Road Trip to San Diego-March 27, 2014

When T was about 3 months old my good friend V reminded me that I had previously mentioned coming to visit her in San Diego. I told her that surely she must be joking and that the only way I could have had such an insane idea would have been prior to giving birth. After mentioning it to GK, surprisingly he replied-why not? Reminding me that I'll most likely never have this amount of time off ever again and it could be fun. So that's when we started planning for a road trip at the end of March with an almost 4-month old.

We decided that attempting to drive straight to San Diego in one day would be a bit much so we would need to stop along the way for an overnight stay. I agreed to plan and book our stop on the way down and GK was responsible for our stop on the way back. It didn't take me long to make my choice....

The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo! I've passed by it on multiple trips to Southern California. The Madonna Inn is known for their over the top theme rooms and beautiful grounds. 

Here T is seen kicking back in the circular William Tell room.

Shortly after we arrived we took T on a walk through the grounds and up to the swimming pool that was complete with a waterfall.

Here we are in the main lounge area where there is live music almost every night. It's like Barbie exploded. While T was still asleep we stopped at the bar and I ordered a vegan Bloody Mary that gave me a wonderful buzz. For dinner we went into town to Big Sky Cafe. Sorry-no pics of our delicious meal as someone was being a bit high maintenance and insisted on being held the entire time. After dinner I watched episodes of Full House while GK was surfing the web on his laptop.

The following morning we went back into town for breakfast. Lattes and these 2 beauties above.

T gave us a break and slept through breakfast. After she woke up I introduced her to the art in the cafe for a little breastfeeding humor.

Now driving down to SLO was pretty much uneventful. We stopped at a rest stop for a feeding and then in Paso Robles for lunch and a short walk. In between T slept in the car. I think we naively assumed that the entire trip would be this easy. Obviously we were about to get our asses handed to us. I decided that with my newfound ability to actually relax and not stress over time, we would leave SLO when we felt like it as T and I first had to bthe together in our rock waterfall shower at the Madonna Inn. We didn't leave SLO until 11am. Little did I know that this poor choice would have a similar outcome comparable to a late summit on Mt. Everest.

Around 2pm T gave a warning cry during the drive and we stopped in Ventura for lunch as a Nepalese restaurant. We sat at our table on the floor. After T had her lunch, she layed down to stretch while we ate an amazing meal and had a beer. Then it was back in the car to head to San Diego. However, T was not having it. We ended up stopping somewhere in LA to park on a side street for a nursing session. However, T did not want to return to the car and cried, cried, cried forcing us to exit on Laurel Canyon Road to stop at a park.

Here GK is letting T know that we feel the same way she does about LA but we must power through. After a play session on the grass, a visit to the playground, and some stroller action-we decided that we had no other choice but to suck it up despite T's protests. Let me tell you-I am a stronger woman for sitting through LA traffic on a Friday evening in the backseat of a car with a screaming baby. GK would later purchase a pair of industrial headphones during this trip.

T finally fell asleep after about 30 minutes of crying, tears streaming down her face. We later had to stop at a Denny's in Oceanside to nurse and where in a serious moment of weakness I directed GK inside to get me some of the worst french fries of my life. By 11pm we arrived in San Diego with T who was in a steller mood for V & Schultz. Yes-that's correct, it took us 12 hours to get from SLO to San Diego.

But Saturday was a new day. Here we are taking T and Sienna on a walk in their new neighborhood. T slept while V and I caught up with one another. 

Then it was playtime while V went through Sienna's clothes and packed us an amaazing bag of hand-me-downs. Here T is wearing one of Sienna's many tutus.

Then we made the trek from Chula Vista to Su Casa in a Jolla. A trip to San Diego would not be the same without Su Casa-it is where many great nights have staarted with multiple rounds of margaritas and where Schultz gets to speak really bad Spanish. 

Sienna was mostly disinterested in T while we visited. I can't really blame her since T has no way to engage in discussions about Dora or My Little Pony but T was able to get Sienna to crack a smile with a little nudge. 

It was at Su Casa when I started to notice that T was feeling a little warm. This may explain the lack of pictures for the rest of our time in San Diego. Later that afternoon T developed a fever-her very first. After a homecooked meal prepared by me and V, we took T's temperature and it was over 102. GK & Schultz went out for infant Tylenol. I've never seen poor little T look more pathetic. She cried through her bath, sucked on her fingers in order to go back to sleep, and eventually came into bed with me (oh wait, she actually does that every night). The following morning we attempted to get a semi early start on the road when we left on Sunday for GK's planned stop in Ojai.

T slept most of the way to Ojai in the car. We made sure to give her Tylenol every 6 hours since she was still feverish. Ojai was gorgeous but it was a bit anti-climatic since T was so miserable.

For dinner GK picked up take out from Thai restaurant along with 2 laarge bottles of beer. Luckily we were staying in a suite complete with a king sized bed and a kitchenette so we were probably more comfortable there than we would have been at home. T continued to fever throughout the night but luckily by morning she was clearly on the mend and took her last dose of Tylenol.

And a road trip wouldn't be a road trip if you didn't stop in a McDonald's parking lot to nurse your child while your other half runs across the street to a used car lot to find the car of his dreams. See-I told GK before T was born that she would not be transported in his car and that prior to me returning to work, we would need to purchase a new car. GK has been researching cars since we had this conversation months ago so I trusted his judgement. Plus I was physically and emotionally exhausted after dealing with T's first bought of illness. I convinced GK to return to the bay area in my car and return a few days later to pick it up. Pictured above-GK & T purchasing our Suzuki Grand Vitara, affectionately dubbed the, "Bubba Mobile."  

It was great seeing V, Schultz, and Sienna-they are some of the most hospitable and appreciative friends we have. Unfortuntely we thanked them by getting their entire household ill. Even GK came down with a cold-I was the only one spared. I learned a lot about parenting and planning from this trip and can almost guarentee that I will not make the same mistakes again.