I promise to post pics tomorrow, but it's getting late and it's been a long weekend!
Even with my knee being sore, I completed the race. I wasn't going to run any of it (just walk), but got ants in my pants and began running. I ran maybe 15 minutes of it, which is not much for me. My knee did okay, but I was sore for several hours afterwards. I completed the race in 45 minutes. David completed in 48 minutes.
Then, we took Saturday afternoon and all day today to visit some wineries. We made it to 6 wineries and got some awesome wines.
Pictures and more details to come -- after I catch up on some sleep! Kids start back tomorrow, and I'm meeting with my families for the next 3 days. My students start on Thursday. I'm excited but exhausted!
Showing posts with label Wine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wine. Show all posts
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Weekly Update
Well, it's been another week! So much to talk about...
Infertility
We met with David's family doctor, who is also a licensed endocrinologist. The urologist had told us that we needed the help from the endo because David's estrogen was high. Well, Dr. M looks at it and says "No it's not! This guy is an idiot." Basically, his estrogen levels are slightly elevated because of his weight. Looking back from last year, his FSH and LH are in normal range, as is the "free" testosterone, which is a big improvement! So, the "treatment": Keep losing weight.
This is so frustrating to me. If you know me, or if you've been following my blog for longer than a week or two, you know how badly I want to be a mom. I want to make David a dad. We will be great parents. No, I'm not trying to be cocky about it, but after all of this... and we have it in our hearts. We WILL have a baby. We WILL be awesome parents. Our children will be spoiled, but not so spoiled that you can't stand them!
So, David is going to keep taking all of his vitamins and keep losing weight... He's going to redo the sperm analysis in October (3 1/2 months from now), and see what happens. If his numbers improve, then we can do an IUI in October or November.
Wine
Yep. More wine! David and I came down to Kansas City for mom's 61st birthday. We met some friends of mine from high school for dinner on Tuesday night, which was really nice. On Wednesday, we went to weigh in (more on that shortly...), hit lunch at California Pizza Kitchen on the suggestion of the WW leader, and then went and explored a few wineries!
David lived in KC for 5 years before we met. He worked for the 911 service down here, so he knows the area fairly well. He surprised me by taking me to Stonehaus Farms Winery. Out of all of the wines we've tried, these were seriously some of THE BEST we have ever had. He let us taste his latest vintage of the Traminette and it was to DIE FOR. I can't wait for it to be on the market in a few weeks!
Then, we drove to Knob Noster, MO and visited 2 wineries right next door to each other. Bristle Ridge and Montserrat were both excellent wineries as well!
We ended up with 6 bottles of wine, one of which was opened for Mom's birthday dinner, and we will DEFINITELY be going back to visit all 3 again!
5K Training
We are getting closer and closer! Check out that tracker on the side - August 15 is going to be here before we know it!
This week was better training wise. I'm still dealing with a major lack of energy, but David has been able to push me a little to get off my butt and go run. We went to the gym one morning and I was able to jog for 26 minutes straight. I walked for a few minutes and then jogged the last 5 before my cool down.
So, I figured... If I can do 26 min on the treadmill, I should be able to do 20 outside on the trail. So, I started with my 1/2 mile (7 minute) warmup through the neighborhood. Then, I started jogging. I kept going... and going... and going... and going! When I got to my turn around spot, I had made it 19 minutes and 40 seconds! I had been fighting a pretty good side pain for a few minutes, so I started walking a few seconds early. I walked for 3 minutes and 20 seconds and then started jogging again. I ended up jogging a little over 15 minutes before I hit the neighborhood again, which ends up being right about 3.1 miles! It ended up being 42 minutes to complete the 5K, and I only had to walk 3 minutes of it! Next week, I'm going to go 25 minutes before I stop to walk, and I'll try to cut it down to a 2 minute walk before starting up again.
Someone asked me how quickly I want to finish the 5K. My goal? To finish it! I really want to run the whole thing, and right now, I know that that's doable. I'm just praying that it won't be extremely hot or humid that morning. It starts at 8:00, so it *shouldn't* be too bad yet.
Weekly Weigh In
Granted, I weighed in first thing in the morning, without eating breakfast... But, I showed a .2 lb gain. I know that, if I had been at home, weighing in at my normal time, I would be up at least 1 lb. It was just one of those weeks... And I'm okay with that! That's what Lifetime is about, right? Making it work for me.
