Hi friends!
I’ve been a little MIA but for a good reason. We took off on a little mini getaway to Monterey!
I’m not sure why we hadn’t taken The Love Nugget here before but we finally decided to just do it. We realized as we drove there that the last time we visited the area was when The Love Nugget was just a peanut in my belly! I think I was around 8 weeks if that 
So it was fun to reminisce about that trip while we explored the area with him this time.
It’s a little over a three hour drive for us so we split up the trip with a pit stop at an outlets to do a little shopping.
The Hubby and I were both excited about the Lululemon Outlet but were also both disappointed in their selection. They have more available online in their “We made too much” section… Oh well! We did find some great deals at Reebok and Gap outlet so it was still a successful stop.
Since The Love Nugget was a very patient shopper, we headed straight to the Dennis the Menace park when we got into Monterey.
He had a blast and definitely burned off some energy
We checked into our hotel which was actually in Pacific Grove just south of Monterey. We were just a block from the ocean so I took advantage of our vicinity and went for an early morning run Monday morning.
It was gorgeous and awesome. I didn’t take my headphones and really took the time to just enjoy the scenery. I even made a pit stop to sit on a bench and mediate. While sitting enjoying the beauty, I saw a whale too! Such a great way to start the day
Of course our main reason for going was to take him to The Monterey Bay Aquarium.
The Love Nugget was beyond excited and ran around from room to room exploring. We could barely keep up with him!
Penguins! My favorite
Touch pools so cool!
They felt sort of slimy but so cool!
Jellyfish amazingness!
Underwater Experience. So awesome!
The aquarium was so cool and I highly recommend it to anyone with or without kids in the area.
Since he zoomed through the aquarium and we were there right as they opened we had the afternoon to explore more of the area. So we drove down to Caramel which is such a fun little town to explore.
Pit stop to taste some wine because wine not 
A yummy lunch at La Bicyclette. Grass-fed burger on a lettuce wrap with salad. Yum!
Then it was beach time!
The Love Nugget would have stayed all night if he could have!
Hermit crabs!
Our lodge had a nice courtyard and fire pit so we decided to have a snacky dinner with wine.
While The Love Nugget cruised around on his bike
It was the perfect way to end a busy but fun day!
We woke up to thick fog the next morning so we relaxed listening to the drizzle before heading off to get some breakfast.
Ashley had shared a picture of her yummy acai bowl on Instagram from Tillie Gorts so we just had to go there too. It was delicious but unfortunately the service was pretty bad which is never fun especially when dining with kids. I had to get up to get our menus after we sat for several minutes. At least my food was good
One more pit stop at Lover’s Point before making the drive home.
Such a fun little family getaway and it will definitely be one we repeat again soon!
QUESTIONS –
- If you’re in California, have you been to the Monterey Bay Aquarium?
- Where was the last mini vacation you took to?
The post A Family Getaway to Monterey! appeared first on My Healthy Happy Home.