A Change of Pace
After staying 5 days in a high rise hotel with an incredible view of Disneyland, 3 days of the hustle and bustle of amusement parks and 1 day of Southern California traffic to and from the beach we were ready to take things at a much slower pace. And a slow, quiet pace is exactly what we got when we arrived in Big Bear, California. Paul's parents arranged for us to stay two nighst in Big Bear on our way back to Arizona. It was wonderful!
After a good nights sleep and a quiet morning (as quiet as it is with 5 kids), we headed to the Big Bear Discovery Center to let the kids try their hand at panning for gold. It was really pyrite they were panning but they had a great time looking for nuggets. I think John liked running his hands in the water and sand best. And if my memory serves me right Elizabeth & Sarah enjoyed panning so much they filled, dumped and refilled their little collection viles several times before we finally left.
Next we checked out the Discover Center's outdoor classroom where the kids played a tune on a xylophone, played in a wooden log shelter, built the tower of terror (I wonder where they learned that? . . . Disney's California Adventure. They never went on it just say it and heard their cousins talk about it) out of blocks,
and enjoyed climbing all over the giant spider web. When they nestled down just right it was similar to relaxing in a hammock.
A trip to Big Bear had to include a trip to the lake. Why, you may ask? To throw rocks of course!
Those that don't enjoy throwing rocks as much as some others explored around a bit; finding giant pine cones,
and walking along a wooden boardwalk. We discovered baby ducks, wild flowers and a bucket of cat fish that belonged to some fishermen.
This change of pace was a great way to relax and unwind a bit before we headed back home to the usual grind of work and the monotony of summer.
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