The leader, Ann, at this particular meeting was wonderful! I love Leah, our leader at home, and now I know when we visit Mom, we have to come see Ann! The best part? She has a blog: The Hungry Poodle. I added it to my list of blogs to follow, but feel free to check her out. She just posted a recipe for fish tacos that sounds AWESOME! She was very motivating in the meeting, and I'm excited to start reading her blog regularly!
The Challenge!
As a recap... The first week, we aimed for 3 different colors each day. The second week (last week), we filled half of our plate with vegetables or fruit....
And this week.....
Try at least one new fruit or vegetable every day.
David and I eat so many veggies and fruits already. We buy a big variety of things, although we have our favorites. So, if we can't find totally new things to try, we think if we do fruits or veggies that aren't "normal," we could count that. Right? David has only had rhubarb in pies, so I think that's going to be in one meal at some point this week.. And we may explore with squash, something we've both had in the past, but never prepared in a HEALTHY way!
So, how did you do this week with filling your plate up? And... What new fruit or vegetable are you going to try? Give me some ideas or suggestions!
Infertility
We met with David's family doctor, who is also a licensed endocrinologist. The urologist had told us that we needed the help from the endo because David's estrogen was high. Well, Dr. M looks at it and says "No it's not! This guy is an idiot." Basically, his estrogen levels are slightly elevated because of his weight. Looking back from last year, his FSH and LH are in normal range, as is the "free" testosterone, which is a big improvement! So, the "treatment": Keep losing weight.
This is so frustrating to me. If you know me, or if you've been following my blog for longer than a week or two, you know how badly I want to be a mom. I want to make David a dad. We will be great parents. No, I'm not trying to be cocky about it, but after all of this... and we have it in our hearts. We WILL have a baby. We WILL be awesome parents. Our children will be spoiled, but not so spoiled that you can't stand them!
So, David is going to keep taking all of his vitamins and keep losing weight... He's going to redo the sperm analysis in October (3 1/2 months from now), and see what happens. If his numbers improve, then we can do an IUI in October or November.
Wine
Yep. More wine! David and I came down to Kansas City for mom's 61st birthday. We met some friends of mine from high school for dinner on Tuesday night, which was really nice. On Wednesday, we went to weigh in (more on that shortly...), hit lunch at California Pizza Kitchen on the suggestion of the WW leader, and then went and explored a few wineries!
David lived in KC for 5 years before we met. He worked for the 911 service down here, so he knows the area fairly well. He surprised me by taking me to Stonehaus Farms Winery. Out of all of the wines we've tried, these were seriously some of THE BEST we have ever had. He let us taste his latest vintage of the Traminette and it was to DIE FOR. I can't wait for it to be on the market in a few weeks!
Then, we drove to Knob Noster, MO and visited 2 wineries right next door to each other. Bristle Ridge and Montserrat were both excellent wineries as well!
We ended up with 6 bottles of wine, one of which was opened for Mom's birthday dinner, and we will DEFINITELY be going back to visit all 3 again!
5K Training
We are getting closer and closer! Check out that tracker on the side - August 15 is going to be here before we know it!
This week was better training wise. I'm still dealing with a major lack of energy, but David has been able to push me a little to get off my butt and go run. We went to the gym one morning and I was able to jog for 26 minutes straight. I walked for a few minutes and then jogged the last 5 before my cool down.
So, I figured... If I can do 26 min on the treadmill, I should be able to do 20 outside on the trail. So, I started with my 1/2 mile (7 minute) warmup through the neighborhood. Then, I started jogging. I kept going... and going... and going... and going! When I got to my turn around spot, I had made it 19 minutes and 40 seconds! I had been fighting a pretty good side pain for a few minutes, so I started walking a few seconds early. I walked for 3 minutes and 20 seconds and then started jogging again. I ended up jogging a little over 15 minutes before I hit the neighborhood again, which ends up being right about 3.1 miles! It ended up being 42 minutes to complete the 5K, and I only had to walk 3 minutes of it! Next week, I'm going to go 25 minutes before I stop to walk, and I'll try to cut it down to a 2 minute walk before starting up again.
Someone asked me how quickly I want to finish the 5K. My goal? To finish it! I really want to run the whole thing, and right now, I know that that's doable. I'm just praying that it won't be extremely hot or humid that morning. It starts at 8:00, so it *shouldn't* be too bad yet.
