Play in Nature

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU MADE SNOW ANGELS?

Debbie Greene — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 18:20:42 +0000

Yesterday was one of those magical days when it snows and snows and snows and it is so beautiful and peaceful. I sat in my office in Pilcher Park Nature Center and watched it snow. It was so beautiful. The park was empty with only a couple of staff and me there.

I got home around 5:00 and my dogs ran out to greet me. They LOVED the snow too. They were running and playing like puppies in the snow.

It reminded me of a snow a few years ago when my grandson and I were outside making snow angels and my dog ( DOG-DOG …….really his name) came out and made snow angels with us.

It was Friday night and I was supposed to go out with a girlfriend. Fortunately for me she is as adventurous as I am and she still wanted to go in the middle of a snowstorm. We braved the weather to go have some margaritas. By ten o’clock it had stopped snowing and all that was left was a beautiful peacful snow covered world. Today it is getting warmer and by tomorrow it is supposed to be FORTY degrees and raining! I told my husband to forget about shoveling (he still thinks I am crazy for saying this) because it is going to melt tomorrow! For today I think I need to go take a walk in the snow.

I will write more tomorrow when I am trapped inside in the rain and cold.

Snow………….Nature at it’s best!

Debbie Greene — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 04:45:20 +0000

Last night the news folks told us it was gonna snow. And? It is Illinois and it is January! So? WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY: snowfall 6-8 inches! AND? It is Illinois and it is January. This went on for hours and hours. Me? I am sitting in my office cheering every snowflake. BEAUTIFUL, peaceful, awesome snow. And all I could do was say Thank YOU. Thank you God, Thank YOU Universe, Thank YOU!

I am happy. My dogs are thrilled. And the snow plow guys who haven’t made any money this year are thrilled. It should be snowing now. It should be covering this part of the world. The old timers will tell you about stories of sleddng and skating on the creek (which doesn’t freeze anymore) I can’t help but be grateful for this day. Here in Illinois, in the snow and at peace . Thank YOU.

Here Comes Paula Deen!

Debbie Greene — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 01:12:07 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

About a year ago I went to the Hilton Head, Savannah, Charleston area to look for food and relaxation. One of the places I REALLY wanted to see was Paula Deen’s Lady and Son’s Restaurant. I dragged my husband from Hilton Head, SC to Savannah and told him all I wanted to do that day was eat at Paula’s. We got there, parked and walked to the restaurant. Thinking I would easily get in ( what was I thinking?) I walked up to the woman at the kiosk/pulpit outside of the Lady and Sons and talked to the woman there. She said that we would have to wait TWO hours! I figured I had come all the way from Chicago and 2 hours would be ok so I got my name on the list for 3:00 and went across the street to the tour company and bought two tickets to ride around town and get a history lesson while we waited. At least that was the plan! I felt like we were on Gilligan’s Island with no way back to civilization! Stuck on the Da@#% Trolley Car we got stuck in traffic! ON A HILL in a PARKING LOT! FOR ….EVER……….! The stupid woman driving our Trolley Car (trying to be cute I am sure) Kept telling the same inane story about when someone does something to you then you should bless their heart as the saying goes. But with her it kept going and going and going. If she had said bless your heart one more time I swear I was gonna vomit! Right there on the Trolley Car!

What seemed like a year and a half later but really only 2:45 hours, or 1457 Bless your heart’s later we arrived at the TROLLEY HOME BASE! No kidding. It was time for the driver to GO HOME so they dropped us off there so some guy with a bus could pick us up in another TWENTY MINUTES and take us their kiosk across the street from Lady and Sons. We get off the bus and I run across the street to the woman at the pulpit only to be told it is too late. I missed my time and we would have to wait until 6:00 for dinner. About to cry, I let her put my name back on the list. We went to a FABULOUS Tapas Bar called Jazz’d to get a drink and something small to eat to tide us over until we could get in to Paula’s.

Folks, Jazz’d was fabulous! It is in the basement ……..or at least under ground. You have to go down the stairs from the sidewalk to get there. The restaurant, bar, staff and décor were FABULOUS! The food was some of the best we have ever had on this planet. The scallops were to die for! My husband doesn’t think he has ever had better.

