CA Trip Part II and An Announcement

We drove up and down the Napa Valley 

several times during those few days, 

discovered cute towns, wonderful restaurants, 

wined, wined and wined and then dined, 

and then wined some more. 

(no, we are not lushes--just like to enjoy the finer things on occasion!

Truth be told, we actually got kind of tired of wine!)

Then?  Up north for my nephew's wedding.

Keeping the wedding details off the inter-webs, 

(as my daughter calls it)

I would just like to post a pic of the "get away" car:

We spent several days in the Redding/Shasta County

area celebrating and visiting family. 

(if the area sounds familiar, they've been making the national news with their fires)

The drive back to San Francisco took twice as long 

but we chose to go west and then down the coast

to just take it all in.

Me in front of some giant redwoods.

I don't know about you but it's not often 

that this chick gets to feel small.  

I think we should have redwoods here in Kansas...

of course, with our wind, they'd all be bent.

Now the dh and I aren't real big on spending our 

vacations taking pictures so our few pics, which are 

mostly cell phone quality, will have to suffice.

(was that a sigh of relief?)

Before we headed back to reality, we spent our

last morning in San Fran, on the patio of our hotel,

sipping hot Starbucks in the incredibly cool air

as we watched the planes come in over the Bay.

(I think we should have a "bay area" here in Kansas too...but, as my dh puts it, 

we'd have a million more people and all the tourism to boot so I think 

I'll just be content to visit these places!)

Who'd have thought that the craft ideas that I came 

across on vacation would come from the cheesy 

airport shops?

This is printed on a tea towel 

(which I bought of course--it had my name on it!)

but I'm going to try to get creative with that little phrase.

And this?  A wine and cheese tray, lined with corks

and topped with a heavy plastic.  How cool 

would it be to use only the corks from the wines 

obtained on trips to Napa?  

("Oh, Sweetie?  We're going to have to go back a few times!")

Okay, announcement time!

In my last post I mentioned that two weddings

have come up.

Gosh, I feel old but:

 our oldest daughter has recently gotten engaged 

and will be celebrating their wedding next summer! 

Let the planning begin...