Blog for adaysouting.com

I started taking photos out the window of our car awhile back.  It started when I wanted to take pictures of old farmhouses that looked like ours.  We really couldn’t stop every time I saw a house I wanted a picture of, so I started to take photos while we drove on by.

Now I take photos of all sorts of places as we speed down the road.  I wrap the cord around my wrist, hold on tight to the camera, roll down the window and snap away.  I have many blurry images, but with a digital camera it is easy to delete the photos you don’t want.  I also have really fun photos of building, signs, animals and the beautiful countryside all taken from a moving car.

One of my favorite all time photos is one I took in Washington D.C. of the Jefferson Memorial. We had been visiting one of the Smithsonian museums and were headed out of town. As we drove by the Jefferson Memorial, I rolled down the window and snapped a photo.  I know that I can’t stop ever time I see somewhere wonderful, so instead, I take a photo as we fly on by.

Find fun things-to-do on A Day’s Outing…. and don’t forget to download the iPhone app so you can find new places to visit while you’re out and about.

It’s time to welcome birds to your home by giving them a place to nest.  Small birds, such as house wrens, chickadees and blue birds, will happily raise their young in birdhouses.  Here are a few tips to attract birds to your birdhouse.

•   Hang a birdhouse at least five feet off the ground.

•    Birdhouses can be attached to a tree, but a freestanding pole with the birdhouse mounted on top is best.  This way you can also attach a guard to the pole to keep unwanted predators out.

•    Clean out old birdhouses to remove the prior season’s packed bird’s nest. New birds will rarely want to nest in old materials.  Cleaning will also help control insects, mites and lice that can hurt baby birds.

•    While a perch on a birdhouse is cute, birds don’t need one. A perch really only helps predators get a better grip.

Early March is the best time to get a new birdhouse or to prepare your old ones for the new season.  You want to be ready when the weather warms and birds start looking for a new place to raise their fluffy brood.

Elizabeth’s post on hiking in the winter made me start to think about all the things we can do to get outside in the winter. After watching many of my neighbors out walking and running on a freezing cold New Year’s Day, I also decided that it’s really just about dressing for the weather.

My kids and I spent a great birthday weekend with my sister and nephew snow tubing at a ski resort near my house. We bought a family season pass this winter to go skiing and snowboarding there, but tubing was something we all (and virtually anyone else) could easily do. We had a blast. As you can hear in the video below, on of the littlest in our group thought it was “awesome”.

A few tips for snow tubing -

-Make sure you are dressed to be outside in the cold for about 2 hours and the for brief periods you will be going up to 25 miles an hour.

-If you do not have reservations (many of the sessions at some resorts sell out on weekends and holidays), get there a few minutes early to purchase the tickets and make the most of your time slot.

-Remember, like anything, it can be dangerous. Make sure the heaviest person is in the front when making a train, keep your feet from hitting the berms, and make sure you look before stepping into other lanes after your trip down.

Here are a few of the things I found on A Day’s Outing -

Candlelight Ski & Snowshoe Hike Winter, WI  February 5th, 2011

Turtle Fambeau Flowage Ice Fishing Jamboree Mercer, WI  February 26th, 2011

Ice Fishing Rumble Phillips, WI  March 5th, 2011

Cross Country Ski & Snowshoe at Bristol Mountain Nordic Center Canandaigua, NY

Utah Olympic Oval Ice Skating Salt Lake City, UT

Wenatchee River Road Snowshoe Trail Leavenworth, WA

I fell in love with miniature rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago. I have seen miniature portraits before at the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston, S.C. but never an entire miniature room. You might think that a miniature room is simply a type of dollhouse, but they are so much more.

Miniature rooms are created on a scale of 1 inch in miniature to 1 foot in real life (or 1:12). Everything is precisely represented in this scale, from lighting fixtures to the minute decorations on dining room chairs. One of the most famous collections, created by Mrs. James Ward Thorne, is housed at the Art Institute of Chicago. Mrs. Thorne began creating the rooms in the 1930’s using a collection of English and French miniature furniture pieces she had purchased during her travels abroad. Mrs. Thorne employed craftsmen during the depression to create and furnish more than 100 rooms. Many are exact replicas from houses in the United States and Europe. The rooms faithfully depict the architecture and interior design of their periods and countries, including rugs that she had specifically woven for each room.