Click to view slideshow.

So after a couple of much needed drinks, some awesome food and a look around we went back up to the street to start walking around. We went in a cool cooking shop, a dog paraphernalia shop and on to the street Lady and Sons is on. Just as we turned the corner I locked eyes with the woman at the pulpit and she came running down the street to me with a pass to get into Paula Deen’s! Yea! Finally! So we were let in the Paula Shrine and walked to the elevator to the third floor. ( this place is huge and BUSY) We were seated and because we had just eaten neither of us was starving. I got the fried green tomatoes, which I think were brought to the table regardless. The Macaroni and Cheese and some Key Lime Pie. My husband got some fried chicken from the buffet. I have to say it was worth the wait. Yum! Then we went next door and bought something for nearly everyone I know because Savannah, Georgia and Joliet, IL are very far apart. All this is leading up to my exciting news.

Paula Deen is opening a restaurant here in Joliet! Inside of Harrah’s Casino. I am so excited! Now I can go there every day if I want. And I may want to! At least until I get really sick and tired of Fried Green Tomatoes and Macaroni and Cheese. My 86 year old mother is REALLY looking forward to the Key Lime Pie. So for those of you closer to Joliet, Illinois than Savannah, Georgia I will be looking for you in line down at Harrah’s Casino. And while you are here please drop by and say Hello to me at Pilcher Park. Get out, stretch your legs and walk on my trails. If you are here in the summer be sure to stop by the Lord and Burnham designed Bird Haven Greenhouse and see the formal gardens. If not, go on in and take some photos in the warmth of the greenhouse. We will show you some Southern hospitality worthy of Paula Deen.

Does it count as Play in Nature if you are eating it? I think not but here I go!

Debbie Greene — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:58:19 +0000

Everywhere I go I look for amazing food. Usually (since I am drawn to coastal areas with turquoise water) I am looking for the best oysters around. Oysters can be VERY expensive so I am also looking for inexpensive oysters too. I always ask the locals where they buy fresh seafood, where they eat seafood and what other tips they might have. I have found that the Concierge at the hotels will send you to places that are expensive and touristy. RARELY do they tell me where the locals eat.

My husband and I went to Hilton Head, South Carolina and used it as our home base for travel to Savannah and Charleston. Every day in Hilton Head we asked where locals got fresh oysters. Several people sent us to Pepper’s Porch. And I have to say Pepper’s Porch is one of the FINEST resturants I have ever eaten at! For a measly $13.95 we got a half BUCKET of steamed oysters. We did have to open them ourselves but that was half the fun! It is easy and entertaining to open your own oysters.

For dessert we had FRIED STRAWBERRIES! OMG! Can you smell the chocolate? I can. FRIED strawberries, drizzled with chocolate and powedered sugar! I thought I had died and gone to heaven. REALLY. I am usually a savory dessert eater. This one was just sour enough to make me LOVE it.

If you are EVER in the area don’t forget the FRIED strawberries for dessert. I honestly can’t remember what we had for dinner. I am sure we ate dinner but for the life of me can’t remember WHAT it was! So I am recommending what stands out now almost a year later.

The other thing that stands out is the ambiance. This was the most lovely resturant. GREAT staff, welcoming folks, nice, helpful and FRIENDLY!

We wondered where all those fabulous oysters came from and were told that they could be found down the road at the Bluffton Oyster Company.

So on out way out of Hilton Head on our way to my friend Julie’s in Atlanta (she writes 3pupsinapopup.com ) we stopped and got a bag of oysters and a few pounds of shrimp for dinner at her house.

I have to tell you that the last time I was there with my friend Bertha we went to the grocery store to buy wine (what else!) and there was a guy there coming out of the store with a case of beer and APPARENTLY a bag of shrimp in his pocket and he was dropping them on the ground. Which caused us girls (think the tune of pants on the ground from Idol) to write our own song.

Shrimps on the ground, shrimps on the ground. Got your case of beer but your shrimps on the ground! And of course all three of us were laughing hysterically.

NOW ………back to the story at hand. We had a fabulous dinner at Julies house and then we headed back north to Illinois. WHAT a wonderful trip, what great food and what amazing finds. My next installment will be about our trip to Savannah to find my dream food at Paula Deen’s!

