Summertime Food Budget

Summertime can turn into one giant boredom snack fest. Kids are home all day and in many parts of the country it can be almost unbearably hot for them to play outside. When I was young, I would "chunk" up each summer, eating too much and not exercising enough. School shopping was never a fun experience, and typically had to be postponed until I was back in school, on a normal eating routine and active again. I'm certain that my parents food budget was probably adversely effected each summer by my boredom snacking. I dreaded seeing my kids fall into the same cycle so I decided to have a plan.

With four kids and a tight budget it is important for me to have a summertime plan. The BIGGEST tip that has worked for me in regards to controlling my kids' snacking appetite is planning!

Here's how summer food works in our home:
-The kids eat breakfast between 7:30 and 8, just like they would if they were in school.
-Lunch is served at 12. I make a typical "sack lunch" for them most days even though they will be eating it at our own kitchen table on a plate. They each get a sandwich, a fruit, a granola bar and a miscellaneous extra such as homemade cookies, apple sauce, carrot sticks etc. 
-I serve one afternoon snack, at 3:30, the time they would normally be getting home from school. This snack MUST include a protein and a complex carb (sometimes I get a little lackadaisical about the complexity of the carb) Some afternoon snack examples include apple and peanut butter, cherries and string cheese, watermelon and nuts or a banana and chocolate protein shake. This combination is important because it must tide them over till dinner even though summertime dinners usually are a bit later in our home.
-Dinner is served around 6:30

The kitchen is closed for service at all other times. Most days I will post a menu on the refrigerator so the kids know exactly what to expect and what to look forward to. This simple plan has stopped our summer food budget from soaring and keeps us about even with the rest of the year.