English Reception Room of the Jacobean Period, 1625-1655

After you marvel at the craftsmanship in the Thorne Miniature Rooms gallery, there’s still so much more to see at the Art Institute of Chicago. There are famous French paintings, iconic American works, modern collections and Asian ceramics to enjoy. Whether you live nearby or are visiting Chicago for a few days, make sure you spend time at the Institute. You’ll be glad you did.

French Boudoir of the Louis XV Period, 1740- 1760

I grew up traveling down to Pawley’s Island, SC each year for a week with my family.  This wonderful destination is home to beautiful beaches, great surf fishing and the famous Hammock Shops.   As the name implies, this is where you can find the original Pawley’s Island Hammocks. Not only can you buy a hammock to bring home, but you can also watch craftsman weaving the hammocks in an open-air shop.

I am on my third Pawley’s Island hammock.   This last one is strung between two trees in a shady spot in my garden. It has happily been there for three straight years spending our snowy winters outside.   I had grown up with cotton hammocks, but my last purchase was one made from “duro-cord.” Duro-cord is some kind of blended fiber, and I find it to be softer than the polyester hammock they sell.  And, I know from past experience that the all cotton hammocks do not last very long when left outside in the rain and cold.  Since I like to plop down into our hammock at anytime of the year, I want one that can stay outside and handle the wear and tear from the elements.  Now I have a hammock that I can enjoy all year long, come rain, shine or even snow.

I know this may sound terrible, it’s actually really good and even my kids like it. I was looking for healthier recipes to start off the New Year and get some new things into what had become a very boring dinner rotation at my house.

You can use any marinade and veggies that you like. I’d love something with chilies and lime, but I was trying to make it agreeable to the whole family. You will need enough marinade to coat each of the pieces AFTER they are cooked and enough to add to the tofu and veggies.

Marinade-
¼ cup low sodium soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos Soy Sauce Substitute
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
1/8 cup canola oil
2 garlic cloves minced
2 inch ginger piece, peeled and grated
3 Tablespoons toasted sesame oil

For the Tofu-
2 16 ounce bricks of extra-firm tofu
Cutting board and knife
Several Paper or dish towels
Non-stick or a very well-seasoned cast-iron pan
*I love my oversized Lodge cast iron pan
Marinade

Veggies-
Stir-Fry cut veggies (onions, carrots, celery, red peppers, shitake mushrooms, snow peas, bean sprouts, etc)

Dry-Fried Tofu Directions-
Tofu comes packed in water. Drain the tofu and cut it so that your pieces are a half an inch thick. Then cut those pieces into triangles.

Put the tofu pieces between several paper towels or woven dish towels and gently press enough to get a lot of water out, but not hard enough to squish it.

Using a non-stick or well-seasoned cast-iron pan at medium heat on an electric stove, low to medium-low on a gas range. Slow cooking is the key to keeping the tofu from sticking and insures that the water has time to evaporate out before the outside is browned. Do NOT use oil. You want to leech all of the moisture out of your tofu, so do not use oil–leave the pan dry. Leave the tofu down for enough time to brown, when you first place it in the pan, it will stick. As the water leeches out, the tofu will release from the pan. I have a really hard time letting it cook long enough.

Place your tofu in the pan leaving room around pieces. You will need to fry several batches to give them enough room. As the tofu cooks, use a spatula to frequently press down on each piece. You will see the water seeping out and sizzling in the pan. Once the bottom sides are very firm and golden in color, flip the tofu pieces and fry the other side, again frequently pressing each piece with a spatula. When they are golden and firm on both sides, they are done. The ones in my picture above are a little over done.

As they are done frying, coat them in the marinade. Begin cooking your veggies in a large wok, adding extra soy and toasted sesame oil as needed. When all of the tofu is fried, add it and the marinade to the veggies and serve over rice. I also added a few toasted sesame seeds for texture and taste.