Dog Parks are a GREAT place to Play in Nature

Debbie Greene — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:34:05 +0000

Going to the Dog Park is a great way to Play in Nature! I have heard it said more than once that the kids have as much fun at the Dog Park as the dogs! The reason for this is that frequently the dog parks are left less manicured. That is certainly the case at the Hammel-Woods Dog Park on Black Road in Joliet, Illinois. There is a seasonal wetland, a cool bridge to walk and run over as well as hang over and look at the tracks in the mud and an interesting island of trees with paths running through it.

I am sure these paths were originally made by the dogs but they are now kid-sized and perfect for kids to play in. Another reason this park is so wonderful is that it is fenced. Parents can sit on a bench or under one of the pavilions, let their kids and dogs run free and visit with their friends.

There is great exploring to be done here with the extremely high prairie grass to hide in and the groves of trees with the trails. There are trees to sit under, sticks to throw and mud, ice and snow to dig in year round. Check out the dog parks in your area to see if they might be the perfect magical space to spend a long summer afternoon.

Mom says “Go outside and play!” Now What?

Debbie Greene — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:18:06 +0000

My Mother used to say “Go Outside and Play!” and I would say “with who?” Then I would grab a book and read under a tree somewhere. Parent’s today are afraid to say “Go Outside and Play!” Parents are afraid that their children will be bored, they are afraid their child will be kidnapped or worse ( thank you CNN and television dramas like Law and Order SVU) Most of all parents are afraid they will be seen as BAD parents. All of these things are outlined in Richard Louv’s first book Last Child in the Woods . Last Child in the Woods talks about the Extinction of Experience that Robert Michael Pyle wrote about in the Thunder Tree.

My goal here is to save play! The kind of play that kids do that helps them learn all kinds of cognative skills. The kind of play that makes kids dirty and tired at the end of the day and the kind of play that exposes them to germs so they are immune to diseases and less allergic when they get to school. There really is something called The Hygiene Hypothisis

The fear really doesn’t go away even if the children are 24 and living in a completely locked up safe apartment in the next town over. We have to learn to allow our children to LIVE, and to trust that we have taught them to be safe, and to trust their instincts. Trusting your instincts is a much better skill than knowing how to lock the door and stay inside! The world isn’t more dangerous now than it was then - we just have CNN now. CNN and other news channels run the same things over and over and over about the same children. Really – there are statistically about the same number of abductions and murders than there were in the 1950′s, we just see them more now on television. Somewhere along the way we taught children to stay in side and lock the doors while we are gone. Some of that was because both parents generally work now. Some was because we were afraid. Somehow it got turned in to stay inside while I am home and now…………we don’t want our kids to get dirty at all and we feel we have to entertain the children all day with some game or other. The kids have unlearned the ability to entertain themselves. They are BORED! How many times have you heard that word? They want something or someone to entertain them. We send them to camp, to baseball and soccer practice and have a coach entertain them and we stay there with them while they play so that their self esteem is not ruined because mom takes her gaze away from them for one second.

Really it is guilt. Guilt because we work or guilt because we feel they aren’t getting enough of our time. Actually it is the QUALITY of that time not the quantity of time. That time and attention can be anything and can be anywhere. It just takes focus.

Time spent outdoors is fabulous. If you have a small child (preschool age) you can spend HOURS and HOURS just sitting by a creek and letting them throw rocks. They are learning while they do this too. And when they learn that the rock sinks or if they throw it hard it goes farther or whatever concept is swirling around in their head at the moment………….they move on to the next thing. Maybe it is picking up sticks or breaking sticks or crunching leaves. All natural, normal, fun things for children to do. Best of all……….when they get home they are tired. Really tired!

Play in Nature……….Which is Real?

Debbie Greene — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 17:24:21 +0000

For years I have wanted to swim with dolphins. I have wanted to snorkel and experience the wonder of the ocean. My grandson Christopher and I used to lie in bed at night and talk about what it would be like to swim with dolphins. So this past Christmas I bought Chris and myself tickets to Discovery Cove in Orlando. Seven people from our family were going to Disney and I wanted to do something extra special for just the two of us. We went the first week in February because I really don’t like crowds. I highly recommend this time of year. We had no lines at Disney and Discovery Cove wasn’t crowded either.

