'Tis The Season

'Tis the season...



It is definitely the time of year that weeks go by and you realize there are still things to do on your to-do list from a month ago that you still haven't gotten around to doing.

Brad and I celebrated our very FIRST anniversary two weeks ago and I had this really cool idea for a post that I just let slip away from my mind. So you get this instead :) Our gift to ourselves was the trip to Napa so we took it pretty easy on the day of and spent the Sunday as we normally do -- Brad studying for finals, me napping and grocery shopping. It was bliss. It was also our last week of training for our first half marathon, so we tried our best to run, eat right and rest...

Speaking of marriage and half marathons, on the long four-hour, leg-stiffening, constantly-hungry-because-my-metabolism-is-high drive, I thought about some seemingly obvious correlations of the two. During any sort of training program for long-distance running, there are ups and downs, highs and lows, points where you're on top of the world and those where you could really just lie down and let someone bury you six feet under. First year of marriage? Just the same. You start training thinking that it will all be no big deal. You'll start out kind of slow (like getting used to each other's potentially-annoying habits) with some strength and conditioning along the way (I compare this to Bible study and counseling, if present). All week long, you prepare yourself for your weekend long runs; in marriage, you're constantly preparing for something difficult...you've got to learn to get through the small battles to endure the large ones. You set out to conquer your long run with doubt, but surprisingly feel the runner's "high" when it's all said and done. Sound familiar, married friends? This continues until your short runs become the same length as your long runs started out and your long runs are just ridiculously long. In a marriage, you begin to realize that the other has certain habits that drive you crazy at first, but you eventually come to expect. Those more trying times become a thing of the past as you learn more about each other everyday.

And then there's race day. You wake up early, eat an energizing breakfast and then start realizing that you just got up two hours before the gun goes off so you can torture yourself for 13.1 miles. You reach the starting line with 20,000 other people doing the exact same thing you are and the adrenaline starts pumping. The gun fires. The runners cheer. 14 minutes later, you actually cross the starting line and begin your journey. Lookers-on are yelling for you by name, encouraging you, guarding streets and lining the path. Families are out early on a cold, foggy morning to root for thousands of strangers because they know the encouragement is a necessity. The hill at mile 4 just about kills you before you realize, "hey, it's over and now I have a little relief." There are pit stops along the way in case you need refreshment. Before you know it, mile 11 is upon you and the my-knees-and-hips-and-ankles-are-really-hurting-so-bad-I-think-I-might-have-to-stop thoughts begin to loom. You shake it off and they return. But you can't stop now. You're TWO MILES away from the finish line. When you actually get there, you breathe, you stretch, you try to stay on both feet because perhaps your glucose level is low (thank you, Jelly Belly Sports Beans) and you're greeted with a Finisher Medal and t-shirt. And then there's beer (that I did not consumer because the mere thought of it was nauseating) and water and fruit and bagels and free chiropractic adjustments and photographers snapping pictures. It's over and you hurt and you have a quarter-sized blister on your foot and you smell really badly and then you think, "that was awesome! Let's do it again next year." Stupid. I mean, really?

And marriage? Yeah, pretty much the exact same thing. There's the excitement of being a wife. There are people congratulating you and giving you words of wisdom. Then comes the hill at month 4; you spent how much on what? You mean you didn't know the dirty hamper had a purpose? And that dishes can, in fact, go into the dishwasher and not camp out in the sink all night? And then you start to not care as much because you get a random card in the mail or phone call from a friend. You feel the pain of the first big fight. And then you get some refreshment; hear just the right sermon at church or a friend or parent says just the right thing and everything's back to normal. You learn to lean on each other and talk and fight fairly and compromise, for Heaven's sake, because both of you can't be right every time (!). Then you look up, the first year's out of the way, you breathe a sigh of thanksgiving and think to yourself, "I can't wait to do this again next year!"

I'm Dreaming...

...of a White Christmas. And it actually happened. Granted, it's not quite Christmas yet, but the decorations are up so we're close enough! Meteorologists started predicting snow in Houston at the beginning of this week and because it's Houston, I was skeptical. For once, they were right and it's been snowing pretty hard since about 11:00 this morning! People from the north are probably laughing hysterically at us right now, because [obviously] Houstonians are freaking. out. This is the story of the week! But hey, it iced in '07, snowed last year at this time (while we were in New York on our honeymoon) and is happening again.

