Chicago

Lance had a meeting in Chicago last week…so I flew out and met him for the weekend! I have been to Chicago several times but this was Lance’s first trip so we did a lot of tourist-y things…Cubs game, museums, the bean, Michigan ave, etc…and ate a lot of good food.  It was a fun weekend and we were a little sad to leave and come back to normal life…I would move there in a heartbeat.

Recently

Well I’ve been kinda busy the last couple weekends…

putting the moves on my boy Percy at Vikes training camp

Watching “Hard Knocks” Live…and professing my love for Christian.  If only HK was actually on this year…my Wednesdays would be a lot more awesomesauce.

Watching friends say “I Do”…with the most heartwarming vows.

Spending time with good friends we don’t get to see nearly often enough…that just happen to be expecting! (bring on the knitting!)

Crazy fun times with all these crazy kids

Then this past weekend my little sis came out to SLC to hang…and turn 20.  We did a lot of stuff…like watch MTV, tie-dyed shirts, shopped, ate, got pedicures, made friendship bracelets…and when you live in the mountains…you gotta go for a hike….so we did…an easy one.

Still got some snow up there!

We drug Lance along…he enjoyed it.

Ang gave Utah a thumbs up!

So that basically sums up my life the last couple of weeks…now it’s just 2 more weeks until FOOTBALL!!!!!!!  Which means our yearly trip back to Neb to cheer on the BIG RED!  Woop…I’m excited.

The Silverado Trail

The good thing about taking it easy on Sunday when we got to Napa…we woke up bright and early ready to get our taste on Monday morning.  After stuffing our faces with plenty of carbs and waffles via the BW Elm House Inn…we were on our way to our fist tasting.

I guess I should mention that we only booked 2 tours prior to getting to Napa.  Our first one was on Monday at 1pm.  So basically what we did every morning was look at the map…and my list of “possible visits” …then came up with a game plan and headed out.  Monday we decided to start our wine adventure out on the Silverado Trail.

Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars (not to be confused with Stags’ Leap Winery):

The reason we chose the (‘s) version is because back in 1976 when they did the blind tasting in Pairs (that basically put Napa on the map…or so they tell me) Stag’s Leap’s Cabernet took 1st place.  I’m a sucker for a good “Cab Sauv”…so duh obv we had to go there.

They had 2 tasting options…the Estate ($30) and the Napa Valley Collection($15).  We did one of each so basically we got to taste everything.  Def recommend going this route.

The reds…all were pretty amazing…then again wine at 10:30 am is always amazing.

We walked out with our first wine purchase…the Artemis Cabernet Sauvignon.  Well actually we ended up with 2 bottles.  It was either spend $100 on one bottle and the tastings…OR spend $100 and get 2 bottles and get the tasting comped…yeah like we even had to think twice about that…SOLD!  Our server guy was really nice and threw in a bottle opener too.  I think he felt bad for us b/c we’re from Utah.  Needless to say we were pretty pleased with our first stop!

I gave it a thumbs up!

With 8 different wines in us we decided we should pry get some food…so off to Yountville we went.  It was a tough choice…but we ultimately picked Pacific Blues Cafe over The French Laundry.  (haha…yeah right like FL was ever even a choice for us).  It was great and we had a fun view from the patio.

Well fueled and thirsty for more wine…we made our way to

Del Dotto Caves:

This was the very first tour I booked…like back in February I was so excited about it.  Caves and drinking wine straight from barrels…yep sounds like my kinda thing.  And holy crap did it live up to our expectations and beyond!  Our young/cute tour guide Ryan was really laidback and fun…I think we lucked out with him…I’m sure it would have been great with another guide but Ryan was awesome.

At the entrance of the cave!

While we guzzled down wine…we actually managed to learn quite a bit about the whole barrel process.  We got to taste the same wine out of an American barrel and a French Barrel side by side…and then we mixed them together and tasted it.  The entire experience was really neat…and well worth the $80 (tour price for 2 of us).  I would do this one again in fact.  We didn’t end up buying any wine (they are not cheap!)…but we def walked out “feeling good” if you know what I mean.

