Napa Birthday/Anniversary Trip

For our fifth wedding anniversary and my 30th birthday we decided to head back to Napa. We had such a good time a couple years ago that we decided to go back.  We thought about the beach, but I didn't think I could lay on the beach and not obsess about my kids the whole time.  So Michael and I packed our schedule full.  I think I need a vacation from our vacation now :)

Our flight was really early on Monday morning, so my mom and dad came over and stayed with the kids and got them ready for school.  Unfortunately, Peyton was up the whole night and only slept about 2 hours the night before, so we were both exhausted.  Michael and I had not had any time to plan our trip (mostly because of busy season, birthdays, and selling our house), so we were sitting in the airport and talking about what we wanted to do.  We were sitting at the wrong gate and totally missed our flight.  We realized it as the plane was pulling away and it was too late. So we flew standby and connected through L.A. which was not our original plan. It actually worked out really well and we only arrived 30 minutes after our original flight would have landed.  Our original flight was delayed, so it worked out perfectly!  

It was about 5 pm by the time we got to Napa and we hit up two of the wineries on the way in, Jacuzzi and Cline. 

After the two wineries we checked into the hotel and headed out for a drink at Bardessono and to dinner at Ad Hoc. We were in town for fried chicken night at Thomas Keller's more casual restaurant, so we decided to try it out. They have a set menu that changes daily, so the night we were there was spicy fried chicken night. It was good, but I definitely think that Nashville has some pretty good fried chicken, because Michael and I were both wondering what all the hype was about.

Michael had planned to surprise me with a hot air balloon ride over Napa for my 30th birthday, but unfortunately we got a call at 4:50am that it was cancelled because of the wind.  We were pretty bummed.

We started off our day at Mumm with some bubbly. It was so relaxing and yummy!

Next we headed to Stag's Leap.  We have tried their wines at home and loved them, so thought we would try it out.

So gorgeous!

Then we headed to an adorable little market called Oakville Grocery.  After lunch, Michael scheduled a massage so we relaxed and had a massage.

After the massage we decided to try out a few wineries that the hotel suggested.  We tried Clos Du Val.

Silverado

For my birthday dinner we went to Cole's Chop House and it was great!

On Wednesday we woke up pretty early and headed to Boon Fly Cafe. It was really yummy, but in hindsight I probably should have eaten more!

Next we headed to one of our favorites Grgich Hills.  We are wine club members there, so we already knew we loved it.

Next we headed to St. Supery.  We didn't love the wines, but it was still fun to visit.

Next we headed to Silver Oaks. I let Michael do the tasting at this one, since they only make two red wines which weren't my favorite.  He loved it, which was great.

The views everywhere are just beautiful!

Next we headed to Jarvis and it was such a fun experience.  Jarvis is a small winery, but the only one that has a natural waterfall running through it. Below is the cave entrance.

Pictures from inside the cave

Picture in front of the waterfall

Private tasting in the cave.  It was so fun!

Next we headed to Del Dotto. This one was not a great experience for me! We only had a chance to eat breakfast that day, which in hindsight was not a great decision. At most wineries there are like four tastings and at this one there was unlimited numbers.  I was quite sick afterwards.

After Del Dotto we headed to Redd for dinner. Unfortunately, I was not feeling well so didn't eat much. I was excited about trying it so I was bummed that I wasn't up for it!

Thursday morning we woke up and headed to Bouchon Bakery. By far my favorite breakfast!

Then we headed to Raymond Vineyards. It is a crazy club like place!  It was really fun to experience.

The wall of senses

Next we headed to Gott's roadside (previously Taylor's Refresher).  We went there last time and it was incredible.  A yummy burger with sweet potato fries.  Nothing better between a day of wine drinking.

Then we headed to Chateu Montelana.  I didn't love our experience here, but it was still fun to go and see the grounds.

The Castle.  We didn't actually go inside, but heard we should check it out.  It is a pretty incredible castle!

Next we had a wine, cheese and chocolate private tasting at Clos Pegase. The tour guide was great and it was really fun to have another private tasting in a cave.

Then we went to dinner at an Italian restaurant that was really good

On our last day (and our anniversary) we had rescheduled our hot air balloon ride.  Unfortunately, it rained that day so we weren't able to do the balloon ride at all.  Michael and I were really bummed. So, we headed back to Bouchon again. It was so yummy! Next we headed back to Mumm to have a little bubbly to start our day.  After Mumm we headed to Cakebread Cellars. We love their wines at home, so we decided to visit.  We took a tour and got to taste a ton of of wines and all of them were great!

The grapes are starting to grow!

Our hotel

After Cakebread, we headed to the Oxbow Market and went to an adorable little pizza place called Ca'moi. The pizza was wonderful.  Then we headed to get some ice cream! After ice cream we headed to Judd Hill.  It was an adorable little winery.  They also had a barbecue sauce and wine tasting which was really fun.

After Judd's Hill it was time to head back to San Francisco.  We had an early flight so we had planned to have dinner at Fleming's for our anniversary (like we do every year) in San Francisco and stay at a hotel close to the airport. On our way back to San Francisco we stopped to view the Golden Gate Bridge.  We hiked to the top to be able to see some beautiful views.

It was an incredible trip and I am so glad Michael and I took the time to go by ourselves while our kids are young. Since I have been back at work we really have not had any time to hang out by ourselves.  We have been so stressed out with two jobs, two kids, two dogs, selling a house, and two birthday parties!  I know in the future we will want to take vacations with the boys as they get older, so I am really glad I have these memories with just Michael. Hopefully we can continue to take a little time for ourselves every few years!