I love corn pudding and I have been trying different recipes for the past few years. I think I have finally found the one I like the most. It’s certainly an artery clogger, but it’s delicious.  This recipe is adapted from the famous Blue Willow Inn Cookbook, the Blue Willow Inn was voted best small-town restaurant in the South five years in a row by the readers of Southern Living Magazine.

4 eggs, beaten
1 stick melted butter
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 16 oz cans creamed corn (do not use unsalted corn)
2 16 oz cans whole corn
1 tbs vanilla
fresh ground nutmeg
pinch of cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together all ingredients except both kinds of corn. Gently mix in creamed corn. Add whole corn, taking care not to crush kernels. Pour into ungreased 9 X 13 baking dish. Bake one hour or until top is golden and custard is set.

If you like plants and flowers, a conservatory is the place to visit.  I am amazed at the huge selection of plants that you can find in a conservatory. I have seen rare orchids, exotic bog plants, tiny ferns and giant lily pads.

I was recently lured into the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park.  I was winding my way through the park, and from the street I could see dozens of dahlia flowers in bloom in a garden beside the Conservatory. Amazingly, there was a parking spot. I figured it was fate, so I stopped the car and grabbed my camera. I had a great time taking photos outside of the dahlia and cactus gardens and an even better time exploring the inside of the lovely glass conservatory. It was a fantastic spur of the moment outing.

What conservatories are near you?

Maybe you are near one of these beautiful conservatories:

Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Garden, Las Vegas, NV

Como Park, Zoo and Conservatory, Saint Paul, MN

Franklin Park Conservatory, Columbus, OH

Garfield Park Conservatory and Sunken Gardens, Indianapolis, IN

Water Conservatory Garden & Learning Center, Santa Clarita, CA

For the ‘Best Park in America” contest, A Day’s Outing received heartfelt short stories of people’s favorite parks from around the country. Memories were shared from parks such as Onondaga Cave State Park in Leasburg, MO, Devil’s Den State Park in West Fork, AR, Sequoia National Park in Three Rivers, CA and the City Park in the heart of New Orleans.

However, it was Gina Zammit’s passion for McCarren Park in Brooklyn, New York that won as the Best Park in America. Why? We simply love that such a small space can impact the lives of so many people and create such great memories.

The Winning Entry from Gina Zammit:
“The best park in America is literally in my backyard, McCarren Park in Brooklyn, NY. Everyday I look out onto this beautiful park and see throngs of young people, older Polish immigrants and numerous types of wildlife. It is a perfect example of how all age groups and cultures come together to form the melting pot that is New York City. It is a welcome greenspace in city living and is well taken care of and definitely helps to give my neighborhood its name, Greenpoint!”

Thanks to everyone who submitted a story about parks both big and small across the country, and for sharing your memories with A Day’s Outing.

I have wondered why I most often see hot air balloons taking off in the morning. It’s because balloons need stable winds to operate effectively and the hours just following the sunrise are the best for finding calm winds. Who knew?

I did a little more reading and here’s what I found out …. Hot air balloons are based on the basic principle that warmer air rises in cooler air. A balloon flies better in cooler weather since the hot air gets a better “lift.” A burner fueled by propane gas is positioned under an open balloon envelope to heat the air and make the balloon rise. When the parachute valve at the top of the balloon envelope is opened some to the hot air escapes, and the balloon sinks. To move in a specific direction, the pilot can ascend and descend to find the appropriate wind direction.

Once the balloon is in the air, the balloon simply rides along with the wind. While you are enjoying the beautiful views, down on the ground a member of the balloon team is following the balloon by car to see where it lands. Balloonists traditionally end the flight with a toast of champagne, a practice dating back to the 1700’s.

Here are a few tips for your first balloon ride:

• Dress warmly and casually. Pants, sturdy flat shoes and layers of shirt, sweater, jacket, for example are ideal. Generally it gets colder by about 3.5 degrees colder for each 1,000 feet of altitude. Balloons fly from just about tree level height to about 3,000.

• Check whether children are allowed to fly. Sometimes children as young as 5 years can fly. Sometimes the minimum age is 12 years.

• Be prepared for the flight to be postponed if weather conditions are not ideal.

Look for hot air ballon rides on ADaysOuting.com