By the time we left Del Dotto it was going on 3pm..and so we decided to stop at one more place before heading back into Napa.

Mumm Napa:

Mumm specializes in sparking wines.  We aren’t big sparking wine drinkers but thanks to Wally we had a 2-for-1 coupon and it was on our way back to Napa..so we went.

They have a patio set up where you can sit and enjoy the view while tasting on your own….instead of having to buck up at a bar like a lot of the wineries.

They also had a free photography gallery which we walked through before heading on our way.

Once in Napa we hit up  Bounty Hunter for their excellent happy hour special.  The food was amazing!  Seriously…I’m craving it just typing this.  If you love BBQ and wine then you must go!!

That pretty much did it for our first day!  I don’t know how people manage going to like 5-6 wineries in a day!  We did 3 and we were spent…we went to bed around 9:30 again.  What we’re old.

Gott’s & TJ’s

The drive to Napa was pretty awesome…the small Bay towns and “hills”…the sun…and once you turn off onto the highway to Napa it’s vineyards galore!  Just row after row of grapes!  So so cool.

We stopped off at a little place just south of Sonoma…mostly b/c we saw a giant “INFORMATION” sign pointing in that direction…and also because we just wanted to get out into the sun and walk around a bit!  I forget what the place is called…but they had a bunch of “sculpture” garden type things…where different artists used a block an did their thing.  One was a giant garden…and being new to gardening Lance & I took a look around.

This particular tomato vine/bush (what is it?) stuck out for obvious reasons.  We were celebrating our “Nebraska Wedding” anniversary after all!  The also had corn…and boy do we love corn.

and this cool cloud/rain thing made of tulle and crystals.  I thought it was pretty neat…being a meteorologist and all.

Amazingly we did not taste any wine even though they had a tasting room. (FYI…tastings rooms are ALL OVER up there…you can’t escape them)  Instead we headed into Napa and ate/drank some wine at Gott’s.  It was really good..and they had 1/2 bottles of wine which get me really excited.  We gave it 2 thumbs up.

Then we just wondered around downtown Napa…which honestly is not great.  I think Gott’s was the busiest place…the town was deserted.  Apparently everyone was still off tasting wine.  Regardless…unless you’re going down to eat there’s really nothing else there.  So what did we do?!…we went to the local brewery Downtown Joe’s!  We weren’t hungry so we just got a couple beers.  Shortly after we got there another young couple bucked up to the bar and ordered a beer sampler….which ended up being like 15 beers in nice size sample cups.  We totally failed.  We forget sometimes living in UT that not every state blows when it comes to beer and samplers.

Then being the crazy kids we are…we stopped in Trader Joe’s and picked up some cheese/snacks for the trip and a bottle of wine.  You would think Utah of all places would have a Trader Joe’s…but no…they don’t…obviously b/c half the store is wine.  (lord i need to MOVE!)  Back in VA TJs was a weekly stop for us…so this was quite an exciting trip down memory lane…oh how we miss their hummus and cheap whole wheat pizza crust!!!  We also had our hearts set on picking up a bottle of Bear’s Lair Viognier.  This lovely $4 bottle of wine was a staple in our apt in VA.  Sadly they didn’t have it…so we picked up a bottle of red from Cline…which we proceeded to drink in our room and go to bed at like 9pm.  Yep TJs and Gott’s were the highlight of our day…we’re awesome like that.

*sorry for the lack of pics…read my previous post about how I suck at life.

Big Time Timmy Jim & The Bridge

Since this was not our first trip to San Francisco (my 3rd actually)…Lance & I really didn’t plan on doing too much during our one day there.  We’ve done the majority of “touristy” things so basically our to-do list included going to a Giants game and seeing the bridge.

The first thing on the list was of course to make the 20min trek to pick up a lens I had rented via BorrowLenses.com.  Now I plan to revisit this whole experience later…but basically I concluded 2 things after renting an insanely expensive lens that I will never in my life be able to afford.

