Wine Girl Mommy’s World

Just a wine loving girl, living a mommy’s world
Wine Girl Mommy’s World
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  • Tag: California

    • Packing/Moving with a child

      Posted at 11:10 am by CS, on June 24, 2019

      So recently we have moved from the wine country of California, back to our rightful home in Florida on the east coast. This momma does love wine and loved living in wine country, but deep in my soul I’ve always known I’m an east coast girl at heart.

      Moving with a toddler definitely taught me some lessons. For one, it’s super hard to try and do anything while they are awake. We had a pretty good amount of time from the time we found out about the move, to the time we actually moved so that did help a bit. So when Cameron went to daycare, my mother, who bless her soul was able to come out and help us, would pack up things we knew wouldn’t be needed, and other non essential items.

      Once Cameron had stopped going to daycare, our days were a bit more busy with her at home, so then packing would happen when she would nap or once she went down for the night. My list making came in handy because I had a game plan for every week leading up to the move. I divided the weeks into rooms in the house, for not only packing, but cleaning as well so that we didn’t have so much to do right there at the end.

      When it came to packing Cameron’s stuff, we tried to save most of it for last since a lot we were still using. The biggest thing was her toys, because we were going to get some stuff sooner than later, we had to sort through her toys for what she can have when we get to Florida, and the rest would be boxed up until October. The stuff we knew we wanted to open right away were what we kept for her to play with up until the night before we left. That way she was still entertained as the rest of the house was being packed away. Luckily for her and us she never really noticed she was missing toys. As far as her clothes and other items, that’s all going to be opened right away so that’s all being packed in a suitcase, or being bought once we arrive, like more diapers, food, etc. She also has stuff waiting for her in Florida, like a bed, bathroom items, and those sorts. Also, you can make toys or games out of any random leftover items in your house. Toilet paper rolls, deflated air mattresses, empty rooms all became our friends the last few days before we left.

      We also learned that purging is your friend. You find all these baby items that you used or didn’t use, that you’re keeping around for probably no good reason. We also found tons of our stuff too that we no longer wanted or needed, so goodwill loved us!

      We used the PODS system, so we were able to pack up the house the week leading up to us leaving, and strategically figuring out what’s needed ASAP, what needs to be taken in the trailer my husband was driving across the country, and what could be packed in suitcases that my mom and I would have. So once again my organization skills were being put to the test. Piles of this and lists of that is what kept me sane the past month.

      So once we got the house packed, figured out how things and where things would go, there was the actual moving back across the country.

      When my husband and I moved to California four years ago, we drove from Florida to California with our two cats over a weeks time. This time around, we’ve added four years to our ages and a child, who I knew would not enjoy being locked in a car seat on a cross country road trip. Not to mention, work responsibilities make for a not as easy time to take off a whole week to drive across the country. So, we made the decision that Cameron, my mother who is out here helping, and myself would fly back, and then a few days later, my husband and the two cats would load up the truck and trailer and drive back on a more concentrated drive that would only take 3-4 days. It also works this way a bit better due to needing more space in the truck for things we may need right up until the move. This way, Cameron only needs to travel for a day, which she’s done many times in her 20 months of life. We figured that was much easier for her to handle.

      One final note that I’m taking away from packing/moving with a toddler is to keep their routine as normal as possible. We still try to keep her activities normal, all her meal times and sleep times the same. If we know she’s going to be napping, we make sure there is no need for us to enter the room she’s in. If we had to pack up the POD while she was up, we made sure the one person who wasn’t carrying furniture or loading, was entertaining Cameron outside in sight of us so she felt included. Trying to keep meltdowns as minimal as possible.

      Have you ever moved with an infant or toddler? Any tips or advice? What worked or didn’t for you?

      Posted in Mom-ing | 0 Comments | Tagged California, cross country, Florida, moving, packing, purging, toddler, traveling
    • Girls trip 2019

      Posted at 1:39 pm by CS, on May 23, 2019

      Now that it’s been a couple weeks, and I’ve fully recovered from one of the best girls trips I’ve ever been on, I can finally write about all the fun things we ate, saw, drank, and did.

      A few months ago, one of my best friends (and SIL) asked a group of us if we wanted to take a trip to California with her. I, of course, was 100% in, one because I live in California, and two, who wouldn’t want a girls weekend with some great friends. So, we decided we would do a joint San Francisco/Napa and thus planning began. We decided on a long weekend in early May would be the perfect timing, weather would be warming up, the rain would be slowing down, and the tourist season would not be in high gear yet. There was a total of 6 of us after all was said and done, and let me tell you, the 6 of us had the best time ever. I don’t think I’ve laughed that hard in a very long time.