Weekly Weigh In
Granted, I weighed in first thing in the morning, without eating breakfast... But, I showed a .2 lb gain. I know that, if I had been at home, weighing in at my normal time, I would be up at least 1 lb. It was just one of those weeks... And I'm okay with that! That's what Lifetime is about, right? Making it work for me.
The leader, Ann, at this particular meeting was wonderful! I love Leah, our leader at home, and now I know when we visit Mom, we have to come see Ann! The best part? She has a blog: The Hungry Poodle. I added it to my list of blogs to follow, but feel free to check her out. She just posted a recipe for fish tacos that sounds AWESOME! She was very motivating in the meeting, and I'm excited to start reading her blog regularly!
The Challenge!
As a recap... The first week, we aimed for 3 different colors each day. The second week (last week), we filled half of our plate with vegetables or fruit....
And this week.....
Try at least one new fruit or vegetable every day.
David and I eat so many veggies and fruits already. We buy a big variety of things, although we have our favorites. So, if we can't find totally new things to try, we think if we do fruits or veggies that aren't "normal," we could count that. Right? David has only had rhubarb in pies, so I think that's going to be in one meal at some point this week.. And we may explore with squash, something we've both had in the past, but never prepared in a HEALTHY way!
So, how did you do this week with filling your plate up? And... What new fruit or vegetable are you going to try? Give me some ideas or suggestions!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Adventures in Wine Land
Welcome to Adventures in Wine Land! David and I were lucky enough to both have today off, so we took a little trip.... They were doing a Grillin' with Iowa Wines weekend. We got lots of food and gifts along the way, and had a blast! We made it to all 7 wineries and bought several bottles of wine.
If you are a "local" reading my blog - you HAVE to check out these wineries. They are awesome! All of the people are so friendly and love to talk. And in Iowa, the tastings are free! :-)
Sugar Clay
They served a blackberry cobbler and ice cream with their Blackberry Mead. Yummy! We sampled their III Vines and brought a bottle of that home.
King's Crossing
We have been to King's Crossing before and loved it. They were serving a BBQ chicken leg, paired with their new Edelweiss. They also served a brownie with fresh strawberries, paired with their White St. Croix. We didn't get a bottle of wine because we go see them fairly often. :-)
Prairie Crossing
We have had several of their wines, but never been to the winery. Their facilities are really nice and the people are great! They served a BBQ beef sandwich with the Frontenac. They also had sharp cheddar cheese, served with Windswept White. We also tasted the Wagon Trail Red (a little dry for me, but good), Kit Cat (have a bottle but haven't tried it yet - yum!), and Cardinal Red (YUM!). We took a bottle of the Cardinal Red home.
Whispering Hills
The people at Whispering Hills were AWESOME! It almost felt like "home" when we walked in. They had smoked turkey and glazed corn on the cob with their brand new Skinny Dippin'. #1 - LOVE the name of the wine! #2 - the corn was marinated in honey and a little hot sauce. We are doing this the next time we get corn! They also made an apple crumble with pomegranate glaze that they served with their Edelweiss - and we got the recipe for this! We tried their Concord, Catawba, Traminette, Moondance (which we've had before), and Serendipity. They also made a Sangria with the Concord, lemon, lime, orange, and Sierra Mist. Yummy! We took home a bottle of Catawba.
Side note: if you are counting, that's 3 bottles of wine so far. David said "maybe we'll get 1 from somewhere." Hee hee hee :-)
Back to the regularly scheduled program....
Breezy Hills
We were served stuffed pork and a chocolate chip cookie. They served it with St. Croix. We also tried the LaCrosse, Tres Hermanas, Misbehavin', Vignoles, and Edelweiss. We took home a bottle of Misbehavin' and something fun for me:
Yep! David got me this super cool shirt! I mentioned when I came in that it was very "me." When he got the bottle of Misbehavin', he got me my shirt also! Love it!
Danish Countryside
This was the farthest out winery... It took us about 30 minutes to get there, but it was very worth it! They served BBQ Beef and let us choose which red we paired it with. I tried the Sweet Caroline and David had the Countryside Red. I loved, loved, loved the Sweet Caroline! David liked it okay, but he liked the Countryside Red (I didn't like it as much). They also made pineapple upside down cake and served it with Twilight White, which was good. We tried several of their wines also. The Maid of the Harbor was similar to a riesling, and good. David and I both really liked the Classy Lady and their fruit wine, Pretty Belle Peach. Those BOTH got to come home with us. Current bottle count: 6!
