Leaving on a Jet Plane

Hello TMS'ers, and Welcome to a Whirlwind Wednesday. Our family is flying to the Sunshine State this week for a vacation, and also to see our son perform with his Show Choir. Thank goodness for lists, and more lists, as I count down the time to prepare for our trip.

I took this week off from work, in order to get ready for our trip, yes, it's been that crazybusy.

Among the items on my "to do list" that I've completed are-

- Pay the bills

- Finish taxes

- Laundry, lots of laundry

- Stock up on petfood

- Pick up maps and guidebook about our vacation destination from Auto club

- Meet with petsitters about care of our furbabies and plants

- Print out boarding passes and theme park tickets

I still need to finish packing, charge and download diversions for various electronic devices, and make sure the boys have packed appropriately.

I also have to change purses, cancel the newspaper, and tidy up the house before we leave.

Did I forget anything?? ;oD

Please share your travel secrets, whether you venture cross country or county! Thank you so much, Martha

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Our Cup Runneth Over, A Toast to Napa

I hope you enjoy these photos of our recent trip to the Napa Valley in California, a place where I've never been. One of the highlights of our trip was a visit to the Schramsburg Winery which makes sparkling wines in the champagne method. (Only sparkling wines made and fermented in the Champagne Valley of France are allowed to be labeled as "champagne" by international law, serious stuff.) This is the house built by the founder, Jacob Schram for him and his family.

The wine is aged in caves that were dug 150 years ago by Chinese Immigrants. The work had to be done by hand as required by the soft tufa rock. You can see the pick axe marks on the walls of the caves which stay a constant 55 degrees F, perfect for aging wine.
Plaque detail from right of photo above.

Our tour of the winery took us into the caves which hold many, many rows of stacked wine bottles, front to end, approximately 5 thousand bottles per row. Some caves contain over 60 rows of wine. Wine is fermented for 2, 5, 10 years depending on vintage and harvest.

After the vintner has determined that the wine is ready, "drummers" unstack the wine and bang them against a rubber mat to dislodge the particles created by fermentation, i.e. the dead yeast that has digested the sugar. The wine then goes through a "riddling" process over a period of weeks to further clarify it. The particulate is removed with an "ice cork", (very ingenious), after being coaxed into the neck, and then a small amount of wine with varying amounts of sugar is added, before it's corked, wired, and foiled, and Voila, it's time to enjoy a most lovely glass, (or two), of California bubble-Liciousness! This is the good stuff, especially when you learn of the craftsmanship, time, effort, and the role of nature in this beverage, and the history of its creation, made "completely in the bottle", which has not changed for centuries.
It was a real treat to sample "champagne" in the caves, with the candlebras glowing and champagne flowing. It felt a little like something out of "Phantom of the Opera" as I kept expecting him or the Hunchback of Notre Dame to appear as we raised our glasses.

Thank you for joining me on my little tour and I hope you enjoyed it. While our hearts are full, our glasses too, a Toast to you and yours this Thanksgiving. I am Thankful for the gift of you.

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Motivation Monday - Minimalist Series

Nokomis Beach, Florida

Have you ever given serious thought to why vacations are so enjoyable and so relaxing?

I think I know the answer. I don’t think it’s so much about where we travel as the fact that we are away from our stuff.

Why do most of us have so much stuff? The average person has either a garage, attic, basement, storage shed, or a combination of these things, and most jammed full. Some even have additional paid storage units for their stuff.

I have to ask, what good is all that stuff if we aren’t using it? Why do we continue to collect and save?

Even worse, many of us have clutter all around our homes not just stored away.  What does that do to our overall well-being?

I know I find it very difficult to relax and I feel so stressed out when there is a lot of clutter around or when my surroundings are messy, too cluttered, or unorganized.

I truly believe if we are free of all the stuff, we can have that vacation mentality every single day!  

I can’t think of a better reason to begin the journey to minimize and simplify can you?

Wishing you a Motivated Monday!

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In This Fleeting Moment

If you ever find yourself in Laguna Beach, California, there is a small park on the Pacific Ocean that is easy to overlook.


At the edge of the park, there are two rails with stained glass surrounding a poem.


The poem reads-

IN THIS FLEETING MOMENT
WHAT EXTRAVAGANT RESPITE
AS BOOMING SURF SPEAKS ITS
MYSTICAL PASSAGE ACROSS
THE UNDREAMED DEPTHS.

This small and precious gem, Brown's Park, was donated by Joe Brown after his home on the property was destroyed. What an incredible gift to create and share something joyful and inspiring, rendered out of loss and heartbreak.

I found it lovely and inspiring, and I hope you do too.

Thank you so much, and has anything awed or inspired you lately?

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Playing in the Garden after Vacation

Last week, our family spent time in Santa Cruz and Monterey on the Central Coast of California.

It is a beautiful place, untamed, humbling, inspiring.

I enjoy traveling, but it's always so nice to come home to our own little patch of nature. 

The roses and lantana are doing nicely, and the freesia and larkspur will soon be in bloom. I also planted poppies and dianthus, alyssum too, which are all perennials and self sow. Gotta love those self sufficient plants!

Here's the start of my herb garden which includes a couple heirloom tomatoes, (Giant Rainbow and Sweet 100), oregano, licorice basil, (has a touch of anise), pineapple sage which does indeed smell like pineapple, and a few other herbs- lavender, rosemary, and cilantro which all grow like the proverbial weeds here in our Mediterranean climate. I am excited to have a "kitchen" garden this summer.

What part of nature has excited or inspired you lately? 

Thank you so much and wishing you a Wonderful Wednesday, week too!

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