It’s been a hectic couple of weeks while we pack our house to move. There is very little remaining to do, and the choices for what to play with, what to entertain ourselves with and what to eat grow slim.
Thankfully, kids are incredibly adaptable. I think we should all take a lesson from them about that!
One of our favourites activities as of late is to dine en plein air or al fresco. Dining outdoors fits us to a T – it’s a casual, relaxed atmosphere. It just sounds fresh! I have many great memories of sitting in outdoor cafes, watching delectable morsels go by, and sipping a cocktail on the patio. It feels like summer.
We have gotten the kids started on the tradition. We have a vintage table & chair set that was my husband when he was young. My kids love to sit at this little table and were absolutely delighted to take their meals en plein air. (In fact, after one of these dinners they insisted lunch be served al fresco for the rest of the week).
The Simple but Good Menu:
-Grilled Burgers with Tomato, Lettuce and Sprouts
–Simple Potato Salad (with fresh dill)
–Colourful Quinoa Salad
A tradition for dining outdoors with my family has always been to pull out the company napkins. It’s a running joke at my parents that we never usually had napkins on hand so we would grab a roll of paper towel and use it instead. My siblings and I would fold the napkins into interesting shapes for fun while setting the table. My kids decided to use them as placemats.
With our dining en plein air, we used a roll of the sexiest paper towel (and likely most colourful!) from Renova Canada. Renova recently came to Canada and have paper products in every colour imaginable. You can grab your own roll online, or search for a store near you. Follow RenovaCanada on Facebook for more great ways to use the sexiest paper on earth.
Have you dined en plein air recently?
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of RENOVA. The opinions and text are all mine. Restrictions apply.
a passionate recreation coordinator by day, crazy farm mama of two by night. i live outdoors: growing my own food, camping and hiking with my border collie with two active kids in tow. when I’m not writing, I’m experimenting with recipes, and crafts – or anything else that might keep the monkeys entertained.
