Posts Tagged ‘Picnic Related News’

Picnic at the Park

Sunday, April 25th, 2010

Well everyone, the weather is starting to warm up. Spring is on its way in, and you know what that means… picnic weather! So this weekend, my family is going to have a picnic at the park.

We love to go all out for weekend picnics. Multiple picnic baskets, picnic blankets, and lots of fun games and picnic accessories. Sometimes it’s just the four of us, but my favorite picnics are the big ones – we get a bunch of friends or extended family together, and we all meet up at the park with our picnic blankets and picnic baskets in tow. We always get a great variety of food and drinks, the kids have a blast together, and everyone brings their picnic accessories – games, umbrellas, picnic furniture, and BBQ tools.

We’re having a big picnic this weekend, with both sets of grandparents and my sisters family. I’m leaving my picnic baskets for 2 at home, and opting for picnic baskets for 4 (or more!). The food is family style – we’ll have potato salad, coleslaw, sandwiches, barbeque, watermelon, and ice cold drinks. Everybody pitches in to create a beautiful, delicious spread!

We usually let the kids sit on the picnic blankets. While we ladies sit sipping wine and chatting, the guys always end up gathered around the grill. Last year, I got my husband a great picnic accessory for his birthday: the BBQ Apron Tote with Chef’s Hat – he loves to wear the apron because it’s got handy pockets for his utensils, but I’ve only gotten him to wear the hat once. :)

Two other picnic accessories I’ll be bringing with me this weekend are the Melody MP3 Case with Speaker and a Brunello Insulated Neoprene Two-Bottle Wine Tote. The MP3 player fits easily inside picnic baskets, so it’s super easy to bring along.

What picnic accessories would you bring to a picnic at the park?

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Posted in Ellen's Posts, Picnic Furniture, Picnic Supplies, outdoor picnic | 15 Comments »

Picnic at the Zoo

Sunday, April 11th, 2010

My kids love to go to the zoo, and this is one of our favorite outings during the spring, summer, and fall. My sister and I spend many summer days at the zoo with our kids, and it just never seems to get old – the animals are always up to something interesting! The one thing I don’t like about the zoo is the price of food. Talk about outrageous!

That’s why we always bring our own food and picnic blankets to the zoo and have a picnic, and save our money for more important things. When it’s just me and the girls, I bring a picnic backpack for 2 – it’s the perfect size for a lunch and some snacks for one grown up and two children. And there’s no reason to be uncomfortable – picnic backpacks for two are easy to carry, and most are insulated to keep your food from spoiling in the heat.

Picnic backpacks for 4 are much more practical for larger family outings to the zoo, so that’s what I grab when my sister and I go together. We load up our picnic backpacks with apples, crackers, cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, a picnic blanket, and whatever else we want. I always pack water bottles in my picnic backpack, so we can stay hydrated without paying exorbitant zoo prices for bottled water.

Now, come lunch time at the zoo, you’re going to have to find a place to sit. Of course they probably won’t like you bringing your own food into zoo restaurant, so it’s best to find a shady place to sit outside. If you’re like me, there’s no way you’re going to sit on the ground – who knows how many feet have walked there? So we bring our picnic blankets and spread them out on the ground – just don’t forget your sunscreen!

What about you, readers? Do you like to bring a picnic to the zoo?

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Posted in Ellen's Posts, Picnic Related News, Picnic Supplies, School Picnic, outdoor picnic | 1 Comment »

Picnic Food – Recipes and Suggestions

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

Hey, picnic lovers! I’m sure, like me, you’re looking forward to warmer weather – picnics, swimming, and outdoor fun are all around the corner. One thing I’m really excited about is trying some out some new picnic recipes. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been making a lot of the same picnic recipes for years, and I think it’s about time to change it up. I’m also going to be trying some new BBQ recipes, which will give my husband a chance to use those new barbeque tools I got him.

My collection of picnic recipes has grown over the years to include lots of kid friendly options, vegetarian dishes, and items for every occasion. We love to BBQ, so most of my picnic recipes are for side dishes. One of my favorite side dishes is a 3-bean salad with quinoa. I tried it out for dinner last week, and it was a hit, so I can’t wait to debut it for picnic season. Here’s the recipe:

3-Bean Salad with Quinoa

Ingredients

  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa
  • Salt and ground black pepper
  • 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces, cooked and rinsed in cold water
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen 365 Everyday Value Shelled Edamame, thawed
  • 1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers
  • 1 (15-ounce) can 365 Everyday Value Kidney Beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1/4 cup 365 Everyday Value Organic Italian Dressing
  • 1 teaspoon dried tarragon

Method

Rinse quinoa under cold running water and drain. Bring 1 3/4 cups water to a boil in a small pot. Stir quinoa and a pinch of salt into water. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until tender and liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Uncover and let cool. Put cooled quinoa, green beans, edamame, peppers, kidney beans, dressing, tarragon, salt and pepper into a large bowl and toss well. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

We’ll also be doing a lot of BBQ, so I’m going to mix things up a little this year – I’ve got some fun BBQ sauces that I’m looking forward to incorporating into picnic recipes, like Peach Barbeque Sauce. Here’s the recipe:

Peach Barbeque Sauce

Ingredients

  • 32 ounces canned peaches
  • 1 1/2 cup vinegar
  • 1 cup cooking oil
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup maple syrup
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Method

Puree peaches in a blender. Dissolve cornstarch in a little water. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Allow to cool.

