Family field trip: Orange picking in the city of La Verne.

Family field trip - Orange picking in the city of La Verne will transport you to the "Citrus Era" of Southern California dating back to the 1800's. La Verne Heritage Park is open from January 6th through March 2018 (while supplies last). The park is open only on weekends. There is no fee to enter and anyone can walk around or enjoy a picnic lunch. Bags of oranges are $5.00, the mesh bags and the picking poles are supplied at the entrance of the park. They also offer a small sample of the current crop. 

The facility offers picnic tables to sit to enjoy the surroundings. We sat down for a bit and marveled at the beauty of the place. The orange trees are beautiful. It is evident that the crop is delicate and strong at the same time because of the age of the trees and delicious fruit. When you visit the farm, you will notice the tree trunks have a smooth, soft look to them. We are astonished at all the history they carry with them. Just beautiful and amazing orange trees that have been feeding the community for many years. 

Our family has been visiting the park for the last (9) years. It is a family tradition to go on opening day. We go to rest our minds and take in the beauty of the grove. It is not a very large farm. There is a 100 plus-year-old home on site to tour by appointment only and a few farm animals. The best, of course, is the delicious oranges, grapefruit, and splendor of the place. 

We recommend you call before you plan your visit. The farm is small, opens only on weekends, and they close once they run out of oranges. 

For only $5.00 per bag, you can pick oranges and grapefruit. It is recommended that you purchase several for a family of four. We ate (5) oranges just sitting in the car and another (4) at breakfast the next morning.  The bags hold 18 to 24 oranges dependent on the size you pick and how you pack the bag. This years orange crop is delicious.  We don't think that the season on this farm will last all the way until March. (Go before March.)

La Verne

Location:
Heritage Park
5001 Vía De Mansion, La Verne, CA 91750
View a Map

Date/Time: 10:00am until 2:00pm Call ahead
Saturdays only beginning January 6, 2018, and continuing approximately until the beginning of March.

Contact Information:
For more information call (909) 293-9005

Fees/Admission: Bags of oranges are $5, and mesh bags and the picking poles are supplied.

Free admission to popular Los Angeles Museums.

Free for the public museum day event is coming up January 27th and 28th, 2018. Mark your calendars and enjoy free admission to several Los Angeles Museums. Because some museums close on the 28th, the free admission offer can be redeemed on the January 27th, 2018. Some museums require advance sign-up while others will take people until they reach capacity. Please contact your favorite museum to get your ticket.

List of the 2018 Participating Museums:

Annenberg Space for Photography

Autry Museum of the American West

The Broad

California African American Museum

California Science CenterGeneral admission only. A timed reservation with a convenience fee is required for Space Shuttle Endeavour.

Columbia Memorial Space Center

Craft & Folk Art Museum

Descanso Gardens

Forest Lawn Museum

Fowler Museum at UCLA

Getty Center

Getty Villa
Free, timed tickets are required. Visit getty.edu.

GRAMMY Museum

Hammer Museum

Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles

Japanese American National Museum
Free tickets available at janm.org/freeforall.

Kidspace Children’s Museum

La Brea Tar Pits and Museum
General admission only; free tickets available at tarpits.org/freeforall.

LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA)

Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA)

Museum of Tolerance

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
General admission only; free tickets available at nhm.org/freeforall.

Orange County Museum of Art

The Paley Center for Media

Palm Springs Art Museum

Pasadena Museum of California Art

Petersen Automotive Museum
Tickets must be reserved in advance at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/museum-free-for-all-day-tickets-41631960314#tickets. 

Pomona College Museum of Art

Riverside Art Museum

Santa Barbara Museum of Art

Skirball Cultural Center
Noah’s Ark timed-entry, one-hour tickets are limited and distributed first-come, first-served.

Sunnylands Center & Gardens
Excludes tours of the historic house and grounds.

University Art Museum, CSU Long BeachJoin us for opening reception of Robert Irwin: Site Determined 4-6 pm, January 28. Closed January 27.

USC Fisher MuseumOffering free admission on Saturday, January 27, instead of Sunday, January 28.

USC Pacific Asia Museum

Zimmer Children’s Museum

http://www.socalmuseums.org/free-for-all/

Free admission to popular Los Angeles Museums.

http://www.socalmuseums.org/free-for-all/

Happy New Year 2018

We want to wish you lots of love, abundance, and happiness for the coming year 2018.

Winter Field Trip Ideas

Field trips are always so much fun. During the winter season going on field trips can be difficult because of the weather. We want to keep you traveling and getting hands-on experience all year long. Here is a list of places you can visit during the cold season and get field trip experience.   

Art and Cultural Centers -  The Art and Cultural centers are amazing during winter. They often offer special shows or artists that bring the season to life. Check their calendar of events to plan your next visit.

