Or rather 7th grade sucks. And not just because of the mean girls.
But why am I telling you this? There is a great blog that I read called Mama’s Losin’ It written by an awesome blogger named Kathy (or Mama Kat) who gives writing prompts every week. When you write a blog using one of the prompts you can link your blog to her site and (hopefully) get more reads. Very cool and very generous of her. Thank you Mama Kat!
I can definitely use a writing prompt this week (and possibly every week) as I am coming up dry lately. Seriously dry. Unless you want to hear about my kids’ Spring Break where I planned absolutely nothing and Marley has been sitting around all week watching My Strange Addiction. Yeah, I wouldn’t want to hear about that either. (And I certainly don’t want to write it!)
So, one of the writing prompts was to write about a 7th grade memory. And since Marley is in 7th grade I thought this would be a good one.
The problem is I’ve been trying to forget about the 7th grade for the last 35 years. (Shut up about how old I am. Shut! Up!)
When I was in 7th grade (Oh god, I do sound old now…When I was your age…), 7th grade was the beginning of Jr. High. There was no middle school back then. It was elementary K-6, jr. high 7-9, and high school 10-12.
And 7th grade sucks. Or 6th grade. Let’s just say your first year into jr. high (or middle school or whatever). Sucks. Big time. Everyone knows that.
For the first time you’re trying to balance homework from different classes. You’re getting pimples. And possibly your period. (Which makes you a weepy crazy over-reacts-to-everything irrational cranky-ass bitch.)
And there are so many distractions. Like boys. And girls who have cuter clothes than you do. (Which is all of them. Except that weird girl in your 2nd period class who came to school Monday in the exact same rainbow top that ties on the side that you wore to school last Friday. Copycat Bitch!) And boys. Did I mention boys? They’re very distracting. Very.
And you start cursing, not only in your head like you sometimes did in elementary school, but out loud. So mean girls (which is all of them -even your former elementary school friends) are bitches and mean guys (which are the cute ones) are assholes. Because you know, you sound so much cooler when you say words like that. That asshole! That bitch!
The popular mean girls are pretty. They have no pimples. Their mothers buy them clothes from Judy’s or Contempo Casuals (the Brandy Melville and Abercrombie of yesteryear) instead of Gemco where your mother buys yours. Some of them sneer at you as you walk by. Others give you a fakey-fake smile and say, “Hi-how-are-you-I-love-your-rainbow-top” as they pass you in the hallways but you hear them snicker and comment on the fact that you obviously only have two pairs of Dittos -and not even the side-saddle kind- as soon as they’re behind your back.
You hate the popular mean girls. But only because you want to be them.
And if you are honest with yourself (but who is at that age) you will admit that you are probably just as mean as they are. After all, you said some pretty rude things about the weird girl who copied your rainbow top to your friends. Not that you have any friends. Not like in elementary school when life was easy.
Because in 7th grade the girls are mean. And the homework is hard. And the cute boys are assholes distracting.
So the only real memory I have from the 7th grade is that it sucked. (But that’s okay – because 8th grade when I kissed a boy and started babysitting so I could occasionally shop at the mall- totally ruled!)
I spend a lot of time on Craigslist. It fascinates me.
I sold my piano on Craigslist. We gave away our kids’ old-dilapidated-please-get-that-eyesore-out-of-my-yard-right-this-very-minute-now playset on Craigslist. I’ve even looked for a job on Craigslist – it’s the best place to find work locally that requires a 4-year degree and 5 years work experience for $12 an hour. (Um… I’ll take a pass on that, thanks!)
Recently we were looking for a new car on Craig’s List. Or rather a used car. Yes, for the second time in less than three years my car was totaled (not my fault – it was parked) and we had the super-fun task of using too-little insurance money to purchase a new used vehicle. Yay us!
You would not believe the photos people post trying to sell their cars. It shouldn’t take a marketing genius to figure out that pictures like this aren’t going to do you any favors:
Uh, maybe you could wait 12 hours and try taking this photo again.
Are you selling all of the car or just part of it? (And BTW – nice thumb!)
Are the pennies and shirt included?
I’m confused – are you selling a car or showing us how nice the fall foliage looks out the back window?
Does the car actually drive upside-down? Because that would be cool!
I’m no great photographer, but people, please, at least put in a bit of effort!
Of course it’s not just the used car section of Craigslist that fascinates me. Oh no! There are so many other wonders to be found. For example: I noticed a Health and Beauty section of Craigslist and wondered what people would sell there. There are curling irons, little-used infomerical purchases (P90X or Ab Rocket Twister anyone?), wigs and wheelchairs for sale. And then I saw this:
What the???
MiMi by Je Joue “personal massager” – $60 (Ventura)
“The one I have is black. Very little use. Clean/sanitized. This holds a charge for 2 hours; will likely need some charging before use. Comes in original box for safe keeping.”
Uh….
A “personal massager” that has has had “very little use?!” Hells to the no people! I don’t care how much rubbing alcohol you dump that thing in – that is a NO SALE! (Though, holds a charge for two hours… hmmmm….)
And if you weren’t skeeved out already – let’s head over to the Craigslist Free Section shall we?
If it’s free, it’s for me. (Or maybe not!)
How about:
Eeew!
