We spent the weekend in Sequoia with friends.
My husband had just gotten back from a business trip and he is not a fan of cold weather and snow, so the girls and I saddled up and headed out by ourselves.
In the car and ready to go to our friend’s house so we can caravan.
On the grapevine, the winding section of the interstate that follows the Tejon Pass between Los Angeles and the San Joaquin Valley, we ran over a plank of wood thick with sixteen penny nails, as black and menacing as cobra heads. I saw it splintered on the road at the last moment, but had no room to go around it. I ran right over it. For some reason and luckily for me, the tire didn’t blow for another 30 minutes, until I was at the outskirts of Bakersfield.
The wait while you get your car fixed is always the same: the overpowering smell of rubber, the overlit waiting room with shabby magazines with the covers torn off, unfamiliar soap operas with characters hiding a pregnancy or being held against their will. This Sears was attached to a mall, so we managed to get something to eat while we waited. It turns out that two of our tires were flat.
Four new tires and we’re on our way. We made it to the park just as the sun was setting.
At the bottom of the mountains, it’s hard to believe there will be any snow at the top. It’s 60 degrees and sunny. As we wind our way up through switchbacks, the air starts to cool and we get our first glimpse of snow. It’s difficult to drive and take photographs. I’m a little concerned about driving off the mountain.
We met our friends for dinner in the lodge. There are six other families on the trip so there are a lot of kids running around. On the short walk back from the lodge to our room, the air is cold and clean and wonderful. I see two shooting stars. The stars fill the sky and stretch down to the horizon.
We’re in our room by 8pm. It’s a thrill for us to lie in bed and watch TV, because at home we have a strict policy of no TV’s in the bedroom. It’s also a thrill to jump on the beds.
The view from our window the next morning.
Time to go sledding!
After sledding, we ate lunch in our room and then the girls went outside to play.
We made plans to tailgate in the parking lot before dinner.
This is what usually happens when I want to take these three’s photograph: Sullen, goofy and let’s see what the big girls are doing.
Dinner at the lodge.
Everyone else goes back to their room early, around 8pm. We are a family of night owls. We spend the evening reading and watching Raiders of the Lost Ark, and fall asleep around 11pm.
