April 23rd is National Picnic Day and kicks off
the season to pack a basket,
grab a blanket or quilt and head outdoors!
In celebration of National Picnic Day,
I’m sharing some picnic love and
giving away my favorite picnic accessory. . .
. . . A Galvanized Metal 6-Pack Bottle Caddy
from Pottery Barn!
I recycled some jars that fit the caddy for the convenience and ease of toting flatware, food, napkins or flowers. . .
The Classico pasta sauce jars are taller than Ball pint jars and the Ball jar lids also fit the pasta jars for transporting food, salads, or drinks.
Classico recently changed the neck opening and lid on the jar so it’s narrower and the ball jar lids no longer fit, but you can still find some of the older designed jars on some store shelves or you can use Ball 1 1/2 pint jars.
In addition to the galvanized caddy,
I’m also including a cookbook in the giveaway,
with 125 recipes for 29 seasonal menus. . .
Picnic by DeeDee Stovel:
Picnics are fun, casual, and somehow the food just tastes better in a beautiful outdoor setting.
In PICNIC, DeeDee Stovel offers 29 picnic event ideas with more than 125 recipes – packable repasts from an informal Berry Picking Picnic to an elegant Music Festival Picnic. Although PICNIC includes all of the traditional fare, the recipes for the soups, entrées, salads, and desserts are all a cut above the ordinary.
And when lazy summer days turn chilly, enjoy a Sports Booster Picnic, a Fall Foliage in New England Picnic, and an Après-Ski Picnic. Wine and beer selections accompany each menu. Plus picnic lore, packing to go, the perfect picnic basket, rainy day alternatives, and much more. It’s an all-American feast!
I packed a post with picnics, portable salads,
and menu ideas from the archives . . .
Click on the links to revisit the posts
for picnic inspiration and a taste :)
A Picnic with Lavender
{Less} Labor Day Picnic
Celebrating the Red, White, and Blue Picnic
A Jeep Picnic
An Apple Picnic
Memorial Day from Stem to Stern
Fall Picnic with Pumpkins
For a chance to win the picnic caddy & cookbook
let me know by comment your favorite picnic food
or spot to picnic. . .
Subscribers/followers automatically get a second entry.
Subscribe by email or follow on Facebook
and let me know by comment.
For a third entry, share this giveaway on Facebook
and leave an additional comment telling me so.
Giveaway is open to those living in the continental US only.
The winner will be chosen May 9th!
This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Marie in AZ!
“A picnic is more than eating a meal,
it’s a pleasurable state of mind.”
~ DeeDee Stovel, Picnic
Happy Picnicking!
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Thank you for rekindling some of my favorite picnic memories. Most pf them are in Europe. Nothing beats the romance of pulling the car over to a grassy field in Tuscany, or the Loire valley, picnicking on wonderful bread, cheese and salami……with some wine, of course.
My favorite place to picnic though is on my screened porch. The garden offers lush views, the cushioned wicker furniture is comfortable, and I’m never too far from anything I’ve left behind.
This post is beautiful! What a wonderful way to observe National Picnic Day. (Also, btw, my shared birthday with William Shakespeare and Shirley Temple.)
I like to picnic on the beach and eat fried chicken.I love the photography.
I subscribe by email :)
My favorite picnic food is pimento cheese sandwiches!
My favorite picnic place is my own backyard garden and my favorite food is from childhood memories of picnics by the lake of finger size pineapple sandwiches and pimento cheese sandwiches, fried chicken, deviled eggs, potato salad and lemonade ended with homemade pound cake and wedding cookies.
I am following and resharing your post on Facebook.
Of late, my favorite place to picnic is in the yard with my 3-yr. old granddaughter. We “dress” the picnic table, don fancy hats and invite Barbie and Ken and of course, Bear.
I subscribe via email!
I love watermelon feta salad with fresh mint drizzled with blackberry vinegar! My favorite picnic spot is on the water by the yacht club listening to the clank of the sails. :)
My new favorite picnic food is the meal in a jar. Love the idea of a layered salad in the mason jar! A favorite picnic spot is by a lake. I’m hoping the weather cooperates and I can enjoy one soon. Until then I can daydream!
Mary, my favorite picnic of yours EVER is the one with the Jeep. Maybe it’s because I can relate (I have a Jeep Wrangler and we take the take the top off to go for a picnic). My favorite place to have a picnic is on Martha’s Vineyard. I am following on FB now. I love everything about this post!
My favorite picnic food is tuna salad on Pepperidge Farm little fish breads. Favorite spot? On the boat! So happy picnic season is here!
I love to picnic in my own backyard with the birds chirping, the waterfall gushing, and the company of dear friends. Beautiful and inspiring post!
Ah… this post was just what the doctor ordered. I have been less than inspired recently, and this wonderful picnic post did the trick. I love the way you present things. Your eye for tablescapes (picnic or otherwise) is the best in the biz.
I already subscribe by email, but I just followed you on facebook too. I’m kind of new to facebook. (Yeah, I know. I’m always late to the party.)
A great reminder when the weather gets warmer up North that I can picnic at my local village green in Pelham NY. Our village park sits along Long Island sound and it is very quiet and serene and the view is just gorgeous. Thank you for the giveaway. Hope I WIN.
