We stopped here on a whim after visiting Chick fil A on cow day, which explains our homemade cow shirts.

This sand digger was new to us.

This is a pretty typical park for our area.  The sun shades are a nice touch, especially since it has been so warm lately!

This was n’s first year attending Cub Scout camp during the summer.  I volunteered full-time, so k was able to attend as well.  It was held at Irving Regional Park, from 8:15-1:15, everyday, for a week.  It was a lot of fun, but so, so tiring!  I do not do well in heat, and I ended up dehydrated almost everyday.

I led k’s group of siblings, ages 8-10.  n was in his own rotation, so I did not see him much during the day.  That is why I have more pictures of k.  n enjoyed the camp and wished it was even longer!

There were lots of activities.

Archery

BB Guns.  #LikeABoss

Knot-Tying

Ninja Warrior obstacle course.  k looks quite athletic in this picture!

Here is n doing a relay race.  I really do not understand how they could be running around in that heat!

We have been going to the Irvine Police fireworks to celebrate the Fourth of July for the past few years since Mazda is a sponsor.  This year we were more prepared and brought an umbrella and chairs.

We brought sandwiches and supplemented our dinner with shaved ice and kettle corn.

A personal injury attorney was had a booth and was handing out free helmets.

People were dancing to the Derek Bordeaux Group.  There were tons of raffle prizes.  Maybe we will enter next year.

The fireworks were spectacular, as usual.  n did not fall asleep for the first time!

I have been curious about the Asian night markets that have been popping up around us.  We decided to go to the one in Little Saigon.  It was nice because there was no fee for parking or entry.  There were several stalls, and I was not sure which one to go to.  I found that it was easier to communicate with the stalls that had younger people working at them.

The squid stall was the most popular, but we passed.  We also passed on the snails in shells.

We asked for no nuts on this dish, but apparently there was a misunderstanding.

The kids were happy with their pork skewers.

We weren’t the biggest fans of the corn.  Although it had nice char marks, it tasted overboiled.

The spring rolls were pretty good.

I asked the kids if they wanted fish ice cream.

It turned out to be the hit of the night!

The coconut waffle, which I bought inside the mall was just ok.  Not much taste.  On another note, we were able to change a couple of watch batteries for $5 each inside the mall!

I feel like we don’t do as many restaurant posts as we used to.  Part of the reason is that we usually just end up going to places where we have coupons, so it is pretty repetitive.  Well, we had a coupon for a new restaurant, Mooyah, so we decided to try it out.

This is D’s thug pose.  Ha!

The burgers had a handmade taste.  The flavor was good, but the patty was loosely formed and kind of fell apart.  I liked that you could put mushrooms and fried onions on  for free.  The sweet potato fries were also nice–crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.  I believe this chain started in Texas.  The prices are about the same as Five Guys, maybe a little lower.  We will see if there is room for more competition here!

We celebrated k and n’s twin third cousins’ birthday at Splash Zone in Rosemead.  The theme was Finding Dory, and all the details were so cute, as usual.

Even the high chairs were decorated!

There was a game to figure out which twin was which in the first twelve months pictures they took.

Not easy!

The dinner was Mediterranean food from Johns Kabob, and it was quite tasty!

Both the kids and D had a great time on the water slides, too.  Once n hits 48 inches, we will have to visit Great Wolf Lodge!

After another round of swim lessons this summer, n knows how to swim!  He can do freestyle, breaststroke and backstroke.  Here he is demonstrating his breaststroke during the party:

I like this park because there is a short hike through a small lemon grove.  It is quite peaceful at the top of the hill, and there is somewhat of a view.

The lemon theme is carried out on the playground equipment.

Another cool feature is the hill that you can slide down with a piece of cardboard.

This is one of my favorite local parks, mainly due to its proximity to the library and because there is a small lake.

The playground has a fun nautical theme.

Be careful on this boat.  One of k’s classmates broke a bone while playing on it.

See-saws always feel like a novelty.

I was not too sure what activities were available in Big Bear in the summer.  n’s friend’s dad is a fisherman, so they woke up bright and early and went down to the lake to fish.

Our first group activity of the day was panning for “gold” at the nature center.

This was harder than it looks.

Next we went for a short hike.  n has made good use of his Camelbak.  As you can see, this was not a serious hike, as n was wearing flip flops.

After lunch, there was a water balloon fight with the kids v. the dads.

Later in the afternoon we made a stop at Safeway for ice cream.

After that, it was time for the Alpine Slide!

You take a chair lift up and ride down on a sled with a brake.

I think the kids had the most fun just hanging out at the house.  They played hide and go seek and kept each other entertained for hours.  I can see the plus side of vacationing with other families!

Time to say good-bye!

We picked up McDonalds and ate at a park close to the lake.

Since we did not spend any actual time at the lake, I felt the need to stop by on our way down the mountain.

I made D take a picture of me to prove that I was there!

Last month we rented a large house in Big Bear with k’s basketball team and stayed over for a weekend.  We arrived late Friday afternoon.  The house was four stories and had nine bedrooms, which was plenty spacious for six families.

D and I chose this bedroom, which had an adjoining bathroom.

All the girls slept in this bedroom.  I love the Orla Kiely bedding!

Here are some of the other bedrooms, just to give you an idea…

1 of the 2 lounge areas.  The other room had a pool table and foosball.

The kitchen was pretty small for such a large house.  We mostly prepared simple food, so we saved on eating out.  As you can see, we were well-supplied with carbs!