Teacher Appreciation Picnic Lunch
For the final celebration of our Teacher Appreciation Week activities we made sure the teachers didn’t have to pack a lunch. This post contains affiliate links. If purchases are made through them, I earn a small commission. Since every PTA is on a tight budget, you’ll want to recreate this Teacher Appreciation picnic lunch. The picnic themed lunch was great for both our budget, but also because we were able to purchase food that fit a wide variety of diets and preferences. We kept the decor simple and inexpensive as well, but made sure everything fit the theme to add that little bit of sparkle. It didn’t take much at all to take it from tables with food set on them, to a themed celebration!
Teacher Appreciation Picnic Lunch Decorations
I shopped at the Dollar Tree for some silk flowers and found these yellow and red stems. We had 9 food tables to create a centerpiece for. I used quart size mason jars and added old jean fabric, burlap style upholstery fabric and some clearance rack gingham ribbon from Joann fabric. Ta-da!
We added a crisp white table cloth to the eating tables and then put a square of plastic table cover that had a cowboy print on it left over from this party.
One of the Moms on the committee used her Silhouette cutting machine and her mad crafting skills to make this cute poster that we hung over the table for the brownies and water.
As you’ll see in the food photos, we used a blue and white check picnic style plastic table cover on the food tables. Baskets holding the utensils, napkins and chips also brought in the picnic theme.
Teacher Appreciation Picnic Lunch Food
Costco croissant sandwiches were our main dish. When you order them, make sure you ask for the mayo/mustard on the side. Vegetable trays also from Costco and large garden salad with homemade ranch dressing came next. Bountiful fruit trays with a dip made of whipped topping and strawberry yogurt as well as a variety of individual bags of chips rounded out our offerings.
For dessert we purchased the large Ghirardelli brownie mix from Costco. With the equivalent of 6 regular mixes, it makes enough to fill 1/2 sheet pans. Homemade chocolate buttercream made them extra decadent! To keep the bottled water cold, we put them in a shallow plastic bin and filled it with ice.
