our road trip adventures

Sorry things have been pretty quiet around here.  We recently got back from a road trip, and then took on a house project.  Needless to say, I've been wishing for more hours in the day to get things accomplished!

We accomplished our first road trip with a baby and we would both call it a huge success!  One of Daniel's friends from college got married in Northern California so we decided to make a whole trip out of it and visit Napa, my best friend, and my college town.  I won't lie, I was having some mad anxiety about being on the road for so long with Nathan.  He generally does pretty well in his car seat, but I was nervous it would take us so long to get up there from all our stops to feed and change him.  Well, we made do and I have some tips I'll share in just a bit that helped.  To say Nathan was amazing is a HUGE understatement, he deserves "baby of the year" award for how well he did on our trip!  In 6 nights we slept in 4 different places, he adapted to wherever we went, and didn't cause too much of a fuss albeit his schedule (used very loosely) was totally off.  He was the life of the party wherever we went, and made many new friends thanks to his adorable smile and happy demeanor.

We've decided that Northern California is truly gorgeous!  Everything was so green and lush, a far cry from our very dry and brown mountains in San Diego.  Napa was just splendid.  I had some great recommendations of where to go from some friends.  We visited the Oxbow Market twice, and one trip included picking up some of the most delicious fresh cheese and baguette to take with us on a picnic.  We visited Frog's Leap, Hagafen, Mumm Napa, and Clos de Val wineries.  We had the most phenomenal dinner at Farmstead, and are still dreaming of our meal.  Nathan went wherever we went, enjoyed stretching on the grass lawn while we picnicked, and tried to get a sip of wine on multiple occasions.

After Napa we went south just a bit to visit my best friend who moved up there last summer.  It felt so good to sleep in a house versus a hotel for a night, and we were just so relaxed.  From there we visited Daniel's cousin on our morning as we headed south to the central coast and went to my "happy place", San Luis Obispo.  That town just gets me every time. The charm and quaintness of it all made me reminisce of college days and miss how simple life was back then.

Along the way we had a few hiccups, but soon figured out how to do things differently.  Daniel and I never argued once, and we worked really hard to be as flexible as possible (which is a huge necessity with a baby).  I don't have the most cohesive list, but here are some of the things that worked really well for us to have a happy baby and enjoyable trip.

• I sat in the back seat of the car for the long stretches on our drives up the coast.  This kept Nathan entertained and happy.  I also took my pump, which came with a battery charger, and pumped him a bottle and gave it to him while in his car seat to avoid having to stop one more time.  This worked out really well!!!
• The ergo was my very best friend!  Nathan went wherever we went, and being able to strap him in and go was a breeze.  This is what we used at wineries or even just walking around.  He is able to fall asleep in it, and I've also mastered how to nurse him while in it as well.  Since we couldn't always be at our hotel for him to take a nap, the ergo really helped him get the sleep he needed. 
• Since we stayed in four different places, it was crucial to be organized when packing up and knowing how to load the car efficiently.  I would typically make sure everything was in the proper bag, and Daniel would load the car up in the mornings.  Mine and Nathan's clothes were together in the same suitcase, which helped a ton in the mornings when deciding what to wear.  
• Having a stash of plastic bags is essential!  When we pulled up to our dinner one day, we quickly realized we had a very big diaper situation on our hands and I will definitely spare you the details because it was just awful.  Anyways, the plastic bags were our life savers!  They also were great to quickly throw trash away in and keep the car clean as we went along. 
• Babies eventually sleep.  Nathan's schedule was totally thrown off.  Normally he goes to bed at 7pm, and we wouldn't get back to our room until 9pm most nights and he would still be wide away.  He adapted and eventually fell asleep, and also slept in till 8:30am (which was much needed for me).  I couldn't stress about his naps so I just tried to listen to his cues, and when I noticed he was tired I'd put him in the ergo to ensure he got some sleep throughout the day.  

