandwiches that fill tummies or small snack boxes that give good grazing opportunities while walking.
I know that my / our world has changed. We have swapped sunny beaches and rosé lunches for forty shades of green and a pot of tea with a flapjack, but the feeling of belonging to a place and making it home, surpasses any amount of suntan. After all, you can get That from a bottle in Ireland, and still enjoy the rosé.
This is a surprising month of moments of warmth interspersed with those pesky April showers (that we still need to bring flowers, but dang! So much of it?!) If at all possible in our busy schedules, grab an hour in a park, a beach or on a hill with pockets full of apples and granola bars and be rewarded with happy hearts and great chats - particularly good for mental health.