Yes, that says two large containers with at least 6 gallons of peanut oil that was used to fry turkey!When it comes to reuse and recycle I definitely walk the walk. Washing out Ziploc bags for reuse? Check. Reusing wax cereal bags for sandwiches? Yeppers. Using someone else’s old peanut oil?! Nope.com. In fact I don’t even reuse my own cooking oil. Look, if you’re that into saving the earth (and I thank you for that) call up the people at usedcookingoil.org and schedule a pick-up.
You can always count on the Free Section of Craigslist to have a nice Curb Alert going. What’s a curb alert? It’s just what it sounds like – when people throw stuff out on their curb and alert the world via a Craigslist post. Saturday afternoons after yard sales are primo times for curb alerts. (I’ve never actually gotten anything from a curb alert, but they intrigue me.)
ANTIQUE* curb alert FURNITURE
Just because it’s old doesn’t mean it’s an “antique”
“Pieces from 70’s, 80’s, and possibly earlier 20th century furnishings to bring a unique atmosphere to any home. Some pieces have damaged fabric. All furniture should be sterilized by a professional before use.”
All furniture should be sterilized by a professional before use?! Not just cleaned, but STERILIZED? BY A PROFESSIONAL!!!Even the wooden rocking chair? What in God’s name has been going on on top of that furniture?
And to end this post I think I’ll leave you with this…
“Free Shower doors. Doors only, no track.” (I’m guessing no sideways basketball hoop either.)
Seriously?! It’s too much trouble to prop the shower doors up against the garage and snap a picture with your iPhone? Instead you take half a photo and show me more of something I cannot have?
And the craziest thing of all? I bet you it will be gone by the end of the day.
I must be going now. Time to stop the Craigslist time suck and do something useful. (Like perhaps a game of Spider Solitaire.)
Yes, it’s my last installment of my fabulous weekend in Napa with the Wine Sisterhood. If you missed part one and/or part two you can read them here and here.
When I woke up on Tuesday morning I had purple teeth. And not just a little. Ah, the price of drinking wine for 10 hours straight! Instead of Zumba I did a quick 1/2 hour on the elliptical at the gym next door because I needed extra time to wash my hair. (No, I don’t wash my hair every day – so?!) After my shower I ran downstairs, grabbed some breakfast, and brought it back to my room so I could pretend I was having room service for breakfast. (Which you might be interested to know is just about my most favorite thing in life.)
Jennifer went for a run and picked up coffee and a biscotti. I like big breakfasts (and lunches and dinners). Jennifer likes small breakfasts (and lunches and dinners). If you were to look at us standing side by side this would not be a surprise. (Skinny bitch!)
When we went downstairs to the conference room I noticed an incredibly beautiful woman I hadn’t seen before. She was stunning. Like a model. I was surprised that I hadn’t noticed her before as she had that type of presence that one takes notice of. Her name was Leila Janah and she was one of the morning’s speakers and founder of Samasource and Samahope.
Leila Janah tells the Wine Sisterhood about her mission
Sama means equal in Sanskrit, the ancient Indian language. Leila’s father taught her that all people are equally deserving of dignity and opportunity, and that landing in a middle class family with access to good schools, health care, and food on the table every night is pure chance. Her father instilled in her a belief that we have a duty to help people who aren’t as lucky in life’s birth lottery.
Samasource connects women and youth living in poverty to dignified work via the Internet. Samahope uses crowdfunding to pay for low-cost life-saving surgeries in impovershed parts of the world.
So it turns out Leila Janah is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. Leila showed us this film about one of the women that benefited from Samasource:
She then told us about her two non-profits. It was really amazing to hear from a woman who is making a true difference in the world.
Our next speaker, Danielle Smith, was just as beautiful and just as dynamic. I was lucky enough to get to know Danielle a bit before she spoke as she was in my group, the Mischief Makers. She is an award winning former television news anchor and reporter with two websites – Extraordinary Mommy and Danielle Smith Media.
Danielle Smith in an interactive video workshop. Photo credit M.J. Wickham
Danielle led an interactive workshop about getting comfortable with video and was looking for three volunteers to get up in front of everyone and record a one-minute video. Because I knew I’d never hear the end of it from Jennifer (and in case you haven’t noticed, I don’t mind being the center of attention) I volunteered. I didn’t have anything planned, so I just gave my blog a shameless plug and joked about the fact that I was bitter about Pinterest winner Katie getting a shout out instead of me the day before. I got a few laughs and during my critique Danielle told me my humor really came across. So perhaps there will be video in this blog’s future. We’ll see…
Hey, here’s another crappy picture of me on the Internet! Photo credit: M.J. Wickham
Okay, it’s 10:30 AM already – on to the drinking! We had a wine and cheese pairing with Cabot Cheese and Culture Magazine.
Cabot Creamery is a 1,200+ farm family dairy cooperative that produces all natural, award-winning cheeses. (If you like spicy their Habanero Cheese is deliciously hot, Hot, HOT!)
Culture Magazine is a magazine about cheese. Cheese! (Have I mentioned that I really, REALLY like cheese?) Note to self: get subscription to Culture Magazine ASAP.
The cheeses were paired with wines from the Wine Sisterhood labels – Middles Sister “Surfer Chick” Sauvignon Blanc, Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red, Monogamy Cabernet Sauvignon, Deep Purple Zinfandel, Middle Sister, “Sweet & Sassy” Moscato. My favorite cheese was the Humboldt Fog goat cheese. One woman said she thought she only liked Brie, but she was wrong. (Oh boy was she – this cheese rocks!)