Loess Hills
This was the last stop on our tour.. I had been here a few years ago, but David had never been. We went in and tried a few wines first, and then had the food. We tried the Rivers Mist (dryer), Sunset Blush, Blonzy Bell Blush, Edelweiss, September Sweet, and Vignoles. Their Vignoles was AWESOME, so we got a bottle of that.
They served pulled pork and italian sausage with SBR (Sneaky Bastard Red). A little dry, but paired VERY well with the pork. They also had really AWESOME watermelon with their Loess Hills Blanc.
We had a BLAST today! We ended up with 7 - yes 7 - bottles of wine! We came home, made Buffalo Chicken Pasta (recipe to come), peach cobbler, and opened the bottle of the Pretty Belle Peach from Danish Countryside!
Now we're relaxing, watching Mall Cop. Hillarious movie! Anyways... That recipe will be on here tomorrow. Tonight, I'm relaxing with the hubby. I'm also trying to get my MP3 player charged so I can go for a run in the morning.
If you are a "local" reading my blog - you HAVE to check out these wineries. They are awesome! All of the people are so friendly and love to talk. And in Iowa, the tastings are free! :-)
Sugar Clay
They served a blackberry cobbler and ice cream with their Blackberry Mead. Yummy! We sampled their III Vines and brought a bottle of that home.
King's Crossing
We have been to King's Crossing before and loved it. They were serving a BBQ chicken leg, paired with their new Edelweiss. They also served a brownie with fresh strawberries, paired with their White St. Croix. We didn't get a bottle of wine because we go see them fairly often. :-)
Prairie Crossing
We have had several of their wines, but never been to the winery. Their facilities are really nice and the people are great! They served a BBQ beef sandwich with the Frontenac. They also had sharp cheddar cheese, served with Windswept White. We also tasted the Wagon Trail Red (a little dry for me, but good), Kit Cat (have a bottle but haven't tried it yet - yum!), and Cardinal Red (YUM!). We took a bottle of the Cardinal Red home.
Whispering Hills
The people at Whispering Hills were AWESOME! It almost felt like "home" when we walked in. They had smoked turkey and glazed corn on the cob with their brand new Skinny Dippin'. #1 - LOVE the name of the wine! #2 - the corn was marinated in honey and a little hot sauce. We are doing this the next time we get corn! They also made an apple crumble with pomegranate glaze that they served with their Edelweiss - and we got the recipe for this! We tried their Concord, Catawba, Traminette, Moondance (which we've had before), and Serendipity. They also made a Sangria with the Concord, lemon, lime, orange, and Sierra Mist. Yummy! We took home a bottle of Catawba.
Side note: if you are counting, that's 3 bottles of wine so far. David said "maybe we'll get 1 from somewhere." Hee hee hee :-)
Back to the regularly scheduled program....
Breezy Hills
We were served stuffed pork and a chocolate chip cookie. They served it with St. Croix. We also tried the LaCrosse, Tres Hermanas, Misbehavin', Vignoles, and Edelweiss. We took home a bottle of Misbehavin' and something fun for me:
Yep! David got me this super cool shirt! I mentioned when I came in that it was very "me." When he got the bottle of Misbehavin', he got me my shirt also! Love it!
Danish Countryside
This was the farthest out winery... It took us about 30 minutes to get there, but it was very worth it! They served BBQ Beef and let us choose which red we paired it with. I tried the Sweet Caroline and David had the Countryside Red. I loved, loved, loved the Sweet Caroline! David liked it okay, but he liked the Countryside Red (I didn't like it as much). They also made pineapple upside down cake and served it with Twilight White, which was good. We tried several of their wines also. The Maid of the Harbor was similar to a riesling, and good. David and I both really liked the Classy Lady and their fruit wine, Pretty Belle Peach. Those BOTH got to come home with us. Current bottle count: 6!
Loess Hills
This was the last stop on our tour.. I had been here a few years ago, but David had never been. We went in and tried a few wines first, and then had the food. We tried the Rivers Mist (dryer), Sunset Blush, Blonzy Bell Blush, Edelweiss, September Sweet, and Vignoles. Their Vignoles was AWESOME, so we got a bottle of that.