So many fun and colorful ideas Mary! We’re all looking forward to some consistently warmer weather so we can get outside and have some fun! My favorite picnic food would have to be watermelon, it just screams summertime:@)
My favorite picnic food is, homemade chicken salad on croissants and a nice bottle of wine. My husband and I love packing up our favorite basket, strapping it on the back of our bikes and taking the short bike ride from our house to the beach. There no better way to spend our Sunday afternoons.
I already subscribe by email, and follow you on facebook too. I shared your give away! 😃
My favorite picnic spot was in the countryside of Germany. A bottle of wine and a loaf of bread and I was set for a relaxing afternoki
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I follow on Facebook.
I remember my mom would pack a picnic when we went on trips and that was the best food no matter what she fixed,potato salad was always on the picnic menu.
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I like to make a BIG round sandwich loaded with meats, cheese, lettuce, tomato, bacon and cut it into wedges for many to share. Why does food taste so much better outdoors? Thanks for the chance to win the fun cookbook and caddy.
What an awesome post! Every single photo is a pleasurable feast for the eyes! My favorite picnic food is a grilled hotdog, southern style, with chili, mustard, ketchup and cole slaw!
my favorite picnic food by far is watermelon!!
I’m an email subscriber
We used to go picnicking up at Callaway Gardens about a 30 minute drive from us but mostly we eat out on the deck ~ even for Sunday lunches!! Fried chicken and deviled eggs are a must for picnics!
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If I was on Facebook I would certainly “Like” you!!
Memories! Wow, when my handicap daughter reads her email (yes, she follows you too. Loves your two little ones and all the cute pics!) she will be telling me to enter. Picnics that we love to remember fondly, were packing lunch and heading to the parks with Grandma (my mom), who has passed, and having a great lunch with lots of laughs in the great outdoors!!! She had a wooden picnic basket which I still have. Great Memories!! Love the bottle holder and if I win, it too will be used to often to hold my items on our picnic table that we use daily on our lovely deck with great views of flowers and birds. Again, as always, you gave us some great inspiration to celebrate yet another holiday that we should all take the time to enjoy!!! Thank you!!! And yes, I pass your post on to all my friends who are hooked for life! No Facebook, but I will email.
This post makes my heart smile! Who doesn’t LOVE a picnic! Your pictures make one feel like they are on the picnic with you, just beautiful images! I think my favs are grilled hot dogs/burgers, deviled eggs, watermelon, & most importantly, who I spend the picnic with!!
Wonderful ideas, they are all great. Love the lavender and pumpkin picnics. I hope to find the jar carrier it’s so fun. I love the desserts in the ball jars. Thanks for all the fab ideas…
My favorite picnic is a morning picnic just out my backdoor by the stream. I have free scones, tea, fruit and yogurt with my girlfriends.
My favorite place to picnic is beside the pond on our farm. Love your ideas! Already follow by email!
My favorite place to picnic is on our dock at Harvey’s Lake. It’s beautiful here. So full of fun during the day and nice and peaceful in the evening. Classic fare is served. Hamburgers, hotdogs with toppings and salads shared with friends.
Sending this to all my girlfriends, I share your posts all the time
My 2 bichon boys and I are planning a picnic at the park…
Wonderful fresh ideas for the all American picnic day…..
My favorite picnic food has to be fried chicken. It just wouldn’t be a picnic without it. My favorite place to picnic would be anywhere my family is. Thanks for the chance to win that tote. I really like it.
I’m also an email subscriber. Thank you for the extra chance to win.
I love your picnics. Unfortunately, we have now entered summer! Ack! Heat, humidity and heat indexes already. I’m NOT ready! Favorite picnic food: fried chicken!
Great giveaway, Mary!…especially since my new favorite picnic food is salad in a jar. I just love this idea I learned from you and I’ve been using it for all kinds of salads. Salads in a jar are so perfect for picnics on the beach (my favorite place)…I love the ease of serving and keeping sand off your food.
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What wonderful ideas. I love picnic season. I am a follower here and on FB :)
What a wonderful book! You have mastered the art of the picnic, Mary, and I can’t wait to dive back into all those fabulous posts! It is definitely just about time for you to pack up and head out on the water for a picnic! I think the boat is my favorite place for a picnic~however I do like to “picnic” at home on the porch :) . Love all the ways you have styled the picnic tote! Happy Picnic Day!
Jenna
oh forgot to say that my favorite picnic food is something in a jar, especially dessert!
Jenna
When I was a small child, I called cemeteries “picnic places” because we always packed the picnic basket and took a huge bunch of peonies to our family’s grave sites on Memorial Day (which my mother called Decoration Day). Although I still take flowers to the cemeteries, my favorite picnic place is now in the Adirondack chairs in our front yard. We are blessed with a view of the North East River, so we celebrate most days with a picnic lunch.
How fun to see your picnic posts again. You inspire us to plan a picnic. You have given me thoughts today of childhood picnics in our backyard with hamburgers and homemade ice cream. My mother took great care to plan these occasions. Another hard to forget picnic my husband and I enjoyed in Provence viewing the chataeu where A Good Year was filmed.
Perfect giveaway for your picnic post. I subscribe by email and I will like you on Facebook.
A picnic with wine and cheese sounds romantic!
I am also an email subscriber and shared this on Facebook.
Is summer really coming this year.? You really have inspired me to go on a pick nick , right in my back yard overlooking the lake. A nice orzo salad , crusty bread , and crisp white wine. Thanks for the inspiration! Oh, I forgot the quilt!😊🌻
Hey! Beautiful pictures! You know who loves food in jars!! April 23rd is also known as the perfect date from the movie Miss Congeniality! We always celebrate!
