Thursday, July 12, 2012

beating the heat

Redding, California is HOT...
it's sort, kinda known for being HOT....
(although it's a dry heat...if Redding had humidity it would be inhospitable and would have a population of 2!)

I really don't mind the heat...
it's just a fact that you need to be willing to live with if you choose to live in Redding...
which we do!

This is the thing...everything in Redding has AC. 
blog note:  I say that, knowing that we lived almost 6 years in our fixer-upper sans AC...
we had a swap-cooler...
or an evaporative coolers, as those in denial call it...
which takes our lovely dry heat and in turns makes it humid...classy!
anyways...
most normal sane humans that live in Redding have AC...

no cars are sold in Redding without AC...
it's not an extra...
it just IS...cars have AC...

side note 2:  we bought a brand new car back in 2000 and while looking at the extra packages we said, 
"Oh, yeah make sure it has AC!" 
the sales guy looked at us and said, 
"Um, we can't sell cars in Redding without AC!  it's not considered an extra but a must have!"

okay...back to our regularly schedule blog...
about it being HOT and getting the HECK out of Hades!

the forecast for Monday was HOTx10...108+
which is pretty normal for July in Redding 
(as previously stated...
that is why/how Redding is known for being HOT)

so, to beat the heat, the kids, some friends and I packed up and headed for the snow!
yep...we went and played in the snow in July!

something that I've done a few times...but not nearly enough..
pack up the car...
pack lunch and plenty of water... 
and drive (usually...always...without the husband!)
have a minor goal in mind, but be flexible...

our goals...
1.  get out of the heat
2.  hopefully, possibly see/play in snow...

then go...
be spontaneous...
this is the fun part...
drive...see something pretty..
neat...
weird..
interesting...
stop the car...enjoy...

....look kids, it a Sound-of-Music mountain meadow....

trying to get a Sound of Music picture
look really really hard and see the teeny tiny pink spot to the right...
yeah, that's one of our kids!

our closest Sound of Music shot!
we spent about 30-40 minutes
(20 of that crossing the colder than ice creek to get to said Sound-of-Music mountain meadow)
enjoying the beautiful meadow

hey, kids...
look a patch of snow across the street from our meadow...
enjoy!
love the contrast of green field below the snow!
this snow is fun and all...but it's sort-of-kind-of a snow cliff...if the kids take a step or two back they will plunge to their deaths...or at least break a bone or two!
girl getting tagged by a snowball
seriously...
how many times have you had a snowball fight in July!

it's snowing in July...or maybe we just threw snow up in the air
okay, so this is great snow and all...but it's not fun/easy to play in...it's a snow cliff...so lets pack up and find what we set out to find...enough, safe, snow to play in!

hey, look it's a snow tunnel...so what if it's in a parking lot...
it's a SNOW TUNNEL...in JULY....
stop the car...get out and enjoy!

blog note #3...
try not to look too closely at the snow...it's snow in July...
so, this is not pristine white snow...
it's actually old dirty snow...
but, just don't think about it...
and make it VERY clear that there will be absolutely zero eating of any snow! 

okay, so this is fun and all...
but it's a parking lot...
so, lets pack up and find a better place to play!
eventually...
we reach our ultimate goal...
an area with enough snow...
that's not on the edge of a cliff...
or in a parking lot...
and let the kids play...

 midget July snowman!

Get some posed pictures at the ice cold Lake Helen....
Pack up and head home!

*special note...
when heading to the snow...even if it's July...
it would be wise to pack snow/rain boots...
your kids may or may not suggest this to you before you leave for said snow trip, and you may or may not think, "it's JULY and we don't need that"...
it would also be wise to bring mittens...
possibly also something that your kids may or may not have suggested that you bring...
and you may or may not think it's necessary because it's JULY...
trust me, bring the mittens!
so, your kids may or may not have the chance to say, "Told you so, mom!"
also good things to pack for a snow trip in July:
*flip flops 
*towel
*bug spray...snow and mosquitoes don't compute in my head, but swampy muddy areas around melting snow drifts and 75 degrees is the perfect environment for mosquitoes...and since there are little to no humans in these areas you will be eaten alive by them!

Go out and embrace the spontaneous trips!  Pack up the kids, invite some friends...and pack all the things that your kids may think you'll need!
and take pictures!
These are memories that you and your kids will cherish...
so don't NOT go because your husband/wife might not want to go or have to work
don't NOT go because friends can't come
don't NOT go because you have laundry to fold

this was an amazing day...it was in the high 70...when back in Redding it was 108+
the kids, our friends and I all had a great time!

just go...and embrace the spontaneous trip...
don't have any mountain snow anywhere nearby (we drove an hour and half to reach snow), drive to the lake, a waterfall, the beach, a local pick-your-own produce farm...etc...
what are some spontaneous trips that you've taken...or wanted to take?

1 comment:

Marci said...

We have taken a couple spontaneous trips this summer! One was to Chico (Weird, I know) But it was a change of scenery... we dropped by the olive pit on our way and the kids sampled the olives. Then we went to the mall in Chico and hung out at a park before driving home. We didn't tell the kids where we were going and it was a game to see who could guess it first :) (David won.) It was great family time...Another time we packed up and went up to Burney falls! It was a fun day...and none of the kids had been. So, that made it better!!