They served pulled pork and italian sausage with SBR (Sneaky Bastard Red). A little dry, but paired VERY well with the pork. They also had really AWESOME watermelon with their Loess Hills Blanc.
We had a BLAST today! We ended up with 7 - yes 7 - bottles of wine! We came home, made Buffalo Chicken Pasta (recipe to come), peach cobbler, and opened the bottle of the Pretty Belle Peach from Danish Countryside!
Now we're relaxing, watching Mall Cop. Hillarious movie! Anyways... That recipe will be on here tomorrow. Tonight, I'm relaxing with the hubby. I'm also trying to get my MP3 player charged so I can go for a run in the morning.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Changing of the Goals
Have you ever been to Washington DC and watched the changing of the guards by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier? It is seriously one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. It's completely silent, just an occasional click from a camera - and you aren't allowed to use your flash. It takes 10-15 minutes for the whole thing to go down!
Anyways... It is now time for the Changing of the Goals! That's right, June goals are no more! It's time for July!
But first.. a recap of June:
Weight Loss: My goal was to lose 4 lbs. I met this goal on June 17th. So, then, I had to keep it off. Well, last week, I had a big gain (thanks in part to emotional eating). Yesterday, I lost the exact same, so I'm back to 186. David said even though it is *technically* the 1st of July, he'll give it to me because "Well, if you had weighed in yesterday, it would have been the same!" Works for me. My Reward.... Movie Night!
Exercise: I had 2 parts to this goal. Training for my 5K, I wanted to get it done in under 45 minutes. I also wanted to tone 2 times a week. I didn't do so hot with this goal... I did get under 45 minutes on my 5K. In fact, I got 42 minutes on June 21! But I didn't do so good with the toning... So, no reward for exercising.
So, July.... What are my plans?
Weight Loss: I want to lose another 3 lbs, putting me at 183. Remember, my ultimate personal goal is 180. I'm expecting, but not hoping for, a plateau at some point. I mean, really... it's the last 6 lbs! How often do you see someone blow through that? Not very! I'm not sure yet what my reward will be. I'll keep you posted on that!
Exercise: I want to be able to run 2 miles without stopping. It doesn't have to be fast, I just want to do it! And I want to tone 2 times a week. This is a MUST! I am SO sick of my bat-wings and my flabby abs... Not sure on this goal either, but it will be something DAMN good to keep me motivated!
I can't believe it is already July! Really? It feels like yesterday I was saying goodbye to my students for the summer, and now I report back in 6 weeks! EEK! July is going to be full of lifestyle challenges:
* 4th of July/Family Reunion - BUT supposedly several family members are diabetic, so there will be some slightly healthier options.
* July 12th - a Wine tasting weekend on the Western Iowa Wine Trail. I've been planning this for a month!
* July 18th - a coworker is getting married. I love wedding cake!
* July 22nd - my mom's birthday. I love birthday cake almost as much as I love wedding cake!
No news on the Foster Care front. We are still waiting to hear back about our background checks. Obviously we know they will come back clean, but we still have to wait... Waiting, waiting, waiting...
I hope you all have a wonderful, safe, exciting 4th of July! "See" you next week!
Anyways... It is now time for the Changing of the Goals! That's right, June goals are no more! It's time for July!
But first.. a recap of June:
Weight Loss: My goal was to lose 4 lbs. I met this goal on June 17th. So, then, I had to keep it off. Well, last week, I had a big gain (thanks in part to emotional eating). Yesterday, I lost the exact same, so I'm back to 186. David said even though it is *technically* the 1st of July, he'll give it to me because "Well, if you had weighed in yesterday, it would have been the same!" Works for me. My Reward.... Movie Night!
Exercise: I had 2 parts to this goal. Training for my 5K, I wanted to get it done in under 45 minutes. I also wanted to tone 2 times a week. I didn't do so hot with this goal... I did get under 45 minutes on my 5K. In fact, I got 42 minutes on June 21! But I didn't do so good with the toning... So, no reward for exercising.
So, July.... What are my plans?
Weight Loss: I want to lose another 3 lbs, putting me at 183. Remember, my ultimate personal goal is 180. I'm expecting, but not hoping for, a plateau at some point. I mean, really... it's the last 6 lbs! How often do you see someone blow through that? Not very! I'm not sure yet what my reward will be. I'll keep you posted on that!
