Last week I posted a list of healthy options for summer snacking, but having healthy alternatives is only half the battle. I don’t know how many times I’ve watched the fruit in our fruit bowl turn rotten while my kids whine that they can’t find anything to eat. I hate wasting food because it’s like throwing money in the trash.

Here are a few ideas for making sure your snacks are gobbled up and you don’t hear every mother’s favorite words: “I’m hungry. What can I eat?”

1. Make a snack drawer. We have one in the pantry for dry goods and one in the fridge for cold stuff. Both are low enough for everyone to access independently.

2. Keep a fruit bowl at eye level. Have the fruit washed and ready to go so even the smallest hands can access a snack.

3. Put snacks in grab-and-go baggies. I like to wash cherries and grapes and put them directly into snack size bags that we can stash in the pool bag or my purse if we our out running errands. Isn’t food more appealing when it’s packaged well, too?

4. Keep snacks in the car. I always have water bottles, juice boxes, and granola bars stashed in my car for those instances when hunger pains strike while we’re out running around town. I can’t tell you how many trips through a drive-thru (and time and money) that has saved me.

5. Keep a magnetic dry erase board on the fridge with a menu of what snacks are available inside.

6. Make a snack menu. I have a friend who plans out every meal down to the snack so her kids know what to expect.

7. Have each child make a list of what snacks are tops on his or her list. If your children choose the snacks and you have veto power (to get rid of unhealthy indulgences) then everyone wins. You can also use this as a way to hold picky eaters accountable for their bird-like eating habits. I frequently send my daughter to her list and remind her that she made the list. She can edit the list, but for every item she removes, she has to add one back on.

Question: What do you do to keep snack time healthy and happy?