It was $194.00 per person and that sounded a bit steep to me but I did it anyway. As it got closer to the time I came up with so many reasons that this might not be a good idea. First, I didn’t know if they would have a wetsuit to fit me. Second, I kept thinking about things like…………what I would do with my purse? I can hardly see without my glasses so how would we be able to get into the water and participate in the dolphin swim if I couldn’t see? How would we manage the restroom/ dressing rooms if I couldn’t go in with him? To make a long story short – I finally talked my husband into coming with us. He didn’t want to come because he had been an elephant trainer and sea lion trainer for 20 years and the idea of spending nearly $200.00 to swim with dolphins wasn’t a bargain for him at all.

This is all leading up to my telling you this was the most fantastic day! We arrived and walked into a large processing room that looks like a lobby of a very nice hotel with desks all around. We were checked in and given badges on lanyards with codes and times for dolphin swim on them along with a plastic map of the grounds. We were pointed in the direction of a bridge and were met by more people giving directions. We had our complimentary photo of the day taken and headed for the building with the prescription snorkel masks. My daughter and I had just been to the Florida Keys two months prior to this and went snorkeling and I didn’t have any fun at all because I couldn’t see the fish. I was told that I could rent a mask for $75.00 for the day but I didn’t do it on that trip. At Discovery Cove the masks are part of the original fee! No up-charge to SEE the fish at the reef. So my husband, grandson and I all got our complimentary prescription snorkel masks and headed off to breakfast.

I had read that breakfast and lunch were included. Well I have been to enough seminars with the same claim to know I shouldn’t be too excited about the food. Probably dry croissant breakfast rolls and some bagels. Imagine my surprise when we get to an actual restaurant with many choices of great food! Eggs and bacon, yogurt, fresh fruit and waffles were just some of the goodies being served. From breakfast we were guided to the wetsuit area where people who have obviously done this A LOT magically gave us all suits that fit. My husband and I ultimately decided to just use the jackets. This is fine with the Discovery Cove staff. We were given locker keys and sent to the lockers and dressing rooms. I can’t imagine the size of the laundry facility they must have! To say there is a WALL full of clean, folded towels that never empties is not an exaggeration. Someone has the job of filling this wall all day long as people switch from activity to activity and dry off and get new towels.

Our dolphin swim wasn’t until noon so we decided to go to the reef area and the sting Ray Shallow. OMG! That was so awesome! Amazing! Amazing! Amazing! How often do you get to feed sting rays while standing IN the pool with them? We had fed the rays at the zoo but that was NOTHING like this! We were actually surrounded by about a hundred rays! Beautiful, big, fabulous, rays! There were photographers in the water with us and they were taking pictures of us with the rays along with the badge we were given so they could match them up later if we wanted to purchase any of those photos.

After the ray swim we thought we would try the Reef out for a bit until we could go to the dolphins. I have to tell you that after about a minute of getting used to snorkeling I could have stayed there all day. Leaving for the dolphins was a bit of a drag when I had 12 foot wide rays and brightly colored fish swimming around me! At one point I thought Christopher was drowning! I heard loud noises coming through his mask and he was thrashing about trying to get my attention. I raised my head and asked him if he was alright and he shouted loudly “Grandma! I just saw Dory“ Dory from the movie Finding Nemo.

Then came the dolphin swim! We were given a brief introduction to the experience in the Sand Dollar Hut then taken in groups of 6 to the water to meet our Dolphins. Ours was Dash, Dot’s mother. Dot was the Dolphin across the pool from us. This fact interested Christopher a lot. He usually tells the story saying our dolphin was Dash, Dot’s mother. Anyway, when we entered the water there was also a photographer and a videographer in the water with us with perfect views of everything we were doing. My husband was allowed to video and photograph from atop a rock nearby. We got to know Dash and pet her from many different angles. We got to do the training signals to make her sing, leap and wave to us. It was So much fun! Then came the reason we were there. We were each told to go out in deep water and wait for Dash. She swam out there and we were told to hold her dorsal fin and her side flipper and when we did Dash took off! She pulled us across the pool to the shallow end! For picture purposes we were told to give Dash a kiss on the nose, which we promptly did. All too soon ( thirty glorious minutes) our time in the Dolphin pool was over. So we reluctantly got out; dried off with more clean, folded towels; and headed over to lunch.