Of course after the wine and cheese pairing we were starving, not to mention thirsty, so we split into our groups for lunch and more wine tasting.
The Mischief Makers got on our party bus and headed to Domaine Carneros for a sparkling wine tasting and a lovely light lunch. We took a tour of the beautiful chateau and met wine maker Eileen Crane. I added her to the list of fabulously dynamic women I met on this trip. I loved learning more about the sparkling wine process and would definitely recommend a tour of Domaine Carneros if you are a sparkling wine fan.
After our wonderful lunch we headed to Palmaz Vineyards for a tour and tasting led by Florencia Palmaz. Palmaz is a gorgeous family-owned and operated winery. The Palmaz family is originally from Argentina, but moved to the states in the 1970’s. They fell in love with Napa while patriarch Julio Palmaz was finishing his medical residency at UC Davis. Palmaz turned his love of mechanics and engineering (he invented the coronary stent) into designing the vineyard’s elaborate gravity flow winery. From the stunning views to the deep basement caverns, this multi-level winery is truly something to see. Jennifer thought it was the highlight of the trip.
We had an amazing wine and food pairing (The wine was spectacular and the smoked duck breast wrapped around a cream cheese and fig filling was to die for). The tour and wine pairing is by reservation only. It costs $60 and is worth every penny.
The view from Palmaz VineyardsA wine engineering masterpiece!Another viewHeaven!
After Palmaz we went back to the hotel. Do not however think there was any time to rest. After a quick stop to our room Jennifer and I checked out the Wine Sisterhood Sassy Suite. What is a Sassy Suite? It was a suite reserved to showcase the Wine Sisterhood wines and fabulous items for sale at the Wine Sisterhood online shop. (Looking for a gift for a wine-loving girlfriend? Look no further, this online shop will hook you up!)
Welcome to the Sassy Suite
Next was The Hess Collection for more wine tasting and our last dinner. The Hess Collection is a vineyard, winery, art gallery, and local artisan gift shop all rolled into one. I loved the Hess Collection Winery because not only are their wines very good, they are sustainably farmed and Napa Green certified. We enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner. I loved (and I mean LOVED) every meal, but I think this one prepared by Chef Chad Hendrickson was my favorite. (And the blue crab mini-tostada appetizers – Oh. My. Gawd!)
Complimentary winery tours, including an overview of The Hess Collection Winery and Vineyards are offered daily between 10:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. A tasting of four current release wines is $10. Unique experiences including a private tour and tasting, and wine and food pairings start at $25. Reservations can be made here.
After dinner we boarded the party bus for the last time. And I have to admit, I may have been over-fine-wined-and-dined. (Well, can anyone ever be over-fine-wined-and-dined?) I was tired. But happy. So happy. I felt so lucky and so blessed to be able to have this experience.
So what’s it like to win a contest on Pinterest? What do you think?
As promised here is the Day Two recap of my trip to the 2013 Wine Sisterhood in Napa that I won on Pinterest. (If you missed Day One you can find it here.)
Jennifer is a good travel partner because she is an early-riser like me so when I wake up at o’dark thirty I don’t have to worry about disturbing her. We actually had a wake-up call for 6AM. (Yes, we are freaks.) She wanted to run and I wanted to hit the 7:00 Zumba class. She discovered the quiet early morning streets of Napa on foot and I put on a coin skirt and shook my booty (in a very uncoordinated-Kate-Gosselin-on-Dancing-with-the-Stars kind of way).
There was a gorgeously delicious breakfast buffet in the conference room at 8:00, but after our workouts showers were quite necessary so we didn’t make it down to the conference room until about 8:50. There was still plenty of food, but I missed out on morning socializing.
At 9:00 Terry Wheatley, our organizer and hostess extraordinaire gave opening remarks that were emotional and quite inspiring. She spoke of her vision for the Wine Sisterhood and quoted Walt Disney when she said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
Terry Wheatley talks about big dreams
Then Terry gave a shout out and congratulations to a Pinterest winner…
named Katie
Katie brought her husband to the girl’s trip with her because he is her best friend blah blah blah.
What the… What about ME?! I’m a Pinterest winner too! Who loves to be the center of attention. Don’t I get a shout-out or a crown or something?
Curtis and Katie at the flapper party at Raymond Vineyards
Katie obviously got the shout out because she is younger and cuter than me and the fact that she brought her best-friend-husband is just adorable right? Whatever Katie! (I’m just kidding – Katie is awesome. And she has a beautiful fashion blog called Hems for Her. You should check it out.)
Two happy Pinterest Winners (I think I look drunk in this photo, but afterall it was taken at 11:30 AM!)
At 9:30 we listened to our first keynote speaker, Digital Diva Aliza Sherman, talk about all the fabulous phone apps that are available right now. Aliza is a great speaker and had fantastic information. Some of the apps she told us about were Drink-u-lator, an app that helps you know how much wine to buy when you’re planning a party (hint – it’s not a bottle per person!); Trover, a sort-of Instagram meets Trip Advisor; and Foodspotting, a sort-of Instagram meets FourSquare. I learned so much from her. Mostly, that I have a really lame phone. (I actually already knew that.)
Aliza Sherman talks apps
At 10:30 (yes in the morning) it was time for Bubble University. Translation: Sparkling Wine Tasting. (Now we are talking!)
The bubbly Leslie Sbrocco guided us through our tasting. (Yes, that pun was intended!)
