Palm Springs

So we went to Palm Springs for Thanksgiving. And now it’s Christmastime and I realize that I never actually wrote about our trip. Uhhh… whoops.

Why Palm Springs? My stepdad’s family gets together there for Thanksgiving every year. They were nice enough to invite us to join in on the festivities. And we were smart enough to take them up on their offer.

It was Lilian’s first time on an airplane, so of course we decided to take her all the way across the country in one fell swoop. Go big or go home, I say.

We knew that my mom and stepdad would be flying on the same airline as us around the same time. But I’d also compared our itineraries and been greatly disappointed to discover that they were shadowing us by about 45 minutes and that we’d never be able to offload toddler duties on them. Which is why we were so surprised to turn around at check-in and discover that they were in line right behind us.

Is there a greater feeling in the world than the realization that your parents will be on the same plane as you and your 15-month-old child?

No. No there is not.

United changed our itinerary slightly, which meant that we were on three flights out of four together. Which means that they got to experience the joy that is following a grumpy Lilian as she wanders up and down the aisle of a plane and wonders why nobody is letting her out of this stupid box. At one point, one of our fellow passengers told my mom that Lilian was the only person who was actually walking to Denver (our layover city).

Just in case you were wondering (I know we were!), Lilian is a decent flyer. Takeoff appears to knock her out completely. She couldn’t fall back asleep later on in the flight when she got tired again, but she’s fairly easy to soothe. She even (mostly) accepted the fact that we weren’t going to let her run completely amok.

The hassle of schlepping a small person and all of her requisite gear cross-country? Totally worth it.

Palm Springs is a pretty cool place. It was a happening scene back in the day. Frank Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack all hung out there. Almost all the building are amazing examples of Mid-Century Modern. And now it’s a pretty campy spot. Which is why there’s a giant statue of Marilyn Monroe looming over the place.

Just in case you were wondering, Marilyn is wearing underwear. They’re kinda grannie panties, but she also kinda rocks them.

We took a lot of walks into town. There’s a lot of cool stuff to check out (see: Marilyn Monroe, giant statue of). It was also a great way to get Lilian to actually do some napping. Because, and I know you’re going to find this very surprising, the house was a little hectic and she was often too excited to fall asleep in her crib. So, we wheeled her around until she conked out and then we would let her nap on one of the many patios that the rental house had on offer. It’s not a bad life, really.

 

Especially when you get to spend so much time with your cousins.

Oh yeah, and then there was the trip into town where my brother-in-law took a picture where it looked like Marilyn was about to pee on our family. Good times.

My Mom has fond memories of driving through California as a child and stopping to get date shakes. What’s a date shake? A really delicious milk shake made with dates. And topped with whipped cream. And some sort of little fried chunk of deliciosity which tastes like the love child of a donut and a beignet. So, yeah, they’re pretty good. Mom was really excited to share this experience with us all, so we bought a few of them and dug in. Lilian was a huge fan. Which is why there are no decent pictures of her partaking in this experience. She was too busy buzzing around like a hummingbird.

Oh yeah, and there’s a Sonny Bono statue/fountain. Because he used to be the Mayor of Palm Springs. Which sounds like a figurative thing or perhaps the punchline to an old joke, but is something that actually happened. Perhaps this is common knowledge? I am embarrassed to admit, I don’t know all that much about Sonny Bono.

My step-brother’s family celebrates Hanukkah, which means that we got to celebrate Thanksgivukkah with them. The most ultimate holiday of them all.

I’ve heard some people knock family vacations, but I think they’re just the bees knees. I mean, you’re staying in a house full of people who are more than happy to watch your baby for you while you go to the bathroom. Or go read Vanity Fair in the hot tub. Or take a walk up the side of the canyon with your husband.

Kristian and I decided to take a day trip to Joshua Tree National Forest. So, we packed up Lilian, some snacks, a bunch of water, and we hit the road. We stopped at the park entrance to pick up some sandwiches and directions. And then we did a couple hikes and a driving tour of the park. He says it was the highlight of the trip. And I totally agree with him on that one.

I mean, the sights are pretty decent.

Having a toddler means making some compromises. Like only doing the easy hikes. But it also means that you get to take adorable pictures of your toddler checking out the view from the best seat in the house: your husband’s shoulders.  I love love love getting to experience things with her. It often makes things harder, but it usually makes them more fun.

I took far too many panoramas while we were in the park, but the expansiveness of the landscape lends itself well to them.

The trip was long enough (we got there the Monday before Thanksgiving and then left the Monday after Thanksgiving) where I really felt like I got into vacation mode. I temporarily took my work email account off of my phone and I really tried to focus on being present with my family. I didn’t realize how badly I needed the vacation, but after a couple of days I was pleasantly surprised to discover just how relaxed I was.

Kristian and I took turns sleeping in, plus my Mom took Lilian on a lot of long walks. I got to hang out in the hot tub on my own a couple times, which, as far as I’m concerned, is the ultimate in “me” time. Kristian and I also sat out there together the last night and watched the stars. I didn’t make the time to do some yoga, but I did go on one very nice jog where I checked out a bunch of funky houses and hotels in the area.

There was an unfortunate incident where the shower curtain rod in one of the bathrooms fell on top of my head and gave me a nice lump and a headache. Fortunately, we have a neurologist in the family. She prescribed an extra slice of pie and some TLC from my husband. I spent the next morning napping and taking it easy and I felt totally fine afterwards.

Sadly, the time flew right on by and then it was time to get back into a tin can and fly home. Lilian obliged us with a lot of sleeping. There were a few tears at the end of our last flight. But, when you take into consideration the fact that we didn’t land until a little after 11pm? I’d say the kid was a serious trooper.

The family has decided to do San Diego next year, which sounds all kinds of awesome. Unfortunately, I think that family politics are going to keep us on the East Coast next year. But I’d take another trip like this one in a heart beat.