Lunch was a wonderful thing! I had grilled salmon, fresh veggies and fruit. Robert had a shrimp salad and fruit and Christopher ate his usual chicken nuggets and fries. To let our lunch settle a bit, we decided to walk over to the Aviary. This is a multi-room facility that the Wind-away River runs through. You can enter through the Wind-away River or you can go in the entrance by the Stingray Shallow. As you enter the Aviary there is a staff person there to tell you what is going on and give you a cup of food to carry to entice the birds. The birds just fly right down to your arm or you can sit the cup down and they will come for it. If you have any dream of photographing exotic birds but don’t have the budget to go to their location this is the place for you! If you want pictures of your children holding exotic birds, this is the place for you! As you walk through these exotic rooms filled with birds colored like jewels flitting around, you can’t help but be impressed. I have been to zoos all over the country and I have never seen so many different imprinted birds in one place! These birds fly to you instead of away from you and they are all beautiful, tame and ready for food. This was a very pleasant surprise within a park I thought was mostly about dolphins.

After some quality time inside the aviaries we decided to try out the Wind-away River. This is a heated, fresh water river that winds around the outside of the Reef and Stingray Shallow and inside and through the Aviaries. There are waterfalls you must swim through that are actually barriers to keep the birds inside of the aviaries. You really should be wearing swim shoes at this point. I did not bring any so my feet did get a little beat up here. This is just a friendly word to the wise………not a complaint at all! Discovery Cove has a little store where you can buy useful things like shoes and t-shirts at reasonable prices. I didn’t buy shoes because I already had a pair at home and really didn’t need another one.

By this time it was about three in the afternoon. In January the park closes at five. So we went over to the Reef for the rest of the afternoon. I am thinking this is a great time to mention to you that there are FREE snack bars at Discovery Cove! Yes, free beer, pop and water plus yummy snacks. Good hot pretzels, chips, fruit all included in your original price!

We spent the last two hours in and out of the Reef and the Stingray Shallow. This was the most enjoyable day I have ever spent with my husband and grandson! We had so much fun. We were so busy and everyone at Discovery Cove was so helpful and really went out of their way to make our day enjoyable.

Earlier I mentioned that there were photographers and videographers in the water with us at the Dolphin Experience. This is not a mandatory purchase but one that I completely “bought” into! There was no way I was walking out of there without a pictures showing my grandson kissing a dolphin! I wanted EVERYONE to know that I had gotten to ride a dolphin across the pool so, by that night, I NEEDED those pictures to put up on Facebook! I purchased the most wonderful memory package for about $80.00 extra per person. I also used my own waterproof camera the whole time we were there except in the dolphin pool.

I don’t believe I have ever recommended any trip more highly than this one. This was a perfect day. Discovery Cove is fabulous for a day of family fun!

This whole story brings me to TODAY. I just returned from Key West and Chris and I were talking today about this upcoming Christmas. I told him about my recent trip to Florida and we have decided to go there together really soon. This time he and I will go to The Eco Discovery Center to see and learn about the ocean around us. This place is FREE and fabulous. A bit like the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Not as big but FREE and very nice and new and clean and it has fabulous displays!

Then we will go to Fort Zachary Taylor Beach and snorkle for a while in the actual ocean to get ready to go out on a REAL snorkeling trip!

From there we will go on an open water snorkeling trip with the folks at Fury Charters . My daughter and I just went on a Fury Charter and it was so amazing! We saw REAL dolphins jumping in the wild. We snorkeled in the ocean above a garden and then we went on a kayak trip in the mangroves before returning to the boat for a sunset beer!

So Chris and I are ready for the REAL thing now…………and I think both are nature……..just two different ways to experience it.

Sunset Cruise Key West Style!

Debbie Greene — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:34:11 +0000

I used to think that writing about Play in Nature was just going to be kids in dirt piles playing and making mud pies. That is not what it is turning out to be here on my Play in Nature site. I find nature and children trying to connect to it everywhere I go. Sometimes it is a kid chasing a pidgeon at the mall parking lot and sometimes it is the child at the aquarium touching a starfish for the first time.

