We were invited last minute to join some friends for a little weekend getaway to their cabin in Big Bear City, CA this weekend.
It was so nice to get reacquainted with my friend Talia (the first person at City Salon who I told I was pregnant with Kailah.) And a few of our favorite friends Kamryn and Aaron, and their friend Dom.
Big Bear is probably known best for their ski resorts and is visited often by people in the winter season, but to us visiting it in the summer for the first time made me fall in love with this town for it's Big Bear Lake, and it's Village shopping area, and all the garage sales, and the ward members of Big Bear Ward.
I hope Jason and I will always make time to go to Big Bear at least once a year. It was the perfect weekend getaway for us. It only took us 2 1/2 hours to get there, and was far enough away to make us feel like we were in a different state! :)
We stayed up late every night playing games. We made Fondue. Went on a hike around the lake. We relaxed. Watched Movies. Attended the Big Bear Ward. Took day naps. Played PIT! Karaoke'd. Picniced. Redecorated the cabin. :)
Kailah at this age is anything but a model, I can not get her to look at my camera for the life of me! Well I took her for a walk and I was so glad to have remembered my camera, cause I FINALLY got some face time!
Enjoy!
SSSSSHHHHHHHH..........
.....OOOOOOoee
Saturday night was Karaoke. We pretty much cleared the house! When we first got there, there was plenty of people around, even a big family whose daughters were rockin' it. We put it a TON of song requests and eventually it was our turn one right after another and then we look up and discover we are pretty much the only people left in the place. We must have been pretty bad. lol!
On Sunday we attended church with the Big Bear Ward. Because it was labor day weekend, more than half the people there were visitors who were vacationing like us. We even saw the family from Karaoke the night before. It was fast Sunday, and was one of my favorite Sundays ever! I couldn't believe how strong I felt the spirit there. I literally cried through the whole service. I think because we had spent the weekend around so much nature and we hadn't been plugged into our electronics all weekend, we could really feel gods love and reconnect with the spirit. Every testimony born echoed how I was feeling. One man who served in Guam in the military used to say the day starts with us. Every fast Sunday he would envision members all over the world bearing their testimonies starting in Guam and ending in Hawaii. It helped me paint a vision in my head of armies of people who are followers of Christ, standing up one by one throughout the entire day for 24hours bearing their testimonies and testifing that day who they will serve! I am so glad that I am apart of that army. And no matter where I am in this world, whether it be at home in Thousand Oaks, Across the country in Boston, or in this tiny city on top of a mountain in Big Bear, CA, I have a family of people who believe the same thing I do and that stand for truth and will follow Christ.
The service ended with the song America the Beautiful, which was perfect for the setting we were in, Big Bear is so beautiful and I know that God created this beauty for us to enjoy and to feel nearer to thee.