I know my husband is looking forward to using his barbeque tools. Along with his Barbeque Apron with Chef’s Hat, I got him an 18-Piece BBQ Set, with all the barbeque tools he’ll ever need.

Are you trying out some new picnic recipes this year, or new BBQ recipes?

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Posted in Ellen's Posts, Picnic Ideas, Picnic Recipes, Picnic Related News | 1 Comment »

Picnic: An Event to Cherish

Thursday, January 28th, 2010

When we hear some words they connect us with pleasure, play etc. One such word that brings us close to our happiness is ‘picnic‘. The moment we hear or overhear the word ‘picnic’ it takes us to a new feeling of joy.

Today I want to let you know the benefits that a picnic can bring us. Though it appears to be casual event it has huge advantages associated with it directly and indirectly.

  • Bonding: A picnic connects all the members to have an understanding about each other. As people find it hard to bond in normal days, a picnic provides a perfect place to associate with the family, co-workers, or even superiors.
  • Fun: Picnics are fun events. Many of us are stressed out with monotonous work or vexed with a challenging relationship or even bored doing mundane tasks. A picnic acts as a change agent and adds a touch of life rejuvenating us holistically.
  • Beauty: A picnic usually happens in the lap of nature thus bringing us closer to its serenity and awesome beauty. Nature itself acts as an open health spa by allowing us to breathe fresh air and generates a feeling of euphoria.
  • Team spirit: Most picnics are loaded with fun games. Playing with new people allows us to develop team spirit. Each one contributes his part to make his team win. We work for a common goal and this indirectly makes us feel good.
  • Network: A picnic is a gathering of diverse individuals. You may find a mentor to guide, a friend for life, or even your future life partner on such occasions. It is a great platform to find people who interest you. Relationships flourish, naturally.

I hope you will have lot of fun in your next picnic. Take an initiative to have a picnic with your family, co-workers or friends. Make sure to plan a picnic every quarter with different social groups. Remember a picnic well-planned with the right equipment will enhance your experience and becomes an event to cherish.

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Posted in Ellen's Posts, Picnic Ideas, Picnic Related News, Potpourri - Misc. Topics | 1 Comment »

Neighborhood Picnic

Monday, December 7th, 2009

I hear a lot of stories about neighborhood picnics and the fun that they can bring to communities. Remember the “old days” when we used to really know all of our neighbors? Well, thankfully, those days are not gone; I think they’re just harder to find.

One way to go about this is to just start talking to your next-door neighbors. They in turn may know the next house and the next house. Start creating a buzz in the air about having a huge neighborhood get-together, and call it the Annual Neighborhood Picnic – or whatever you feel comfortable calling it. Make it seem like a good idea – I think it IS – and you’ll probably get a lot of people saying, “What a great idea!” or “I was thinking we should do that, too!”

I think it’s in all of us to want to get to know our neighbors, it’s just a little harder these days for whatever reasons.

Reserve a pavilion at the closest park to your neighborhood and let everyone know the date. Make sure that the date works for at least your two or three closest neighbors; and I stress that one. Pavillion space should be free, but if it’s not, it’s usually just a deposit that you can get back.

For the first picnic, it might be a good idea to ask your neighbors what they’d like to bring and it would be better if we get any picnic gifts to the neighbours. There are always people who pride themselves in certain dishes and are just waiting to show their cooking skills to the community. Make sure you have a well-rounded assortment of dishes – don’t forget about vegetarians and vegans! – and you’re almost ready to go.

Bring a few outdoor games, a few baseball gloves, a basketball, sidewalk chalk, and a friendly dog if possible.

And have fun!

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Picnic for the Needy

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

This may sound like a huge deal and hard to organize, but it’s really a lot easier than you may think.

If you take some of the picnic ideas from some other posts of mine and combine them, you’ll find that we already know how to do this with just a little effort. And think about what you could do for someone’s day!

Arrange a time and date at your local park – let the park manager know what you’re doing – and begin. Just call a few of your neighbors, friends, and family and see what they can make for the picnic. Make a dish or two in your own home, and there you go: the food is done. Grab a bunch of 2-liters of soda at the store ($1.00 each sometimes), and off you go.

The hardest part of this type of picnic is letting the public know. A few really good places to post fliers would be the library, the grocery store, and the courthouse (If anyone has any other great places to add, please do!).

Food aside, I think there may be one or two more things we could add to this picnic for the needy in your area that I think could really add that special touch:

Call a couple friends of yours who may have managerial jobs in the area and invite them to the picnic… and ask them to bring job applications if they’re hiring. (I understand that “needy people” DO work and that many work even full-time. But there is a very large number of our fellow citizens in our communities that still can’t make ends meet. And some still can’t find jobs.) Ask a few businesses in your area whom you may not even know to come and join the fun – tell them there’s free food!

Anyway, these are just a couple suggestions. Many of you already do this and may have much better ways of tackling this. These are just mine for now.

Thanks!

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Posted in Ellen's Posts, Picnic Ideas, Picnic Related News | No Comments »

Hi Everyone…Welcome to Ellen’s Corner

Sunday, January 4th, 2009

Happy New Year…Welcome to Ellen’s Corner!

My name is Ellen and I am the host of what we call “Ellen’s Corner”.  Ellen’s Corner is a blog associated with www.PicnicSupplyWorld.com and set up to offer Picnic related Tips, Ideas, Recipes, Stories and More…

So, please join me and have some fun…who doesn’t enjoy a PICNIC!

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Posted in Ellen's Posts | 1 Comment »