Things to do in Nashville when you're hot? And bored?

So the summer excitement has ended and the boredom has set in. It happens every summer. I remember it from when I was a kid. Summer starts off like gangbusters and then fizzles down to sparkler level.


There's a few things to do: movies, indoor playgrounds, waterslide and pool (of course they are outdoors however the water keeps us cool), having classroom an hour every day where we work on our summer workbooks. But seriously, I am struggling to keep them from becoming bored. And when they get bored, they get into trouble. A lot. So if you have some suggestions, pass 'em on.


Lunch is even an issue. Fixing lunch for the boys and keeping it interesting enough for them to eat has become a challenge. I think we have had a picnic in just about every room of the house and every spot outdoors (ok I admit it was fun having a picnic lunch with my fellas in the top of their clubhouse).

I try to do muffin tin meals about once every couple of weeks (and muffin tin snacks a bit more often). The boys really like this. I like using the disposable muffin tins instead of the ones I cook with. This way they can eat outside and I can just toss them in the big trash can when they are done. Yesterday, each boy had their own tin of sugar snap peas, carrots, celery, grapes, pinwheels and apples. Sometimes I add goldfish or cheese, but they had a goldfish snack earlier (they woke up way too early yesterday) and there was plenty of cheese in the pinwheels, so I skipped it. The pinwheels were whole wheat tortillas, Boar's Head maple glazed turkey breast, Boar's Head Butterkase cheese and cream cheese to hold it together. Sometimes I use mayo or hummus instead of cream cheese. Anyway, I made them ahead of time and let them chill in the fridge about an hour so they were easy to slice. They were yummy.


I forgot to take a picture but I normally use the clear plastic lids that come with the muffin tins as sauce holders. They are a lot more shallow than the tins and perfect for suauces and dips. The boys like to dip, so we had ranch dressing, yogurt (for the apple slices), honey mustard, ketchup, hummus and spicy brown mustard to dip our fruits and veggies in.

Tomorrow we will be making pizza for lunch. Hawaiian pizza with fresh pineapple, thin slices of ham, and cilantro. If it looks halfway decent I will take a picture of it. I use this recipe.