We still are so surprised how great Nathan did, and now we are crossing our fingers he is just as wonderful when we embark on another new adventure for us...beach camping!!

80's & fondue

Go check out my sweet friend's blog to see my modeling debut!  She provides some amazing fall fashion tips (hello blazers & boyfriend jeans) and her blog is a must read.  Check it out here!!

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I'm sure that the title of this post surely has you thrown off just a bit, but it sums up the two most amazing things my mom and I took part in this past weekend.  

I am one very blessed girl to have the mom that I have.  We go way back to the days of just the two of us living in a one bedroom apartment, making forts between both of our beds.  I still vividly remember those experiences.  And I don't take this lightly when I say my mom is my best friend.  We share joy and laughter, learn from one another, and also boundaries. 

I've been craving some mommy-and-me time lately, so we packed our bags and did a little staycation Groupon style in downtown San Diego.  And boy, did we luck out using Priceline, because we got an amazing deal at the Westin.  (And can I just for a moment confess my love for this hotel.  They have snacks.  Yes, snacks.  Including dried apricots AND gummy bears.  And they have flavored water.  And I've also heard their gym is phenomenal, including a gear sharing program in case you forgot yours.) 

Once we checked into our hotel and got settled, we made our way to the theatre to see "Mixtape".  This is an 80's tribute musical, featuring every 80's song imaginable in a very fun way.  Let's just say that Tiffany and Madonna were definitely there, as well as an amazing Top Gun mix.  The show did not disappoint and left you wanting to pull on your scrunchie socks and neon spandex, and tease that hair into a side-pony.  

Our night ended as we gorged ourselves at The Melting Pot.  Oh, fondue, where have you been all my life?  This was a first experience for both of us, and I think we are still recovering from the amount of food we ate.  Everything was excellent, including the desserts.  Basically anything dipped in chocolate is amazing, am I right?  

It was bittersweet at the end knowing that this would probably be the last mommy-and-me staycation with no interruptions.  I fully intend to pass along that adorable baby to the Mr. so we can continue to spend quality time together, but while he isn't here I'm going to cherish these moments with my mom! 

a lesson learned from mango

It is a beautiful thing when God can take one small act to help you realize where you have been struggling.  Sometimes it is as though we are walking along a blinded path, doing our own thing, without acknowledging His power, His grace, His love and how that should look when we live it out.  On our cruise, God definitely used one of these moments to show me where these hard crevices were forming in my heart, that needed some dusting off.  

When you're on vacation, it is easy to think about yourself.  Where are we eating at?  What time do we need to be here?  Did you save a seat for me?  Me. Me. Me. Me. Me.  And I soon realized that it wasn't just on vacation that I was thinking about myself, it was everywhere.  Almost as though people owed me.  When our boat docked in Ensenada, we originally weren't planning on getting off, but later decided we needed a good stretch and wanted our sea legs back.  So we wandered off into downtown Ensenada, where the streets are strewn with woman and children begging for money, offering to sell you chicles, fresh fish laid out at the market, vendors luring you into their pharmacy, offers for alcohol, and waitresses enticing you into each and every restaurant.  On occasion we would see some people from our cruise line.  And one family in particular was trying to take a picture with our boat in the background.  I was going to keep walking until Daniel urged me to go and offer to take their picture.  I hesitated.  I liked our path, our plan, and what we were doing.  But I offered, they accepted, they smiled so bright, and all of a sudden it was as though my heart slowly started warming up.  When did helping others all of a sudden seem so hard? 

