Rancho Los Alamitos

It was just Kaeley we were waiting on. The other three were playing Starfall.com, the picnic lunches waited impatiently in the cooler, and I had parked myself at the kitchen table as Kaeley finished up her school work for the morning. Devotions had been read, another Math lesson was under her belt, and a rough draft of "Oysters" had been stored away. As it turns out learning the "relative location" of a city is not as easy as one might think. Once she finally figured out that the answer was not "Los Angeles", nor would it ever be, we moved onto the Spelling.

Okay, so we left an hour later than I had planned, but oh well. Instead of eating on the grounds the kids ate on the route to Long Beach.

Make note of this should you decide to visit this location: the rancho is in a gated community and your visiting car is not permitted on site until the rancho is officially opened. We waited at the gate for about three minutes before we were permitted to enter, and then we all thanked Kaeley for learning longer than expected.

Rancho Los Alamitos is the most beautiful rancho we've visited so far. As with the other ranchos, the time its open is limited, but tours are free (though donations are appreciated), and the history is rich.

A lovely Mrs. Cheryl guided us through the barn, the house, and eventually pointed out the gardens that I could wander through if we so chose.

The barn, with it's smell of manure and hay and wood, called to that deep part of my soul that cries out for the country. Oh well... why reminisce on the impossible. Moving on...

My computer (or phone, I'm not sure which) randomly blesses me by editing a photograph or two. The choice in pictures is interesting, but we now have a well-edited picture of a horse. Field trips provide learning opportunities available from no where else, like learning that horses and goats love hard peppermint candies for snack. Thankfully that was a lesson taught to us on purpose by the docent in the barn area, and not a Saavedra randomly feeding the animals hard candy. (Just thought I'd make Clarity our friend here.)

I was not able to take pictures of the house itself due to regulation, but let it be an incentive for you and your loved one to visit the grounds yourself. It was magnificent! Most of the house's decor was original.

Should you take your children to this site here are my tips: 1.) Go with slightly older children. The younger children will be delighted with the horses, goats, sheeps, ducks, and rabbits, but you are not to touch anything in the house itself. And why bring young inquisitive students to a place so covered in antiques that their hands are to remain in their pocket? 2.) Buy the "Passport 2 History" booklet available at the visitor center. It's where I'm getting many of our ideas for local field trips. 3.) Bring water. I thought my children were going to keel over and shrivel up; they asked for water constantly! I asked the children what they thought about the place once Mrs. Cheryl had left us and Nathan's first response was: It was nice, but you have to bring water! I'm so thirsty!