Quality Friday: Every Day is a Celebration

We love our new home. Although the boxes are not quite unpacked, we feel settled and content here, and can't get enough of our surroundings. The scenery - endless miles of rolling hills, lush green trees and breathtaking views - will never grow old. And our new town has a great downtown area with cute shops and fun restaurants, so different from the area we left.

Seems like every chance we get, we're hopping in the car to explore the area around us. Its been much easier to do so given my light travel schedule the past two weeks, and that Mark no longer works on weekends (yay!).

Last Saturday afternoon, with me in a celebratory mood after a good, long, training run, we decided to head towards the neighboring town of Guerneville, and found ourselves at the world famous Korbel Vinyards for champagne tasting and a delicious lunch at the Korbel Delicatessen.

The view was amazing,

the champagne - thoroughly enjoyable,

and we brought home our fair share for future indulgence.

Wasting no time, we opened a bottle that evening, enjoying it with a decadent meal of smoked salmon, served on crackers with red onion and capers, and fine cheese. And like so many moments during these past weeks, we've found ourselves toasting and celebrating life.

Hope that you have had cause to celebrate recently! Cheers to you this Quality Friday!

Country Living

City boy and girl have officially moved to the country.

Some days, we step outside and can smell the cows that live down the road.

Yesterday, on a trip to the local Walgreens, we met this rooster and some of his friends who were hanging out near the entrance.


And late at night, when we're sitting on our balcony we see deer playing along the creek bed that lies less than 50 feet from our home, sometimes even venturing up to the paved path. Earlier tonight, two of them curiously watched me as I tried to quietly take their picture.

New (and Improved) View

Our old balcony overlooked the back entrances of the shops of a strip mall, with the conciliation of mountains in the distant background.

Now, we face a creek, with trees and an unobstructed blue sky. This is one of my favorite things about our new home.

Quality Friday: Calm Before the Storm

On Monday and Tuesday, we took a break from the craziness of our lives and enjoy a short little trip to Monterey Bay. I had to do a little bit of work there, and love that Mark had both days off to join me on the drive down California's famous Coastal Highway.

We enjoyed some lovely meals, got a chance to walk around Monterey's wharf, and especially appreciated this ocean view from our hotel room.


That, and the fact that the room was tidy and neat, quite unlike the disaster zone that our home has become. Why, you ask? What has taken over our lives, and turned our apartment upside down?

If you answered "Because You're Moving", then you guessed correctly! Seems that we can't resist the opportunity to pick up and move more often than we say put:)

Funny think because I actually hate moving. HATE IT. But as much as I fought the notion with every fiber of my being, I couldn't deny that this move will make a great deal of sense. Mark will only have to travel 10 minutes to school each day, rather than the hour plus (80 miles round trip) commute that he suffered through last year. Imagine the gas that we'll be saving!

Yes, my commute to the airport(s) will take a little longer than they do now, but the reality is that only make the trip once or twice a week, not every day. Plus, I drive a company car with my fuel paid for. The rest of the time I work from home.

In addition to the gas savings, our rent will decrease significantly, another huge bonus. We'll be living nearer to the coast in the heart of Sonoma wine country, in a cute town, with bookstores. Which is significant because we currently have to drive 15 miles to a Borders or Barnes and Noble, since our town only has an adult bookstore. Classy. But I digress.....

Right now, I may or may not be starting to panic about Just How MUCH needs to get done before we move TOMORROW. Which is why I'm going to take a deep breath and remind myself of the peaceful ocean view we enjoyed just a few days ago.

Happy Quality Friday! Back to work I go:)