To further illlustrate this point I was just on a Sunset Cruise in Key West, Florida with the folks from Danger Charters. This was the best sunset cruise I have ever been on for so many reasons. One is because they were so nice and child friendly. While we were out there on the water the birds were flying around and the children had a great time watching the gulls and pelicans. Nature is not just animals…………the spectacular SUNSET counts also!

Let me go back to Danger Charters again for a moment. They do a spectacular job! They were rated the #2 Cruise in North America by Coastal Living Magazine. This is an upscale wine cruise with 8 different wines from all over the world. They had fabulous hors d’oeuvres as well as upscale beer and pop for those who didn’t want wine or were too young.

The folks at Danger Charters are fabulous! Friendly, helpful, fun and they really try to make you HAPPY! This is one thing you should absolutely NOT miss if you are in Key West. This Cruise is all about you and your enjoyment of the most spectacular sunsets ever. Key West is all about celebration, and their celebration of Sunsets tops the list. Don’t miss this one!

What a FABULOUS Day! Manatee Encounter!

Debbie Greene — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:08:36 +0000

: We looked down and there it was! A Manatee!

The last time we were in the Keys I was on Manatee Watch the entire time! Everytime I looked into a canal I looked for manatees. This time I kind of knew I wasn’t going to see one so I let it go and went about having a great time anyway. So yesterday we went to meet with Barbie ( a friend of my daughter Victoria’s from TWITTER) They had been talking back and forth and Barbie wanted to show us around her part of the world. So we met her at The Fish Camp at Geiger Key Marina.

This was THE most Idyllic place! Peaceful. Calm. Friendly. The scenery was fabulous. We spent over an hour sitting on the porch, drinking wine and beer and watching the birds as we listened to Barbie tell us about her buisness Knee Deep Charters.

As we watched the Brown Pelicans flying around I wondered if there might be dolphins nearby. Wondered only. Didn’t mention it.

After a bit I guess Barbie decided Tor and I were safe enough so she invited us back to her house to see her boat. We were greeted by three of her four dogs. They were all so sweet and lovable! We walked out of the yard out by the boat in the canal. Victoria said ” Do ya’ll every have manatees in here?” and Barbie said ” not this time of year.” Tor told her that my dream was to see a manatee and just as we looked into the water to see what kind of fish were there a 13+ foot manatee came up for air! I have to say I am totally into law of attraction, and this was a FABULOUS manifestation! What were the odds? And if we had stayed at the bar minutes longer it would have been gone! So we took literally hundreds of photos of it then we each layed down on the concrete and petted the manatee. I KNOW you are NOT supposed to do this but how many times am I going to have in this life to pet a wild manatee? The only other time I had seen this was when President Bush Senior was swimming somewhere and feeding them lettuce. I figured if an Ex President could do it so could I.

The Manatee came up and LET us pet it!

Truly this day could not have been better!

Click to view slideshow.

Play In Nature………….Key West Style!

Debbie Greene — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 17:39:31 +0000

You might want to know WHY I am going to be writing about Play in Nature from Key West for the next several days. Well it is because you can Play in Nature anywhere and there is so much nature to see here! Tomorrow we are going on a wave runner for 26 miles around the island. All nature all day all the time. We will stop at different beaches along the way.

What a fabulous way to view the natural side of Key West! We are also planning on a sunset cruise and other natural adventures. Check back over the next couple of weeks for some great ideas for nature in the Keys!

Tonight we decided to eat at the Thai Life Floating restaurant. I had seen it listed on the Urban Spoon Website. http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/144/1348480/restaurant/Florida-Keys/Thai-Life-Key-West

As we sat there in the breeze we were able to not only eat fabulous food but watch a wide array of birds. I realize folks from here are no longer enamored with Brown Pelicans but for those of us from Illinois they are darn cool!

The resturant is beautiful! Magical even. My daughter Tor and I sat and relaxed and soaked up the warmth of Florida and watched the sun set on the boats in the marina. Such a wonderful day! So here we are and I will be posting from the keys for a while.