Since we pulled in so late last night we didn’t have an opportunity to meet our incredible neighbors from Philmore, California. They had a little girl who was three and a little boy who was five. Brooke played with the little miss at our picnic table for a bit before breakfast while Cody played monster trucks with the little boy in the pine needles and dirt. Does this scene look familiar? They started yesterday morning on a large rock collecting small rocks. New day, new rocks, new friends, life is good. The family we met is on a quest to visit every one of the National Parks before the kids are eighteen. The mom pointed out that there is a national park in the Virgin Island and the Samoa Islands. We plan on meeting up there at some point. :-) The mom was in awe that we packed for a two month trip. We shared that planning for a two month trip isn’t all that different from packing for a weekend. As far as clothes go if you are grabbing one pair of shorts just grab a few more. You can’t pack enough food for two months, so you have to plan on shopping. You still need all the dishes, pots, pans, stove and stove fuel for a short or long trip. Really the only difference between the long trip and short trip is that the longer trip gives everyone a chance to get into the camping routine and the longer trip makes all the effort of packing seem much more worth it.
We are headed to Fresno to stock up on groceries before heading to Yosemite. We have gone over 3,000 miles on this trip, so Scott got the oil changed while we shopped at Wal-Mart. I have to put in a happy shopping note. We spent the first ten minutes of shopping fighting over who was going to push the shopping cart. We finally worked out that each kid would get one aisle to push. Somewhere amongst the aisles they were pulling a Berenstain Bear book on me. “You can push now.” “No, no, you can have my aisle.”
Then when we were putting the groceries on the belt to check out Brooke was organizing the groceries into cooler items, snacks, and back of the van meal items. They used teamwork to unload and reload the cart. The cashier actually looked at me in awe and commented on how polite and helpful my kids were. For a moment I was at a loss for words and most of you know that doesn’t happen to me often. I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Oh how I look forward to more of those moments. At least I know now that they are possible!
Scott has been dreaming about an In-N-Out burger since before we left our driveway on June 17th. One month and one day later he finally had the chance to eat one. They give the kids stickers and a sheet to decorate. They loved it. I ordered a fry and burger for each of us. Scott thought I might have over ordered. We must have looked like a pack of hungry wolves because we ate it all. The kids ate more than usual. Scott and I are thoroughly stuffed and the kids are snacking again an hour later in the car as I type this. “It was good,” Scott said. We all agreed the burgers were good, but the fries were no where near McDonald’s. I find it funny that we are critiquing fast food when we eat out less than a handful of times each year. It was a nice change of pace, but I’m glad we don’t make it a habit to eat fast food often.
Bass Lake
A guy who we bear watched with in Kings Canyon recommended Bass Lake. Another lady at a National Forest Service recreation site also recommended Bass Lake. It was nice to jump in the lake after three hours in the car today.
Cody fell asleep in the car on the way to Bass Lake, so he was a little shy about hopping in the water. Once he did, he had a great time. Brooke was in the water long before I was even able to get Cody dressed and out of the van. Cody enjoyed digging at the beach and Brooke was using a raft someone shared with us. I would swim out towards the middle of the lake and Brooke would come and ask if I needed to be rescued. She greatly enjoyed coming to “save” me with her raft.
Cody found a very cool stick that looked like a pick axe. He used it to create a road and when the road was blocked by a large rock he worked and worked to get it out.
After we swam around for a while we made one of Brooke and Cody’s favorites for dinner: taco mac. The recipe we use includes: Velveeta Shells and Cheese, 1 lb Italian Sausage, 1 cup taco sauce, 1 Tbl taco seasoning, and a can of whole corn. I trimmed Cody’s hair a little with the craft scissors. Yes, I said craft scissors. I thought they were probably sharper than Scott’s Swiss Army knife. Cody had some hair tickling his ears. He didn’t look too bad after I finished, but I am glad hair grows back eventually! Then we were off to forest dirt roads to find our campsite for the night.
Brooke took some of the drawing paper and tape and created an “office” space for herself. The best part about her office was her inspirational quotes that she wrote on the inside of her “curtains” on her own, “Be kind. Be kind even when he is not and you don’t want to be.”
This is the kids pretending to be asleep. Last night it wasn’t too cold and it wasn’t too hot. The kids wanted their fans before they fell asleep though. This was mostly due to them getting all excited before bed and struggling to just be still. After the moon disappeared behind the hills the stars gave an incredible show. We have gone without a fly or as Scott likes to say “topless” for quite a few nights in a row. No more monsoon rains!
