Napa, California

Sometime during Ryan's six-week stay in Austin, he booked our family a night in Napa. I think he was feeling bad for me, home as usual with the sweethearts while he stayed at the nicest hotel in Austin. :) Anyway, our family get-away was refreshing, although Napa itself is kind of an interesting place to visit when (a) you have toddlers and (b) you don't drink wine. But that's okay! My favorite part was actually being in the hotel. The boys think a hotel room is a grand adventure, and we enjoyed a fun night playing in the jacuzzi and pool. The pools were outdoor and it was a bit chilly, but the boys didn't mind for a second and we had the pace to ourselves!

Bedtime was surprisingly fun! We wore them out at the pool, then all four of us lined up in age order on king-sized bed, and we watched TV until first Chase knocked off, and then Trenton. We moved Chase to the hotel's port-a-crib and Trenton to his little bed on the floor, and voila!

The next day we drove the 25 minutes between Napa and Calistoga, a quaint, tiny town in the middle of wine country. November is the perfect time of year to make that drive—the leaves were beautiful! It was so nice to see some real fall foliage! And the grape vines are yellow and burgundy right now—gorgeous.

We visited a big castle (technically a replica of a castle since it was built in the 90s!). This picture makes us laugh. The lengths a kid will go to to avoid having his photo taken... Nice bum shot, T!

Much better. We may have "incentivized" him this time around. :)

I wish I had gotten better photos of the grapevines, but getting the boys in the car was becoming enough of a struggle at this point (oh that dear, stubborn Chaser) that it was not worth making any extra stops!

Pretty much anytime two or more members of my family are looking at the camera and actually looking pleasant, I am compelled to post it.

Thanks for a fun get-away, babe!

Sleeping Beauty Strikes Again

The combination of the time change, a fading cold, and a drive to and from preschool twice a week has created one drowsy Chase. I laughed when I uploaded some pictures today because I just happened to have several separate series of Chase looking exhausted on our couch. As cute as these pictures are, his drowsiness has actually complicated life for me, but oh well!

And one more thing: Chase, I hate to break it to you, but you are kind of a crier! Lately you lower and shake your head vigorously when I propose something you don't want to do (like a diaper change), and you squawk loudly whenever someone encroaches on something you perceive as yours. I suppose it's just karma, because I believe I was a crier baby myself. Sorry Mom! (And I still love you very much, Chaser!)

I really do love all these pictures, though, even if the exhaustion has thrown us a little off our game! Here's to a better week next week than last!

GUYS—

"Guys. This daylight savings thing is no joke."


It's rare enough that whenever my boys fall asleep somewhere other than their beds (or in Chase's case, the carseat), I can't help but grab my camera. Today he was watching Sesame Street at 11:10am while I got us ready to go get T from preschool. I noticed his head bobbing while sitting up, so I plopped him over on his side and there he stayed.

A Question I Hear Frequently...

"What can you do for me, Mom?" A certain three-year-old asks me this multiple times a day lately. Sometimes every two minutes! (I turn it around and ask him, "What can you do for me, kid?")

It almost feels a little insulting, knowing how very much I do do for him. Goodness sakes, child, have you noticed who wipes your bum every day?

In his defense, I think what he's really trying to say is "What can you do with me," not necessarily "for" me. Big difference, sweetheart! I try I should be flattered that he wants my undivided attention so very much, even though it's a little hard to get anything done!