We have a nature preserve about 15 miles from my home and it is the perfect place for hiking and birding. By getting there early in the morning you are assured of seeing deer, a coyote or two and now plenty of hummingbirds in and around the native plant gardens.
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I like using individual Chinese take out containers filled with pasta salads and one filled with lemon bars. A great spot is on the grass by Mission Bay where there is no sand and I can bring drinks in glass jars. I already subscribe by e-mail and look forward to reading your posts first thing in the mornings. Thank you Mary!
What a beautiful collection of posts! And what a great giveaway! My favorite picnic food would be banana pudding with my mom’s taco salad running a close second. But wine and cheese are more my speed if I’m doing the cooking…
My favorite picnic food has to be potato salad! It’s the first thing that comes to mind when I think of a picnic – along with deviled eggs, of course.
I shared this post on FB!
I am an email subscriber!
What a beautiful picnic story! My husband and I just retired and we were just saying the other day that we hope to pack a picnic lunches and do day trips to local lakes this summer. We love to pack a container of hummus and lots of fresh veggies. Hubby is a sandwich guy, so a black forest ham sandwich with gruyere and chutney is always a hit. Of course, we have to have a little sweet….maybe some fresh peach cobbler.
I am already a subscriber! This post helped me recall one of my most favorite memories of childhood…a church picnic at the end of vacation Bible school. I could feel the warm breeze under the trees, the old wooden picnic table ladled with fried chicken, potato salad, deviled eggs, baked beans and coleslaw…all traditional picnic foods. We went by bus to a small park in PA that had rides and a swimming pool, but all very family oriented and small. I remember the music of the merry-go-round and the smell of chlorine from the pool (a luxury I only experienced on this trip). My favorite food was the homemade potato salad and, to this day, the taste of it reminds me of family, picnics and fun. I have shared your post on Facebook. Thanks for letting me relive this wonderful memory one more time.
oops, so excited by planning today’s picnic, I forgot to mention that I subscribe by email
My favorite picnic place is by the lake. Fried chicken and potato salad with a brownie for dessert! Terrific
You are amazing — and your posts are so deliciously wonderful!
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I subscribe by email. My favorite picnic spot is along side a stream while sitting on a quilt. My favorite picnic food is fried chicken.
I subscribe to your blog via email. Sure glad I do! Love your posts!
I subscribe via email. I love picnics…I like to give a picnic basket as wedding gift. My favorite picnic spot is on the Blue Ridge Parkway in NC.
My favorite spot for picnics is the north Georgia mountains. Throw a quilt down on a grassy spot near a bustling creek or a lazy river and while the time away with good food, good drink and good friends. My favorite to bring along for a picnic is potato salad. I am thinking about making individual servings for my picnics this year as they are more portable. I would love to win the galvanized bottle carrier….as your post suggests so many great ways to use it for picnics!
As a child, my favorite picnic was breakfast in the neighborhood park in Milwaukee.
Every summer we would visit my grandparents in Oregon. Picnics at the coast or along e the river were weekly events.
Wonderful memories.
My favorite place to picnic is at Lake Winfield Scott in Suches Georgia. I love the huge stone pavilions they have which were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930’s and 40’s. Since we’re in the south, fried chicken, potato salad and banana pudding are regulars at our picnics. Sometimes we take our little hibachi and grill out as well.
A filled picnic basket, sipping wine next to a cool mountain stream sounds perfect to me.
I love to picnic under our old oak tree with family and friends. Cool, tranquil and calm. The tree is shelter from the chaos of daily life and a place to truly relax and think about nature–or nothing!
My husband and I love to picnic at our Dallas Aboretum. The gardens have a lovely hillside that over looks White Rock Lake. We bring in a picnic lunch of chicken salad, avocado/tomato salad, crackers, wine and some yummy homemade cookies. (this menu is usually only eaten at picnics) We love to bring a comfy quilt and a good book or magazine to read! I love your blog, it’s so creative and full of ideas. I often share it with my grown girls as well. Thanks for sharing all you do with us!
My favorite picnic place is a meadow near Shepherd’s Grove England. I lived there as a child and loved every bit of country life and the quaint little village. The meadow in April was filled with yellow buttercups and yellow cowslips with warm sunshine and buzzing bees. My Grandmother would bring her “picnic” teapot in the trunk of her car and we’d have tea, biscuits (cookies) and finger sandwiches. Grandma and Mom would show us how to make daisy chain crowns using the wild daisys. On the reverse side, when we visited our American Grandma in Oregon we would go on picnics with it quite often sprinkling and overcast. Grandma said we were going on a picnic no matter the weather because if we “waited for good weather, we’d never go). Finding a tree for shelter when consquently there was a cloudburst, was loads of fun for giggling children. I would love to win your cookbook and/or the bottle carrier for my picnics :)
Lake Limestone State Park outside Marquez, Texas has a lovely green and shady lakeside park overlooking the lake where we spend time in the summer. It’s so peaceful! Family favorite picnic fare is broccoli slaw coleslaw with “Craisins” in the slaw and bacon and toasted pecans as toppers! Even friends who usually pass on coleslaw have raved over this recipe. (I’m an email subscriber!)
