TRAVEL: 11 ladies + 0 kids = Palm Springs

I’ve been in a blog funk lately.
Maybe the summer has zapped it out of me.
It just seems that every Monday I have a well thought-out plan of the 3 to 4 blog posts I’m going to share during the week.  And then before I know it’s Friday.  Like today!  And nothing’s happened on the blog. 
I’ve tried not to fight it.  I’m enjoying the summer fun with the kids and taking trips where we can and plugging away at the house!  Okay, truth….THAT has been sucking away my blogging mojo.  All I want to do is scour Houzz and online design shops to make it as perfect as I envision.

So it’s a mix of things.
But when you’re in a funk I guess the best place to start is by blogging about something that totally excites you.
A weekend getaway with 3 of my sisters and 7 of my cousins, in Palm Springs, CA?
Yep. That’ll do.


Dude. This was just what I needed last week.

A rental house in Palm Desert, CA fully equipped with a swimming pool, beach cruisers, and some of my favorite people to hang out with.  Yay!
Between the 11 of us, our husbands took care of our 25 kids.

And I love my kids.
But I truly believe that taking breaks from them makes me a better mom.  It helps me remember that I used to be fun once, and I’m excited to see them again when we reunite.

In fact “being mom” this week has run a lot smoother than I would have thought, since Casey is now away on his own trip.


A little food, folks, and fun.  That’s all you need.
The Beatles had it wrong.

Oh, and some crazy large palm trees.
And about 3-4 hour sessions in the swimming pool.

And a little bit of this….
(come check out the details!)

My sister Camille and sister-in-law Laura coordinated the whole weekend and invited all the girl cousins in our family to come.  11 of us were able to go and they found a lovely house with enough beds for everyone.

…after a bit of rearranging.

I coordinated swag bags and everyone threw goodies inside when we got there.

We loved and laughed at the decor.   Tons of pretty damask and throw backs to Hollywood.

And then some really random Japanese items thrown in.

But everywhere you looked, there were tons of great details.  I loved looking for the fine design print.



…like crystal doorknobs.

And a pile of Streisand and Sinatra.  Pure Palm Springs.


Even the A/C grills were pretty!

And it definitely wouldn’t be a house with out Marilyn and Elizabeth.  They watched over our Kickboxing in the morning and Just Dance moves at night.



They even left their swim caps behind, if any of us could reach them.

It was a fabulous little (big) house, with a spectacular view of San Gorgonio.

We used the bikes to cruise around the neighborhood.


And loved all the local architecture.

If I were a Palm Springs house, I’d definitely have an orange door.

And if I were as fun as my sister Mere, I’d skate by Elvis Presley’s honeymoon home.

The reality of the weekend?….is that we mostly did this:

and this:

“It didn’t suck”


We also ate at local spots:

found local icons:

and yea.
We did a whole lot of this:

It’s funny to think of leaving hot Texas to hang out in the hot California desert.


But it was really great!

Even riding bikes in 110 degrees was a blast.

Sweaty ride = diving in the pool later.

And who can resist all these mid-century modern lovelies?….and my sister Camille who can ride with a Diet Coke in-hand.

…or the whacked off palm trees that remind me of a Lloyd Christmas haircut.



Thanks Palm Springs!  I had a great weekend ladies! Hope we do it again next year….or sooner…
Check out other travel posts here:
Charlotte to CharlestonSan FranciscoCalifornia BeachesPort Aransas Beach, TX • AtlantaDallasto Tucson

And I hope that brings me out of my funk!
Stay tuned next week as the kids go back to school and I go back to Dana default.
Have a great weekend!

  1. Seriously an awesome weekend! It feels like it was so long ago:( And we are such total cheese-balls! Haha! Thx again for the awesome swag bag! Totally been using it this week. My kids died over my floating pink flamingo!

  2. Beautiful and SMART! All you ladies know whats up, and a girls trip is definitely the real deal. So. Much. Fun. Your sister who skateboards, please tell me she has kids. I really want to get back on a skateboard. She totally inspired me.

    • 3) Dana

      haha. she doesn’t have kids. she’s still single. But I’m impressed you ride! You can totally get back into it! You’ll inspire others 🙂

  3. I followed you along Instagram and was jealous of every moment! 🙂 Your summer bloggy funk is SO TRUE! I have felt like I have a very boring blog over the summer. The kids being around and no forced schedule makes for a very tired end-of-day blog post, which is never as good as you want it to be! Thanks for sharing.

    • 5) Dana

      haha. isn’t that the truth. I keep thinking, “how many times to readers want to hear me complain about how I have no time to do anything this summer?”…which means no blog posts 🙂
      Oh well. I guess that’s life.
      Next summer I’ll keep lower expectations for myself!