Leslie is an emmy-award winning television host and Today Show Contributor and my new girl-crush. Leslie told us about getting the HUGE tattoo of a glass of rosé sparkling wine on her calf, the different types of sparkling wine, what food to pair sparkling wine with (in her opinion all) and showed us how to saber a champagne (or sparkling wine) bottle. (That means pop the cork with a saber. It’s super-cool. Check out a 6-second video posted by Girlfriendology of Leslie sabering a bottle of sparkling rose here.)
The fabulous Leslie Sbrocco schools the Wine Sisterhood on Sparkling Wine
After the sparkling wine tasting we broke off into two groups: Mischief Makers and Drama Queens – named after two of the Middle Sister wines and boarded luxury mini-buses for food and wine tastings aplenty. I was in the Mischief Maker group. (Oh don’t act all surprised by that – I am totally not a Drama Queen!) The groups would flip itineraries the next day.
The Mischief Makers went to a restaurant called Bistro Don Giovanni’s for lunch. It was Oh-my-god-I-feel-like-I’m-in-Italy delicious! We were given a four-course meal and a white and a red choice of Don Giovanni’s own estate grown wines. (So what if I chose both – be quiet!) One of the many things we talked about during lunch was the importance of a great wine label. We loved the label for Gio, Don Giovanni’s Sangiovese.
Good times and great lunch with some winesisters – Lisa (@belvinowinery) and Sue (@kaysyrah) at Don Giovanni
After our lunch we waddled onto the bus to head to our first winery of the day.
Our tour of Chappellet Winery was given by their Director of Hospitality, Candice Pannetier. Candice gave us a tour of the barrel storage room and vineyards and told us the history of the family-owned winery and its owners, Donn and Molly Chappellet. Founded in 1967, the winery is located in Pritchard Hill and was one of the first wineries to pioneer high-elevation hillside planting. I don’t know what any of the means, but whatever it is they’re doing over at Chappellet, they are doing it right – this wine is crazy good. The winery is now run by three of the Chappellet children, but we had the privilege of meeting Molly Chappellet. She was an extraordinary woman with such a warm and lovely presence about her. She was so gracious and sophisticated and beautiful it felt like meeting royalty. (And I’m sure in Napa she is akin to royalty.)
Tastings at Chappellet can be booked here and start at $25.
Beautiful ChappelletMore wine please Candice!Time for more wine!Napa royalty, Molly Chappellet tells us about her beautiful wineryYes please!
During lunch and the bus ride and walking around the Chappellet, I got to know some of the women in my group a little better. One of the best things about this trip was the amazing women I met from all over the country. Two of them were Debba Haupert of Girlfriendology and Beth Robeson of Healthy Kids Fast. Debba and Beth were both smart and interesting and funny. (Love them! Do yourselves a favor and check out their websites.)
Our next stop was Quintessa Winery. When Agustin and Valeria Huneeus purchased the property for this winery in 1989 it was one of the few estates in Napa Valley that had never been planted to grapes. (I met Dave in 1989 and loved that Quintessa was established the same year we were.)
Our tour was given by Gwen McGill, their Director of Marketing, who showed us their beautiful grounds that includes a lake, five hills, a river and two forests. Not only were the grounds beautiful and the wine fantastic (we tasted the Illumination Sauvignon Blanc ($40), their Quintessa 2009 ($145) and Quintessa 2008 ($150) – hello!), but the vineyard is farmed entirely with biodynamic and organic techniques. We also tasted three different cheeses including this Seascape cheese from the Central Coast Creamy that was so ridiculously good I’m seriously considering having some shipped to my house even though it’s $17/pound. (Yes, it’s that good!) I was swooning over Quintessa.
Next we headed to The Kitchen Door for dinner. (You know, because we were so hungry.)
The Kitchen Door is located in the Oxbow Public Market in downtown Napa and is definitely a must-visit destination. The restaurant was closed for our party and chefs Todd Humphries and Christoper Litts made a special menu for our dinner.
First appetizers were passed around – Gourgeres Stuffed with Spinach and Mornay Sauce (think creamed spinach stuffed into a little bite-sized pastry), Deviled Eggs with Wasabi Tobiko (um, yum!), Salmon Pastrami with Sauerkraut on a Rye Crouton (ridiculous!) and Demitasse of Mushroom Soup (best mushroom soup I’ve ever had). Is your mouth watering yet? We still had three courses to go!
1st course
Spinach Salad with Pt. Reyes Blue Cheese, Shaved Apples, Toasted Walnuts and a Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
Entree
Pot Roast – Whole roasted center cut beef shoulder with garden vegetables and fresh grated horse radish.
(a vegetarian option was offered, but who wants that?)
Dessert Bettermilk Panna Cotta with Sour Cherry Compote (Oh. My. Gawd. So good!)
Wine
2011 Tablas Creek, Patelin de Tablis Blanc, Paso Robles, CA
Unti, Rose of Grenache/Mourvedre, Dry Creek, CA
2008 Six Sigma, Tempranillo, Lake County, CA
2010 Bonny Doon, Old Vine Field Blend, ‘Contra’, Santa Cruz, CA
I chose the Bonny Doon ‘Contra’. It was excellent.
Our hotel was only two blocks away so the buses left after dropping us off and when we finished dinner we all walked home. I don’t think the walking home, the morning’s Zumba class, or all the walking we did around the vineyards was nearly enough to keep this food and wine from sticking to my middle-aged middle -but who cares? I was in foodie-food and wine-snob heaven. So different from my $7-Costco-and-fake-it-like-you-made-it-Trader-Joe’s-frozen-dinner regular existence.