Brad and I love cold weather and very rarely turn on the heater. It's supposed to get down into the 20s tonight, so we'll see if we can bear it. One good thing about living in a third story apartment is that we can mooch off the downstairs neighbors' heat :) For now, this will just have to work. (I'm going to brag just a little -- I made that fire all by myself and have kept it going for almost an hour!)

People all over Facebook have been participating in 30 days of thanksgiving during the month of November and I kept wanting to get in on it, but never did. So here's my chance to back-track and catch up. I'll do the first 19 days now and will finish up with the rest of the month in another post. Here goes...

1. For my husband that, despite my many imperfections and mood swings, loves me unconditionally.

2. For my parents that have supported me and my decisions from day 1 (when Dad nearly passed out because I was a girl) and have

3. For two brothers that are completely opposite of me (and each other) that I have learned so much from -- determination and the importance of a giving heart.

4. For neices and nephews that remind me of the innocence of childhood

5. For in-laws that I can be myself around and that helped raise the best thing that ever happened to me.

6. For girl friends that like to shop, eat, chat and can pick up where we left off after an absence of phone calls for months at a time

7. For my small group Bible study that has challenged me and prayed for me and that God has put them in my life for encouragement

8. For cool breezes on warm days that give that small bit of relief and sunny skies that are dotted with fluffy clouds

9. For family friends that huddle together around my parents and each in other in hard times.

10. For co-workers that have helped mold me and are patient with me when I'm having a bad day, week or even month!

11. For the men and women that have sacrificed more than I ever could to give me the chance to worship freely in a country that I love.

12. For a stable job during such an unstable time in our economy. I have learned more in the last three years than in the 23 before them.

13. For the ability to minister to families during some of the most vulnerables times of their lives.

14. For a bed to sleep in, food and water to drink, clothes to wear and the ability to obtain those things when so many can't.

15. For the ability to run 7 miles and the ability to walk the day after running those 7 miles.

16. For frozen yogurt, peanut butter, avocados, Imperial sugar Dr. Peppers and chips and salsa.

17. For DVR and the person that invented it.

18. For the Aggie spirit that extends beyond any other comraderie that has ever been seen.

19. For people who believe in me when I don't really believe in myself.

Stay tuned for the last 11 days in a week or two!

Napa Pics

Days 5 and 6 - St. Helena/Rutherford and San Fran

Wednesday:

We spent day 5 around St. Helena and Rutherford, which is an area known for the reds (mostly Cabernets). We went to a few wineries that were good, but not really anything to mention so I'll leave their names out. Before we left, we were given the suggestion to go to Quintessa and had an appointment for a tour/tasting. Once again we were the only ones actually on the tour, which was really nice. Mindy was our tour guide and she did an amazing job. I think this was probably our favorite place because not only did they show us the vines and the barrels, but also the production floor where the winemaker himself was walking around checking on things. The views were amazing, the building quite modern and the experience wonderful. We actually got to see the winemaker's own "tasting room" where he was getting ready to samply the juice from each lot of vines* and begin mixing to get just the right blend.

*Quintessa has 27 lots, with 5 different grapes growing on those lots. Each lot may have a slight variation in soil composition or location (hillside or valley), which both contribute to skin thickness and ultimately flavor.

We spent the evening at home, grilled steaks and ate cupcakes :)


Thursday:

We made the hour drive to San Francisco our last full day in California to do be tourists (complete with map and camera in hand). We parked down by Fisherman's Wharf, walked through Ghiradelli Square and had a couple of other sights on our list to see. I, being the incredibly smart person that I am, suggested we do a walking tour. Obviously, I had no clue how much walking that would involve, I just knew that we'd done it in New York almost a year ago, so it couldn't be that bad. And besides, if we ever got tired, we could just jump on a cable car or hail a taxi and finish up that way. So we began our trek to Golden Gate bridge along the bay. It was a really nice walk with the breeze blowing and sun shining. Well, an hour later when we got close enough to satisfy ourselves, we decided it was time to find some public transportation to get us to stop B. There was no public transportation anywhere nearby. We even asked a few locals and they basically (in their own very nice way) told us we were screwed.

So we walked back. But this time, we decided to go straight to see Lombard Street in all its curviness. And by straight, I mean straight up. Up the 40-degree sloped very long three blocks to the top. We got there, took a picture, walked down and took another picture then decided we deserved pizza. The rest of the afternoon we just walked the piers until time to board Alcatraz Cruises. We spent about two and a half hours on the island doing a 45-minute audio tour through the cell house, learning about some of the attempted escapes, more famous inmates and the daily routines (which were incredibly limited) of the prisoners. Once back from the island, we had dinner with Aunt Grace at a great place in Little Italy and headed back to Napa.

