Santa's Little Helpers?

Have you ever wondered how does Santa know if you've been good or bad throughout the year?

I mean the man can't be everywhere at once.

Can he?

I think I've finally figured this one out though. I think he has animals all over the world keeping tabs on the Naughty and the Nice.

Like this little guy.

He was outside my sliding glass door for about twenty minutes. Peering inside to see how the other half lives.

Didn't even flinch when I walked by the door. And he could have cared less when I walked up to the door to take his photo.

Brazen little guy. The one thing that did scare him? My dog in a desperate need to go outside. But then again I think there's a good reason to fear a dog.

Although I not so sure that he's the best of spies. I mean I did notice him. Guess he'll have to be retired. LOL

He sure was cute though.

Fine Already!

So apparently the thought of me not having a tree up this year has put many a friend in a tizzy. My bff actually went out and bought me a tree for this year. So to put your minds at ease I'm posting a picture of my tree. And yes there are now presents under this tree.

Bah Humbug!

I think I've become Scrooge. As everyone else is putting up their trees I've been sort of avoiding the holiday.

I'm not putting up a Christmas tree this year, so here's my nod to the holiday. I got trees painted on my toes.

I'll be sending out my Christmas cards and presents, but will not be decking my halls. Here's wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas.

Ingleside Vineyard's Harvest Celebration

So this past Saturday I went to Ingleside for their Harvest Celebration.

There were vendor's selling things from jewelry to melted wine bottle spoon rests to dog treats to items made with alpaca fur. (Is that how it's worded? Fur not wool?)

And of course there was wine tastings. And wine for sale. By the bottle or the glass. I opted for a tasting and glass or two while my buddy Melanie and I caught up.

They also had grape stomping. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap a picture or three of my friend, Neil, stomping the grapes. They had an Italian opera playing in the back ground and Neil decided to sing along with it. I was nearly doubled over in laughter.

And no I did not stomp grapes. It was a little too chilly for me. The good thing was that at least the bugs weren't really hanging around. There was no way I was sticking my bare feet in that cold gloppy mess.

I may be blond, but I'm not crazy. lol

On occasion you tend to be in the right place at the right time. I was lucky enough to be around when the wine maker let a few of us try the Petit Manseng. It was really sweet. I was tickled to be around when he offered it up. And those who know me, know I would never pass up that kind of opportunity.

And how could I not get a picture of Beth with Ghirardelli from Camillo Valley. He was the sweetest thing. And their fur is SO soft! And they have some wonderful items they make up for sale.

All in all I think it was a pretty good day.

Rainy Days Are Meant For...

Vegging!
And what better way to show that than by posting some of these really cool photos of vegetable or fruit art?

I love listening to the pitter patter of the rain. The day is made for sitting on the couch and watching a movie or reading a book. Drinking a glass of wine and doing nothing else.

We really haven't had a lot of rainy days, so I think I'll just sit back and enjoy this one.

Maybe even take a nap in the middle of the day.

How decadent!

I hope you've enjoyed the cute photos.

Fall Again

It's fall again. The leaves will change, the air will get brisker and kids are finally back in school. LOL

I hope you all enjoy the cooler weather. I know I will as soon as it happens.

And yes I realize this photo is an old one, but I will not be leafing this year and no self respecting person blogging about fall would NOT include at least one picture of the leaves. So at least I have some self respect. LOL

Glimpse of Carl Flemer

Today's glimpse is of Mr. Carl Flemer.

Not only has Mr. Flemer written two books (Four Centuries of Little Known Washington Parish History and Birthplace of the Nation: A Story Worth Telling) but he also started up Ingleside Vineyards. One of my favorite wineries!

We were able to catch up with him at his book signing at Ingleside back in December of last year.

I used to work at Ingleside and remember carrying wine out to Mr. Carl's car on many occasions. He couldn't remember my name, which is fine, but he did remember my face.

And that's just a glimpse of Mr. Carl Flemer.

A Glimpse of Phil

Today I thought I'd do a glimpse of my buddy, Phil McKenney. It's a long overdue glimpse, for sure.

Phil is an artist. I own a number of his works, but he also works at Vault Field Vineyards. I snapped this photo of him hard at work. Most of my friends have learned to ignore me when I have my camera out. It's probably a good rule of thumb. I met Phil a few years ago when we both worked at Ingleside Vineyards.

