Sunny San Diego with a baby

Our itinerary | May 2024

Day 1:

It is always a win when work trips turn into mini vacations with the family and that is exactly how we found ourselves in sunny San Diego!

One of my client's requested an in person meeting in May of 2024 so we decided to have the whole fam tag along. This was also our first official trip without any help, so a big deal all-around + to our home away from home, California.

The flight in that Tuesday wasn't half bad. Weston was a busy body most of the time but sleep (sprawled out in my seat) for a little cat nap, which is all you can ask for. Once we finally landed at LAX, we had to collect all of our belongings before hopping in the car and driving to Anaheim.

Day 2:

That Wednesday, I was with my client in meetings most of the day so Alec was on daddy duty! He ended up taking Weston to Redondo Beach and showing him our old stomping grounds. They walked by our old apartment, hung out at the park, and even had lunch at our favorite restaurant, Redondo Brewing Co.

Once I was finished with my work portion of the trip, the dynamic duo drove back to Anaheim to scoop me up for dinner in Downtown Disney. We ended up eating at the Jazz Kitchen, which we had never been to before. We loved the vibrant colors and coastal theme throughout the entire restaurant. Of course, once we were finished eating, we had to walk around the shops and show Weston what he had to look forward to when we came back to Disneyland for his first birthday in October. And let me tell you what, we are turning this kid into a Disney loving fiend just like his mama and I am perfectly ok with that, sorry Alec ;) After keeping Wes up way past his bedtime (we were just having too much fun), we popped him in the car and drove down to San Diego, which is where we would finish out the rest of our mini vacation.

When we arrived at our Airbnb, we realized that we had made a HUGE mistake staying so late in Anaheim. Weston was a little under the weather at the beginning of this trip anyway and staying up late/being woken up when we tried to transfer him, just made matters worse. After quite the meltdown, we finally were able to calm him down and get him to sleep. Alec and I followed behind shortly after that because we knew we'd be up and at 'em bright and early the next day.

Day 3:

Thursday morning, we woke up and immediately were on the hunt for some coffee! We ended up walking down to the beach to grab a cup of joe from Glazed. While we walked up and down the coast, we quickly made our grocery list for a Trader Joe's run. After we got the necessities for the week, we headed back to our Airbnb to put them away and get ready for the day.

It was a little overcast, per usual for early summer in CA, so nothing we weren't use to. While we waited for the sun, we decided to just hang back at the Airbnb, let Wes play, and just relax.

Around lunchtime the sun finally decided to make an appearance, so we quickly packed our bags and headed for Hotel del Coronado. Normally it is impossible to find parking in the area, but I think since we were there before Memorial Day weekend, we got lucky and missed the major crowds. Once we parked, we walked over to the hotel to enjoy lunch on the beach. They were under quite a bit of construction as well so their normal restaurants were moved to the sand area, but we weren't complaining. After enjoying some tasty meals + refreshing drinks, we made our way down to the water.

Of course, we had to dip little pookie's toes in and he was not a fan . I think overall he liked the beach and water but just didn't care for how cold it was. Who can blame him? After letting Weston play in the sand for a second, we put him down for his nap in this mini beach tent we packed with us. It was perfect for his age, since he wasn't crawling yet, and provided great coverage while still allowing a gentle breeze to pass through. While Weston napped, Alec grabbed us 2 more refreshing drinks from the taco/beach shack to enjoy during our mini parenting break. Once he woke up, we decided to head back to our Airbnb for the evening. We were all pretty tired from the day's activities so we just grilled out burgers + fries and had a chill night in, which was the perfect end to a fabulous day!

Day 4:

Friday morning we had a nice, slow start to the day which was so great! I think Wes was very tired from the day before + still being a little under the weather. After I pumped, I was able to make our sandwiches for lunch before we all walked over to another local coffee shop. Since Alec and I drink black coffee every morning when we are home, on vacations we like to splurge a little and try different coffee shops. It's the little things in life! So we walked to Buzzed (another highly recommended place) to grab some lattes + pastries. While we enjoyed our breakfast treats, we decided to walk on the strand again because when by the beach you have to visit it as much as possible. Or at least that's how we feel now after living in California previoulsy.

After our peaceful, morning stroll, we headed back to the Airbnb to let Weston nap while we got ready for our trip to the San Diego Zoo. If you ever visit SD let this be the one thing you do, it is serioulsy the best zoo we've ever been to (and we basically visit the local zoo in every city we travel to). It is a little more expensive than your average zoo I would say but it is honestly huge and takes hours to get through. The highlights for us this trip were the giraffes, bubbles, and tasty treats!

We were all tuckered out after our day at the zoo, so we headed back to our Airbnb for a little break before dinner. One of the things we loved most about living in CA was how nice the weather is year round practicly therefore making it super easy to walk places. After much deliberation, we decided to eat at a restaurant called Pueblo. Not sure why we picked a mexican food restaurant when we live in Texas and eat that all the time but hey, it had good reviews. Of course we choose to sit on the upper deck patio because who doesn't love dinner with a view. As it always goes, Weston wanted to be out of his carseat and on the move right as our food came out. So Alec and I took turns eating + passing him back and forth. After we finished our meal and got Weston to sleep in his stroller, we decided to go grab a drink at a bar by the water to finish watching the basketball game. It was the perfect end to the night with a beautiful sunset and a Mavericks win.

Day 5:

Saturday morning we took it easy and enjoyed some family cuddles in bed once Weston was awake. This has honestly been one of my favorite things that we have done with him since the day we brought him home from the hospital. Such sweet memories and a great reminder to just slow down.

Once we were ready to get our day going, we decided to head back to Coronado to do a little shopping before another beautiful beach day. We ended up just walking through the neighborhoods, admiring all the gorgeous homes and popping into any store that peaked our interest. There were so many cute little boutique and antique shops, I wish we could have got stuff from but our suitcases were full to the brim. We did end up purchasing these 2 wooden framed pieces of artwork that our perfect for our dining room. Before heading to the beach, we grabbed some Mai Tais at the Islander, which was a cool tiki hut themed restaurant. We didn't eat any food (because we packed wraps for lunch at the beach) but the drinks were delicious!

As soon as we got down to the beach, it was just about Weston's nap time. So I wrapped him in his blankie and rocked him in my arms as the waves crashed on the shore behind us. Another moment I will never forget, and this is why we said this trip was filled with SO many core memories. It is so surreal sometimes just how beautiful life can truly be and the blessing it all is. After my arms got too tired to hold him, I quietly placed him back in his mini tent but the nap didn't last long. Once he was up we all enjoyed some lunch, played in the sand, and snapped lots of pictures to commemorate the sweetest, first beach vacation as a family of three.

San Diego, you've always had a piece of our hearts. Thanks for being the perfect place for our sweet baby boy to experience CA, play in the sand at the beach, and remind us the importance of slowing down to take it all in.

XO,

The Stegalls