Dancing Family: Big Bear Lake

Fran, Adam and Nat at Big Bear Los Serranos campsite

We went camping at Big Bear Lake for the first time. It was wonderful! This is our first camping trip outside of Carpinteria. My motivation for choosing Big Bear is because I'm a little worried about the Fukushima nuclear spill and don't really want the kids swimming in the ocean. Perhaps I'm being paranoid, but at any rate, the paranoia led to us finding another great campsite!

Los Serranos was fantastic because the sites are quite large so you have plenty of space to stretch out and play without feeling like the other campers are within earshot.

Always playing together. Picture taken by Fran.

The weather was gorgeous and it is so weird once you gain altitude on the drive because all of a sudden everything is CLEAR. The sky is a super blue and the trees a crisp green that we aren't used to seeing. On the descent back home, we saw the bowl of smog that we're used to existing in and it's pretty gross.

On Saturday it was cool and rained and it was wonderful!! It was the best thing ever to just hang out under the easy-up canopy and read while the rain fell. It was like being under a big umbrella. Just being comfortable in the cool air, on a nice lounge chair, hearing and smelling the rain, and reading... that was my favorite part of the vacation. I also enjoyed playing many games of Yahtzee with Fran. She beat me almost every time! She rolls Yahtzees so easily!

Huddling under the canopy when it first started to rain.

Reading reading reading.

Jason took the kids on bike riding "adventures" to the lake and on different paths. I didn't have my bike, so I didn't get to go, but I didn't mind at all because it just gave me more time to relax and read. The kids loved their adventures! Fran was like me in that she spent most of her vacation also lounging and reading Harry Potter.

On a bike riding adventure with Daddy

Clear BLUE sky!

On Sunday, we drove into town and looked in just about every single shop. Everyone got a little treat. Jason and Dad kept daydreaming about cabins they could buy.

Adam with his "treat" a helicopter.

Dad walking with Natalie and Archie in the village.

Dad made amazing dinners this time. Spaghetti with garlic bread on day 1, then bbq chicken sandwiches on day two. Soooo yummy. Archie is always a bit of a pain to Dad on these trips. but I really like having Archie around!