We all need snacks to take to the pool or splash park!
Playing outside makes kids hungry. But there seems to be a special kind of hunger that comes with playing in water.
I remember those days as a kid. My mom would pick us up from Swimming Lessons and barely say hello to us before handing my brother and me a granola bar. Yep, she knew. Our stomachs were empty and ready!
This summer we have lots of water plans with our kids. We’ll enjoy some pool fun – though it’s not easy taking so many little ones to the pool. We have to have extra adults with us to keep everyone safe in the water.
The splash park though? We’ll go there often. And we’ll play in the water in our own yard too.
I’ve learned to pack a lot of snacks when we have outings of any kind. But water outings need even more sustenance. Our most recent visit to the splash park led to kids eating 7 cheese sticks, 9 apples, and 7 applesauce pouches. They drank their water and they were all still hungry. Oops, I need to take more next time!
Snacks to Take to the Pool or Splash Park
Here are some ideas for snacks to take when kids get hungry from playing in the water. These can be taken on any outing, of course. But whatever you do, don’t go to to pool or splash park without food!
- Cheese Sticks
- Apples (My kids don’t always want to eat an apple without it being cut up. But at the splash park, they eagerly bit in and ate the entire apple – all of them. Some of them ate two!)
- Applesauce Pouches (These don’t fill them much but it is something extra to help made the snacks stretch.)
- Peanuts, Almonds, or Cashews
- Sliced Cucumbers and Carrots (When you’re extra hungry, veggies taste extra good.)
- Oranges (My kids do best with these when I’ve cut them into wedges at home. Then all they have to do is grab and eat – no peeling needed. Our favorite are Cara-Cara Oranges with the pink center.)
- Peanut Butter Honey Puffs (If you have these made so that they are easy to grab and go, they travel well and will be gobbled down by hungry people.)
- Uncrustables (Sometimes these are a meal. But at the pool or splash park, these just fill the empty bellies without ruining dinner.)
- No-Bake Chocolate Fudge Cookie Bites (Full of protein and fiber, which is perfect for filling an empty stomach – but pack them in a cooler or they will soften and smoosh together. Ask me how I know.)
- No-Bake Snickerdoodle Bites (Same as above.)
- No-Bake Peanut Butter Cookie Bites (Same as above.)
- Any of these Lightly Sweetened Cookies (They’ve played hard and earned a cookie treat.)
- Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, or Blackberries (Prewashed and ready to eat.)
- Watermelon or Cantaloupe (Cut and ready to eat)
- Grapes
- Muffins (Here are 40+ recipes. These pack up well and are hearty for good snacking.)
- Banana Bread (Slice it and put it in a container that will keep it from getting smashed. Watch it disappear.)
- Spinach Cupcakes (The spinach actually makes these so much better in every way.)
- Peanut Butter Honey Rice Krispie Bars
NOT RECOMMENDED: Anything with chocolate chips. Trust me, it’s too hot and the chocolate will be a melty mess all over your kids’ hands, faces, and swim suits.
What are your favorite pool and splash park snacks?
We like to keep a jar of those HUGE dill pickles handy. A big pickle in a paper towel for each person is a treat. lol My kids used to also eat lots of peanut butter/apple wraps on flour tortillas, apple slices with peanut butter for dipping, frozen half bananas on a stick (dipped or not in chocolate and then frozen) (if at home) or banana, peanut butter wraps. The fruit/PB combo always works for us.
Also, I like to keep a lidded container of peanut butter stirred with jelly until fluffy/smooth that I mix up myself. Making PB&J sandwiches using the mixture of peanut butter and jelly was always so much faster and the fluffiness is so delicious.
Taking a bunch of meat/cheese sandwiches that are cut into fourth triangles is good.
Our favorite supper for sun kissed, exhausted, swimmers has to be a big pot of spaghetti. We make our own sauce and to smell it simmering on the stove while recovering under a blanket from a day at the pool and then eating it is the best finish for a fun day.
Ooooh, that all sounds so good!