  4. Wow!!! Looks like the best weekend! I wanna have one of those! Gorgeous house, spot, friends and I do love the Flamenco inflatable drink holders!! THE BEST! Yep, all Mums need such times just to enjoy some shits and giggles 🙂

  5. 7) Teresa

    Dude… I love your pictures. And this post. And last weekend. I’m gonna be re-living through these pictures for a while!

  6. THANK YOU! Total blog funk here too. Thanks for sharing these photos though, your ladies weekend looks divine! Must do something like that with my sisters/mom/cousins in the next few years.

  7. Love this post!!! Looks like a great time! I’m also seeing where the design influence for the houses in my neighborhood (in Hawaii) came from! Some of those houses look like larger versions of mine and my neighbors!

  8. Oh my gosh, what a wonderful getaway … good for you! Thanks for sharing all the beautiful pics.

  9. 12) kam

    this feels like a lifetime ago. i love all the pictures you took. kinda selfish but i knew you would handle that so i left my cool camera behind. i made quite a few appearances on your blog. i feel special. especially the emo pic of me trying to figure out your self timer. “it didn’t suck” love you dana!

  10. “I used to be fun once” ha! This is so true. What an amazing trip! It looks like you girls had a great time (being at the pool and relaxing?!? I don’t remember what that feels like!)

    And that house does have some amazing details. I really love the front doors. Glad you got to refresh!

  11. 14) Karis

    What a great recap with words and pictures! I loved every minute of that trip. So fun being with you. Thanks for the swag bags. They were a really cute and fun idea!

  12. 15) Nicola

    Perhaps the intensity of the Super Shorts Shenanigans has contributed to the Funk! Come back to us soon please!

  13. 16) allyson

    Looks like an amazing trip. How can I get more information on the rental house?

  14. 17) V

    Marilyn and AUDREY!

  15. Ha ha I love “I used to be fun once”! I totally feel like that too so starting to make an effort to have some me time, not just mummy time! Now, to convince husband and son to let me have an awesome weekend trip… Next post on tips how to wangle a weekend away? 😉

  16. 19) Carolyn Thornley

    Fun to see all the smiles in your pics.

  17. Looks like a fabulous time! And wow, what a family you have! 🙂 Lisa

  18. 21) Lizzy

    Oh!! what a great time you had! just girls! so fun! ….well, sometimes too many girls can maje the enviroment a little heavy, I mean, I have 4 sisters, just ocne we had traveld together (as adults) and we had a great time but at some point we got streesed hehehehe, but it seems you all had a great time, the house is beautiful and the pictures are great!

  19. What a fun post! My boys sat here looking at the pictures and they were impressed by the skateboarding sister and I loved the floating diet cokes. Such great shots and it really looked like a fun trip. The swag bags were to die for.

  20. What an awesome vacation. All my vacations in the last ten years have been stressful! I need something like this. Way to do it up right! You are so blessed to have such awesome family in your life. And I love your vacation recaps always!

  21. I loved following along on your adventure! And while we were in the snow you had such a beautiful desert paradise! I love family, and it feels good to see other families getting along so well too <3

    And the photos are so pretty!

  22. Wow – I’m so jealous! You are so lucky to have a great bunch of girls to get away with!

  23. Sounds like the perfect trip and what a great place to explore! Those blue skies and hot weather make me very envious, summer in the UK has been and gone and we’re now left with rain, lots of it! Ps. where are those floating flamingo can holders from? I definitely need some of those in my life!

  24. 28) Jen

    looks amazing. I sure love PS! Those diet coke flamingos were incredible.

  25. 29) SallyJ

    I want to see more skateboarding pictures now! Looks cool!

  26. oh fun!!! i totally need to organize that with my cousins! I’ve always wanted a sister, so my cousins are pretty much the only sisters I’ve got. And to have a mini-vacay with them would be so fun now that we’re all grown up. So fun! You guys are inspirational. And as to the funk, it has to be something about the dwindling days of summer. I love that you’re just rolling with it, me too.

  27. That looks like sooo much fun. What an awesome bunch of family you have.

  28. 33) Katie Kortman

    That looks like an absolutely fabulous weekend! And I agree. I love my kids but taking a break really helps me appreciate them again;)

  29. 34) Emily Ernst

    Fun! Hi Kam!!

  30. How fab! Def rounding up my lovely sisters-in-law for a girls’ weekend soon! x

  31. 36) linda

    Love the pics of your girl getaway. Looks like tons of fun!! Really want to know what brand the glittery sandals are in the pic of the two sets of feet. I have seen those on someone on a trip to California recently and seeing them again makes me REALLY want a pair.

  32. 37) Elizabeth

    Love the Bateau Neck Shirts! So cute with the added fun bow!

  33. 38) Jenny

    I just found your blog and I LOVE it! Looks like you ladies had such a wonderful time! The photos are lovely! I was wondering if you may share what fabric you used for the bags I love it?! Also do you have this pattern on your blog? I would like to give it a try! Thank you!! 🙂

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