The Kitchen Door – you MUST eat here when you are in Napa
Stay tuned for Day Three. Could it be any better? Maybe…
That’s right – I won a contest on Pinterest. And you should be jealous. Because it was freaking awesome.
That sounds a little snotty doesn’t it? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. I’m not trying to brag (much), it’s just that – WOW – this was really super fantastic and I really, really have to share.
Last year I found out about this contest from Middle Sister Wines on Pinterest. You had to pin a picture of one of their new wines –Rebel Red, Drama Queen, Wild One or Mischief Maker- and where you spotted it (or bought it) onto a pinboard on Pinterest. The prize was a trip for two to Napa for the 2nd annual Wine Sisterhood Gathering. I had no idea what the Wine Sisterhood Gathering was, but I knew I wanted to win. I mean a free trip to Napa with a girlfriend – what could be better? (It turns out nothing! Could be better, I mean. Because this trip was the bomb!)
Here is the photo I pinned:
This may be a crappy photo of me, but it won me a trip to Napa!
Yeah, it’s a pretty sucky picture of me. In fact, I almost didn’t post it because I really didn’t like it. But I’m so glad I did. I mean, who needs dignity when free wine and travel are involved?
What exactly is the Wine Sisterhood Gathering? It was a three-day conference featuring interactive workshops, winery visits, ridiculous dining experiences, and time to mingle with influential women from a variety of industries and backgrounds. Translation: Wine tasting + gourmet food + amazing women = AWESOME!
I was a good friend to one and a bad friend to many when I chose my friend Jennifer to go to Napa with me. (Sorry everyone else – really!)
It started on Sunday, March 3, when Jennifer and I flew to Napa on a teeny tiny airplane.
Yikes! That is one small airplane!
Once we landed at SFO were met by a stretch limo (that I’m pretty sure was bigger than the plane) that whisked us away to the fabulous Andaz Napa Hotel. We shared our limo with three amazing women who had flown in together from the East Coast – Elizabeth Mascali and Dawn Sandomeno from the fantastic better-than-Martha-Stewart party planning blog Party Bluprints, and Carol Cain from the very cool (I wish it was my) travel blog Girl Gone Travel. We chatted the entire hour-long limo ride and really hit it off. These ladies are FAB!
My chariot awaits!
When we arrived at the hotel our rooms weren’t ready yet (we arrived before official check-in time) and everyone was starving, so the five of us had lunch two doors down at a restaurant called Tarla Mediterranean Grill. I chose their crab sandwich which was basically a BLT with avocado and lump crab meat on ciabatta bread. So in a word – YUM!
Lump meat crab sandwich – like a BLT on crack!
When we went back to the hotel we had to wait a little longer for our room so we checked in with the sisterhood and each got this awesome bag full of swag with items that can be purchased at the Wine Sisterhood store in the near future.
What an awesome gift bag!
We sat in the hotel lobby and enjoyed a complimentary (and very delicious) glass of John Anthony 2010 Sauvignon Blanc. I’m telling you – I could get used to the Napa lifestyle. We were given a beautiful double king room that I was too lame to remember to take pictures of.
So here’s one I stole from the Internet. (It’s from their website – I don’t think they’ll mind!)
Oh yeah!
After relaxing for a short while we changed into flapper(ish) outfits because we were headed to the speakeasy at Raymond Vineyards Winery.
Raymond Vineyards – what a trip. We are talking crazy good wine and a winery that David Lynch could have created. I’m telling you this place was surreal. Our host, Jean-Charles Boisset (who was wearing a purple velvet suit) greeted us and told us the history of the winery in the red room.
Our wonderful host at Raymond VineyardsThe red room at Raymond Vineyards (yes, this is the best picture I have – sorry!)
We then headed to the Crystal Cellar for an appetizer dinner. (My favorite kind!)
David Lynch has nothing on Jean-Charles Boisset
Here I am enjoying some yummy apps with my new friends…
Lorraine Robertson, Carol Cain, me, Elizabeth Mascali and Dawn Sandomeno
BTW – side note… speaking of awesome women – do you see the 1st person in this picture? Her name is Lorraine Robertson and she ran a marathon earlier in the day. Yes, you read that right. Lorraine flew in from Atlanta on Saturday, ran a marathon Sunday morning and Sunday evening partied like a rockstar. She is my idol. Seriously!
Off of the Crystal Cellar was the Barrel room. And it was full of cheese.
If I died, this would be my heaven!
And olives…
and other yummy things…
While we were in the barrel room Jean-Charles came in and offered a back-room tour of the place. Unfortunately I was treating the table in the barrel room like a feed bag and did not see my friends go. Dawn and Elizabeth told me I really missed out. Boo! (But seriously, can you blame me? Look at all that cheese!)
Get in my belly!
After much eating and drinking and winery exploring the Wine Sisters were done and ready to retire. We had get to bed at a decent hour to gear up for the next day that involved 7AM Zumba, a 10:30 AM champagne tasting and more food and wine than even someone who uses a cheese table as a feedbag would have thought possible.
Stay tuned to find out all about it…
*photo of Jean-Charles Boisset courtesy of Sarah Nelson.
