What snacks do you pack for your 2.5 year old when you're out and about?

[Lsquiggles]

Need some inspiration

Breadsticks, crackers, mini pitta breads with hummus to dip in, dry cereal (shredded/Cheerios), a brioche roll (Aldi), flapjack, shortbread, finger sandwiches (usually just cheese or cucumber)

Cucumber slices, carrot batons, banana, strawberries, blueberries, mini peppers or pepper slices, raisens, small apple, satsuma,

Cubes of cheese in a pot with sliced apple
Yogurt tubes
If it's really cold, a flask of vegetable soup or beans with a bread roll

Fruit, crisps, soreen malt loaf bars (you can get the lunchbox sized ones)

Basically whatever snacks we have in the cupboard at the time

Shreddies *

Mine also loves the lunchbox size malt loaf bars!

Also breadsticks, tuc crackers, cheese cubes, raspberries and blackberries, cut up cherry tomatoes or savoury pancakes are our go to.

Yoghurt (you can get sucky ones the are handy for being out and about. Tubes are tiny, but the Collective do decent sized ones that have no added sugar) was our go to.

Otherwise baby good companies do lots of things that are a small enough portion for a toddler snack on the go - my DD loved the Organix soft oaty bars (lots of different flavours, and basically just oats, raisins and a bit of fruit/veg juice).

Babybel or similar small portion of cheese (they need a decent amount of fat in their diet at that age).

Or of course you can do a little fruit pot - mixed dried fruit went down well with mine, I well remember plying my eldest with dried pineapple to keep her quiet during weddings.

You can also make porrige bars or flap jacks, those are great.

Raisins, cheese string, crisps, small cake or a biscuit, fruit pouch, dry cereal, baby/toddler oat bar.

F

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

@HandScreen

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

Pom bears
Cheese and crackers
Bread sticks
Fruit
Cucumber/carrots
Raisins
Oat bars
Shortbread

@HandScreen

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

Good for you. It must be hard work being always baffled about other people’s parenting choices. Just to clarify, is snacking a working class pursuit then?

@HandScreen

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

What if you're doing a long journey or visiting family or friends who don't have the same set times as you?

@HandScreen

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

Toddlers and small children have small tummies and constantly growing. Little and often is ok. I'm working class if that helps

@HandScreen

We don't really do snacks, we eat at mealtimes. This constant snacking is a relatively new thing, surely. I'm always baffled by the amount of snacking my very middle class friends' children do - and they're all fairly "sturdy"/"chunky" as a result - it's constant!

Mmmmmm I disagree on your analysis, sorry. I grew up in another country in the 80s and morning and afternoon snacks were def a thing! They still are both in my own country, and here too, accordingly to my son's nursery.

I keep a metal container with non perishable snacks in his bag for emergencies: crackers, mini pack of raisins, oat bar type of things.

But if I am planning to go out I might take:

• Baby Bels or cubed cheddar in a little box
• pouch of yogurt
• banana or a cut up apple or cut up grape or a satsuma
• a little bag of some sort of crisps he might like (as a treat)
• half a sandwich
• a tiny pot of dry cheerios
• few biscuits

For us it's always a hot cross bun, doesn't even like butter in it! I just wrap it in tinfoil and throw it in my handbag but I've never been great and doing lots of prep before we leave the house. If I know we will be out long enough that he might get hangry, I'll also pack a banana.

@AliceW89 Quite the opposite - I said it's my very middle class friends who do this. Their children are constantly eating, and it's far too many calories.

And if you look at the posts here, it's mostly sugary shite.

I tend not to buy snacks marketed for toddlers as they’re usually stupidly expensive for what they are.
But I will take a little Tupperware with some raisins in or a piece of fruit.

@HandScreen you try telling a toddler they can't have something to eat when they are hungry. Little tummies need food more often and snacks are advised by HV.

I’ve never really done snacks either, occasionally they have nakd bars

Mine are older now but when they were that age it was things like:
Cherry tomatoes
Cheese in little squares
Cucumber
Olives
Rice cakes
Fruit

If we were out for longer I would make a packed lunch with wraps or sandwiches as well.

Malt loaf bars (soreen) are really bad for teeth as they are sticky. Raisins and dried fruit are also bad. It would be better to give them as part of a meal rather than a snack to reduce the number of sugar attacks on your child's teeth.

I say this as someone who used to give my kids fruit pouches as snacks until I got a job at a dental practice

[quote Danikm151]@HandScreen you try telling a toddler they can't have something to eat when they are hungry. Little tummies need food more often and snacks are advised by HV.[/quote]
The rest of us seem to manage 🤷‍♀️

Thank you for all the suggestions

@HandScreen children get hungry in between meals, they're growing and very active. Your children may not need (or be allowed) snacks but that isn't what the thread is about, why derail it with the usual competitive undereating comments you see on here

My standard bag snacks are fruit and unsalted rice cakes. Apples are good as they keep well so you don't have to take them out of your bag at the end of the day, they'll fine for a while ;) And an emergency pouch of Lidl veggies for the baby!