1)  I am a super shy person when it comes to using my camera in public…so much so I was embarrassed to get it out at a lot of the places we went to….thus equaling me barely taking any photos.  Not sure why/how I developed this…but I’m determined to get over it.

2)  I’m really not a fan of taking landscape pics…nope not at all.  Actually all it does is piss me off.  I’d much rather take pictures of people/things/cats/corn.

OK so after that bit of honesty…let’s get on with the goods.

Before heading to the game we stopped for a couple beers at 21st Amendment brewery.  We had been here on a previous trip and loved it…so we went again.  What can I say…we know what we like…and more often than not that includes beer.  This was actually the first of 3 breweries we would visit on this trip…and yes I failed to take pics at all 3.  The Hell or High Watermelon Wheat was quite good.

So then we made our way to AT&T park…

where we got to watch Big Time Timmy Jim pitch…and wish that we had brought winter coats and gloves along.

Seriously…San Fran is NOT warm.  Sure the 63 deg temp is a bit cool for mid-July…but the -20 wind chill off the water is what gets you.  Holy cold.

So after about 5 innings we decided we were frozen enough and headed back to the 21st Amendment for some food…and of course another beer.

The following morning we picked up our rental car and headed North.  Of course we had to stop at the bridge first.

It was still pretty foggy out so not the greatest views….duh it IS San Fran after all.

That’s me…in case you couldn’t tell.

After walking out a ways on the bridge and almost being hit by several bikers…we decided we better just get back in the car and drive across the darn thing.

Napa and the sun were waiting for us after all.

The End

I like cheese.

Well we made it back from Napa…like a week ago.  And in case you’re wondering…yes I did drink way too much wine…and yes I did stuff my face with 20lbs of cheese and salami.

It happens.

Uploading the pics from my camera I realize that I once again suck at life.  I come home thinking I’ll have thousands of wonderful pics to relive such an amazing trip…oh nope…just 4.  Awesome.

Add that to the fact that our internet is from circa 1967…poking my eyes out with spoons sounds more appealing than attempting to upload them here.   Besides I have more important things to do like read tween books and go see tween movies.

Maybe at some point during this 4-day weekend (thank you mormons) I’ll get around to recapping our little trip.

This is the only pic I have available b/c I spent 16hrs uploading it to facebook…you’re welcome.

 

 

WTF Napa?!

What’s up with this Vegas-strip-esq-map of yours?!   While I would love to visit all you litle dots and drink several “tastings” of your delicious wines…it’s pretty much impossible…even for a Bota Box slamming wine addict like myself.

So Bloglandia…if you’ve ever been to Napa/Sanoma…PLEEAAAASSEEE tell us where to go!!!!  I can’t make a decision if my life depended on it.  Asking me to pick 6-10 wineries out of a bajillion gets me all nervous and sweaty…I can’t handle the pressure!!!

Also…I’m borderline WT when it comes to wine-tasting…I’m more of a brewery-tour kind of girl.  I mean seriously…is it really necessary to do that whole spinning/sniffing charade?!

Snotty stuffy wineries scare me…so if you know of some not-as-snobby ones that would be great.  Oh and if you have any advice on where to eat that would be awesome too.

Thanks Bloglandia!!!

PS.  This trip is taking place in approx 2 weeks…so get to commenting!!!

 

 

Super BM

Tomorrow that Lance guy and I are headed back to my homeland…Nebraska…aka the coolest-place-ever.

Amongst the list of places we plan to eat (what..i plan trips around food…don’t judge)… I will also be working on earning my Bridesmaid-of-the-year award as one of my dearest friends walks down the aisle!

(looking ever so fab at my wedding!)

She stood up there next to me as I said “I Do” to my other BFF…and I couldn’t be more excited to do the same for her!