I always love seeing your picnic inspiration, Mary. What a wonderful and fun giveaway. I love the cornbread salad in the jar that you inspired me to try several years ago and picnicking at the Dallas Arboretum is such a pretty spot. I’m already a follower of yours. xo
Such an awesome giveaway and a post packed full of the very best picnic ideas! I LOVE fried chicken to take on a picnic!
oh, I follow by email :)
My favorite picnic spot is on our boat at the dock to watch sunsets on the NC coast.
Thanks for the picnic memories! When our children were young, we used to schedule Picnic Wednesdays in the park where we lived (at the time) in Jupiter, Florida. It was a time to unwind, laugh and play on the playground together.
Love your photography and enjoy all your lovely posts!
Thank you!! : )
My favorite picnic food is a bowl of fruit, or chicken salad sandwiches on crossants.
I follow by e-mail and Facebook! (2nd chance drawing)
My favorite place to picnic is the Botanic Gardens in Fort Worth in the summer where there is a musical performance followed by fireworks. And I am a follower. Thanks! kellam.susan@yahoo.com
I would “pick” this in a heart beat!! “HEARTS!” franki fmparde@gmail.com
Love this post! Though our temperatures are plummeting here again, your photos definitely got me in the mood for picnic time. Thank you!!! I enjoy your posts regularly.
I love picnics. We recently had a BBQ picnic for my husband. We were celebrating that he made first class petty officer in the US Navy. So my favorite picnic food is BBQ! I follow by Facebook and I shared this giveaway on Facebook.
I follow by e-mail.
Thank you for sharing the different ways you have used your bottle tote! I purchased one from PB a few years ago and haven’t used it because I just couldn’t think of what to do with it! Now I have plenty of inspiration!
I need a little time to revisit all your beautiful and tasty picnic posts!! We recently enjoyed a picnic with our 7 grandchildren at a horse stable (after riding) in a lovely field in view of the Blue Ridge mountains. I’m afraid our picnic fare was a little simpler than yours, but we had a joyful experience. Thanks for all the inspiration!
I had no idea it was National Picnic Day. I was just thinking about doing a picnic blog post, having unearthed a darling little wicker suitcase that would have made a great carrier for a picnic for one. Thanks for the great ideas and eye candy.
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One of my favorite picnic spots is in the Napa Valley – there is nothing better than a view of the vineyards drinking great wines along with some fresh sourdough, cheese & salami!! I wish I was there right now…….Such great times.
Just shared on Facebook.
My favorite picnic food is a kitchen sink sandwich a la Martha Stewart. I follow by email and love your blog. This picnic blog is magnificant. Thanks so much. Karen from Visalia.
I LOVE PICNICS!!!! Loved having them with my Nana when I was growing up! Favorite picnic food is of course WATERMELON :)) I follow you on here and on FB!!!
the beach is my favorite place to picnic-any season!
Such inspiration to linger over and read and then make our own variations on a theme with the bottle holder. Ah, summer is on its way. I am a subscriber, who enjoys picnics by the water or under a big shade tree. We love bringing gougeres along with fruits and cheeses. Please, everyone, handle the timeless linens and quilts with great care or bring store-bought versions to relax upon. These photos are all simply gorgeous!
Love your blog. I subscribe through email.
I love to picnic on our deck at Tablerock Lake. Hot dogs, macaroni salad and homemade ice cream are usually on the menu.
I love tuna fish sandwiches and plain potato chips!!!
Beautiful post – I’ve been thinking of a picnic along the Mississippi and your post was just the inspiration I needed. For those of us who may not win, where can we find the same or similar caddy? Looks to be more stable for toting drinks outdoors than a tray!
I happily subscribe by email.
I follow you all the time by email and just adore your sight so full of ideas.
Love the bottle carrier, would be wonderful on picnics.
My favorite picnic foods are fried chicken (preferably with someone else doing the frying), potato salad, and baked beans. Chocolate sheet cake or chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
My favorite spot to picnic is at the beach – late afternoon or early evening after the crowds have gone. It is cooler then too. We stay until the moon comes up. Very peaceful.
I LLLLLove that caddy and the pictures are beautiful!!!
Fried chicken and potato salad, yummmmm!!!!!!
I LOVE this post! And I LOVE Picnics….because of the food! All of these fabulous posts made me hungry! I follow by email. A great picnic menu is:
Grilled, marinated, sliced London broil, potato salad, baked beans, tossed green salad w/homemade vinaigrette, crusty bread, & some sort of layered parfaits for dessert.
I love to picnic by the Mississippi river at the sand bar….it’s so quiet and peaceful…plus it is close to my home. My favorite food for picnics would be pasta salad…..it’s easy to make and keeps well in the sun….plus the flies don’t seem so interested in it.
My favorite spot for a picnic is Cheaha Mountain State Park, Alabama which is not far from my home. On cool days, the menu would include hot soup and potato salad would always be on the table any other time of the year. I subscribe to your blog through e-mail and I shared this post on Facebook. I could spend all day looking at your posts. Charlene C.
follow you on fb as rayray cartucci
It’s so beautiful here that it’s perfect picnic weather. These days won’t last long, so I’m going to take your lead and pack a basket. ‘-)
Thanks for packing this post full of inspiration. The gift is lovely. I have two old French bottle carriers that we’ve had for 20 years. I mostly use them for flowers, but need to pull them into service for other ideas. I’m going to check out the shelves of the market for some of these bottles. Thanks for the heads up. Cookbook looks wonderful. I need to order it, though your post is so full of ideas we could enjoy a different picnic every day. Thanks for sharing all your inspiration, Mary. It’s always a treat!
You do the best picnic spreads!
