Welcome to the final blog in my series of school holiday activities to keep the kids occupied, healthy and additive free. Ok, so this one isn’t necessarily on the cheap side, but if you’re going to do one thing out of the house, most school holidays usually involve the obligatory trip to the movies and maybe even a trip to the bowling alley to make a day of it. The problem is, a trip to the movies is usually not only financially expensive, but laden with additives that you can pay for in other ways for weeks (think little werewolves transforming before your very eyes!). Todays blog will give you a few ideas for substituting foods found at the movies and bowling alley so you can enjoy a day out with the kids and only have to pay for the tickets.
ACTIVITY 5: LETS GO TO THE MOVIES!
Take a look at any cinemas and this is what you’ll find when you go to buy your tickets…
Chips, chocolate, lollies, icecream and the unmistakable smell of popcorn. And if you double up with a day at the bowling lanes, there’ll no doubts be hot chips, hot dogs, pizza, softdrink, juice box/fruit juice/poppers or milkshakes.
So how do you possibly avoid these additive laden and clearly not nutritious options?
Here’s a few tips to help you out…
- Eat a hearty breakfast and catch a morning movie
- Keep your kids busy! Head out early, do a spot of bowling, a quick toilet stop and then straight into the morning movie. This will mean you are all done by lunchtime and there’s only a short break for snacks between bowling and the cinemas.
- Pack you food and treats and bring them with you. Some places may frown at the mother with a bag of food entering the cinemas, or perhaps you feel a little uncomfortable smuggling in your own food. Stay strong – it gets easier! Remember, you have a right to feed your kids healthy nutritious meals, and you are ever questioned, pull out the old “my child has a food sensitivity” card and there will be no further issues. 🙂
Need some food ideas?
- For drinks, grab an organic juice for a treat and a waterbottle. Or for something different, whip up a quick milkshake at home (milk, honey, vanilla, yoghurt, voila!) and pop it in a reusable drink container. You could also try a little cold/iced herbal tea with soda water to replace the softdrink option (my kids like organic rosehip hibiscus tea with a dash of honey and soda water – it’s just like creamy soda softdrink).
- Make your popcorn at home (try the salty caramel popcorn from your pyjama day recipes).
- Buy a couple of organic lollies (try Yummy Earth lollipops – they last a long time and have no nasties)
- Substitute the chips with a packet of organic or plain chips from your local supermarket or healthfood store
- Want to be a little healthier? Cook up a batch of muesli slice, vanilla biscuits or anzac biccies and pack some crackers, fresh fruit, cheese and vege sticks to munch on instead. Or simply pack a healthy sandwich to tide them over until you get home (remember to use preservative free bread and additive free fillings).
- Some of the food options I have suggested may cost a little more than ‘normal’ chips or lollies, but they’ll still be cheaper than the movies food and remember the cost is far less when you consider your kids health and behaviour!
Somewhere along the way, the emphasis shifted from the novelty of seeing a larger than life movie onto the food available at the cinemas. Let’s bring back the wonder and magic of delving into another world on the big screen and keep our kids healthy whilst they expand their imaginations with a little harmless movie time. Start your own traditions and your kids will grow up with memories of delicious homemade popcorn smells as the exciting trigger for a trip to the movies.
I would love to hear what you’ve been up to these holidays with your kids, so please feel free to comment below or post a message on Facebook by clicking here. I hope you all had a lovely break! Stay tuned for some lunchbox tips to get you started in the new school term.
Loren x