#LoveEveryMinute of this easy (and delicious) dinner
Friday night my dad and step-mom (in town from Texas) and my two brothers with their families came over for dinner. Awesome yes? Yes!
Except…
My dad, one brother, and (of course) my two kids are picky eaters. Like ridiculously so.
Add the fact that I am making a concerted effort to make healthy meals and I was placed with a bit of a dinner dilemma.
I could have barbecued except:
a.) My barbecue is down to two burners and I was serving 10 people
b.) I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my family and as little time as possible cooking. (It’s hard to hang with the family when you’re stuck outside flipping chicken and everyone else is inside drinking wine.)
So I made a rosemary-lemon-garlic chicken dish I found from my friends Google and Rachel Ray, added green beans and broccoli, a simple salad (made with iceberg lettuce due to picky eaters… sigh…) and some easy-peasy Minute® Rice. FAB!
Minute Rice makes dinner so easy!
Okay, in truth I made one dish of the awesomely delicious rosemary-lemon-garlic chicken and one dish of plainish-tiny-bit-of-lemon-even-tinier-bit-of-garlic-chicken for aforementioned picky eaters.
Picky eaters – your chicken is on the right
I prepped everything before my guests came over and once everyone arrived popped my chicken in the oven. After the chicken was in the oven for 2o minutes I started the veggies and the rice and dinner was ready in 30 minutes. I loved that I didn’t have to fuss over anything. This dinner was a hit – even for the picky eaters. My non-picky brother had 3 plates full! This will definitely be making its way to my table again.
My baby brother finishing his 3rd plate. (So yeah – dinner, I rocked it!)
Here is the recipe from Rachel Ray and the Food Network:
2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into large chunks
6 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves stripped from stems
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (I used Montreal Seasoning) or, coarse salt and black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
*For picky eaters eliminate the rosemary (boo!), and cut the garlic and lemon zest in half.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Arrange chicken in a baking dish. Add garlic, rosemary, extra-virgin olive oil, lemon zest and grill seasoning or salt and pepper to the dish. Toss and coat the chicken with all ingredients, then place in oven. Roast 20 minutes. Add wine and lemon juice to the dish and combine with pan juices. Return to oven and turn oven off. Let stand 5 minutes longer then remove chicken from the oven. Place baking dish on trivet and serve, spooning pan juices over the chicken pieces.
Minute® Rice is so quick and easy to prepare and is great pantry staple. When meal time seems like a hassle, Minute® Rice is a go-to ingredient your whole family will love and allows you to have more quality time doing what your want with your loved ones.
Leftover rotisserie chicken or veggies from a meal earlier in the week? Minute® Rice can easily be paired with some of your leftover ingredients to make a quick, easy and wholesome meal your whole family will love in just a matter of minutes.
Visit http://www.minuterice.com/ to create a great main meal or side dish for your next family get-together or potluck.
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Minute® Rice.
Last night I returned home from a 4-day girl’s weekend. (Well, it was a Sunday – Wednesday, does that make it a week beginning?)
It was a fabulous trip to Napa that I will be writing about all next week to fill you in on my decadent wine and food gluttony, but for now, I am just happy to be home, back to the normalcy of my house with Dave and the kids.
Even though when I walked into my bedroom I was greeted with this…
Guess what I’ll be doing today
And then I went to the kitchen and found that all the sports water bottles I washed on Saturday night and left in the sink were still there. Because apparently I’m the only one who knows how to put them away. Funny, everyone seems to know where to find them in the cupboard when they need them. (I would have put them away myself before I left, but I had an early flight on Sunday morning.)
Sigh…
At the beginning of the week I was making new connections and meeting new friends. I was tasting wine paired with gourmet food and cheese starting at 10:30 in the morning until 9:00 at night and eating four-course five-star meals (and have the extra five pounds to prove it). I had a king-size bed and four big pillows All. To. Myself.
I could get used to this!
And it was all so wonderful.
But today… that glamorous life is over.
Today will be filled with unpacking and laundry. Cooking and cleaning up messes. Catching up on my work and fighting over Marley’s homework.
It’s back to the grind. Back to normal. Back to my real life. (Did I mention the laundry?)
And though it doesn’t make sense on paper (or computer screen), as wonderful as Napa is, it seemed a little bit like Oz.
Oh yes, awards season came to an end last night when the 2013 Oscars awarded Argo with the Academy Award for Best Picture. Hooray! I was so glad that it won. Not only because it was fantastic, but because it was one of the four nominated movies I actually saw. But who cares about that? Everyone wants to know who looked awesome (and who didn’t) on the red carpet.
I have to admit that I was highly disappointed with last night’s awards. And not just because Seth MacFarlane was kind of stiff and nervous and just sort of meh. (I didn’t mind his poor taste jokes and I actually thought the opening skit was pretty funny.)
No, my bitter disappointed was in the dresses. They were gorgeous. Every single one of them. Every actress looked stunningly beautiful. How can I make fun of all the women who are thinner, more beautiful, more talented and so much richer than me if they all look amazing. So this blog – not so snarky.
Even Helena Bonham Carter who rarely disappoints with her poor sense of style looked pretty.
Queen of the Prom
Okay, it looks like she’s wearing a prom dress, but for her, this look is downright glamorous.
And Jessica Chastain obviously read what I wrote about her awful Golden Globes look, because she looked beautiful as well. (A gorgeous dress that fits + side-parted hair = Red Carpet Glam Jessica!)
