We decided to take a mini CYOA around southern California. It paled in comparison to the real deal, but we got a lot in for the four days we meandered through the landscapes of southern California!
We headed towards the Salton Sea to collect desert balls — perfectly round balls that look like they are made from hard sand — but are solid. They are awesome — and my kids love collecting anything — so it was a hit. Scout also pulled out his sled, and took Dash and Pippi on some dirt sledding routes.
We also hit up a pretty cool 4×4 track for off road trucks — we didn’t get to see anyone really attempt the main attraction at the track, but rumor is that cars have attempted and completed it — but also failed!
While driving around — we encountered tons of stuff — like the hugest and smelliest cow stable I have ever dreamed up. I am talking hundreds of thousands of cows! Micah got us to these bizarre mud volcanoes bubbling from the earth, but the mosquitos and smell kept me in the car! We then had a really bizarre encounter at Slab City (creepiest place I have ever driven through!), where some car tried to intimidate us — so I was intimidated and drove off.
Then we hit my happy place!
We set up tents and we went to sleep on Gecko Road IN GLAMIS!!!
The real-deal Glamis!
Dash and I woke up early, and he grabbed the sled, and we walked into the dunes and played for an hour by ourselves!
While there, we got royally ripped off by “Ice…Ice for Sale!”
(I think we got ripped off because they recognized me as Ryan’s sister — all these years later!)
We then found a steep enough hill to sand sled down. The kids sledded for three hours. They built jumps, they made trains, they rolled down…it was what childhood dreams are made up of. I FaceTimed my dad, and we both agreed that it was a “happy place” for both of us.
And no Glamis trip is complete with a dip in the canal to get cleaned off.
Obvi!
On our drive out from Glamis, I pointed out all of the crops in the farmlands we were driving by — just like my dad did while I was young. We were so excited to come across cotton! I have never seen cotton in bloom, so we stopped and checked it out and talked about Eli Whitney.
Our final stop is a tried and true Denison favorite..
Just before dark, we arrived at Limonite, and everyone was immediately at it.
Most of us slept in the car, but Pippi and I had a camping night in the tent.
We woke up extra early to get the first scores of the morning!
We had others join us pretty soon after.
Limonite is always a hit, but this time, we did a nighttime Limonite hunt, and it was ME who finally put a stop to the hunting. It was like a bunch of addicts couldn’t stop picking up the little black rocks!
But before we left, Scout asked if he could learn to drive.
He nailed driving 101, and parallel parking!
As did 10 year old Navy!
| DESIGN BY