Fancy Pants Red Wine

Description on the bottle:  When the dress code calls for fun, break out the Fancy Pants!  Not-too-dressy and not-too-casual, this wine is always stylish and always delicious.  Made from grapes soured from premier California vineyards, our Red Blend is playful and approachable, with cherry and plum flavors leading to a lush finish. Whatever the occasion, Fancy Pants is fashionably fun.

Sarah says:  It's good!  What a relief!  I gave this bottle as a gift awhile ago because the label caught my eye and the description sounded fun, but I had never tasted it, which is risky.  I recommend always tasting a bottle of wine before gifting it so you don't end up giving something that your friends aren't likely to like.  I'm so pleased that this wine ended up delicious!  I no longer have to worry that my friend drank her gift in a state of disgust.  It's so easy to drink, which can be hard to find in a red.  Both Jon and I quickly downed our glasses and asked for more.

Overall rating:  Thumbs up!

Sarah says:  It's been noted, and rightfully so, that I haven't been writing as much lately.  Here's the thing... I'm getting too many readers.  I know, I know... that sounds silly.  Isn't the point of starting a blog to get readers?!  It is, but I guess didn't really think it through, many of my readers are people that I know in my personal life.  As I put my opinions out there, I'm also opening up the doors for conflict and debate.  I'm more of a "let's all be friends" kind of girl.  I don't want drama and issues.  As more and more people read this, I find there is less and less that I can write about.  I just want to drink my wine, and write about my experiences from the day.  I don't want to have to re-hash them out the next day after someone disagrees with me, or I offended them.  So, I'm sticking with the "safer" topics, mostly my kids.  But, as parents are reading my blog as well, I am beginning to go more conservative on what I'll write about my kids as well.  Not to mention, as awesome and hilarious as my kids are, there are also many days that they are just your typical everyday kid.  So, I'll keep blogging occasionally as things come up, but they probably won't be all that juicy.  I'm always available to discuss a good bottle of wine, and remain open to recommendations!

Speaking of those kids, in case you didn't know it, parenting isn't easy.  There are MANY days you just go through the motions, not really sure if you are actually doing it right, or making any sort of difference.  And then there are those days that just rock your world.  I've been fortunate to have lots of those awesome rocking days lately.

First, I was having a bad day for whatever reason (actually, I totally know the reason, but again... not safe to talk about here... ) and Liam made me this:

Yup, that's a smiling Lego bouquet of flowers.  Do I have the sweetest kid or what?  I mean, come on!  My seven year old did the best thing that he could think of to do to cheer me up.  He presented his gift, gave a hug, and offered to hang out with me.  

Then, there was the day that our neighbor was crying hysterically while taking the bus for the first time.  I watched my sweet Mary, take his hand and offer to sit with him.  I didn't even tell her to do it!  I was just watching from the curb (mostly because I was curious about how the parents were going to handle their tantruming child), and Mary just stepped up to the plate.  I'm so proud!  Most of the other kids just sat there, staring at the "weird kid" that is probably going to forever be known as the kid that cries on the bus.

Compassion, I've taught my kids compassion!  YES!!  Parent success!!

Lastly, and this one is so good, we were at church, it was during the children's message where the kids go up to the front of the sanctuary for a brief lesson before being dismissed to their classes.  The teacher was telling them about how Jesus is always with them, and Mary speaks up with this little conversation:

Teacher "I want you to know that Jesus is always with you"

Mary "I already knew that"

Teacher "You did?  That's great!"

Mary "Yup, my MOM told me" 

Teacher "Go Mom!"

I gave Mary a thumbs up and I'm pretty sure I beamed for the rest of service.  YES!  My kids believe in God, aren't afraid to say it, and they are giving ME the credit for teaching them.  Oh man, does it get any better than that?  There really aren't too many moments as good and reassuring as that.

I love these guys.  All I can do is keep doing what I'm doing and keep hoping for moments like these to show me that I'm doing it right.  In between moments, I'll keep drinking my wine and reflecting about it when I can!

greener planet

Description on the bottle:  "A glass of wine should be the perfect expression of the place, soil and climate."  Wine ought to be one of the most natural products in the world.  Unfortunately, far too many producers now rely heavily on industrial fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides.  The men and women who grow the grapes for Greener planet respect the well-being of the environment and of the people who are going to enjoy their wines.  Olivier Azan feeds his soil with natural compost, encourages benign insects to counter pests and helps his vines to develop their own immunity to diseases.  

