Mammoth Lakes, Halloween, Etc.

Our sweet Erika made these adorable little jack-o-lantern cakes in her Easy Bake oven. She seriously did them all by herself, including coloring the frosting. I realized later the mouth on each was the initial of the family member she had made it for
…E, M, V. The split mouth had an M and a D, so Mommy and Daddy could share. :)

Jill's Journal: We had been in Carson City far longer than we intended, four weeks when we originally expected just one. We’d been there so long we knew the cashiers at the grocery store and no longer relied on our GPS to get around. We knew where to get the cheapest gas prices in town. We even had people to say goodbye to, including our new scooter-riding dog friends and Alicia, the girls’ favorite Tahoe friend (we rooted her on at a swim meet as a final farewell). A few days ago, I even got hugs from both my doctor and nurse, whom I finally got medical clearance from after four visits. They told me they’ll miss me and joked that we should consider keeping Carson City as our base so we could all spend more time together. I’m pretty fond of them too.

But it was nice to move on.

We headed south yesterday, crossing the California border once again. We’d hoped to stay in Lee Vining, a tiny little hamlet of about 200 near the eastern entrance to Yosemite. (We can’t stay in Yosemite because national parks don’t have cell towers. No cell towers, no internet connection. No internet connection, no work for Rob. No work for Rob, no traveling for us.) But the one Lee Vining campground that was still open wouldn’t accommodate us since they’re about to close for the season, so it was on to Plan B.

A little less than 30 miles farther down the road we found our home for the next week – Mammoth Lakes. We’re up high in the sky: 7,800 feet. The ski season hasn’t started yet, although we may get the first good snow later this week. Growing up in Southern California, I remember Mammoth as the place everyone came to ski. I am probably the only former kid in my hometown who hadn’t been to Mammoth. Even my husband, who grew up with some of the world’s best skiing in Tahoe, has been to Mammoth multiple times. It’s fun to finally make it here.

Our first order of business in Mammoth, other than school today, was to let the girls enjoy Halloween. Last year, we were in a good-sized town in New York and had no problem finding a nice neighborhood to adopt for trick-or-treating. We knew we’d be in a small resort town this year – whether Lee Vinning or Mammoth – so trick-or-treating was out. And that was fine; I know a lot of people absolutely love Halloween, but it’s not a huge deal for us. We happily skipped out on the expensive costumes and instead bought some face paint for the girls to have carte blanche. Their gaudily-painted faces resulted in an Indian princess (Erika), an Ancient Egyptian warrior princess (Madelyn), and a rainbow witch (Victoria). We did some Halloween crafts and had plenty of candy to boot. It was such a nice afternoon and evening. The best thing is that we spent it together with no distractions. And isn’t that how special days should be spent – with those you love?