I could sit for hours and listen to him talk. He's got tons of stories that are very interesting. He's met interesting people and one of the things I love the most is our conversations about older movies. We share a common fondness for the Duke. And if you have no clue who this is, then there's no hope for you. Got educate yourself!

I also loved the cartoons he would sketch out for me on the whiteboard in the kitchen. There were many a time we didn't work together and would leave funny cartoons for each other. Of course his were better illustrated than mine. But he is an artist.

Recently he was on a morning program that airs in Richmond. If you're interested, you can click here and go to a video clip of it. I still swear he could have a talk show and I'd be sure to tune in whatever the time. He can talk about anything, but I think one of the things he can really talk up is baseball.

And that's just a tiny glimpse of Phil.

17 Years Ago

We became a couple. That's right 17 years ago on this very day Jim and I were married. Yes, we were married on a Friday the 13th.

Can you tell we aren't very superstitious?

As you can see from the picture, Jim sent me roses. How many you may ask. 18! He couldn't order 17, so I had to promise to stick around for another year. That was an EASY thing to promise!

We've had our ups and downs, just like all couples, but I would trade it for anything in the world.

I've been with Jim over half my life and look forward to spending the rest of my life with him.

Happy Anniversary Jim!

Food Quest: Passions

So on Monday the 2nd my brother, Tim, and I went to Passions in Chesapeake and did their Cooking Class. They do this something like every other Monday. Basically it's like sitting at the chef's table and watching what goes on in the kitchen. The head chef walks you through each course and how he makes it. It's pretty fun.

The first course was classic Caprese with Balsamic Reduction. They make their own mozzarella. And they have a garden behind the restaurant that they got the tomatoes from.

They paired this with a 2009 Gouguenheim Malbec from Argentina. Which complimented this course very well.

The second course was White Truffle Risotto with Asparagus Tips. There's not much I can say about this. It was a bit cheesier than I would have liked, but the asparagus was nice and crisp. Just the way I like it.

They paired this with a 2008 Kung Fu Girl Riesling from Washington state.

The third course was Chicken Francais over Smoked Apple Wood Bacon-Potato Hash. I really liked this course. Of course, they had me at bacon. The only thing I didn't care for was the capers that were in the sauce. Easily remedied though because you could take the capers out of the sauce.

They paired this with a 2008 Santa Barbara Winery Sauvignon Blanc. I wasn't all that impressed with it. It wasn't as crisp as I like my Sauvignon Blancs to be.

The fourth course was Bananas Foster. I don't care for bananas, but I really loved the sauce over it.

They paired this with Mumm Napa Brut.

I know at the end of the Food Quests I normally put the pros and cons of the restaurant, but this time I don't think I will. I'll just leave it at how I enjoyed the food and the experience.

Heart of Virginia Wine Trail

So my brother Tim and I decided to do the Heart of Virginia Wine Trail on Sunday. There are only four so it's easy to do on a Sunday afternoon.

Our first stop was James River Cellar Winery. We did enjoy this winery. It has a lovely patio and some nice wines. They had a nice gift shop as well and we were finally able to find matching tee shirts in our sizes.

We even bought two of the Vino Frappes. One was red and one was white as you can see. They even sold the mixes in their gift shop. So of course we bought some. The wine tasting itself wasn't that informative.

So we sat out on their patio sipping the vino frappes. We switched halfway so the other person could try the other drink. However, I liked the white better.

The next stop on our trail was Grayhaven.

Most of the wines here are done in a South American style. Not something I'm majorly in to. The winemaker actually did the tasting. I think I would have learned a LOT more if it wasn't for the girl at the bar who thought she was a wine expert and a photography expert. I would have paid good money for her to shut up! Better to keep your mouth shut and have people think you're a fool. Than to open it and remove all doubt.

However I would have loved to hear the winemaker talk more. Loved the accent! Plus I think I could have learned lots more.

Our next stop on the trail was Cooper Vineyard. I was actually surprised at how small it was.

We had to wait to do a tasting here as well. The tasting room is quite small and really can't hold many people. So while we waited I got a close up pictures of the grapes on the vine.

They're putting nets over their vines because the grapes are ripening and they want to keep the birds and other animals away from them.

The wines are nice and we did walk away with a number of the wines.