This wine was made from grapes grown in the visually dramatic region of the Montagne Noire in Languedoc Roussillon.  It tastes both spicy and of dark berries and would be delicious with flavorsome red meat, vegetarian dishes or by itself.  The glass for this bottle is made from partially recycled glass.  To learn more about the people behind Greener Planet and the project's grape-growers around the world visit www.greenerplanetorganicwine.com

Sarah says:  I find this wine interesting.  It's a blend of Shiraz 40%, Merlot 40% and Cabernet Sauvignon 20%.  That alone is pretty different.  But then there's it's "all natural" feel, which almost makes you feel like you are drinking something healthy.  I like it.  The first time I had this it was with a seafood pasta dish, and while neither seafood or pasta is listed as something it would go well with, I really liked it.  Now that it's been sitting on my counter for a couple of weeks, it's definitely lost some of it's flavor, but it's still good.  I found it to be really rich, and easily drank more than one glass that first evening.  It mentions spicy in its description, but I don't notice that at all, it's all just a nice dark berry red flavor.  Yum.

Overall rating:  Many thumbs up

Sarah says:  Many months ago... actually, probably closer to a year ago, we were at my in-laws house and I mentioned to Jon that we needed to take our stuff to the recycling center.  My father-in-law immediately asked if I was "green".  I wasn't really sure how to answer that, and I'm still not sure quite frankly, but I've been thinking about it every time I set something aside to recycle!  I mean, I'm not a tree hugging, organic only eating, camping lover.  But, that doesn't mean I don't try to do my part.  

I try not to waste water, electricity, or gas.  I nag my kids (and husband!) all the time to turn off lights (although, to be fair, I probably do that more to benefit myself by saving money, the earth is an after thought).  I do not buy bottled water, the tap is fine, thanks!

I recycle; which isn't exactly easy, since we live in an apartment they don't do curbside pickup of recycling here, so we put everything aside and take it to the local recycling center every few weeks.  I guess that makes me "more green" than most of my neighbors, because I put a lot more effort into recycling, whereas most people just don't do it if it's not available.  On the other hand, I feel like it's available to most people, so since most people do it, I don't want to be the one weirdo throwing away my empty cans, so I feel obligated to do it too!

I buy energy saving bulbs, as long as they are on sale.

On the other hand, I live 0.88 miles from work.  I drive that.  If I was really green, I'd probably ride a bike, or walk.  I've thought about it a lot, but it's never actually happened.  But, I have been known to run (yup, literally) to church which is 3.21 miles, when I've been training for a race.  So, that makes up for something, right?  :-)   

I buy the groceries that are cheapest, which is never the organic, most earth friendly items. 

Gardening?  What's that?  One of the biggest perks is not to have to maintain a garden.  Planting my own veggies or even herbs is not an option.  Off to the store I go!

I make my kids save all of the papers they bring home from school to use the backs for scratch paper.

My ideal vacation involves a hotel room, room service, a pool, and probably lots and lots of waste.

So, am I green?  I'd say I'm a yellowish.  I'm not exactly helping the earth, but I like to think I'm not a big contributor to what's hurting it either.  I don't base most of my decisions based on their impact on the environment, however, if someone makes a good case for it, I can easily be swayed into following them.  I'm definitely not pushing others to help the earth, which in a way, I guess, hurts it?

I guess I should be a bit more green... because the other day I came home to this:

 

This my friends, is reason to take care of the planet a little more.  Kids.  Our kids, and their kids, and their kids, etc. are going to be on this planet longer than we will be.  I remember playing in the rain, I let my son and daughter play in the rain... I want their kids, kids, kids to be able to play in the rain too.  For now, that's the best reason of them all.

As for this green wine, I'd definitely drink it again, and that I believe IS helping the planet.  Yay me!

How green are you?

Dreaming Tree Crush

Description on the bottle:  An exciting collaboration between Dave Matthews and acclaimed winemaker Steve Reeder, Dreaming Tree captures the spirit of California's wine country.  United by their shared passion to make quality wines accessible to everyone, the two friends set out on a journey to discover the unique characters and rich flavors that give the region its rare charm.

