Whether in work, home life or travel, Dione Laufenberg believes dreams should be big— or lofty, as she likes to say.
On her blog, Laufty Life, she chronicles the adventures of her family — her husband James and their daughters, seven-year-old Misha and ten-year-old Giana — as they explore destinations around the Midwest and much farther flung.
Raised in Madison and DeForest respectively, Dione and James met in college at UW-Madison and then moved to Atlanta, where they lived for five years before returning to Wisconsin to start a family. James began working for the state investment board and Dione opened a day spa, which she ran for eight years. After selling the spa, she helped a friend’s business while taking writing courses and thinking about her next endeavor. “You can’t keep an entrepreneur in a part-time position for someone else for too long,” she says with a laugh.
Laufty Life started as a space for haircare tips for biracial and naturally curly hair, like her daughters’, but it has since grown into a lifestyle and travel blog. And in 2018, Dione launched Swurly, a line of luxury silk sleep products that protect hair and preserve styles.
Home base for the Laufenbergs is the Sun Prairie home they built six years ago. Many of Dione and James’ relatives still live in the area, and the family finds plenty to do around town.
“Madison is a great city,” she says. “Prior to Covid, we would do so many things. We loved Dane Dances and Concerts on the Square. We would meet my husband downtown for a fish fry.”
The family also loves the convenience of the Dane County airport for jetting off on one of their fabulous getaways. Dione and James bought into a travel club years ago and developed a love for all-inclusive resorts, especially in the Caribbean. Their daughters have quickly followed suit.
Spring break this year took the family to the U.S. Virgin Islands, where they all enjoyed checking out different beaches. And the girls have been asking to go to Jamaica, a place their parents have visited several times.
The family did some other careful traveling during Covid, heading out to Colorado last summer and over to Michigan to explore little lake towns.
“I am a busybody and I like to explore and discover things and keep the excitement going,” Dione says. But she finds the relaxation of a trip to be good for her family.
“My husband is a hard-working man and someone who has to be extracted,” she says. “If we are home, there is something he is going to find to do. But when we take him out of that environment, he has no choice but to relax. And it’s kind of the same with the girls.”
Looking ahead to future travels, Dione has her eye on September, when she turns forty. She already has a trip to Las Vegas in the works, and she knows it’ll be a fun time.
“You have to have really high hopes for everything — lofty hopes,” she says.
– Katie Vaughn
Katie Vaughn is the editor and co-founder of Northerly. She is a University of Wisconsin-Madison and Stanford University-trained journalist with experience as a writer, reporter, editor, blogger and author. She lives in Madison with her husband, daughter and son, and is always up for an adventure.