Posts

Craft: Build a Toad House

Image
Are you overrun with toads?  Give them a home of their own. Here is a quick  Toad House  to make those warty creatures have a comfortable place of their own. Recycle old or broken terra cotta pots and get that toad settled in. Remember that toads can eat upwards of 1,000 insects in a day. They also eat grubs, slugs and bugs! © Diane Chase, author of  Adirondack Family Time: Tri-Lakes and High Peaks (Your Four-Season Guide to Over 300 Activities)  available  online  or bookstores/museums.

The History of the Adirondack Fire Towers

Image
Bald Mountain Fire Tower in Old Forge, NY In the late 1800s and early 1900s, enormous forest fires were threatening residents and landowners. New ways had to be looked at to try to protect and report how these fires could be managed. Two different fires, 1903 and 1908, which damaged over 1 million acres of woodlands, became known as the "Great Fires" leading to an organized system of forest fire management throughout the Adirondacks. The first Adirondack fire tower, made of wood, was built on the summit of Mount Morris (now known as Big Tupper Ski Area) with other towers being constructed over the course of the next five years. There have 120  fire towers  at various locations around New York State with 57 of them within the boundary of the Adirondack Park. The log and wood structures were slowly replaced by steel towers between 1917 and 1930, which could be more easily maintained. A full-time work force from  Forest Rangers  to Fire Observers were organized to manag

Smokey Bear's Connection to World War II and Disney's Bambi

Image
Smokey the Bear, the iconic American symbol for forest fire prevention, actually was preceded by an earlier fire prevention strategy. President Franklin D. Roosevelt first started a fire prevention campaign when millions of acres of National Forest were being lost due to careless people. The campaign started with Uncle Sam and took a r eligious turn before tapping into the war movement. When Japanese planes attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and Japanese submarines fired shells exploding a Santa Barbara, California oil field - the war was brought to American soil. With young men and experienced firefighters enlisted in the war and stationed away from the home front, fear grew that these attacks would continue to destroy lives, property and National Forests.  Citizens were encouraged to take a personal interest in fire prevention and organize community prevention efforts. With the success of Disney's 5th animated movie, Bambi, the fire prevention campaign shifts

Why you won’t see a paper poppy craft for Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day on Adirondack Family Time

Image
I’m all for a good craft. My bathroom shelves and corners of every room in my house are filled with scraps of paper, string, and other tidbits waiting to be transformed into a fun afterschool activity. The one thing you won’t find on my website is a craft for a paper poppy for Remembrance Day, Veteran's Day or Memorial Day.  The paper poppy as a symbol for Memorial Day and Veteran's Day is sacred. In my opinion it shouldn’t be lumped into the same type of holiday craft madness as  Valentine’s Day  or  Christmas  (Oh, I have crafts here.   I like cutting and folding paper with the best of you. I like recycling, reusing, and repurposing.) There are so many blogs and websites posting crafts on how to honor veterans by making a paper poppy. I don’t mean to disparage those websites. I feel that the crafter's heart is in the right place. I just feel that the focus is off.  By making your own paper poppy, you aren’t able to connect a child or family member to the

Recipe: Violet Foraging Makes Violet Syrup and Lemonade

Image
Picking the violets is a sweet job! Springtime means violets and lilacs. I love having an edible landscape. Violets are one flower that brings color to my recipes and with the right violet, they even bring a sweet, sweet scent. In the Adirondack Park where I live, the purple native violets do not give off any scent. Also called blue violets (Viola sororia) these violet flowers and new spring leaves are edible and full of Vitamin C. The flower of the common blue violet (Viola sororia) has five rounded petals and is unscented while the leaves are heart-shaped. These native plants can be tossed in a spring salad adding bright floral interest. The more fragrant English wood violets (Viola ordorata) are what is most commonly used for perfumes and essential oils have naturalized in some places. The purple violets in the Adirondacks are unscented The small white violets have a sweet scent! Though there is one native sweet violet (Viola blanda) in the Adirondacks that does

The History of Memorial Day

Image
Memorial Day  was officially proclaimed in 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his   General Order No. 11 , and was first observed on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.  • The first state to officially recognize the holiday was  New York  in 1873 • 1890 - Memorial Day was recognized by all northern states.  • The South refused to acknowledge the day until after World War I What changed?  The holiday now honors all Americans who died fighting in any war, not just those that died fighting in the Civil War.  • Some southern states still have a separate day honoring the Confederate war dead:   January 19 in Texas  April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi  May 10 in South Carolina  June 3  in Louisiana and Tennessee, which just happens to be  Jefferson Davis' birthday Memorial Day (Remembrance Day,  Poppy Day , Armistice Day) is

