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30 Hours in Avalon, Catalina
The island of Santa Catalina has taunted me from 22 miles off the coast of California since I first visited Laguna Beach in 2009. Sometimes completely shrouded by the marine layer, often appearing only as a silhouette on the horizon at sunset, and occasionally giving us glimpses of glowing rocks on the east end when the morning sun reflects back through a clear sky, Catalina is an intriguing presence when you live along the coast of Southern California. My family, in celebration of our wedding anniversary and my husband’s birthday on the same weekend, finally visited for a short one-night stay to get a taste of what the island has to…
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30 Hours in San Diego
Vacations don’t always require long flights and big budgets. Since moving to Southern California, I set a goal for my family to take short trips exploring our new state. Follow along as we find the best places for both family and romantic getaways close to our new home. San Diego, California’s second largest city, is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Anza-Borrego Desert and the Laguna Mountains to the east, and Mexico to the south. Its diverse neighborhoods are spread out over 4,200 square miles and nestled along 70 miles of sunny Southern California coastline, with a gentle Mediterranean climate and a welcoming vibe. Consistently rated one of the top…
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The Center Stage Studio (and My Second Childhood)
When we first realize that our child is interested in our own passions, the first thought is elation. I KNOW that! I know how that world works, I did it once too! We can chat with the other adults running the program as if we are old colleagues. We know the requirements, the routines, the general culture around it. And of course there’s that evolutionary parent pride, knowing that they must have gotten some gene that made them more like you. But then the next emotions come through: yeah, I know that world. I remember the hard work, the heartbreak, and all the things about it that scared me and…
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Sawdust Art Festival’s Winter Fantasy
For those of us lucky enough to live in or be visiting Southern California this month, a can’t-miss event is the Sawdust Art Festival’s 24th Annual Winter Festival. As this is our first winter living in Laguna Beach, we were eager to attend the opening day festivities on Saturday. We spent the afternoon and evening walking the sawdust-covered paths through the hand-crafted village with new friends; the kids got their faces painted while the adults enjoyed wine, the weather was SoCal-perfect (Hats and gloves? Purely for fashion’s sake!), and we all filled our heads with visions of local art under our trees this year. The festival grounds have been transformed into…
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It Will Be Ok, Mom. (Back To School Post)
As our crazy busy summer came to an end, I started brainstorming all of the original content I would create for this blog as soon as the munchkin headed off to school in the morning today. Wanting for weeks to write for you, I quickly learned that shuttling her around to various summer camps in a part of the country I was previously unfamiliar with (new roads, traffic patterns, tourists!) while maintaining a home that is undergoing renovation was too much to do. But this morning our little family rose and readied early and walked down to the elementary school bus stop on Coast Highway. With the grey Pacific Ocean…
