My moment of genius

My kidz miss happy meals.  What can I say, there have been times that our family have relied on fast food.  And happy meals, well, they're like crack for kids.  Deep fried "food," soda, and toys.  What more could they want?

Well, I'm not going there any more.  It's not part of our plan.  But still, the 6 year old keeps asking.

So tonight, while chatting on Facebook with my sister in law, I hit upon a possible solution.  The faux happy meal.  Ok, it won't be the actual real thing, but it will come a close second.

I mentioned that at a doctor's office, 6 year old Nature Kid had become obsessed with a toy: a little white dalmation in a red car.  I flipped it over to see where it was from and of course, it said: "Disney. Made for McD Corp." on it.  Of course, the 2 biggest American addictions for kids: Disney and McDonald's.  She mentioned I could probably find the toy on Ebay.

And voila.  One instant message led to another, and I decided I could try it.  I went on Ebay and just won myself about 8 genuine Happy Meal toys of varying types (they have tons and tons on there, new in their packaging, from as far back as the 90s).  My 6 year old adores animals, especially dogs.  My 9 year old likes the Madame Alexander dolls and McD's has periodically done a series of Happy Meal toys featuring those.  Once they arrive I will plan a special "picnic" night at home (since it will probably be too cold for a real picnic, we can spread a blanket on the floor).  I'll bake some of our all natural chicken nuggets (there are a couple of brands my kids like that are more McNuggety than others), some thin "fries," and home made sprite (see my recipe).  I will put it all in brown paper bags and include a toy and voila! A fun "fast food" night I can truly feel okay about.

As I said to my sister in law, I feel like a genius.  Or maybe a sucker. 

But when it all comes together, I'll post a picture.  And their reactions.