Family Adventures

Continuing on our Heritage Days tour (see previous post), on Sunday we went toward Auburn to do some mining. The first stop was the Gold Country Museum.  At the entrance is a dimly lit shaft, resembling a mine. Following it through you come to a room with some great mining relics, including a working stamping machine. Here is where large rocks were brought and crushed under heavy cylinders. Though the...

I’ve been thinking a lot about how to create experiences in history and culture. How do you instill in kids a sense of connectedness to our past and the world around us? Starting locally, any lesson in our history here in California must include Native American culture and The Goldrush. I have googled Native American dancing periodically, hoping to find a public event that will really capture the kids’...

Now that we have returned from Camp Sacramento, I wanted to follow up with some thoughts and pictures, should you be considering this place for your family. And by the way, I highly suggest it at least once! Pictured below was our cabin. This was our first year in cabin 2. The beds and mattreses seemed newer than I remember others being. Maybe it has more updated furniture than the other cabins, or maybe...

Now I do enjoy camping as much as the next city slicker… but let’s face it, there’s a whole lot of work involved. Take, for example, all the stuff. You’ve got to bring cool clothes because its summer and warm clothes because it gets chilly at night. Then you need to pack up all the food for your stay, the utensils AND a stove. Next, you need to bring some entertainment. Though my 4 and...

Nothing can burn a whole day with kids like a beach. Luckily this weekend we were close to Santa Cruz and so, with grandparents, we headed to the sand. Santa Cruz is well-known for its boardwalk. Frankly with young kids who likely don’t meet the height requirement for any ride there, I was hesitant to go within viewing distance of any roller coaster. There are other beaches to choose from, but since our...