Ever since I was a child, my family would schedule a family Saturday outing a few times a year. My mother thought she would incorporate an experience with a meal.
For instance, my brother and I would hop in the back seat of our family car, while my parents drove us to Downtown L.A.’s Chinatown. We would walk around the streets of Chinatown, admiring the crazy, colorful architecture of the buildings and peruse the many shops full of “Made in China” chechakoes. If we were lucky, we might even get to buy a little trinket. If there was a museum in the area, we would definitely hit that up.
We were getting an education without even knowing it.
After an afternoon immersing ourselves in Chinatown, we would then drive back to the San Gabriel Valley, whereupon my mother would try and tackle a dish to make for dinner that would tie in our experiences of the day. I always wondered why we just didn’t eat at a local restaurant thus getting the full experience, but she claimed that it would be too expensive and that she could make it at home.
Well, I must applaud my mom for giving it a try, but the truth of the matter is; that she really wasn’t a very good cook and remember, this was before Google, so she didn’t have a way besides cookbooks, on finding a recipe for an authentic Chinese meal. If I remember correctly, that evening she attempted to cook Chop Suey. Let’s just say, boy did I feel sorry for anyone Chinese having to eat that! Chinese food- gross!! But that was my only taste of Chinese when I was young. Now having tried many Chinese dishes, I am a big fan, but funny enough…I never see Chop Suey listed on the menu. Go Figure.
Fast forward a few decades, with a family of my own, we have “Family Fun Days”. We started this when my kids were young and to this day, my kids, all grown up, enjoy these family outings. Must be an ode to my parents on creating family experiences.
Our family day trips are not so thematic and we all enjoy eating out, so we usually plan on an activity and a meal.
The key to making these day trips enjoyable is to tailor them to your children’s interests.
One memorable outing when my kids were in elementary school, was that we drove to Oak Glen, CA and went apple picking. I packed my mini-van (at the time) with water bottles, snacks , pillows and blankets and drove the hour and a half to the apple farms in the picturesque rolling hills of Oak Glen. There are signs directing you to many apple farms where you can pick your own apples, shop at their country stores and enjoy hayrides and pumpkin patches. Fresh, 
homemade apple cider and apple pies to take and bake at home? Yes, Please! All of us enjoyed ourselves.
Another outing when my children were young adults, was when my oldest child was interested in photography and both of them loved their music. We drove to Century City, CA to attend a Photography exhibition featuring rock and roll artists. After we meandered our way through the gallery we headed to Amoeba Records on Sunset Blvd., in L.A. They were in heaven. Both bought Amoeba t-shirts and a couple of C.D.’s. We then headed to an authentic Jewish delicatessen, Lenny’s. I had my first Matzo ball soup there. YUM! My family loved the huge, decadent pastrami sandwiches, definitely not a norm for South Orange County.
If you haven’t experienced a family fun day of your own, I highly recommend it. It’s a good way to reconnect as a family in this day of over scheduling and scattered directions. My parents had it right, scheduling family time is important. Invest in some quality time and make memories with your own family unit. It’s an investment worth its weight in gold!
