Jetting up to Seattle for a quick overnighter is one of my favorite dates. I actually find Seattle to be super romantic! Maybe because I associate it with cozy weather and good food (aka- my romance recipe), but it really does set up a great a date vibe.

Since I’m not much of a big city person (and neither is Tyson), rather than staying right downtown, we prefer to stay on the outskirts, specifically in Ballard! It just such a cute area.

Here is my go-to itinerary for a quick stay in Seattle:

1. Stay at Hotel Ballard: Hands down, my favorite hotel up there. It is smaller, quaint and on one of my favorite streets. It’s the perfect “date night” spot, in my opinion. Not to mention, by staying there you have access to the best gym: the Olympic Athletic Club. I’m not a stickler about going to the gym on vacation, but when you see this place, you will want to workout! Trust me.

2. Discovery Park: Spend a morning taking in the beautiful views hiking around the park. Give yourself at least a few hours to explore and enjoy.

3. Pikes Place Market: We like to head here on our way back to Portland, just in case we decide to pick up any seafood and flowers, which normally always happens.

4. Seafood Dinner: Grab a great seafood dinner at either Ray’s Boathouse (all about the view) or Rockcreek Seafood and Spirits (more of a Seattle-living feel).

5. Drink Coffee Like a Local: Seattle takes their coffee seriously, that’s for sure. Head on over to La Marzocco, Victrola or Slate Coffee.

6. Shop: Spend some time walking around Ballard, Downtown, Belltown or Capitol Hill. We love supporting the local-made shopping in Seattle.

7. Grab Lunch: I personally love downtown for lunch. I recommend either the cozy and cute, London Plane or grabbing some clam chowder at Pikes Place Market.

I’m on the hunt for a new great restaurant to try up there so please send me any recommendations. Preferably in the Ballard or Fremont area!

xx

I’m almost in tears just writing this, because honestly- as I recap our road trip, I keep thinking about how the best part of it all was having so much time with Parker. This was the first solid chunk of time I’ve been able to spend with him since I was on my (very short) maternity leave. I had two weeks straight (TWO STRAIGHT!) with him. Full days! And it was heaven. He’s honestly just so much fun and I’ve never loved something so dang much in my entire life. I don’t know how else to describe it, but I’m going to wipe my tears now and pull myself together (hashtag momlife?).

Okay, okay, back to the road trip…

Thanks to a cooperating kiddo, we decided that rather than driving up back up the California route, we’d drive up through Nevada, Utah, Boise and then back to home Portland. Whew!

Tyson and I had been wanting to see Park City, Utah and that is exactly what we did. We drove straight from Temecula, CA to Park City, UT with only ONE stop in St. George. At this point we were basically professional road trippers, so the one-stop on a 10 hour drive just felt like the “advanced” thing to do. Only natural…

When we arrive to our hotel, The Chateaux in Park City, we both just did a big “sighhhhhh.” It felt so great to be there not only because we were so wiped out from driving, but because the place was SO beautiful and so cozy.

We rolled out of the car to check in, all while I had a massive water mark on my butt from spilling water in the car and Parker was walking around with a full blowout diaper. I tried to keep my cool and effortlessly cover up my backside with my purse while I was standing at check-in, rather than explain to everyone that I DID NOT pee my pants and it was just water… All while Tyson was unloading the ridiculous amount of luggage that comes with having a kid and wife that is a notorious over-packer.

Anyway, we got settled into our room, headed out to a few Breweries in town and then came RIGHT back to hang out in the room. After so much traveling, sitting in a hotel bed with the fire on while drinking a glass of red wine sounded perfect, so that’s what we did. They even set Parker up with a crib and blanket, so he felt riiiiight at home.

The next morning we packed up our stuff for the millionth time and headed straight for Boise, Idaho to stay with my close friend and her husband. We didn’t get in until late, but since it was our last night of this long road trip, we had to eat our favorite restaurant, Juniper. This place is just the best! And so is Boise for that matter. I’m not quite sure what it is about that place, but Tyson and I love it there.

And….

home.

It’s always nice to be back home.

Almost two weeks ago we said, what the heck, and drove our way down the west coast. I literally googled “are long car rides a form of torture for toddlers?” And “20 ways to entertain a toddler in the car.” We packed our car with just about all of our belongings and kept Parker entertained with his tablet full of tv shows, a few new books and LeapFrog games. This kid, I tell ya… he was SUCH a champ. We were so dang relieved and so thankful.

We left at 4am so Parker would just go right back to sleep, which he did until about 7:30am. And that tablet, that I swore I would never give my child… LIFESAVER! I take back every comment I previously made about those things. We propped it on the back of the headrest and we suddenly became “one of those” cars with the tv. Whatever! We managed to make only one stop for lunch and gas and then…

First stop, San Fran! Well, more like Tiburon (on the other side of the golden gate bridge). After driving over 10 hours the last thing we wanted was a big city to sleep in. And boy were we right.

Tiburon is SO charming, so relaxed and very quiet. Just what we were hoping for.

We stayed at the Lodge at Tiburon and were greeted at our room with the tastiest cheese plate I’ve had in a long time. I immediately put on the hotel robe and popped open some champagne while I procrastinated on doing anything else. Vacation mode ON. We didn’t even leave the hotel that night. We ate dinner at their restaurant, Tiburon Tavern, and I’m not kidding- that was the best meal I’ve had in a long time! We went all out. I even had a steak, which I haven’t had in a LONG time (I stopped eating cow/pig awhile ago). The waiter gave us a whole rundown on where it came from (just up the road), how it was raised and how they treat their animals. Like straight out of the Portlandia episode, but in the best way possible. We were really impressed and can’t wait to be back.

The next day we drove our way down the coast. We stopped in Santa Cruz to see Tyson’s cousin, and then drove by Capitola. What a cute place!

Then, we finally made it to my favorite town, Carmel.

Carmel is like a storybook. It has always been a family favorite of ours growing up and it proved to be the same, charming town like I remember.

 

We stayed at the Hotel Carmel, which was recently renovated. This is one of the best places I’ve stayed in a long time and I will definitely be back. Quaint, cozy and decorated really well.

We checked in, walked around town, then put Parker down for a nap. The best part about our room was that it was on a lower level right next to their outside fire pit. Our video monitor was able to reach it, so Tyson and I walked outside and had a glass of wine while the little man napped. Major plus!! We ended up ordering takeout that night and eating it in the room, because why the heck not?

The next morning the boys stayed in bed late while I went for a run down to the beach. It felt so refreshing to see the ocean and I soaked up every little bit of alone time I could!

Part two coming soon! Happy Friday everyone!