The last stop on our trail was Lake Anna Winery. We were able to taste their wines before they closed for the day. I didn't really learn ANYTHING about their wines. And sadly, I wasn't that impressed with them.

Chesapeake Bay Wine Trail

So Saturday my brother and I decided to do theChesapeake Bay Wine Trail. I have been to a number of them before, but my brother (who's only in town for a short time) has not.

We started out atIngleside Vineyards. I'm very used to them and their wines. Especially since I used to work there. lol

Couldn't leave without a picture of their courtyard though. And some wine, of course.

Next we went to Oak Crest Vineyards. I forgot to take a picture there. Which is sad, because it is a lovely spot. And I was able to catch up with my friend, Sharon. Which made me really happy. We left this winery with a number of bottles as well. Good thing I've got a big trunk!

Our next stop on the trail was The Hague Winery. This is a fairly new winery. I had never been to it. We almost missed it because the sign is not that noticeable. I was a bit concerned as we pulled up to the barn that houses their tasting rooms. But the wines were okay if not a bit young. We only left with a bottle of their dessert wines.

Our next destination was Vault Field Vineyards. Yet another new winery for me. However, there was something familiar to me at the winery. And that was my buddy Phil McKenney. I had worked with Phil years ago at Ingleside. The wines were nice and we left with quite a few bottles. And it figures as soon as we got there a bunch of people came in at the same time. Figure the odds. It was great seeing Phil again!

We then headed out towards Athena Vineyards. I had been here before and was glad for the return. This trail took quite a bit longer than normal because I knew a lot of the people and we chatted quite a bit. Such things do happen when you used to work at one of the wineries on the trail. We left with a number of bottles.

The last stop on our winery trail was White Fences Vineyard. It's pretty easy to find since they have giant corkscrews at the entrance. Their tasting room is small. And we did have to wait a while to get our tasting, but when you have a small tasting room and only one person working then that's what will happen. Sadly I was unimpressed with any of the wines. My brother did, but I'm not sure if he liked the wine or the girl pouring the wine.

A Glimpse of Bella

This is the first in my series that I've named 'Glimpses'. It'll be a quick glimpse at someone who's in some way caught my attention. Here's hoping that it's been caught in a good way and not a bad one. LOL

And my first 'glimpse'? Which will be a short one. It's of Bella!

Bella was my favorite barista at Java Cup Cafe! I say was because she no longer works there. She always has a smile and a ready greeting. And was quick with a suggestion for your drink. I always trusted her with my drink order. I could tell her if I was in the mood for tea or coffee and how decadent I was feeling. She would whip me something up immediately.

You wouldn't know it immediately, but she's 17. She may be young but in many ways she acts much wiser than her years. Sometimes I forget she's so young.

I'll miss her as a barista, but I still have her as a friend and I'm glad.

A New Series

My friend Denise has a wonderful blog, One Lucky Girl, and she has a really cool series that she's started called Strong Women. I'm going to borrow from her idea and put my own twist on it. I'll be doing it on people in my life. Men and women. Children and adults. Just glimpses of them really, but I think I can do this.

Hopefully this will work out. It will get me out there and using my camera again. Which is the main reason for this.

So here's hoping this experiment works out for me.

Food Quest: Waterman's Surfside Grill

So today we decided to wander the beach this morning. We decided to stop for breakfast along the beach, which turned into brunch due to the time. So we stopped at Waterman's Surfside Grill, because it had a number of people on the patio and we figured we could probably get breakfast there. For once we were a bit more adventurous and tried something new. We both got the Lump Crab Omelet. Which was wonderful! They used lots of crab and it wasn't imitation crab either. Their home fries were done properly (crispy on the outside and warm and tender on the inside). You'd think that home fries would be an easy thing, but many restaurants screw it up. And the sticky buns that they make are really good too. In fact we could have probably ordered some of those and coffee and have been fine. But I'm glad we didn't.

Pros:

fantastic food

staff works hard

fresh food

nice view

kid friendly

did I mention great food?

Cons:

VERY busy (so be patient)

Food Quest: 11th Street Tap House Bar & Grill

So over the weekend we went to the beach and came across 11th Street Tap House Bar & Grill and decided to give it a try. We had been walking the board walk and decided that stopping for a bite to eat was a good idea. This was the view that we had from our table. We could have sat on the patio, there's access to the patio from the beach, but I wanted to be in the A/C.

