For the Memorial Day weekend we went to Grandpa Jerrys cabin in the SugarLoaf area of Big Bear to stay 2 days and 1 night at Torys childhood cabin. The cabin was being sold in June, 2021, so the family went for the first/last time to see the place that had many of Torys memories including where she learned how to ski with her mom at the Snow Summit slopes. Before this trip, Nathan went one time as a old and Tory and Steve went there while dating for a memorable ski fun trip where it snowed and they were forced to stay an extra day until the roads to leave the mountain were reopened!
In the morning, everyone got up early and began the drive to the cabin. We stopped by some sunflowers that Tory could pick, then swapped drivers at the base of the mountain so Tory could drive up the windy roads. The drive brought back memories of zipping down the mountain with her dad in Jerrys Pantera when she was 10, slightly different than in the Odyssey Minivan hauling 7, 4, and 2 year olds. The entire mountain range is filled with pretty pine
trees, fresh air, and perfect warm weather for the weekend at the cabin in Sugarloaf. The kids were quick to explore up and down the stairs and then Tory, Rosie, and Nathan walked down to Easys market for a couple items and candy. Nathan and Rosie loved the idea of being able to pick one candy each when there was so much to choose from. Nathan chose Sour Patch kids and Rosie chose a lollipop for herself and one for Viv. Next, we had lunch and headed down the street to the nearby Sugarloaf Park to get some playtime in before Vivians nap. The park is where Tory went as a baby and had some really cool exercise equipment, spinning rides, a zipline, swings, and a seesaw that we all had a blast playing on!
While Steve and Rosie rested and Vivian napped, Nathan and Tory hung out watching DVDs and reading books. Nathan finished building his erector set car before we all went for a drive around Big Bear Lake. Instead of getting out to explore by the side of the lake, we drove into the downtown Village area and walked around. There was a festival going on
that had live music and a petting zoo that the kids got to do before we found a bright red trolley to take a family round trip around the area. The trolley reminded us of the Laguna Beach trolley and are a family favorite because the kids mostly sit calmly and Vivian can play with the buckles on the seat belts. We found a restaurant called The Bone Yard for a tasty BBQ dinner before Tory played a fun game with the kids running around on the outside on the patio. After a filling BBQ dinner we walked down to a park by the Marina and got some more energy out by climbing and sliding. We walked back to the van as Rosie climbed and balanced on all of the plantar walls and Vivian pointed out all of the wooden Bear statues in the town. Back to the cabin for quick baths as Nathan and Rosie settled into a queen bed downstairs while Vivian had a pack n play upstairs next to the king bed (which she wanted to sleep instead in.) The cabin was cozy for our family and we were surely going to miss being able to stay
