Tahoe Weekend of Fun!

*note: this should have been posted on 7/26*

Wow! We just got back from a fun weekend in Tahoe. Andrew, Jen, Grevin and I went up to "relax" and see the Colato family. What Jen and I forgot was, without daddy's coming along to, the boys were our sole responsibility all weekend long! We're just lucky that Andrew and Grevin get along so well and they were able to entertain each other while the mommies relaxed!

We wasted no time once we got there and went straight to the pool. Andrew and Grevin loved that they could splash around and be independent.

Seriously, this kid has no fear of the water!

Mom, stop taking my picture and help me bounce on the pole!

On Saturday we headed out to King's Beach to let the boys play. They had a great time digging in the sand and watching everyone. Andrew and I put our toes in the water and my memory was correct...it was COLD!

Andrew managed to weasel his way into a badminton game. There were people playing next to us and Andrew was very curious about what they were doing. They were nice enough to give us two rackets and the ball thing.

After Kings Beach we took the drive over the mountain to see the Colato family. The boys had such a great time playing in the pool!

The mommies and the babies.

Make-A-Wish Auction Event

In May, the winery hosted their annual Make-A-Wish event. This is an amazing event where 800 people come together to raise money for children in Northern California. It is a very touching event knowing that every dollar raised goes towards making a very sick child's wish come true. Perhaps it hit home even more now that we are parents of a happy, healthy boy. In the spirit of the event, Brian bid on one of the live auction lots. Lesson to me: don't leave the table and Brian in charged of the bidding paddle. At least the money goes to a good cause, right?!

So, two weekends ago (I know, I'm behind on my blogging) we went up to Tom and Brenda Simoneau's house for our wine tasting event. Originally it was supposed to be a class on wine making but our guest list was already educated in wine making so we changed it up a little! We did a double blind tasting (meaning no one had any clue what wine was in each bag) and had a Napa vs. Sonoma tasting. In the end, I'm sad to say that Napa got first place but I would like to point out that I liked the Sonoma wine the best!!

There was serious tasting that needed to be done.

We managed to take on the task with no problem.

Our Tasting Crew
Brian, Me, Mick, Linda, Sharon, Bob, Brenda and Tom

Playing catch-up

Sorry folks, I've been slaking at the blog lately. So, for the next couple of days you'll get some out of order posts. I'll try my hardest to get up to speed by the end of the week. I know, it's been so hard for all of you to not know how we've been spending our days.....

Open for business!

After almost nine months of meetings with the county, contractor bids, construction and planning, the tasting room is open! We had our Grand Opening party on Saturday July 10th and it was a huge success. Over 700 people came and we sold a lot of wine. The most impressive part to me was the support from our friends and family that came. It was so touching that they would take time out of their busy weekends to come out to the winery and see how I spend my days.

OK, back to the party details.....we had a live band, food and wine pairings, croquet and a special lounge for our club members. My favorite part was the giant balloons that we had at the entrance to the winery! They were over 10 feet tall and 5 feet wide. The first question I asked anyone when I saw them "What did you think of the balloons?!"

So, now my job really kicks in. I have to make this tasting room a success. So, come on out for a tour and tasting and buy some wine!!

Brian's really starting to perfect his croquet skills!

Brian, me and Terry (our winemaker who's retiring)

The GIANT balloons!

Visitng the Mother Ship

This week I was in Louisville, Kentucky for Brown-Forman's Global Orientation. There were 106 attendees from 18 different countries who had all been with the company for under 3 years. It was a great opportunity to meet people in various different roles around the globe. It was also a great adventure since 5 people from Sonoma-Cutrer went too!

We arrived on Sunday and met up with Meghan who works in Louisville on the Sonoma-Cutrer brand. It was great to be able to have dinner and see the town with her.

Mike, Mick, Me, Krista, Ben (restaurant manager), Meghan and Michelle

The bar at our hotel made a terrific shuffle board. Playing with SCV pinot noir was just the classic touch!

The party crew!!

On Monday we had breakout sessions in the morning then headed over to Woodford Reserve in the afternoon.

Future Woodford Reserve fermenting away.

At the end of the visit, we had a tasting hosted by the Master Distiller, Chris Morris.

Mick, Krista and I with Chris Morris

On Tuesday we had lots of meetings and then we went to dinner at Churchill Downs. There weren't any horses racing but it was still fun.

That's one way to call people into dinner!

Place your bets!

Krista and I hitting the town of Louisville!

Brown-Forman makes all of their own barrels for their whiskey and bourbons. It was fun (and HOT) watching the process.

Barrels going down the line.

Getting a heavy char toast

Time for a tasting of Brown-Forman's most popular spirits!
Woodford Reserve, Jack Daniel's, Finlandia Vodka, Southern Comfort, El Jimador and Casa Herredurra.

On Wednesday night we drove down to Nashville, TN. We met up with Darrell, who works in the TN office. I talk to Darrell on the phone/e-mail almost daily and it was great to put a name and face together!

We found Elvis!

American Idol was hosting the auditions in Nashville the week we were there. These people had been in line for a couple of hours and were going to spend all night there!

Vote for Carly if she makes it!!

Thursday's adventure was to Lynchburg TN. Home of Jack Daniel's and not much else!
We had lunch at Miss Mary Bobo's, a traditional southern boarding house.

Hanging out in the Limestone Caves at Jack. This was the only place that was under 90 degrees. I could have stayed there all day!

Me, Zi and Mr. Jack

The cute little town of Lynchburg. Population = 500

Jeff Arnett, Master Distiller for Jack Daniel's. He came out to the winery a few months ago so it was fun to see him in his element.

Krista and I overlooking Lynchburg

Mick, Me, Ken, Michelle, Mike and Zi enjoying the afternoon at BBQ Hill.

The last night there Michelle and I took a carriage tour of Nashville. It was a quick and fun way to see the city.

2 years later....

June 27, 2008

Me, Liz and Becca with our little babies.

July 5, 2010
Me, Becca and Liz with our big kids!

4th of July Fun!

Wow! Another fun-filled weekend has come and gone. We had a great 4th of July weekend and managed to fill it completely up very quickly. Here's a run down of our fun:

On Saturday Andrew and I hosted playgroup at our house. It was so much fun having my mommy friends and Andrew's kiddie friends over. The kids played in the water all afternoon and the mommies drank "juice."

The next generation of playgroup babies
Kristina and Owen, Michelle and Trevor, Kate and Tyler

On Sunday, we went to the Windsor Farmer's Market to get some fresh goodies and then had lunch on the square. I had to go into work for a couple of hours to meet with a store owner who was in town on vacation.

The tasting room is almost done. These are our temporary tables. Once we get our custom tables in, we'll be done!!

Sunday evening we had the Wing's over for fireworks. I was on Trevor duty for a little while Michelle took a rest. I still had one of Andrew's baby carriers so I busted it out so Trevor could sleep and I could have my hands free.

When you ask Andrew what fireworks say he says "BOOM!"

Not too sure about the fireworks.

The Grand Finale!
I know, super exciting!!

Sleepy Boy. It was way past his bedtime.

Andrew didn't want to cooperate taking a family photo.

On Monday my 2 friends from high school came over. It was great to see Liz and Becca and their kids.

The kid table. They did pretty good without an adult sitting with them.

Cleaning up after dinner.

Yummy.