Breathtaking!
Although….
Kristen Cheoweth. That dress is stunning! Your plastic surgery – not so much. Unless perhaps that bun on top of your head (which is adorable BTW) is pulled to tight?
That dress is GORGEOUS!That bun is pulled too tight!
All snarkiness aside, I’ve always thought Kristen a true beauty and it saddens me to see that she has jumped onto the plastic surgery bandwagon. Please 40ish actresses – take a cue from your elder stateswomen like Meryll Streep, Sally Field or Helen Mirren who are aging so gracefully. (And if they’ve had work done then by all means see whoever it is they’re seeing and then give me their number!)
And speaking of Kristen Chenoweth – did you see her interview Bradley Cooper? She took off her shoe to compare her shortness with his mother’s shortness (he brought his mom – swoon) and he knelt down and helped her put it back on. (Double swoon Prince Charming!)
A true prince!
A lot of the actresses seemed to be wearing their hair ala Rita Hayworth circa 1940-something…
Vintage Hollywood Glam
And what an excellent choice. It’s such a soft, pretty look.
Reece Witherspoon looks stunning with her retro wavy glam hair and Louis Vuitton couture dress.
Reece Witherspoon rocked the look. I loved her with bangs at the 2007 Oscars, but I might love this vintage Hollywood glam look even more.
LOVE those bangs!
My favorite dress of the night was Zoe Saldana’s. I loved the flowers on top, the belt, the funky side-bow and the flowy bottom.
I tried very hard to find something snarky and mean to say about Zoe, because rumor has it that she and my future-weekend-lover Bradley Cooper are still (or back) together. But I couldn’t. I mean look at her. She’s perfect. (Bitch!)
My future boyfriend’s girlfriend is perfect!
My second favorite dress of the night (a very close 2nd) was Jennifer Garner’s. (I first fell in love with Bradley Cooper when his Will Tippin pined away for Jennifer’s Sydney Bristow on Alias – hmmm… is there a theme here?)
Hey Jen – if I tell the world you look STUNNING in my wildly popular blog will you put in a good word with Bradley for me?!
Anne Hathaway can do no wrong in my book. Everyone knew she would win last night. Her portrayal of Fantine was spectacularly gut wrenching. I mean, I started to cry when they showed the little 5 second clip when they were announcing the nominees. And her speeches are always so graceful. She is a true class act. And her dress – fabulous! (BTW – those are darts in her dress, not her nipples people!)
Love her so much!
And with that I think I will wrap up my take on last night’s fashions. As much as red carpet train wrecks boost my self-esteem as I sit on the floor in stretched out yoga pants and fold laundry while I watch the awards, I suppose I should take the high road and be happy that everyone looked so lovely. They’ve earned it.
But I will close with this…
“Did the woman in the gold dress just get plastic surgery? Her face looks like this,” Marley asked as she made a scrunchy face. She was talking about Renee Zellweger. That might be mean of me to mention, but she used to date Bradley Cooper, so I can’t really be held responsible for my actions when it comes to her.
Hey Bradley, call me!
(And yes, I know I already posted this photo. I just thought you might want to see it again. You’re welcome!)
Adendum: I was going to mention Kristen Stewart and then I changed my mind. I think because I could only find red carpet photos of her and she looked fine. But at the podium? WTF! Why is she famous? Why do producers keep putting her on awards shows? She always seems so put out to be there. If it’s for the young Twilight fans, even 12-year-old Marley says Blech when she sees her. I think this e-card sums her up nicely:
I am always looking for activities in LA with my kids. Because having a 16-year-old and 12-year-old is great for help around the house and yard work. (Well, they don’t think that’s so great.) But when you are looking for a fun family activity in Los Angeles that doesn’t cost a lot of money? Not so great.
Oh how I miss the days when I could throw a few PBJ’s and some sand toys in the car, drive to a local park, sit my butt down in a beach chair, open up my book, tell them to “go play” and call it a successful afternoon. Throw in a couple of Big Sticks from the ice cream truck and I’m Mother-of-the-Year.
Those days are long gone. I suppose I could take them to the park and play Frisbee or football with them. But I can’t imagine it (or rather me) lasting very long.
Of course there are fun and inexpensive things we can do. We can always go to the beach. (Yes, often even in the winter. Sorry east coasters!) But this time of year it’s too cold to go in the water, so they get bored quickly.
Who could ever get bored here?
And there are hundreds of hiking trails within a reasonable distance (and dozens mere minutes away), but Marley hates to hike and I tire of her nonstop commentary about how “hiking sucks.”
It becomes hard to enjoy this beauty with a whiny tween!
Over the winter break when I was really scrambling for things to do with the kids (yeah, this blog is long overdue) my mom stumbled upon a Groupon for the Battleship Iowa in San Pedro. So the four of us, along with my mom, step-dad and 9-year-old nephew made plans for a Los Angeles day trip.
The Battleship Iowa, built in 1940, is one of the largest battleships ever and is now retired and turned into a museum. How big is it? Pretty big.
That’s a BIG ship!
The Iowa was an important part of the Navy fleet for five decades. It even ferried President Franklin D. Roosevelt to Casablanca during World War II. It also served in the Korean War and was recommissioned to serve in the Persian Gulf in the 1980’s. The battleship has been permanently retired and is now a museum.
You take a self-guided tour through the museum, but there are plenty of guides throughout the ship -most of them veterans- to answer questions and tell you facts about the battleship.