Exercise: I want to be able to run 2 miles without stopping. It doesn't have to be fast, I just want to do it! And I want to tone 2 times a week. This is a MUST! I am SO sick of my bat-wings and my flabby abs... Not sure on this goal either, but it will be something DAMN good to keep me motivated!
I can't believe it is already July! Really? It feels like yesterday I was saying goodbye to my students for the summer, and now I report back in 6 weeks! EEK! July is going to be full of lifestyle challenges:
* 4th of July/Family Reunion - BUT supposedly several family members are diabetic, so there will be some slightly healthier options.
* July 12th - a Wine tasting weekend on the Western Iowa Wine Trail. I've been planning this for a month!
* July 18th - a coworker is getting married. I love wedding cake!
* July 22nd - my mom's birthday. I love birthday cake almost as much as I love wedding cake!
No news on the Foster Care front. We are still waiting to hear back about our background checks. Obviously we know they will come back clean, but we still have to wait... Waiting, waiting, waiting...
I hope you all have a wonderful, safe, exciting 4th of July! "See" you next week!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Anniversary Weekend
Tomorrow marks our 2nd anniversary. This time 2 years ago, I was getting my nails done and freaking out about how much I had to get done still! I was up until 2:00 in the morning doing last minute stuff... And, in looking back, none of it mattered! But, I thought it did at the time.
Every year, David and I have marked our anniversary by visiting wineries across Nebraska and always going to a special Bed and Breakfast. So, if you are bored, here's a weekend in review - complete with links, pics, and reviews of places!
We went to Soaring Wings in Springfield. My favorite was the Winter White, their dryest semi-sweet. David's favorite was the Falco Red, a semi-sweet red.
Next, we visited Windcrest Winery in Raymond. This is his first year open, but you cannot tell that by the taste of his wines! We took a bottle of the Crest Select (semi-sweet) and Cherry Delight (a semi-sweet cherry wine) home. If you have a little bit of chocolate in your mouth when you drink the Cherry Delight, it makes it taste like chocolate covered cherries! Yummy! And because he is a newer winery, he will actually let you try all of his wines - dryest to sweetest for the same price. He just gives you slightly smaller portions than the other wineries do for only 5 tastings. But, so worth it!
After Windcrest, we checked in at The Anniversary Mansion. Two years ago, David surprised me with staying here the night after our wedding. We have made it a tradition to come every year and have now stayed in 3 of the 4 rooms. Dave is an awesome host and his employees are fabulous! As always, we are looking forward to going back next year!
Before settling in for the night, we dressed up
and headed to Misty's. As if we hadn't had enough wine already, we ordered a bottle of the Riesling. We had the portabello mushroom appetizer. I had the Salmon Choe and David ordered the Petite Prime Rib. Both were delicious!
We headed back to the mansion for the night and enjoyed an awesome breakfast! The jacuzzi tub was nice and relaxing, and the bed was SO flipping comfortable! I told David I want to steal it.
We left the Mansion and headed for the zoo! We haven't been since the weekend of our wedding - we went with family the day after - so it was a nice break. We went to the store beforehand and got stuff for sandwiches. The one thing we didn't do that I wanted to was the Butterfly Pavillion. But, we have a zoo pass and plan to go back next week. The animals were feeling lazy, but it was the perfect day and we had a blast. (All the walking and hills provided great exercise also!)
After the zoo, we decided to finish our weekend with another winery! I won a bet last night, so David owed me another bottle of wine. We went to our favorite tasting room, Too Far North, in Ft. Calhoun. Sandy is always awesome and can pin your tastes perfectly! We tried a few new ones, and I actually liked a dry red! Yes, I, Amanda, liked a dry red! We brought home a bottle of a wine from Hartington, NE (Northeast Nebraska Winery - they aren't on our tour, though). They have an outlaw "series," complete with history on the bottle! I loved the Sam Bass (the dry red), but we bought a bottle of Jesse James (semi-sweet red).
We headed home, made dinner, and played with our puppies! Oh, and had a glass of wine (of course!). We had a great weekend relaxing and enjoying ourselves. Tomorrow starts a new week. It's my first day with kids for summer school. Hopefully the 14 days go by quickly! Look for tomorrow's post.... a blast from the past!