I guess our fave spot is the beach, either down the block at the Bay or a few miles away at the ocean. Beach picnics require special planning, or you end up with sandy food!
We usually go around 4 and have dinner there.
Wed. night during the summer, the park here in Southampton has free concerts and people bring their dinner and picnic. Or if you are lazy, they get a pizza and bring that!
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Hi Mary, I would love to be entered in your giveaway. I would ask my husband to make his famous Dungeness crab cakes, fill the caddy with wine and one of your amazing salads in a jar, then head down our stairs to our beach on Puget Sound. I love your site, your photos. Would you ever consider giving a photography seminar? Thank you Bev
Every year in August we make a pilgrammage with some friends to a dahlia farm and spend the whole day oooing and aaaahhing over the acres and acres of flowers. We then sit down to a picnic and go through the catalog to decide what we want to order for our gardens.
We usually take fresh fruit and tea sandwiches. The most popular and my favorite is the egg salad with bacon mayo.
Thank you for all the lovely pictures! It’s still raining here and all the bright colors definitely brighten my outlook.
Mary
I live on the bay and like to take a picnic lunch (and my husband) and walk far, far down the beach where there are no houses and enjoy the wonderful watching of birds (mostly gulls and eagles) and then rush back before the tide comes in :)
My 5 year-old grandson loves to go to our neighborhood park. I pack peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit and some juice. Sometimes we take a kite or he just plays on the jungle gym. We also watch the turtles sunning themselves or an occasional duck or two or herons in the drainage ditch that runs behind the park. I love those days.
My favorite picnic spot is the beach. And a good, cold watermelon is my favorite picnic food. Thanks for the opportunity!
Love your blog! My greatest memory of a picnic was with my mom, 3 sisters and brother. We would hurry and clean house and head to the park with a basket of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I try to do this with my grandkids. They get excited and you would think it’s a gormet feast! They love planning for the picnic on the quilt! I need to do it more often. Thanks for your inspiration!
I follow via email.
Oh my goodness! What a fabulous give away! And great inspiration to dust off the picnic basket. Our favorite spot is on the beach. Sometimes we go by boat but most times by car. We just had the Littles here on their Easter break and we grabbed subs and headed to the beach
I’m a subscriber. Your picnics are always so so beautiful
A picnic sounds so wonderful, but it is pouring rain here today with chance of a snow mixing in tonight, in my neck of the woods. I just love the bottle caddy and the cookbook would be wonderful too. I’d say my favorite item for a picnic would be watermelon with a spitting contest!
As a lucky subscriber, thank you, for the opportunity of your generous gifts.
Every year we take a family vacation to the mountain’s and take a picnic lunch several of the days we are there my family are usually starving by the time I find the perfect place by the perfect rock by the perfect flowing water in the stream. lol..
My favorite picnic spot is one with wonderful memories, a small creek on a back road on a “hill” in Upstate New York. Deserted, unspoiled, just nature at its finest. As a child we would go every year after our town’s Memorial Day Parade. The creek bed is a series of large flat rocks with occasional pools and crystal clear water. We would play on the rocks and wade in the water and then find the perfect flat rock to have our picnic. Some 30 years later I took my children to that same spot and watched with great emotion as they explored the rocks, waded in that water and experienced the simple joy of being in the country. Any food tastes delicious on a picnic, but potato salad is certainly a favorite. MM
I happily follow by email, and look forward to each new post. Thank you.
LOVE your inspiration!
And THANK YOU for sharing your knowledge!!! I did NOT realize that tomorrow is National Picnic Day!! I LOVE a good theme…thinking a breakfast picnic in the park with the children tomorrow is in order!!:) Pigs in a blanket, pancakes with mini mason jars of warm, sticky syrup, fruit skewers and a carafe of juice and a thermos of coffee…all on my grandmothers patchwork quilt!
Blessings! Faith
A favorite spot has been the living room floor on cold evenings with little ones too young to bundle up…potatoe salad always a family favorite, aka DeeDee…
I am a new e-mail follower & am in love with your photos & ideas as well as your puppies!! I too have saved & “reloved” Lorina sparkling lemonade bottles from France and would love to win the carrier to put them in!! I just saw the show “The Kitchen” on the Food Network showing how “Ball” regular mouth pint jars can be attached to some food processors and used as a replacement jar or to store, mix and drink smoothies from. I had no idea!! Plus, the green Parmesan cheese lids can fit the Ball jars so you can grate your own cheese and serve by the sprinkle side or the spoon side of the lid….who knew?? Learn something new everyday!! Right now my fave picnic food is spiral ham sandwiches on Hawaiian bread, pastel deviled eggs with carrot cake for dessert (Easter leftover Picnic).;)
We also love to boat but in Alaska. Our favorite picnic food is freshly caught Dungeness crab boiled on the beach with melted butter to drip everywhere and a glass of wine or Alaskan beer. And if we’re lucky we can sit and watch whales or other sea life.
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When we were young, Mom would fry chicken on Saturday evening, Sunday morning, while Dad and us girls went to Mass, she would make biscuits and pack a basket with other goodies. We would come home, change clothes and get in the car. Dad would drive to a not-too-far area and we would have lunch. Sometimes, we’d to go a fish hatchery and walk around looking at the ponds with different fish stock, sometimes Dad would take his fishing rod and try a stream while Mom warmed things on one of those picnic area charcoal cookers.