On our way back to the boat I saw a vendor with the largest mangoes I have ever seen.  So we stopped off and I watched them artfully carve it in front of me and filled my mouth with the freshest mango I have ever had.  Soon enough I became so full.  And as we rounded a corner, a child with his little sister and mother wanted us to buy chicles from him.  We declined and he immediately pointed to my mango.  Instantly I asked him if he wanted it, he shook his head vigorously, and as I handed it to him it was as though I had just given him the greatest gift in the world.  His smile lit up the whole corner.  And it was then that God showed me the lesson I needed to learn, and re-learn over and over again.  We get so much more out of helping others, giving them what they need, then when we receive something.  It feels like a Christmas saying, but why am I not focused on it now.  My heart was filled with so much joy I felt as though I floated the entire way back to the ship.  From that moment on whenever we saw a family or couple trying to take a picture, we stopped whatever we were doing and offered to take it for them.  It never fails how appreciative they are, and how that kindness just passes from them to you.  I have lots of things to work on in my life, and right now I'm trying to find ways to help others in authentic instances, to try to meet others needs, and to think less of what I need from this world.  So, thank you mangos! 

our cruise getaway

There is something beautiful and refreshing about vacations.  For us, we have noticed that taking the time to get away at least once a year for a fun trip is essential to our marriage.  We need that time to breathe, relax with one another, get back into sync, decompress, and just readjust.  There are lots of "big things" going on in our life right now, and taking a trip helped us talk about these as a couple, a team; and just dream about our future.  

This year a friend suggested we take a cruise, which we had never done before, and when the dates matched up perfectly with the husband's vacation schedule-it was as though the stars aligned.  We visited Catalina and Ensanada, kayaked, took a gold cart tour of a town, ate way too much food, watched entertaining shows, were blown away by the wind, got sea sick, and took lots of cat naps.  Yes, we napped on vacation.  And it was blissful.  Things leading up to this cruise were very stressful and crazy, so once we were on the boat we were so happy to take a breath and just let it all go.  Throughout our trip we didn't talk about work, about any stressors in our lives, and instead we laughed together and just loved one another and escaped from reality for just a bit. 

And in LaFuze fashion, we went from one vacation off to another!  We ported back in Long Beach Friday morning and drove straight to Big Bear for a family wedding (which was gorgeous).  I'll be back tomorrow sharing the exquisite pictures from there!  

that glorious rainy city

Today's the first day back to work after having two glorious weeks off for Spring Break.  Beyond being bummed that I can't live in sweats and workout clothes, I'm excited to finish out the school year and graduate from grad school.  

This spring break was extra special because I traveled up to Seattle for the very first time.  My dear friend, Conni, and I hit the ground running...and there was definitely rain, lots and lots of rain.  I fell in love instantly with the city.  I think I was made for Seattle.  The coffee shops?  Oh, the coffee shops.  Never did we touch a Starbucks, it was always cute little shops filled with cozy locals.  My top fav was Stumptown Coffee.  

If you follow me on Instagram you definitely noticed a trend, the food!  And I would definitely call this the "foodie's guide through Seattle".  I think I can say with confidence that I'm a foodie, I just love food, the ambience of a fantastic restaurant, and the comfort it brings sitting alongside great company.  Oysters became my newest friend.  It was my first time trying them and I think I had the best I will ever have in my lifetime.  If you are looking for some amazing oysters, be ready to wait a while, but you must try The Walrus and the Carpenter.  For a superb cocktail, cheese and bread, Bar Sajor is the best.   This was the first restaurant we went to, and it instantly won me over.  It is small but cozy inside, and you feel like you have access to an amazing kitchen.  The kitchen is wide open in the restaurant, and the pale blue walls coupled with dainty white chairs just made me swoon.  

If you follow Orangette, you will love that we definitely made a stop into Delancey and Essex.  We were so thankful that Essex was right next door, as the wait was quite a while.  But Delancey is another kitchen you are welcomed into with open arms.  We sat and watched the handmade pizzas be proudly placed into the brick oven, fresh salads were prepared right before us...and the food was to die for!  

We dubbed this the trip where we "ate our way through Seattle".  My gym was happy to have me back home to start getting back on track :) 

(I will apologize in advance for the picture overload, and most of them are from restaurants, but they were all just so amazing inside I couldn't resist.)  

Bar Sajor

Oddfellows