hello september

ahhh, you have arrived just in the nick of time. while I know that we probably have another month or so of warm weather it comforts me to know that fall is right around the corner. i can already see small signs: darker when I wake up and the sun is setting earlier everyday. i am counting down the days until that first crisp feeling in the air signalling that fall has triumphantly arrived. for some reason the picture above captures what the end of summer feels like for me.

license renewal fun

Wednesday morning I went to renew my driver's license at the DMV. I had to take a new picture (yuck, at least I have a great tan) and provide a thumb print. Just the thought of having to step into a DMV makes me shudder. I had an appointment for Monday to avoid having to wait, but the cancelled flight on Sunday night completely killed that. When I got to DMV there was already a line starting to wrap around the building and I braced myself for a painfully long wait. But to my surprise, DMV workers were very organized, assigning people to letter groups prior to the doors opening. Then once inside, we each received a number within our assigned letter grouping. Another worker administered eye exams as people waited to be called. Very efficient! Not words usually used to describe the DMV. What I thought was going to be a couple hours of hell turned out to be 15 minutes of not so bad. Props to the Fremont DMV at Dusterberry for totally making my day!

finally. . .home, sweet, home

I'm so over the moon to be back in the comfort of my own bed and home. Jay and I spent two days in a nightmare of cancelled and missed flights that warrants a separate post . You'll just have to trust me that it was utterly ridiculous. The vacation part, of course, was wonderfully relaxing and invigorating: pure bliss. Wish we could have stayed longer.

So looking forward to lots of "me" time this weekend: it's birthday weekend. The plan is to get my scrap on on Friday in the confines of my forlorn scraproom which I dearly miss. Then on Saturday some pampering at the spa with a massage and facial in the morning, then more scrapping in the evening. Culminating on Sunday, my birthday, with an Indian buffet lunch after a morning run. Love it!

burger, fries & a glass of wine

Whenever we're in Napa, we often pass this little burger joint across from Rutherford Grill that ALWAYS has a long line. I'd roll my eyes and wonder why would anyone want a greasy burger when they are in Napa with so many great restaurants. Well, the burger joint is Taylor's Automatic Refresher and was chosen by Food Network and one of the food magazines (I forgot which one; it's either Gourmet or Food & Wine) as the second best burger in the nation. (Unfortunately, the best is on somewhere on the East Coast and I'm not going there anytime soon.) Since Jay and I are always on the lookout for a great burger we, after a little bit of wine tasting on a hot Memorial Day, went to Taylor's Automatic Refresher for a of tasting of our own.

We got there relatively early for lunch, but there was already a line, but that's no surprise. The menu was surprisingly extensive and even included an ahi sandwich which Meng decided to order. The one item on the menu caught my eye was their sweet potato fries. After much deliberation over whether I wanted bacon, I decided on a cheeseburger, sweet potato fries and a glass of wine (next time, definitely an iced tea).

The burger was great, not greasy and had a just the right amount of melty cheese. The highlight, however, was the sweet potato fries, which were cut perfectly to allow a nice, crisp texture. There was no need for ketchup on these fries.

There are a couple downsides. First, all seating is outdoors and consists of picnic tables and benches with umbrellas which on a nice day is great, but on a hot day is excruciating. Second, there is just one bathroom. . . for everyone.

That being said it's great place to stop for lunch when you're wine tasting in Napa.

Enjoy! xoxo

so lovin' this

six years ago today

I married my best friend. Thank you, my love, for being there to help me stand (literally & figuratively), to guide me, to hold me hand. I love you even more than the day we said "I do" and would happliy do it over again and again and again.

Happy Anniversary Rome!!