That brings back such wonderful memories, Mom and Dad are both gone now but Sis and I love an adventure, driving into the country and stopping at a fruit farm with a lunch area. Some new picnic items would be perfect to start this years adventures!!
One of my favorite things is a picnic.. when the kids were small we had picnic with them in our back yard alot. They loved it.. Now hubby and I enjoy them while canoeing..
You set up the greatest picnics. I’d love to be there. My favorite place to picnic is overlooking the sea. Since, I live in the desert, I don’t get to go very often, so mostly I settle for my back yard. Love your blog and am a subscriber. I also follow on FB and pinterest.
Currently our favorite picnic spot is in our own backyard just outside the playhouse with our two granddaughters. Their choice is PB & J and ours is a tuna sandwich with chips! Add a macaroni salad and we’re set. I’ve been following you via email for over a year now and have shared many of your posts with my husband…love your photos!
i love your picnic post. I am an email subscriber and I follow you on Pinterest. I shared your post on facebook. My favorite place for a picnic is at Payson Lakes just up the canyon from my home. My favorite picnic food is barbecued chicken.
PS….All of your recipes that I have made, and I’ve made many of them, were amazingly delicious!!
I love picnics…spur of the moment road trip to anywhere picnics…maybe the mountain…or tie up to a dock and bbq some salmon…your ideas are so beautiful!!
I enjoy your blog on my email! The pictures are always so beautiful….
Your picnic posts are awesome! It makes me want to pack a picnic and head to the lake! Thanks for always giving us inspiration!
I am a lover of lakes as you are. We moved into this house about 18 years ago and the big selling point for me, a lake right down the street. This a a place we can pack up a picnic lunch, whistled for our furson (Matilda Jean) and head down the road less than half a mile away. There are picnic tables, trees and the beauty of the water. It gives my husband and I both the chance to relax, walk the trail and then he can drowned a worm as he calls it and I can read a bit. True heaven on earth… around we lucky God gave us lakes? :)
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I subscribe to your beautiful blog
Too bad I don’t live on the continental US….:(
I’ve been wanting a caddy like that one for a while for my collection of glass milk bottles…
We have a beautiful park across from our cabin and enjoy taking sandwiches over there in the summer.
I subscribe to your blog
Off to find out how to share on Facebook. As you can tell I’m a real pro at this!
I love to go to the lake and picnic with my grand kiddo’s, watch and feed the ducks. I lOVE your blog – you really inspire me. Thank you. I’m sharing this as much as I can! Whether I win, or not, your blog should be visible!
No one does picnics better than you, Mary! We used to live in So Amer so my favorite picnic food would be baked empanadas, Chilean style! Meat turnovers w/beef, chopped boiled eggs, & olives; the flavor is great! Then for dessert, some Ranger cookies like my mother used to make. Yum!
My favorite picnic food is fried chicken, potato salad, and deviled eggs! My favorite place to picnic is in Chickasaw National Park in Sulphur, OK. My mother’s family used to have family reunions there every year, and we had some yummy picnics and wonderful memories there.
Picnic Day is also my hubbys birthday and he loves to picnic. Our favorite place is at the zoo with our grandaughter or the park on the river with the big playscape and swings. Afterwards its off to the Twist n Shout for ice cream !
always love to get redazzled with your picnics!
We love picnics! Summery chicken salad made with crushed pineapple and toasted almonds & cheesy biscuit bread. My kids love pickles wrapped with cream cheese and ham slices. Moist lemon & macadamia nut bread with berries! While I prepare and pack, my kids make bird feeder “ornaments” with cheerios, blueberries, cranberries, popcorn – all strung on twine or yard (nesting material). We hang them on trees nearby so the birds can picnic with us!
Love picnics!! My favorite food to take along: ground bologna, cheese, and egg sandwiches …… my favorite place to picnic: the Blue Ridge Parkway!!! :)
man oh man! such amazing picnic ideas. <3 love them all. my favorite picnic are always at the beach. nothing beats a sandy sandwich. :)
We absolute love making meals out of appetizers, and picnics give us the perfect opportunity! Our favorite places to picnic are in gardens if the weather is nice, or if it’s rainy, we have our picnic indoors sitting on the carpet while watching a movie.
What a fantastic post! I will bookmark this and use it for reference and think of you when I plan fabulous picnics this summer! Absolutely fabulous post. Really.
I love to picinc at the beach, with good friends and good wine and the sound of the waves to relax by……
I love picnics and all the fun that goes along with packing the basket with either a blanket or tablecloth, the fun place settings from simple to fancy and yummy food. Here in the Northwest we are close to parks, rivers, mountains or the beaches for our designation. I have my mother’s special baked beans, potato salad recipes, along with lemon cake, fruit salad and grilled chicken.
Since following your blog I’ve become so inspired to branch out and try your amazing recipes, I am so appreciative of all the thought and time it takes to create each new post with so many ideas! Thank you!
My son says I’m a low-tech Mom in a high-tech world so I follow you via email.
Favorite picnic food and place would have to be a clambake on the beach.
You inspired me to try a picnic post last year and I hope to do more this year! I just love your picnic posts!! They are so fun and beautiful at the same time. I will have to wait until the weather warms up a little more here. Memorial Day Weekend is usually our kick off for Picnics, we have a couple of wonderful parks with ponds – my husband will throw a fishing line in for a bit while I browse a magazine or draw in my sketchbook, a perfect lazy afternoon!!
