We started off early to avoid the heat since we knew we wanted to go to Joshua Tree National Park. Thankfully the temperature had dropped overnight and the park is 5000 feet higher than Palm Springs, so we ended up with wonderful cool, sunny weather for our visit. After an hour-long drive we made it to the ranger station near the west entrance of the park. At the ranger station we made sure to collect the mandatory park patches and a few souvenirs.  From there we headed onto Park Drive to see the sights. The park’s namesake trees can be ancient: some are a thousand years old. The landscape is surreal. The trees have a Dr. Seuss like feel and are spread out across a large open valley. There are huge rock formations that seem gravity defying with boulders haphazardly piled on top of more boulders. Clearly, this is a rock climbers haven and looking up at the massive rocks one often saw a figure belaying someone below. We decided on the Hidden Valley trail, a one mile loop. In a rookie mistake we had Vera start out hiking while Steven carried the litter. Vera was so overwhelmed with the number of rocks (one of her favorite things) and all of the things to see that our pace was leisurely to say the least.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Vera’s stamina waned and it was at the point we realized we left snacks in the car. As we got her in the carrier and a meltdown approached, Steven remembered he had a secret stash of Cheerios (what a pro!) and we continued our hike while Steven blindly handed Cheerios over his head back to Vera. The hike definitely heated up. After the hike we headed to a park bench for lunch and to rest our legs.

We decided to drive to Keys View which is 5,185 feet high to give a spectacular view of the Coachella Valley. It was a quick trip out of the car and back in.

Continuing on the winding road we decided to stay in the car while Steven checked out the Cholla Cactus garden. We were advised at the ranger station to not take our toddler to this attraction. The stop had many warning signs and a first aid kit complete with a set of pliers.

• 

• 

We made it back to the AirBnB and despite being overly tired, Vera did not nap and was introduced to ping pong.

• 

• 

For dinner I had suggested to Steven that we settle on a frozen pizza since everyone seemed wiped and multiple people skipped out on naps. However, we decided to eat out after all and Steven and I began researching allergy friendly options close by. We settled on a bistro. Described as “modern California cuisine” we thought a bistro would be casual dining with good ambiance. It turned out to be very upscale and we were definitely not. They did have the kids option of mac n cheese but Vera settled on the duck leg and breast confit with a sweet potato puree. We were worried about a two year old at a high class establishment until the guitar player started. The guitar happens to be Vera’s favorite instrument and pretty soon she was dancing to the music and playing her air guitar. She did extremely well and really liked the duck. At home we got ready for bed and Aunt Em serenaded us on her own guitar before hitting the hay.

• 

•