rice-a-roni, the San Francisco treat........

So, after all the fun, wine, chaos, wine,family, wine, celebrations, wine of the last several days, it was back down to the five us us, packed into our "fuel efficient" red hummer H3 and headed to the big city!! To say that San Fran gave us an accurate sampling of it's infamous weather - just because it's in California and it's on the coast, doesn't mean it has to be warm and sunny!! Ever!!!

Of course we had to drive the girls over the Golden Gate bridge - not that you could see it that day!! Glad we weren't trying to fly anywhere that day - the fog was serious!! Safety awareness zone - darn tootin'!

Speed limit 45? In this fog? We might have been going 25 at our peak!

I swear there is a great big bridge in there somewhere - it's red, it shouldn't be that hard to see!

A slightly better glimpse!

Spoke too soon!

Of course you have to check out the trolley cars when you are in San Francisco!

Lombard street - a must see also! The windiest street in the US (or so they claim!), it is beautiful with all the flowers and the cute little row houses!

And a fabulous view!

we decided it was be really fun to sled down - too bad they never get snow!!!

they do work hard to keep all the landscaping looking nice - it's hard to get stuff to bloom year round!

I thought the prettiest flowers were the ones on the front of this house - the picture really doesn't do it justice, but they were a really bright mulberry color!

I final glance at where we had come from!

Of course Lombard Street isn't exactly a secret, so you can wait in line quite a while if you don't know the short cuts to get to the top! More tomorrow..

Day Seven, Napa Valley California - part two

So anyway, we walk down the kill to the entrance of the cave and this is the hallway that leads us to "the cave" pretty cool huh? Too bad my hallway at home doesn't look like that!

The "cave" was a big room with one great big table, reminiscent of Camelot days, where everyone was able to sit together for the meal. Baby sister and Hubby to be mixed everyone up so that no one was sitting by the person they came with - a chance to get to get to know or get to know better other people who were there that night. I have to admit, it put me out of my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed myself!

I tried to snap a few good pictures before everyone started messing up the table ;) It really was beautiful!

Then I did some low light shots - I actually like the yellow hue it puts out - notice the lighting up at the top...

the table was just beautiful....

OK, this is the real draw for the cave... the chandelier is the roots of a very old grape vine that used to be part of the vineyard and has been "repurposed" into this AMAZING chandelier! Really I have yet to see a picture, even on Hall Rutherford's own website, that can due this chandelier justice. It is one of those moments that can not be captured, that must be stored merely in the recesses of your mind - a very special treasure!

Anyway, the meal was wonderful too and since I was the photographer for the evening I figured that I'd better capture it all!

the main course was really tasty...

I can never say no to dessert, well, almost never ;)

ad it wouldn't be a dinner in Napa without some wine!

The evening had just begun, but I had to set the stage for you.......

day six, Napa Valley California - part three

So, that night was the first big group gathering. Because the place that we were going was about a 45 minute drive and of course wine was going to be served, so to avoid having the wedding party and all the guests drying out in the drunk tank, there was a party bus arranged for our safety and enjoyment! Although hubby rarely drinks so I have a built in designated driver, we were thankful for the bus not only so that we could visit with friends and family whom we don't get to see very often, but as we got closer, the roads up to the vineyard were crazy windy and steep.

Once we arrived at our destination, a dream like winery called Kuleto's, everyone poured out of the bus and I was able to get a quick picture of the girls with my nephew - Baby Sister's son -what a dapper lad!

You can never take a bad picture of wine bottles in my opinion!!

Baby Sister, bride-to-be, a seriously classy lady ;) Always be prepared, carry your own bottle on the walking tour to ensure that you don't run out before we get back to the bar!! Her years working with her son's boy scout troop - they don't have that motto for nothin'!!!

One of the beautiful view of their vineyard we saw during our walk.

I love when I catch a picture like this one, great lighting, great timing - some of the grapes just barely starting to turn, nature just hands it to you!

My nephew had run ahead of the group and sat on this wall overlooking the valley below, just beautiful.

Every once in a while I step away from behind the camera and get in front of it instead. I do it for posterity - I want some proof that I actually walked the earth! If I had it my way, I would just take the pictures but I know that the kids would be upset after I'm dead if there aren't any pictures of me to show their grandkids! It's a selfless act!