      The girls arrived first thing Saturday morning and we headed straight to drop off the two cars at our hotel in SF. For the one night we were staying in San Francisco we stayed at the BEI SF https://www.beihotelsf.com. Now I will say, this hotel is undergoing construction, but we had everything we needed for the small time we spent there. We got upgraded rooms so they were pretty nice. And all the employees were super helpful and nice.

      Once we dropped off our bags and cars, we took an Uber to fisherman’s wharf to find some lunch. We found a nice little place called Castagnola’s seafood and chophouse http://www.castagnolassf.com/home.html. They had some great food, and a great happy hour so we all grabbed some drinks to kick off the weekend.

      Once we were done with lunch, we walked down to Pier 39 to see the sea lions, then up to Ghirardelli square to get some chocolate, and start a new tradition of finding a hill to roll down.

      Once we successfully acted liked little kids, it was time to see some painted ladies.

      We then headed back to the hotel to rest and get ready for dinner. We had dinner reservations at BASK SF. http://www.basksf.com. Sadly I wasn’t feeling great so I didn’t eat, but from what I heard around the table the food was great.

      Then it was time for our first and only night out in SF. We went to a few bars before calling it a night. You really feel like an old lady when all the kids in the bars look about 12 to you and you don’t recognize a lot of the music being played. Then it was back to the hotel for some shut eye to prepare for the rest of the weekend.

      Sunday we woke up bright and early(ish) and got ready for brunch. I haven’t had a lot of brunches in my life, but the one at mission rock resort was wonderful. https://www.missionrockresort.com. I’m pretty sure the other 5 girls would agree too, we couldn’t decide who had ordered the best meal. And the views here were amazing too, so we had to stop and take lots of photos before heading out of the city back to my house.

      One joy of living in California and wine country, we had the ability to make my house the halfway point on our way to Napa. So we chose to stay there to save some money on Sunday evening, and also so this momma could see her baby that she was completely missing. It was also cinco de Mayo so we of course had to get some Mexican food and margaritas for dinner. It was a nice and relaxing night at the house after that. Most of the girls were still dealing with the 3 hour time change, so we didn’t want to tire ourselves out to much.

      Monday morning we woke up and headed to Napa from my house. We were staying in an adorable Airbnb for the remainder of our trip, so we went and dropped our cars off there before heading for the first days wineries.

      Day 1 wineries included: Domaine Chandon, V. Sattui, and Black Stallion. Now I’m not a wine expert, but we really enjoyed everything we had. The wineries weren’t very crowded since we aren’t really in peak season and it was a Monday so that was really nice. It was great to be able to walk around, not feel rushed, and enjoy our tastings. We had lunch at the deli at V. Sattui and let me tell you, if you ever have a chance to eat there you should! Once we were fully tipsy from the wine we headed back to the Airbnb. It was hot tub time! If I can recommend finding a place with a hot tub, it was the best decision ever! Just relaxing, hanging out, enjoying life for a few hours was the perfect way to end the day.

      https://www.chandon.com

      https://www.vsattui.com

      http://www.blackstallionwinery.com

      Our last and final full day was another full day of wineries.

      Day 2 of wineries included Del Dotto wine caves, Silveroak, and The prisoner wine company. We had lunch at Gotts Roadside, which is another must do in the food range for anyone looking for a great spot in Napa valley. I would have to say our favorite winery from the whole trip was Del Dotto, for multiple reasons. Be sure to check out my favorite wineries for May 2019 blog post coming soon! Once we finished the three wineries, it was back to the Airbnb again for more hot tub time. Seriously, getting the hot tub with the Airbnb was such a great thing.

      https://www.deldottovineyards.com

      https://www.silveroak.com

      https://www.theprisonerwinecompany.com/the-prisoner

      Shockingly I didn’t buy any wine during our two days in Napa. Guess that’s another good thing about living out here, I can go back whenever and buy myself some.

      Sadly, the girls left the next day and we went back to our normal lives. But we have already started planning the next girls trip 2020. #ohthatwasfun #paypeeparty

      Posted in Thing I Love | 0 Comments | Tagged California, food, girls trip, girls weekend, hot tub, Napa, party, San Francisco, wine, wine country, wineries
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