Palm Springs/Palm Desert….with Kids…

Palm Springs getaway!!!!  With kids…

You know when you’re traveling with little ones, their wants + needs surpass you’re own, right?  Oh, you’d like to do a little shopping???  WRONG.  Maybe a relaxing beer by the pool?  NOPE.  Take a hike to an oasis?  OH HELL NAW, THINK AGAIN KIMOSABE.  So here’s a little window into visiting Palm Springs/Palm Desert with mini dictators.

I NEED to visit the desert whenever I’m visiting California.  I have always loved the desert.  I’m a desert bunny.  Forests???  No.  Wide open skies, palm trees, cacti, blinding white light, the white heat…I’ll take all of it.  I cajoled my mom to take a trip with the kids to Palm Desert + she generously rented a timeshare for the 4 of us.  The 2 1/2 hour drive went reasonably well!  Once again, thanks to Mr. iPad.  Thank you Steve Jobs, wherever you are.  Nevertheless, when we arrived in Palm Desert the kids were pretty punch drunk.

Lang + I hopped in the pool before dinner to cool off.

Nana + Clementine discussed how + when the first ornamental palms arrived in Southern California.

The next day Lang, Clem + I headed to The Living Desert.  We gave Nana the day off.  The Living Desert is a wonderful conservation + interpretive center where we met up with an old childhood friend that lived in Palm Springs.  Here’s a forlorn Lang with blooming yucca.

Anushka + Clementine were fast friends.

As were Lang + Indy.

The boys were able to feed the giraffes, (for $5) so Lang got his giraffe feeding quota filled for the year.

The goat petting area is always a hit.  You can tell how hot the weather was by looking at Lang’s red cheeks.

Indy + Langdon are old hats at posing for pictures for their social media moms.

If you are wondering where all the pictures of animals are, well it’s so durned hot that most of the critters were hiding to stay cool + were taking naps.  But take heed my friends, the Living Desert is still SO worth it!  It is a gorgeous space, there’s acres of space to run around, the landscaping is breathtaking + the boys mostly chased each other around, climbing, exploring + enjoying themselves.

In the evening we scooped Nana up + drove to Old Town La Quinta which is small, but charming.  I chose El Ranchito for dinner because it seemed to be the most family friendly choice.  When we arrived in Old Town my mom + I looked around + started having deja vu!  El Ranchito was the restaurant my family always used to go to when we visited the desert as kids!  FATE!!!  I ordered the carnitas, my mom had chile relleno a la carte with guacamole + Lang shared his cheese quesadilla with the baby.  The best Mexican food ever.

Vancouver, how do you get it SO WRONG????

After dinner my little cheetah ran off what little energy he had left.

And back at the timeshare we were rewarded with a sensational desert sunset.  Perfection.

The next day, a morning walk around the timeshare.

This toddler barely naps, but in the desert he passed out hard in the car every day.  SNORING LIKE A CHAINSAW.

Another great place to beat the heat with kids?  The Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert.  There’s brain teasers:

This monkey.  Help me he’s out of control.

Make believe play.  Here’s a veterinarian station:

A pizza parlor + grocery store:

We played Connect Four together for the first time + that little scalliwag beat me!  I swear!  Grrrrrr!

And right now there is an informative + at times stomach turning exhibit on blood suckers!  Ick!

Three nights + two days were not enough!  I wish we could have stayed longer!  On the drive back to Los Angeles you’ve got to make a stop with the kids at the Cabazon Dinosaurs.

Classic.

And two minutes from the dinosaurs another must visit is Hadley’s for their famous date shake.  They’re also well known for their dried fruits, snacks, etc.  Their new flagship store is super fancy shmancy, shiny + modern.

Their former building had a country barn, rustic feel.  I really miss the old store.  The new one is nice, but so sterile with no personality or sense of it’s history.  Here we are with Lang in early 2015.  OH BABY!!!!!!

But their date shakes are as good as ever – same recipe, same delish!!!!!

I’m so happy that we were able to squeeze desert time into this trip.  I thank my mom for making it happen!!!  The desert landscape always gives me a sense of calm that helps me to reboot + clear my cluttered mind.  I hope the blog post helps + encourages folks with young ones to get out + explore Palm Springs/Palm Desert!