CA Trip Part Two

Warning: Long Post

After our night in San Fran, we headed North to wine country. We spent the next two nights in Napa.

 

Meet Tonya (James named her and it really seemed appropriate), our hot ride for the week. James surprised me with an upgrade. Oh yea, we didn't draw attention.

We stopped here for picnic supplies. Delicious gourmet sandwiches, and cookies the size of my head. I was happy.

                                      First Winery: Domaine Carneros, known for their sparklings

 

Flowers everywhere, I almost got inspired to start a garden, almost

Next stop, Del Dotto

We really enjoyed this as you got to try different wines out of barrels. You could tell a difference based on what wood they had been aged in.

Our room in Napa at Milliken Creek Inn, fabulous! The bed was so comfy. We got a great deal here.

Dinner at Bottega, Michael Chiarello's restaurant. He was one of our favorites on Top Chef Masters.

I got gnocchi, melt-in-your mouth yummy!

Frog's Leap Winery, completely organic winery and farm (means no pesticides, irrigation etc.)

Ad Hoc, Thomas Keller's more casual restaurant in Yountville. They serve a family style, pre-set course dinner. It was fried chicken night when we were there. James and I were very skeptical coming from families where it is hard to beat your grandmama's chicken. But we were blown away.

Ok, I was going to take a picture of our meal before we inhaled it, but when push comes to shove, food wins.

Happiest I have seen him since our wedding day. He almost at the whole chicken.

The next day we packed up, revved up Tonya and headed to Sonoma County for the final few days of our trip.

One Year

These were taken by the talented Deann J Duck on our anniversary.

Anniversary Trip Part 1

The first  part of our trip was spent in San Fransisco. While it was a little chilly, the blue skies were in abundance. Thanks to my cousin Debbie, we had a game plan of how to make the most of our one night there. James had never been before, and I had not since I was a teenager. We spend most of the afternoon walking/hiking around the city. First stop: Ferry building on Embarcadero for lunch at Gott's Roadside

Delicious "tray gourmet" as their slogan says...shrimp tacos, southwest burger with guacamole and pico de gallo, and garlic and herb fries. Basically, we carb loaded for our sightseeing tour.

Along Embarcadero towards Fisherman's Warf

One form of transport: Go cart going down Lombard St (kinda cracked me up, but also slightly jealous after alot of walking)

Walking up the towards Coit Tower, the church in the back ground is Sts. Peter and Paul Church where Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe took pictures after their civil ceremony in 1954 (they couldnt be married there bc he had been divorced)

Bay View

World's Best Chocolate, no we didn't get any bc we were still too full from Gott's

(the white things hanging down are from my shirt)

At Coit Tower

After our walking tour, we were on the way back to the hotel to freshen up before dinner, when we I spotted H&M. YEA!! After convincing James that this was a necessary stop, we I shopped for my alotted 25 minutes. It is pretty hard to cover much ground in that store in that amount of time, but I did pretty good. James was also happy once he found out the prices. We then headed to dinner at the Cliff House with friends Byron and Hillary. Byron was in dental school with us, and is doing his Ortho residency in SF.

View from our table

We had a great night visiting with them! The next morning we headed to Napa. More on that soon!

CHC

Interview with Dr. Record our CEO about Christ Health Center....check it out here

California

Just a few pictures until I get a chance to do a full trip report, but in a nutshell...amazing!

Pictures from the Gulf

 

As you can tell, we had a wonderful weekend in Orange Beach last weekend. It was beautiful, and we really enjoyed getting out in the boat. Amos LOVED swimming in the bay, but was terrified of any sea life. It was bittersweet really, with the oil destruction headed our way. Please be praying for the Gulf Coast, and that God will move in a miraculous way.

My Momma

is the greatest...She is one of the neatest ladies I know. She loves Jesus, her family, turkey hunting, tractors and dirt, banana pudding,  praying and reading, and being "Pie" to name a few...She is a wonderful grandmother to Sam, Fair, Audrey, and Amos. She is selfless, loving, a great listener, abundant in Godly wisdom, and very corny. I am so blessed to have her has my mom.

"Pie" and Fair

Changing moms... Let's talk about my mom(James). My mom is a relentless worker and as selfless a person as you will meet. She has no needs of her own other than to provide for her family and friends. Shelia is an excellent cook if southern flare is your thing, with more food on the table than should be legal.  My mom is always there for you. My mom is super-mom, literally. Example: I will never forget as I was growing up she would pick us(Michael and I) up from school; take us to the appropriate sports/music practice; go back to work; pick us up from practice and cook supper; then after supper was cleared she would go back to work and come home after we were asleep. I will never forget the way she has sacrificed for our family without complaint even when her burden was unfair for even the best mom. I love you mom! - James 

morning of our engagement

We love you both very much!

Weekend Recap

My cord is still MIA, but thanks to Molly I have a card that has downloaded my pictures. Here are a few from our fun time this past weekend...

entering the reception

loved the reception site

champagne bar

cake cutting (cake was really good for the wedding cake lovers out there, vanilla with rasberry filling)

We ate some delicious food (City Grocery, Big Bad Breakfast), shopped around the square (thanks to Shelia, James got some great summer stuff, and I got a fabulous pair of shoes), took a few naps, and celebrated with John and Mallory. We enjoyed spending time with Jim and Shelia. Amos boarded at a kennel for the first time. I was a little nervous, but James assured me he was fine. This weekend we are headed to Orange Beach for our friends Lindsey and Brentley's wedding and to spend time with my parentals.