The days here are generally warm and sunny and filled with playing and reading and eating. We wake up each day and decide what we feel like doing. There is little planning and structured time and lots of on the fly. Watching the kids is half the fun. When they are playing nicely with each other, a warm contented feeling washes over me. When they are antagonizing each other, it can really ruin the vacation mood. During the hamonious moments, we go with the flow. But when the quarters get too close, we head out on adventures.

The Living Desert is one such adventure – a zoo and plant display on the hills overlooking Palm Desert. We arrived early to beat the heat and enjoyed the animals and beautifully landscaped exhibits. The wild dogs were most interesting to watch as the ran around in a pack and played. There was also a cool aviary housing ravens, a turkey vulture and a few roadrunners. (Beep, beep.) The kids liked the petting zoo. Pictured here, they are petting their new found friend “Patches” the goat.

On the one day when cloud was forecast, we planned to head to the Desert Hills Premium Outlet Mall just outside of town. On the way to the mall, we drive through the hundreds of wind turbines that line the hills at the north end of the city. The mall was good for the girls – Maddy and Linda made out like bandits) - but Ben was not so thrilled with shopping all day. My strategy was to ply him with treats (cookie, hot dog, big pretzel) between trips into Saks Fifth Avenue, Barneys, Calvin Klein, Nike, Bose, etc.  It didn’t help that the temperature dropped 10 degrees between the house and the mall. At one point, it was as low as 54 degrees F and none of us were really dressed for it.

Some problems with the pool heater and skimmer kept us out of the pool on the day after the rain, but though the skies were clear the temperatures were recovering. So we took the chance to hike up the mountain behind the art museum again. It was Maddy’s turn to go with me, but Ella wanted to come along. Eventually, Ben joined in and all four of us head out late morning. Ben gets really animated when he’s hiking on the mountain. He gushes about how beautiful the view is and he helps the girls interpret the trail markers. Everyone did very well as we climbed more than halfway up the 2 miles path to the picnic tables, ascending a good 500 or 600 feet. There were only a few screams, a couple of scratches and a tear. Good thing we didn’t see any of the rattlers that apparently sun on on the rocks. (Gulp.)

I don’t like sitting around the pool all day – LA and Linda seem more inclined that way. So I need to get out for walks, hikes or bike rides. Fortunately, there was one bike here at the house – an almost new TREK 7300 – and I have enjoyed it several times. This is an incredible place to ride, in my opinion. It is scenic and there are many bike paths throughout the region, but particularly in Palm Springs. I like road riding and I like flat terrain for sightseeing and just enjoyment – and this city is great for that. I’ve been riding all over Palm Springs and around Palm Desert as well. A perfect day for me would include a 1-2 hour bike ride. Evening rides are just magnificient, as the warm air cools and the flowers fill the air with a sweetness.

After shabbat dinner last night (and the best red sauce she’s ever made), LA and I headed out for a drink. I had two options in mind for a romantic drink spot: either the Parker Palm Springs resort (sibling to Le Parker Meridien in NYC) way down on E. Palm Canyon Drive or Hotel Zoso in the center of town. She picked Zoso. As we parked and walked up to the hotel entrance, something seemed to be happening. Everyone was in white. And everyone was female. We had happened upon the lesbian event of the year in Palm Springs. The Dinah Shore Weekend is billed as “the 2010 Lesbian vacation spot and Gay holiday weekend singles event”. I walked up to the door(wo)man, dressed in white, and asked what was going on tonight. (Duh.) She explained it was an annual event and it was, ahem, a lesbian event. But we were welcome to go in – we wouldn’t be discriminated against. Some of my best friends are lesbians, I didn’t say. LA and I looked at each other and decided were neither dressed (no white) nor up for a $150 party all night event.

So we headed down to the Parker and had a nice, stiff Kettle One martini in the eclectically designed lobby – right beside the large illuminated art piece hanging over the fireplace that read “DRUGS”. The Parker apparently has one of the most extravagant brunches in the desert, modelled after its NYC mothership. I would love to get down there on Sunday, sans fils. We’ll see what happens.