I think my favorite picnic food would be pimento cheese sandwiches. Everything seems to taste better outside – in the backyard, at a ballgame, in the mountains – it does not matter where as long as the time is spent with family and friends. Your picnic settings are beautiful – calling everyone to come and enjoy the food and fellowship of a picnic together.
I haven’t picnicked in ages—this is aBIG inspiration. We have several neighborhood parks nearby & one overlooks the ocean !
There are so many wonderful ways to have a fun picnic, but my all time favorite has to be at a beachside park, with grilled hot dogs and hamburgers on toasted buns, home made potato salad, and a big cooler full of ice-cold watermelon slices! I follow you via email and always look forward to each and every post! You are so generous in so many ways…Thank you!
Love picnics-as long as my kids,grand kids and great-grandkids are there.Follow you by email and always look forward to seeing what you;re gonna post,and enjoy all your posts…
Love! Love! Love A Pinic!!! Possibly my favorite activity:) Take a drive to the mountains and picnic at the park! My favorite picnic food roast beef on white mountain bread with swiss:) and cold lemonade!!! Thanks for the beautiful pictures and great inspiration!
Hi Mary, Hurray for picnics! We love to picnic, anywhere, anytime that it is warm enough, even if we are wrapped in blankets rather than sitting on them! But the absolute favorite may be on the banks of the First Connecticut Lake, which is at the tippy top of New Hampshire. We always have a fruit salad in a jar and a tennis ball to throw for Nellie. I have enjoyed looking at all your wonderful picnics and the delicious foods! So many great ideas here for this summer. Linda
I love to picnic at the beach. My favorite foods are chicken salad and fruit salad. I follow you on Facebook, and have shared your giveaway there. I Love love love all your posts!
I love to picnic in anyone of our beautiful state parks located here in Minnesota and also along the north shore of Lake Superior.
Forgot to mention I’m an e-mail subscriber!
So many responses when you have a give away! My favorite picnic place is on the beach in Florida, where we take hummus or peanut butter to dip celery and carrots or apple wedges. Can’t beat a day on the beach!
Love this idea! I tend to picnic on the Yadkin River or at Lake Norman, when I want to get away…but DL and I like our picnics in our walled garden the best!
My favorite picnic food would be my mil’s potato salad. Favorite place to picnic, would be Door County Wisconsin..anywhere there.
Such beautiful photos and styling, you are so talented!
I follow by e-mail and I am sharing on my fb Applestone Cottage page as well.
~Mary~
Love this post sooo full of picnic plans!! I remember childhood picnics on Sundays sometimes we would all pile in the stationwagon and go for a drive and have a picnic in the car :) sweet !!
Thanks for offering the wonderful give away !! a lot of FuN !!
Paula
IN
Mary, you could publish your own cookbook with these stunning photos and collages. They make me want to get up right now and pack a picnic lunch! But, it will have to wait a few days. We are going to Folly Beach this weekend so I’ll be “packing” then!
I’m an email subscriber! :)
Pinned and shared on FB!
Hands down the most beautiful area to picnic is Cades Cove located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This area has deer grazing in the meadows and beautiful vistas of the mountains. You can ride bikes, hike or take a drive in this area. Located in East Tennessee, near Knoxville, Come for a visit. You won’t be disappointed.
My favorite place to picnic is on Council Grove lake. It’s just gorgeous and since we own a cabin here too it’s the best of both worlds. We have a pair of bald eagles that nest here and we love to watch them fly down and pluck a fish from the water. We usually pack finger type foods to take with us in the boat so we can stay out on the water and enjoy our meal in a quiet cove and go swimming afterwards.
Anywhere on the beach!. Sand does not bother me!!!
Shared this post on FB
I follow by email and FB
I follow by email and FB. Love picnics on a beach or by the lake.
I love each and every picnic.
Potato salad is my favorite picnic food on any grassy spot with a little sun. Shared on facebook.
We love to go down by the river on our family farm – your beautiful pictures inspire me to plan a picnic soon!
Nice giveaway. I like all of your picnic. I am always drawn to the patriot ones like the Memorial Day picnic
My favorite spot is Gettysburg National Park…the last time we were there we found picnic tables nestled underneath the beautiful oak trees, so peaceful! By the way this is a wonderful giveaway!
Perfect for a picnic at the Lake!
I am an email subscriber to your fabulous blog! My favorite picnic is on the beach with old fashioned fried chicken, pickled eggs and a big slice of chocolate cake!
Your post really made me look forward to summer and brought back memories of my family’s favorite picnic spot when I was a teenager…beside the Tellico River. Everything tastes better on a picnic. My favorite things were Mother’s cold fried chicken, potato salad, and watermelon for dessert.
Thanks for your blog.
My favorite picnic food is a salad in a jar! My favorite place–my own backyard overlooking our lake!–pure summer!
I am a very Happy E-Mail Subscriber!!! :-)
Beach picnics always have P B & J for the kids and ham sandwiches for the big kids. Closer to home we love grilled hamburgers and hot dogs.
I Love having a Picnic at the Lake with any type of BBQ Meat, Salads, and of course a Home made Dessert!!!!
Love these ideas!! I love my picnics and can’t wait to use these ideas. Thanks for being so generous with your time and ideas!
Picnics were a quintessential part of my childhood, everything in wicker baskets with pretty linens. Lemonade has never tasted the same to me anywhere as it did when I was sitting on the grass on swell-worn quilt. Now i like packing the grandchildren, the wicker basket, and the lemonade and going to any of the parks along the lake in Door County WI when we are up there for the summer.