Dave Matthews:  Two Hot Dogs in a Pick-up - A hit day two dogs chase a stick thrown into a pond again and again.  The older, slower dog never gets the stick and moans at the effort but always goes in "maybe this time".

Steve Reeder:  For the Dreaming Tree Crush, Dave and I hand-selected a special blend of our favorite varieties to create a red wine that pulls you in with notes of smokey berry and a pop of raspberry jam.  Around the dinner table or out on the patio, it's a wine you're going to want to share with your favorite people.

Sarah says:  While I found the description on the bottle to be fascinating, I did not feel the same way about the wine.  I was just ok, drinkable, but it was nothing memorable.  Although, I drank the bottle in just 2 sittings, so it couldn't have been that bad.  I just can't think of anything specific to say about it, either good or bad.  Oh well.

Overall rating:  Medium thumbs

Sarah says:  I've been in a place where I've felt that dreams are hard for me achieve.  First of all, I don't sleep a lot.  As much as I wish that I could crawl into bed after a long day and curl up in my bed to sleep, it pretty much just never works that way for me.  Sleep, and thus dreams, are generally something that only come easily for me when I've taken some sort of sleep aid, which I generally don't like to do.  The past few weeks have been extraordinarily bad in the sleep department for me.  I'm not really sure why, there hasn't been anything unusual happening to stress me out.  On a positive note, I'm getting really good at learning to survive in a sleep deprived state.  And, quite frankly, sleep is over rated.  Think about it, it's probably the most boring thing ever!  I've come to realize I can use the hours of uninterrupted time to get lots of stuff done.  I'm done wasting hours tossing and turning, I'd rather get up and be productive.  Sleep, and the dreams that come with it, are dumb.

But, other dreams, "life dreams", are important.  They give you something to aim for, a purpose, and a reason to make good choices.  Most of my life dreams are slowly going down the drain.  Occasionally I dream about owning another house, we walked through a spur of the moment open house a few weeks ago, so that dream popped in my head again, but quickly vanished again when I put in a maintenance request for a leaky faucet and it was fixed the next day.  Jon and I are just not into that sort of repair stuff that comes with home ownership.

I've been dreaming about Hawaii for 10 years with Jon, and I'm suddenly nervous that that dream will have to be put on hold.  We have some big bills coming up because of our Southfield house drama (yup, that house that we put on the market in Feb 2012, still dealing with that!)

I'm forever grateful that my Dad paid for my college, and I dream of doing the same thing for my kids one day.  But as I watch the rising costs of education, that dream seems to be getting more challenging to achieve.

Additionally, my kids demand most of my free time, so any of my own dreams are usually pushed aside to their needs.  Although, now that I think about it... I'm teaching my kids to follow their own dreams, and that in itself is a dream of mine.  I'm raising two super kids.  Sure they have troubles and complications, but all in all, I have two really awesome kids.  I guess maybe I am achieving my own dreams too!

What are your dreams?

La Pinta Verdelho

Description on the bottle:  Lying 46 miles south of Mendoza, La Pinta is one of four vineyards that comprise our estate. With an average of 210 days of sunshine every year, our grapes achieve excellent ripeness, yet the high altitude ensures moderate temperatures which help to preserve the grapes' distinct aromatic qualities.  Verdelho is particularly well suited to this environment, achieving a fine balance between rich fruit and crisp acidity. We harvest our 16 acres entirely by hand, ensuring only the healthiest grapes make it into the wine and ferment at a low, carefully controlled temperature.  The result is a very fresh-tasting style of Verdelho with crisp, harmonious fruit and a hint of spice.  Served cool, it is delicious served as an aperitif, and is the perfect partner for white meats and vegetable and fish dishes.  

Sarah says:  I am totally loving this!  I think with all of the red I've been drinking lately, it's nice to get back to a nice, easy,  fun, comfortable, white.  It's fruity, dry, simple, delicious.  In addition, I'm completely blown away that these grapes are harvested by hand.  16 acres!  Wowza, how long does that take?!  It sounds totally time consuming and almost overwhelming, but fun at the same time.  I wish I could spend my days with grapes instead of numbers.  I'm reminded of my bucket list item:  make my own wine.  Gotta make that happen!