The Bowers Museum  - https://www.bowers.org/

The Getty  - http://www.getty.edu/museum/

Mission Inn  - https://www.scfta.org/http://www.missioninn.com/
Segerstrom - https://www.scfta.org/events/detail.aspx?id=17317

Aquariums - Fish, Sharks and lots of marine life await to be admired by you and your family. Many aquarium's offer special events and deals during the week. Always check their calendar of events for the next family night deal because it could save you money on entertainment. Sometimes they offer free admission to local residents. Go to their website to find out more:

Aquarium of the Pacific  - http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/

Birch Aquarium - https://aquarium.ucsd.edu/

Border Towns - Towns near the border are often filled with many different types of adventures. We visited the Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego and discovered a beautiful beach filled with marine life. 

Cabrillo National Monument -https://www.nps.gov/cabr/index.htm

San Diego Visitor Center - 
https://www.sandiego.org/plan/visitors-information-services.aspx

Visit Mexico - 
https://www.visitmexico.com/en/main-destinations/baja-california/tijuana

Christmas Tree Farms can be a great start to your holiday season. Tree farms have a great background for a holiday picture. California offers a list of farms near you. All you have to do is type in your zip code to locate the nearest farm. Sharing the link with you here: Pick your own Christmas Tree http://www.pickyourownchristmastree.org/CAxmastrees.php

Libraries - Almost all local libraries have special events every week. Some offer crafts while others bring in magicians or book authors. Stop by the library to find out what they have for the community.  You will be surprised all the services they offer during the holiday season. 

Los Angeles County Libraries - http://www.colapublib.org/

Orange County Libraries - http://www.ocpl.org/
San Diego County Libraries - http://www.sdcl.org/

Museums - Local museums have so much to offer. They have new exhibits on every season. We call it food for the soul. Just look for a museum that calls your name and get lost in the beauty of it all. 

LACMA - http://www.lacma.org/art/collection/costume-and-textiles

Natural History Museum -https://nhm.org/site/

The Autry - https://theautry.org/

Palm Springs Museum - https://palmspringsairmuseum.org/

Shopping Malls - The shopping malls are filled will events and performances during the holiday season. Tree lighting ceremonies are one of the most popular celebrations during this time of the year. This usually means music, crafts, and other activities for shoppers. Take advantage of all the festive events and visit the mall during the winter months.

Irvine Spectrum - https://www.shopirvinespectrumcenter.com/

South Coast Plaza - http://www.southcoastplaza.com/

LA Farmer's Market - https://www.farmersmarketla.com/

Topanga Mall - https://www.westfield.com/topanga

For more fun adventures and great field trip ideas go to our Facebook page and click on events.

Facebook Field Trip Mom Events - https://www.facebook.com/FieldtripmomFTM/

We hope you have a great winter and enjoy field tripping. 

Disclaimer: Not a sponsored post. 

How to Make a Brown Paper Bag Turkey Decoration.

Family and Thanksgiving is always a great time to get creative with a craft. Make this fun and easy brown paper bag turkey decoration and have your guests wanting to take it home with them! It all starts with things you have around your house and a few you might need to purchase. 

Let me share with you the items I used to make our table decorations: One brown bag, two small brown lunch bags, white paper (for the drumstick tips), tissue paper (stuffing for the inside), string, tape, a stapler, large popcorn bag from your favorite place and two small snack size bags of caramel corn or kettle corn. 

Personal story: We wanted to make our own organic popcorn to gift our friends, so we tried to pop it ourselves over the stove top. We recommend you do not try this at home unless you are a professional cook. It took us several hours to make one Brown Bag Turkey to gift because we kept burning the organic popcorn. What we did to make things easier and improve the process of making several turkeys was to shop at Trader Joes. LOL!!!! Yes, homemade popcorn is delicious but we will leave it to the professionals.

Depending on the size of your brown bag, it may take two to three bags and some stuffing (colorful tissue paper) to make the body of the brown bag turkey. Start by turning your brown bag inside out to get rid of any store logos that may be printed on the bag. Place the popcorn in the bag and stuff tissue paper around it. The bottom of the bag must be nice and full. The opening of the bag must be less filled so that you can fold at an angel and staple. See picture below. 

To make the turkey legs you will need two small popcorn bags of a different flavor. We used Kettle corn from Trader Joe's. Fill the small bags with the snack size popcorn bags. Then use the cotton string to tie it towards the end. Make sure to twist the end of the bag as you tie it. Then cut a piece of white paper into a small stripe of paper. It should be 8 inches long and about 2 inches tall. Cut small slits about 1/4 apart. This white piece will be used at the end of the turkey legs. Then tape the white paper to ends of the turkey legs to make it look fancy.   See picture above for reference. 

Once you have two legs and one turkey body it is time to glue it together. This is when you will use the hot glue gun. Glue the legs on the body with the white piece sticking out a little from the thin side of the turkey body. 

Make a few to decorate your home and to have on-hand for gift giving. Open one popcorn turkey to share with your guests and then surprise them with one to take home. It is a fun way to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season!!!!

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