Every year, David and I have marked our anniversary by visiting wineries across Nebraska and always going to a special Bed and Breakfast. So, if you are bored, here's a weekend in review - complete with links, pics, and reviews of places!
We went to Soaring Wings in Springfield. My favorite was the Winter White, their dryest semi-sweet. David's favorite was the Falco Red, a semi-sweet red.
Next, we visited Windcrest Winery in Raymond. This is his first year open, but you cannot tell that by the taste of his wines! We took a bottle of the Crest Select (semi-sweet) and Cherry Delight (a semi-sweet cherry wine) home. If you have a little bit of chocolate in your mouth when you drink the Cherry Delight, it makes it taste like chocolate covered cherries! Yummy! And because he is a newer winery, he will actually let you try all of his wines - dryest to sweetest for the same price. He just gives you slightly smaller portions than the other wineries do for only 5 tastings. But, so worth it!
After Windcrest, we checked in at The Anniversary Mansion. Two years ago, David surprised me with staying here the night after our wedding. We have made it a tradition to come every year and have now stayed in 3 of the 4 rooms. Dave is an awesome host and his employees are fabulous! As always, we are looking forward to going back next year!
Before settling in for the night, we dressed up
and headed to Misty's. As if we hadn't had enough wine already, we ordered a bottle of the Riesling. We had the portabello mushroom appetizer. I had the Salmon Choe and David ordered the Petite Prime Rib. Both were delicious!
We headed back to the mansion for the night and enjoyed an awesome breakfast! The jacuzzi tub was nice and relaxing, and the bed was SO flipping comfortable! I told David I want to steal it.
We left the Mansion and headed for the zoo! We haven't been since the weekend of our wedding - we went with family the day after - so it was a nice break. We went to the store beforehand and got stuff for sandwiches. The one thing we didn't do that I wanted to was the Butterfly Pavillion. But, we have a zoo pass and plan to go back next week. The animals were feeling lazy, but it was the perfect day and we had a blast. (All the walking and hills provided great exercise also!)
After the zoo, we decided to finish our weekend with another winery! I won a bet last night, so David owed me another bottle of wine. We went to our favorite tasting room, Too Far North, in Ft. Calhoun. Sandy is always awesome and can pin your tastes perfectly! We tried a few new ones, and I actually liked a dry red! Yes, I, Amanda, liked a dry red! We brought home a bottle of a wine from Hartington, NE (Northeast Nebraska Winery - they aren't on our tour, though). They have an outlaw "series," complete with history on the bottle! I loved the Sam Bass (the dry red), but we bought a bottle of Jesse James (semi-sweet red).
We headed home, made dinner, and played with our puppies! Oh, and had a glass of wine (of course!). We had a great weekend relaxing and enjoying ourselves. Tomorrow starts a new week. It's my first day with kids for summer school. Hopefully the 14 days go by quickly! Look for tomorrow's post.... a blast from the past!
Thursday, April 9, 2009
2009 Nebraska Wine Tour
Last year, we started the wine tour but didn't get to finish it because of me getting sick in July. So, we are starting early this year!
David FINALLY took me to my winery. We chose to go to James Arthur Vineyard, and found the passport for this year's tour. JAV has a new Brianna that is REALLY good. A bottle found its way home with us. There's a newer winery close by but they weren't open today. So, we stopped at From Nebraska Gift Shop for some tastings. We tried wines from quite a few different wineries - some we went to last year, others are on our Get-To-Quick list!
The best part about wine? A 4oz glass of white wine is only 2 points! I don't drink red, but it's slightly more. The killer is the bread baskets that you HAVE to get. Well, you don't have to get, but it definitely helps keep you from getting drunk!
So, Nebraska Wine Tour - Here we come!
David FINALLY took me to my winery. We chose to go to James Arthur Vineyard, and found the passport for this year's tour. JAV has a new Brianna that is REALLY good. A bottle found its way home with us. There's a newer winery close by but they weren't open today. So, we stopped at From Nebraska Gift Shop for some tastings. We tried wines from quite a few different wineries - some we went to last year, others are on our Get-To-Quick list!
The best part about wine? A 4oz glass of white wine is only 2 points! I don't drink red, but it's slightly more. The killer is the bread baskets that you HAVE to get. Well, you don't have to get, but it definitely helps keep you from getting drunk!
So, Nebraska Wine Tour - Here we come!
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