Overall rating:  Two thumbs up!

Sarah says:  Liam said something to me several days ago that I can't stop thinking about.  He said "Too much fun is not enough!".  I'm not even sure what prompted the statement, but I LOVE it!  I find myself telling my kids that they are having too much fun, and that they need to calm down, more than I'd like to admit.  How did that even start?  What happened where we decided our kids we're allowed to laugh quite so loud, or run in that many circles?  They are kids, they are supposed to have too much fun.  They have their whole lives ahead of them to be calm and quiet.  Their childhood should be about having all sorts of crazy fun.  From this point on, I've decided to stop stopping the fun.  My house will probably be louder, and a little messier, but my kids will be happier... and that will be worth it. 

 

In combination of allowing my kids to have too much fun, I will also be allowing them more opportunities to make their own fun.  While I'm pretty lax with my kids, I do often spend the weekends trying to arrange fun for them, even if it is just going to our local pool, I generally assume that is the most fun activity for them, and don't even give them a chance to present a counter offer.  

Cheers to having too much fun!  What's your favorite activity that just overwhelms you with fun?
 

EpicA

Description on the bottle:  Discovery.  Adventure.  The thrill of something new.  Epica is about experiencing more.  it's about moments:  getting together with friends and sharing spirited conversation, good food, and great wine.  This Chilean Red Wine explodes with flavors of savory cherry and dark cocoa - big enough to share or enjoy on your own.

Sarah says:  I love the description on this bottle.  Sitting around with my friends, enjoying conversation and wine, laughing, telling stories and jokes, just living life, it sounds great.  Despite how great that sounds, I drank this wine alone, and I'm sure glad I did.  It's not great.  It's super spicy, as much as I'm loving red wine these days, I still don't love the spice.  It was pretty hard for me to drink, I wouldn't have wanted to subject my friends to it.

Overall rating:  Thumbs down.

Sarah says:  I did have two epic-like experiences recently.  The first relates to the wine cup in this pic.  It's a tumbler, travel type cup, in a wine glass shape.  I've had one of these for awhile, and just received a second one for my birthday this year, but just recently discovered their greatness.  A few weeks ago I was sitting outside waiting for the fireworks to start.  I wanted a glass of wine to relax with, but I was nervous having the glass outside.  It was likely to spill or even break.  I remembered this cup at the last minute, worked like a charm!  Since then, I've used my wine tumbler several times sitting outside on the porch and at the pool.  Is such a great thing!  It still gives me the wine glass feel, but the comfort of a lid!  EPIC!

My second epic moment happened a few days ago.  For some reason, Jon received a jar of fluff for Father's Day (not from me!).  I was confused by this, I've never heard him mention a love of fluff.  I've personally never had the stuff, my parents didn't allow such sugary items, and quite frankly, it never appealed to me.  Oh boy, have I been missing out!  Picture this... an Oreo, dipped in fluff.  Yup, that happened... A LOT.  It was amazing!  And when the Oreos ran out, I used graham crackers.  Yum.  I don't have a picture of any of this, because the fluff is gone.  We (mostly me) inhaled the jar in 3 days.  It was EPIC!

That's about all I have to update on, the past month has been BUSY!  Sorry I've been quiet, I'm sure that will change as summer is here, and sitting outside with my new wine glass is a new favorite past-time.

What exciting things have you been up to?

Palacio Del Conde Part III

Sarah says:  Thanks to my wine club (that I forgot to cancel, but is now officially cancelled), I ended up with two bottles of this.  It continues to grow on me.  Tonight, I found it to be quite good.  A nice way to end a stressful Saturday.  It's a good wine for cool nights, not really a summer wine, which seems ok since it's 40 degrees this May!  And yes, I drank from a water glass, it really was a stressful day, don't judge me.

I've been saving all my wine corks for awhile now, with no idea what to do with them.  I got to the point where I couldn't possibly squeeze another into my jar, so I decided it was time...  I honed in all my creative juices, and did a wine cork craft!!  I consulted google, and pinterest, and Michaels.  I read, and researched, and pondered.  After much thought, a few glasses of wine, and only 3 moments of total frustration, I ended up with a coaster and a trivet!  Ta da!!

And... they are functional!!!

Whoot whoot!!

