I Bring Sandwiches for My Kids While I Eat in the Parks
This is your PSA to enjoy yourself at the parks. I mean really enjoy yourself. Your kids are great kids!
You love seeing their joy, hearing their thoughts, and holding their hand, but good gracious, you do not love the whining at meal time, am I right?!
Meal Time
Meal time can be the worst time because most kids can be a bit finicky, and if you factor in hot and tired they can be touchier than Gizmo fed after midnight. (If you don’t get that reference, you’re too young for this article.)
Don’t skip a wild out of this world meal at Satu’li Canteen because your kid won’t like the new flavors or textures.
Don’t ignore an EPCOT festival because they only like chicken nuggets. Go enjoy something that you enjoy… while still being the fun parent.
Wait, what?
Yes. Every house has that one “meal” or something that is a “sometimes food”. My our house it’s Nutella sandwiches.
I don’t allow them often, but when we have them the kids think I hung the moon, when in reality Momma was tired and didn’t want to cook or do dishes. Don’t judge, we’ve all had those moments!
We Finish Each Other’s Sandwiches
On our last trip I brought a loaf of bread, a jar of Nutella, and sandwich baggies. Every park day I would slap together a few sandwiches and keep them in our park bag.
When my husband, son, or I would pass by a snack we wanted to try, or a fun quick service, I would pull my daughter aside like I had a secret.
She hates the taste of meat, always has, probably always will, so eating out with her is challenging because she is also tired of always getting the mac and cheese option.
I would tell her that we were eating at this place and that I had something special for her. I would hand her a Nutella sandwich and tell her not to worry, that I got her covered before she even had a chance to whine about the food!
Before you start to think, woah, hey, is this kid running the show? Tell her to suck it up! That’s how it is at home. It’s not fun, but she has to learn for the real world.
That’s when it hit me before our last trip. The real world. I go to Disney World myself to escape the real world. Why can’t it be that kids do it too?
For me, it’s the escape from the real world like drama, adult stress, etc. Maybe her stress is avoiding yucky foods. A little food for thought.
In the end, she didn’t have any nutritional deficiency from a few extra Nutella sandwiches, and each meal we ate in PEACE and everyone could then just be happy and talk about all the hidden Mickeys that we found.
Psssssst: This trick only works in the parks at quick service and snack locations. You are not able to bring food into Table Service Restaurants. If you have really picky eaters and want to do a table service, I recommend the buffets!
Feature Image: Disney