We’re off to the Zoo today for a fun family adventure and, as I do with most fun family adventures, I’ve packed a sack lunch.
With seven members in the family, even the cheapest meal at the Zoo would totally blow our budget! But a sack lunch of homemade buns filled with roasted chicken smothered in barbecue sauce, fruit, carrot sticks, potato chips and homemade chocolate chip cookies, is both cheap and filling.
We rarely eat chips or drink pop because of the price and the nutritional value (none) but they make an adventure like this one special.
I watch the sales in the spring and summer months and stock up on our typical picnic fare so I can be ready anytime to pack a lunch. I also have an old blanket that gets thrown in so we have something to sit on and always bring a large thermos of water as well as smaller water bottles.
Do my kids complain about not getting the popcorn, cotton candy, funnel cakes, hot dogs. etc…? Nope. Sometimes in passing we quietly comment to them about the high prices (“Wow! A Hot dog costs $3! Did you know I can buy almost 3 packs of hot dogs at the grocery store for that much money?”) I think they understand.
Bringing a sack lunch with you as you adventure as a family is a great Thrifty way to stretch your entertainment dollars!