I'm very un-creative and arts and crafts just aren't my thing (that is probably the #1 reason I changed majors from elementary ed to accounting so many years ago).  Luckily, I pretty much found the easiest crafts I could find, and it's not so bad when you do it while drinking wine!!  Plus, some of them bring back some fun memories, it was fun to dump out the jar and reminisce.

Here's how it's done... the coaster is the easiest, take 8 corks, arrange them in a square using a 2 corks and turn pattern.  Make sure you corks are level and approximately the same size.  Glue together, and you're done!

The hot pad is slightly more complicated.  Find an unused picture frame, take out the glass and any matting that is included.  Also, you may need to remove any hooks on the back or the standing post.  Put the cardboard backing back into place.  Arrange the corks in whatever patter you desire, trying to cover as much of the cardboard as possible.  Hot glue into place.  I took it one step further, cut one cork into 4 small pieces and added it to the bottom 4 corners of my frame, because I didn't want it scratching my table.  And you're done!!  Make sure you only use real corks for this project, the artificial plastic ones won't absorb the heat from a hot pan the way regular corks do, you could end up with a melted mess.  The fake corks are great for the coaster above!

Now wine has served a purpose, it has pushed me out of my comfort zone and into spending Saturday night doing crafts.  And, now you all know what you're getting for Christmas!

What did you do tonight?

Alessandr Gallici Pinot Grigio

Description on the bottle:  The vineyards of the veneto have long been a source of inspiration for me and pinot grigio from this region achieves and elegance and concentration rarely found elsewhere.  2011 saw near-perfect vintage conditions and the grapes, sourced from low-yielding vines, displayed an intensity of fruit and a firm structure which I knew would combine perfectly.

The result is a wine to which I'm proud to give my name.  Fresh, elegant and mouthwateringly long, this pinot grigio displays crisp apple and citrus characters given added complexity by a fine minerality.  I suggest you enjoy served as an aperitivo or with lighter dishes such as roasted vegetables, fresh seafood and grilled chicken.

Sarah says:  I think several months ago I would have really enjoyed this wine, but now that my world has been opened up to reds, I think this is just ok.  It's a pretty standard pinot grigio, it's got that citrusy, almost tangy flavor.  It's good, but it's not mind blowing good.

Overall rating:  Thumbs mostly up

Sarah says:  Thank goodness it's Friday night!  I don't know why, but this week just crept by.  I think it's that I was all go go go the past several weeks with the audit, and now that the auditors are gone, I'm crashing into a stop.  It's almost as if I don't know what to do with myself, I can't remember what my work days were filled with before the audit took over.  For those of you who don't know what an audit is like... here's a little run down:

2 weeks before audit:  We're fine.  I'm working on stuff, but it's coming along nicely.

1 week before audit:  There's ALOT to do, but we'll get it done

2 days before audit:  THE AUDITORS ARE COMING!!  Why isn't this done?  Didn't I look at this a month ago and it was fine, now it's wrong, all wrong!  Why are you just now asking this question?  What do you mean you didn't start the workpaper yet?  I'm not ready.  The auditors are coming!!

audit day 1:  I got this, bring it on.  Your questions, I have answers.  Ya know those college all nighters, I pulled an all weekender.

audit day 3:  Where are they?  I'm not paying them $700 per hour to sit down there and do nothing.  Why aren't they asking me questions yet!

audit day 7:  They are driving me crazy!! I can't get any of my regular work done because every 5 min one of them comes in here and interrupts me.  I can't even research their questions because before I can finish one task, I'm being given another one!

audit day 9:  Sleep, what's sleep?  I live on coffee and week old bagles.

audit day 11:  What is this, accounting 101?  Their questions are so stupid, and annoying.  And what the heck, all the auditors look like they are 19!  Is this an intern audit?  If I just talk fast enough and they believe me, that part is pretty awesome.

audit day 13:  Why are you asking me about cash?  Didn't I answer all cash questions 2 weeks ago, I don't remember what we talked about.

audit day 15:  Ok, you guys aren't so bad afterall.  Let's have a pizza party.

1 day after audit:  Ahhh... it's so quiet, I can finally relax and get some stuff done

3 days after audit:  What is this 5 page typed document of more questions?!!?  Arg.

1 week after audit:  That was the best audit ever!!