The most impressive thing about the battleship is definitely the 16 inch guns…
Those are some big guns!
The Iowa was cool enough to keep Chandler-the-history-buff interested and there were enough places to climb and explore to keep Marley entertained. (It probably helped that she got to “be in charge” of my nephew Garrett.)
Side note: If there is going to be a Ross Family outing you can pretty much guarantee a picnic lunch will be involved. It’s not that I don’t enjoy eating out (I do) or that I’m particularly healthy (I’m not), I just don’t enjoy paying for a meal out. (I’m not cheap, just frugal poor.) And since there were seven of us on this day, and the weather was gorgeous, we decided a salami on rye with some Fritos (see not so healthy) and orange slices at a beautiful park beat a $40+ fast food or $80+ sit down meal.
Korean Bell of Friendship (featured in the movie “The Usual Suspects”)
The bell and pavilion were donated in 1976 to the people of Los Angeles by the people of the Republic of Korea. The park is lovely and has an amazing ocean view. There was even a playset for Garrett to play. (And Marley to boss him around.)
What a gorgeous place for a picnic!
Most people would head home after spending a few hours on a battleship and then picnicking for an hour or so. But most people are not the Ross family!
I like to look in funky thrift stores and Chandler likes to poke around antique stores. We did a search for antique stores on my mom’s iPhone, but the places we found were no longer there. I did find a really cool thrift store (I like to look for clothes) but everyone quickly lost patience with me so we didn’t spend nearly enough time there.
After that we drove to Wayfarers Chapel in Palos Verdes. It was designed by Lloyd Wright (the son of Frank Lloyd Wright) and is truly stunning.
Beautiful!
It’s a big wedding destination and a bit of a tourist trap, but I think it’s peaceful and very lovely. We met a couple who were in town from Wisconsin for the Rose Bowl game (I told you this blog was overdue) who had gotten married in the church 25 years ago. It was so sweet to hear them reminisce.
A beautiful place for a wedding
After touring the church it was almost 4:00. Everyone was tired and ready to go home. We kept a 16-year-old, a 12-year-old and a 9-year-old entertained (on a budget) and deemed the day a success. What a great idea by my mom. I think she just stole my title of “Mother of the Year.”
At this posting the Groupon for the Battleship Iowa is still available. To check it out click here.
Yesterday Marley was “doing homework” in her room. We bought her a lovely Crate and Barrel desk (well, the original owner bought it from Crate and Barrel – I got it and the almost-matching-Ikea-chair at a yard sale for forty bucks a couple years ago), but she prefers to use her desk as a place to store dirty clothes, books, old homework, candy wrappers (even though she’s not supposed to have candy in her room) and god-know-what-else on it (she uses her floor to store the overflow that doesn’t fit on her desk) and do her homework on her bed.
(Wow! That was an 92 word sentence – I know I write obnoxiously long sentences, but I might have set a record!)
Anyway, I walked in her room to check on her and she was reading a book. She’s reading Eighth Grade Bites, the first Vladimir Tod book by Heather Brewer. I love to read and she claims that she does not like to read, so it brings me joy that she is reading a book. She also needs to read books and then test on them at the school library to get points for her Language Arts class. (Why is it called Language Arts in middle school, but English in high school? Just wondering.) She needs ten points by next Friday and Eighth Grade Bites is worth seven, so she will have to read another book after (and Ninth Grade Slays is almost twice as long) so she does need to read.
But. I would still prefer that she do her reading last. She’s a fast reader. She can read on the weekends.
She had to do nine math problems, study bones for science (did you know that 1/4 of the bones in our body are in our feet?), and write over 20 vocabulary sentences for Language Arts. I know this because all of her homework is online. Yes, the digital age makes it possible for even non-helicopter moms like me to know what their kids are supposed to be doing.
“You’re doing your reading first?” I asked her trying to sound upbeat and chipper instead of disapproving.
“Yes, I’m almost done,” she answered. “I only have a few pages left.”
“Okay,” I said and handed her an index card with her homework assignments written on it. “Finish up and start your math.”
“I know, Mom,” she said in that lovely tween voice that lets you know they know. (Everything!)
A half an hour later I popped my head in her room to let her know I found a cool website with some math games for percentages. She’s been struggling with percentages and I’m great at percentages (probably because in my mind percentages equals buying things on sale), but I’m not great at teaching her percentages. (Probably because she’s not great at listening.)
She was still reading her book.
“I thought you said you were almost done.”
“I am,” she answered.
And then I noticed the glow on her face. It was not a metaphorical glow that lights up your face because you are reading words that inspire or enlighten you. It was a physical glow. A bright glow that reminded me of the briefcase in Pulp Fiction.
And it was coming out of her book.
She was the modern day version of a kid in class with a comic book stuck inside of a text book.
“Hand over the iPod,” I said.
“But Mom,” she whined. “Listening to music helps me concentrate. Even Dr. Robin said it’s a good idea.”
“Yes, well listening to music may help you concentrate, but having a mini computer stuck in your book does not. Hand. It. Over.”
And after a few “That’s not fairs” she did.
And then I went back to my laptop and got back to work. After watching a short film on YouTube. And commenting on some Facebook status updates. And scrolling Twitter. Because Marley has nothing on me when it comes to being distracted.
(And if you’d like to be distracted even further, here is the film on YouTube that caught my eye.)
Charlene Ross 