Monday, January 9, 2012

Quinn’s Week-long Adventures: Monterey Vacation


Quinn’s Weekend Week-long Adventures: Monterey Vacation

Hubs, Baby Boy and I spent the first week of 2012 on a mini-vacation in Monterey. We rented a small house just a block up from Cannery Row and the aquarium, and we spent the week hanging out together as a family.

You never know how babies are going to do on vacation and out of their usual element, but Quinn did great. He slept well, ate well and was his usual angel-like self. He had a great time exploring the small house, so we had to do some make-shift baby-proofing – fast!



On Monday, we went for a long walk along the path that runs along the bay from Monterey all the way down to Pacific Grove. Quinn liked looking at the water and all the flying rodents seagulls.




On Tuesday, we went back to the aquarium. Hubs was happy to be there with us this time. Here, Q and Daddy watch the otters get their daily snacks.




Q was once again mesmerized by all the cool sea life.







On Wednesday, Hubs (who is, to review, awesome in every way) surprised me with a massage and body scrub at a nearby spa. (And when I say nearby, I mean we could see the spa from our kitchen window.) While I enjoyed my two hours of heaven, Q went for a walk along the water with Daddy… in his pajamas.




On Thursday, we took a family hike at Point Lobos, one of our favorite places to walk and take pictures. It was a gorgeous day, perfect for watching the waves crash on the rocks.







Q stops for a little ocean-side snack.



Being in Monterey for the week really made me think about how we spend time together as a family. We didn’t really do that much – we cooked most of our own meals at the house, went for several walks, strolled down Cannery Row and looked at a few shops, and of course, hit up a couple happy hours and checked out the local brewery (because that’s what we do). Every night after Q went to sleep, Hubs and I snuggled on the couch and got caught up on the latest season of Dexter.

It was a relatively low-key vacation. And it was perfect. I wonder why we had to go on vacation for a week to do that. I think another goal for 2012 will be to have more weeks like that as a family without having to leave our home – weeks where we put our errands and to-do lists aside, take a long pause, and focus on each other.