We decided to share an appetizer and got the Surfer Muscle. It was muscles steamed in Ale and garlic, finished with leeks, shallot and a blue cheese cream sauce. Toast points were included.

It was so yummy that I wish I'd had my own order of them so I didn't have to share!

We both had a glass of beer with it, which was very good. I had something that I was told was local while Jim had a Yuengling. I wish I remembered the name of the beer because it went very nicely with the muscles.

For our main course we decided to share a pizza. I think our theme for the meal was sharing. So we ordered the Knarly Pizza. It had diced chicken tossed in their house made BBQ sauce, diced red onion and tons of mozzarella. Very yummy and cheezy!

Pros:

Nice atmosphere

Good Food

Cons:

Staff was sluggish (Hard to get their attention)

Not really child friendly

St. Louis Trip Day Two

So our second day of our baseball vacation we had an evening game, but we went early in order to see batting practice. This is a fantastic baseball town. We got there an hour early, but it seemed like we were running late. lol

Sadly I was surrounded by close quarter people and it was EXTREMELY hot and humid. But our neighbors were pretty cool! I have learned that I prefer aisle seats.

We didn't catch the Cardinals batting practice, but we did manage to see the Reds swing a bit. And of course we could see into the Cardinals dug out from where we were sitting behind home plate. Awesome!!

Of course we HAD to get some shots of the stadium with the Arch in the background. It's just not a trip to St. Louis without at least acknowledging the Arch.

Apparently they were doing a nod to the D.A.R.E program and had a number of vehicles from different areas. Jim and I liked the PT Cruiser that they had painted to look like an old police car. We did see a vehicle from Alton, which is close to where we grew up, and had to cheer for it.

Had to get a picture of Fred Bird pleading to be put on the roster. It was SO funny! And of course we got to actually see them talk with the Umpires.

I know it might seem a bit odd that I have a picture of Ryan headed to bat, but he's wearing my lucky number so I had to have it.

We bought jerseys for this game. This was after visiting my mom and seeing some high school friends for lunch. I got Ryan (13) and Jim got Musial (6). I got 13 because that's my number. Jim got 6 because... Well click on the links and read to find out about this legend. It was a great time. Even if the Cardinals did lose this round.

St. Louis Trip Day One

So over the Memorial Day weekend we decided to do a little baseball trip. The plan was to fly into St. Louis on Monday, catch two Cardinal games and then fly out on Wednesday. Well that was the plan.

We were fortunate enough to purchase a new vehicle before our trip and decided to give my Saturn to Jim's mom. So instead we left Sunday afternoon and drove straight through (well we did stop for a two hour nap) to her house. Jim drove the whole thing! He so rocks.

So after a brief visit with Jim's mom and driving down memory lane checking out our old places. Lots has changed in our old town. We took pictures, but I won't bore them with them. If you went to school with Jim or I and haven't been to B-town in years, just email me and I can send them to you.

So with 2 hours of sleep under our belt we went to Busch Stadium for the first of our 2 Cardinal games. And no I have no idea how we managed it, but some how we did. The first two pictures are of us, of course, in our Cardinal red shirts. The next two are random shots from our seats.

We were along first base line about two rows back. Jim took most of the photos. I loved them. Especially the one of the guy talking to the people in the seats. He actually was giving the kids bubble gum. Gotta love how nice they are out here! And Jim didn't really use the zoom to focus in on them. That's how close we were!

Love the one of the little boy holding on to the ball. He was hoping for an autograph or two. Sadly he didn't get one, but the picture was just so Americana. Don't you think? Of course I got a picture of Ludwick. And no I didn't really zoom in on him.

The game started around three, but there was a rain delay. Like the dingbats we are, we sat out in the rain. As my darling sweetie said, 'We didn't drive 16 hours to be chased off by a little rain.' Gotta love the man! Of course so we were drenched and freezing.

Of course there is the obligatory photo of Albert Pujols. And the gentleman in the yellow shirt was our beer man. He was fantastic! Smart too! Wore knee pads so he never blocked your view of the game. I wish more beer vendors would think of that. And came back at regular intervals. Gone long enough for you to finish your beer, but not so long that you went to go find your own.

Of course the Cardinals won against the Reds. The score?
12-4! What a great way to end an extremely long day for us. So we had to take a photo of Fred Bird celebrating and the scoreboard.