Your posts are so pretty; they have sparked many ideas for me…….your flowers are lovely every time! I do follow by email.
I love picnicking at our family cabin in the mountains. Beautiful views, fresh crisp air, and games of charades. Thanks for sharing such a lovely blog.
Thanks for an opportunity to win a great prize. The ideal picnic would have to be by the lake with fried chicken, potato salad (only my mom’s will do), watermelon, chocolate cake, and iced tea in a Ball canning jar.
please enter me in your giveaway my favorite picnic food is potato salad and watermelon at the park if possible thank you for offering the giveaway
I adore picnics, fried chicken, deviled eggs and a big ole jug of sweet tea. Life doesn’t get any better than that.
Great giveaway, thanks!
When in the Los Angeles area, my favorite spot to picnic is at the Hollywood Bowl during the summertime
My favorite picnic food is probably fried chicken because, with proper preparation, whether the weather is either warm or cool, fried chicken can be served safely
Mary…you should be the national spokesperson for National Picnic Day as your picnic vignettes and settings are always phenomenal!….
I am a very happy follower!!!…very happy!!
I love picnics!!!! They can be about anywhere and I love them! My most recent was last week in the TN mtns on a large boulder jutting out in the Doe River.
Now you’ve hit my heart-throb!! Picnics at Lakeside beach, looking at beautiful St. Clair River which opens up into Lake Huron! No where is the water as BLUE as ours. Lazy days filled with mom’s fried chicken, homemade potato salad, deviled eggs, potato chips, watermelon,chocolate chip cookies or brownies! All day laying on a blanket, watching the speedboats, sailboats and the freighters making the best waves to jump over!!! Bring on Summer!!
My favorite picnic spot is in the mountains of Idaho, preferably along a cold, gurgling stream. And it just isn’t a picnic without homemade potato salad and watermelon that you have had chilling in the creek.
My favs are YOUR jar goodies!! My kids even tease me that “it must be from Mary” like we are neighbors!! That shows how many I’ve tried!! :) Wonderful post with memories of past beauties. Happy Picnic Season!!
Of course, I look forward to your emails!
oy, you have so many comments i don’t know if i posted here before or not… i am so far behind on catching up with you, if i have already said it once before, fogive me, but everytime i visit i am extremely redundunt telling you how much i love you style anyway…
so DITTO IT AGAIN!
Our first picnic together! I was 18, my now husband was 19. We were in college. My rule if dating was, no typical dates! He had a hard time figuring this one out. So I made the arrangements for all our dates. Our one of our dates I had arranged to have a picnic. I packed what I now call a European picnic. I packed cheese, crusty bread, grapes, almonds, cold soup, apples, and a small bottle of wine.
When I opened the basket, the hillbilly I was trying to educate said, “where’s the fried chicken?” I said, this is not going to be a greasy picnic, more like a light lunch! He fell in love that very moment!
My favorite picnic spot is the top of the Flat Rock Trail at milepost 308.2 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It takes a little effort to hike up with your picnic, but you are rewarded with a fabulous view! I am a subscriber and am sharing this post on Facebook.
My favorite picnic is when we are at the Beach. My favorite foods are fried chicken and watermelon.
What a fun giveaway! I love picnics and my favorite spot is somewhere up in the mountains where the sun filters through all the trees and shines a perfect light onto the forest floor!
~Trisha
I like to picnic at the park and eat fried chicken and fruit salad.
I follow on email.
My favorite picnic spot is on the beach in Wildwood Crest NJ
My favorite picnics always have three ingredients: Wine, Fruit and Cheese. There can be more added to that, i.e.: sandwiches, a salad, etc., but those first three are a must!
Forgot to mention that I follow on Facebook and also receive your posts via email.
My favorite picnic spot is definietly my own yard or screened porch!
I follow you through feedly & never miss a post! Love your blog.
Our favorite picnic spot is our lake across the street. We pack up a lunch (either a long party sandwich, or take hot dogs to barbecue) and take off on the boat. Sometimes we drop the anchor in a little cove along the shore. Other times we stop in the middle of the lake. Looking forward to our first picnic of the summer!
I’m not trying to enter anything – I just wanted to thank you for a fun, pretty post – we love packing a picnic and heading out in our ’64 Mustang :-)
My favorite picnic spot is Smith Mtn Lake. Thanks for the chance to win this caddy. I really like it.
I follow you on Facebook. Thanks for an extra chance to win.
Love picnics and also your blog. You are so creative. Thanks for the inspiration.
Love all of these wonderful ideas!! We love to picnic on the lake right by our house- we are blessed to have many parks within a couple of miles of us & some of them are hidden treasures that not many people know about :) We love to make wraps – specifically one with horseradish blue cheese, roast beef, swiss, & red onion. I’m off to find you on Facebook :)
Thank you for your delicious ideas – we picnic the most in our backyard. We try to be outside as much as possible during the warm months and we will be so thankful for this summer!
Forgot to say I also follow on Pinterest and since following your blog, have developed a obsession with Ball jars as serving containers for everything from drinks to desserts!!
I love to picnic by water. When my children were younger, we’d take weekly picnics to the park. It was something we looked forward to doing.
I subscribed/followed via email.
I shared the giveaway on Facebook.
There is nothing more fun than a picnic with the bitty grandchildren!!! No matter the food, no matter the location ( sometimes just the backyard) it is always a memory in the making!!!!