We've already been asked what our favorite part of the trip was and it's kind of hard to decide. I think we both really enjoyed the weather (40s at night, sunny and low 60s at day), the laid-back lifestyle of the Valley and of course, some good wine. We learned a little bit about tasting and pairing wine with food and have a little better appreciation for the art of winemaking. I think we'd both love to back to California and see more of the national parks and coast lines and LA (for shopping...okay, that's probably just me).

Day 4 - Vino-less Ventures

Today was low-key and it was awesome! We both slept in a bit and then made our way to shop around Napa and St. Helena. We walked a little, looked a little and then ate...a lot.

In case you don't know anything about Guy Fieri and his hot rod red Camaro, he has a little show called "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" on the Food Network. We watch this show. A lot. So Brad did a little research to see if there were any places Guy deemed cool enough to visit. We stopped by Taylor's Automatic Refresher for lunch. They're known for their hamburgers (I ordered chicken) and it was definitely tasty! The crowd here was pretty interesting -- Mercedes, Beamers, beat-up pick-ups -- apparently everybody likes the hamburger stand. [We actually stopped by the one in Napa after dinner for a vanilla bean shake -- it was good, Dad. Not quite Blue Bell, but darn close.]

We were both craving Mexican food, so after our afternoon run, we decided to try out some Cali-Mex. It's no Tex-Mex for sure, but it satisfied my tummy.

Tomorrow's out last day at the vineyards before we head to San Francisco on Thursday...looking forward to some touristy sight-seeing adventures!

Day 3 - Healdsburg

I have a feeling that if I go back and read my last post, I will be extremely disappointed in my writing. However, I'm tired and don't want to do that so I'll just apologize for what was not my best work. Moving on...

Today, Brad and I headed about an hour north of Napa to the town of Healdsburg to tour and taste at a few more wineries. The drive up CA-29/CA-128 was once again breath-taking. Healdsburg is actually in a different valley than Napa, so driving up through the foothills reminded us of Colorado's mountain roads (minus the steep life-threatening drop-offs and icy roads).

First stop, Jordan Winery. The estate of this vineyard is incredible. French-style chateau with Boston ivy growing up all sides of every wall. Immaculate landscaping with vineyards about 150 years away on the hills. They also grow olive trees and produce olive oil, as well as a full organic vegetable garden used in their kitchen. We were the only ones on the tour so we got a little extra attention from Gloria, our extremely bubbly hostess with the mostess. I had my first bit of caviar (this place doesn't mess around) as well as walked through my first secret door. Gloria even sent us home with an early anniversary gift -- a picture book all about Jordan. Did I mention they have Clyde and Barney that eat the grass around the back of the chateau so that it creates a rocky "fire wall"? Cutes goats you ever did see.

Next up was a quick stop at Seghesio's tasting room in downtown Healdsburg. Honestly, besides a nice hostess, this place wasn't that impressive. They did, however, have some great chianti and port. So we made away with a bottle. We then dropped in at J Winery (owner = daughter of Jordan) to make a purchase for the owner of Vintropolis back home. Apparently , J has really good pear liquer. We actually didn't do a tasting here because they're known for their champagne and I'm not known for my love of bubbly.

Our last stop of the day was at Trentadue. I snapped a few good pictures of grapes that were left behind at harvest and we also watched Rocky, the resident weiner dog enjoy a lizard as an afternoon snack right in the middle of the tasting room floor. It was...interesting. Back to the wine - good Zinfandel and awesome port they call Chocolate Amore. Looking forward to drizzling that over a little Blue Bell when we get back to a place that actually sells Blue Bell.

We made it back before dusk and enjoy a short run before grabbing a movie from the grocery store. Lesson learned from today? Take notes of the wines you like at the winery because although the vintage and taste might be slightly different, Lucky (aforementioned grocery store) has many of those wines for about 20% off the tasting room price. Oh well. We're here to support Napa's finest.

Tomorrow? I wouldn't expect much because we've deemed it Tourless Tuesday -- a real vacation isn't complete without at least one agenda-free day. [Actually, I have an agenda, it just includes non-wine type things like shopping, running, gourmet cupcake-eating...you know, the fun vacation-y stuff.]