As it turns out…she’s getting married at the same place as Lance & I did…good ol’ Country Pines!!  Lance and I are super excited to get back there and enjoy the place as guests!!  I plan to be “that girl” that takes an annoying amount of pictures…so stay tuned for some spring-wedding goodness!  For now here’s a sneak peek of the sexy BM dress I get to sport…

just ignore the special guest appearance by my wedding clutch..the reason for that will be revealed post-wedding

(also…I just realized how diff our house looks now from when this pic was taken…we now have totally different colored walls…and wood flooring where I’m standing! my how time files!)

Shelley also picked some bright-spring colors for her decor…with poms, fabric, and buttons…we’re gonna turn that place into sometihng similar to this!

*images via How About Orange

Fun huh?!  I’m stoked to see it all come together!!  There has been a plethora of g-chat, text, & twitter convos back and forth about every detail…from the guest list fun to wedding attire and even that pesky printer – the bane of Shelley’s bridalhood.

Alas here we are…just a few short days before she says I Do…and being the smart woman she is…she actually has all her tasks DONE!?  I know right?!  who does that?!

So no…i won’t be watching the royal wedding (well maybe just a peek to see Kate’s dress!)..instead I’ll be watching someone near and dear to my heart marry someone who I couldn’t have hand-picked more perfectly for her!!

till next time!

*If you follow me on twitter then you may even get a few sneak peeks into the big day…whoop! 

Sometimes I wear green suspenders

So it seems the few of you who commented on the last post want to hear a little something about my mad sewing skills.  I’m not gonna lie…I’m pretty much a natural.  Ok so maybe I’ve only actually sewn like 2 things…with straight lines…but I’m already seeing the potential.

Actually…I’m a little impressed with how quickly I can finish a sewing project.  Which is very much the opposite of knitting.  When I knit I think…hmmmm…maybe I’ll make a scarf…and then I’ll proceed to work on said scarf for about 12+ months…with lots of “in-between” projects so I don’t get bored.  So really I’m still trying to come to terms with this holy-crap-I-made-something-in-3omins!!!! concept.

My first offical poject was a camera strap.  Special shout-out to Alex for the idea and super easy follow along steps.

I spose a picture of that strap would come in handy here…but you’ll just have to imagine one till I actually get around to taking one…add it to the list my friends!!!!!!

The good news is…I have a picture..sorta…of my second sewing project!  It just so happens to be a super-cool bachelorette sash!!!

See that seam up there on my bff shelley’s shoulder??  Yep…pure sewing excellence…thankyouverymuch.

Shelley also happens to be an avid sewer herself…we’re talking quilts and usable things like tote bags!  I think she was impressed with my beginner skills. (FYI …I cut out all those stupid pink letters…ok so maybe I had some help…but it still sucked)

So why is this sash green you may be wondering?!  Well we just so happened to be having her bachelorette weekend in Chicago during their St Patrick’s Day festivities…green river dying and all!

 

And because we’re super cool…we like to use things like this as an excuse to eat lots and lots of cupcakes…

and dress like complete fools…

 

Yep…that would be me rockin’ sexy green suspenders.

We all looked quite ridiculous actually.  We ditched the veil and forced shelley to wear a beer hat.  ( I’m really giving it to her in this one)

And because I tend to get a little excited when I have suspenders on…

I had to do a few heel-clicks around Wriglyville.

What can I say…Lance is one lucky fella!!

A Nodak Wedding: some pics

Just a few pics from the wedding this weekend!  I tell you what…I’m exhausted from all the activities over the weekend and I was just a guest!  Enjoy the pics!

Me and Lance at the “party on the bay” on Thursday before the wedding!

Lance with some of his longtime friends…all 3 will be in our wed party.

Lance and I at the rehearsal dinner…it was set up on the groom’s mom’s deck…which was pretty awesome.

Lance heading toward the aslie with a BM!  (I sat in the back)  The guys wore white shirts and ties, while the BMs got to pick their own black dresses.

here comes the bride!

the ceremony

the kiss!

married!

The guys clean up pretty good!

first dance!

Lance & I…my dress has pockets!

ok well thats about it…it was a beautiful wedding with perfect weather.  We had a lot of fun and it only made me more excited for our big day next June!