This made the night for me! If I could I would spend every evening sitting in on these chairs looking at this view with a glass of wine and a book - perfection!

The evening was lovely. Lots of good conversations with people I adore and a little surprise for my Dad. As you may recall, he turned 70 in June. Anyway, they surprised him with an enthusiastic rendition of "Happy Birthday" and a variety of cool cupcakes from a local bakery! In my opinion you just celebrate your birthday for as long as you can!!

Day six, Napa Valley California - part two

Yes, we tasted some more - tasted, not guzzled (it's not polite apparently). There's a gorgeous little winery called Swanson's tucked off a side road - the kind of place you need to know about, not one that you would stumble over otherwise. And of course, by appointment only - we're cool that way!

The inside of the tasting room was absolutely beautiful - decorated by the wife of the owner I believe, red-orange walls and these really neat paintings on all four walls all the way up to the cathedral ceiling and this sweet chandelier hanging above the tasting table. I'm surprised they let us in!

Each place was set just like this with an interesting variety of foods that will accompany the wines that we were going to be tasting - they were to enhance the flavors of the wine, but both were fabulous on their own too!

Post second wine tasting, we took a couple pictures in this little tee pee thing outside in the gardens. Hubby and I are a classy couple and enjoy posing for formal portraits whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Just to be fair - he has no more class than I do ;)

Can you guess where our last stop of the day was...... just a final "errand" to take care of, no big deal or anything!

Baby sister's Hubby to be signing his life away!!

The happy couple right before they make it official - still smiling!

Stay tuned friends, there is way more to come still!!

Day six, Napa Valley California - part one

Yes, I know there's no day four or five, we spent most of them in the car and although we had a lovely dinner with some friends that Hubby used to work with on day four, I failed to take a single picture - bummer. Anyway, some memories must find away to stay intact in that tired little brain of mine I guess! Day five Hubby left us again to play golf with the father of the groom and a couple of the groom's friends, so the girls and I meandered up to Napa and spent a little time by the pool and connecting with some of the other early arrivals!! Days six and on have way too many pictures, you'll be glad I skipped a day or two!!

So, our first full day in Napa started with a siblings wine tasting! That meant Baby Sister, her hubby-to-be and his twin brother along with me and my hubby! Hubby to be (soon to be referred to as BIL - brother in law) had a little "work" to take care of so the laptop went on the road with us, but we were able to get it out of his hands and replace it with a glass of wine pretty quickly!!!

Baby Sister and Hubby listening to the tour guide explain the differences in the soil all around the Napa and Sonoma area - she can't even fake looking interested in dirt! Just waiting for the tasting part of the tour!!

Wish my basement looked like this!

Yummy, yummy, yummy!! Nickel and Nickel wines were fabulous!!

The entire group we tasted with - one couple was from Chicago, the other from Seattle - it was a fun group and we were sooooo excited when they gave us our "boxes" to take home!!

The fake entrance to Nickel and Nickel - cool pix huh?

Their labels look just like this sign - very pretty!

Baby Sister and Hubby-to-be at lunch. Aren't they cute?

Hubby and Hubby-to-be's twin brother!

Lunch was super yummy, but we didn't allow enough time to actually enjoy it - we had missed our first tasting to sleep in (still jet lagged?) made it to Nickel and Nickel for the "2nd" tasting and did not want to miss the third, so we ate half our lunch in 5 minutes and took the rest to go! The Rutherford Cafe was tasty and accommodating!!

So, that was the first part of the day, tomorrow, part two! I know you can hardly wait!!

a nod to my dear friend...

for those of you who don't read my dear friend's blog www.cheaperthantherapyjen.blogspot.com , she is a dear friend, part of the toetat5 and blogging mentor!!  These pictures from our recent camping trip are a nod to her - my inspiration!!  Tho I don't always buy my wine from the labels, these two I had to try!

Wild bunch was actually pretty decent.

Manage a Trois - who could walk by this one with out giving it a chance?  It's ok, but I prefer a drier wine - those of you with fruitier palates my like it!!  

Stay tuned for more labels as I work my way through the wine aisle!!