Make Your Own Easter Egg "Confetti Egg" CascarĆ³nes

Image
CascarĆ³nes are a lot more fun than just dying the eggs. You get to blow out the egg, dye the egg, fill it with confetti and smash it on your brother's head - all in the name of good luck.                                             CascarĆ³nes are used in Mexico during Carnival as well as Easter and other celebrations. The word  cascaron means "egg shell." ( Don't forget food safety when handling raw eggs.)   These hollowed-out eggs can be filled with glitter, confetti or even small toys. Since my husband hates glitter, we stick to paper confetti. Enjoy!  Ingredients raw eggs in shells large needle (children should not do this alone) boiling water food safe dye vinegar confetti (make your own by cutting up tissue paper into small pieces) 1) Wash the eggs with soap and warm water 2) Gently ease the needle into one end of the egg 3) Use the needle to pick out a small hole at one end 4) Shake the contents of the egg into anothe

NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) Tracks Santa (St. Nicolas)

Image
Do you wonder what Santa is up to? The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has the military equipment and technology to find out if St. Nicholas is making tracks. For the past 60 years NORAD has tracked Santa progress on Christmas Eve and all because of a misprint. In 1955 a Sears and Roebuck, Inc advertisement ran a phone number for children to call and talk to Santa. Instead of reaching Santa, the children called in the NORAD (former  Continental Air Defense Command- CONAD). Director of Operations Colonel Harry Shoup had his staff check for signs of Santa and children calling in were given periodic updates regarding St. Nick's location. Keep track of Santa!  In 1958 the Canadian and United States governments created a new bi-national air defense command for North American, renamed from CONAD to the current NORAD. The new organization continued the tradition of tracking Santa for youngsters. For anyone that is concerned about government funds being used

Yes, There is a Santa Claus, by Francis Pharcellus Church (The New York Sun)

Image
The New York Sun's newsman Francis Pharcellus Church's response to then eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial.  Is There A Santa Claus?   "We take pleasure in answering at once and thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of THE SUN: DEAR EDITOR:  I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.' Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus? VIRGINIA O'HANLON. 115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET.  

Craft: Get ready for Christmas with this Advent Calendar idea

Image
* All artwork and tutorials © Jenny B Harris, AllSorts From illustrator, designer and all around crafty lady,  Jenny B Harris of Allsorts  are these sweet and easy tutorials on how to make a "peppermint star," an advent calendar of pocket purses and even a little elf clog.  These were first loaded on her website in 2007 and we have used her tutorials to make  tiny purses for dolls, shoes and stars to hang from the sky.. because that is where stars come from (according to my daughter.) We even made elf shoes for "real" elves that would visit us at night.  We did find out that we didn't have elfin visitors but mice. My child was most disappointed to learn that in our world, at our house, mice do not wear clothes but eat shoes, felt and even the cupcakes we left on the counter.  Keep in mind that these are not my designs or artwork so if you copy or reuse, please give credit where credit it due...  (* All artwork and tutorials © Jenny B Harris, A

Craft: Electoral Voting Map - Color in Each State

Image
Remember to VOTE for President! Here is an Electoral Votes map. Help your children keep track of each state. Count the electoral votes and be able to explain the Presidential election process!

Apple Season - Make Your Own (DIY) Apple Chips and Apple Vinegar! What to do with leftover apple scraps, peels and cores

Image
I love those dried apple chips I find in the store. Those expensive, dried, apple chips that usually have only 4 slices of apple coated in sugar, oil and cinnamon jostling around in a mostly empty bag. For years now I've also been drinking  Apple Cider Vinegar  every day. All the health benefits, aside, making vinegar takes absolutely no time of effort. That is my type of cooking.   Our family usually composts our apple bits. Those peels and cores are usually designated to the bin, feeding our red wiggler worms.  After an overzealous bout of apple picking, I thought there had to be a way to reuse some or part of the apples in a different way. Now of course, I'm not the first person to think this way. Martha Stewart usually beats everyone to the punch. Since I'm a staff of one and she has a whole research team, I thought I could come up with an easier way of making homemade apple chips with less sugar and in less time. After you've peeled and cored the appl

Easy, Short Adirondack Hikes Moss Lake Loop trail Inlet (Old Forge) Inlet Outdoor Family Challenge

Image
Moss Lake is a beautiful 2.5-mile loop trail near Inlet, NY My family searches for swimming spots, every time we go for a hike. We hold tight to the knowledge that have a hot day on the trail we can come back to cool off in a nearby lake or pond. Moss Lake off of Big Moose Rd in Eagle Bay, near Inlet is one such place. Part of the 15,410 Fulton Chain Wild Forest, the trail to Moss Lake has two entrances, one accessible and the other a short jaunt to access the water. The main parking area offers plenty of parking while just 0.1-mile farther, a handicap-accessible parking area leads to a wide level path and observation platform. My family is grateful to learn that we can take members of our extended family to the other entrance on our next visit. For this time we walk the quick 0.1-mile for a quick view of the sandy shoreline of Moss Lake. The loop trail is 2.-5 miles follows the old bridle path when the property was being run as Moss Lake Camp for Girls between 1923 and 1972.