The List that Keeps Giving

I'm on a stay-at-home vacation this week, so lists rule! There's nothing quite like the feeling of crossing something off your to-do list. My intention this week was to get some stuff done: organize, weed the flower beds, edit my novel! It's Thursday, so time to take inventory of my accomplishments:

1. Weeded flower beds. Pretty easy job in a drought.
2. Organized one junk drawer. The main junk drawer that is. Found four sharpies. Score!
3. Finished Season 4 of Stranger Things. Whew. Time-consuming. Emotionally draining. But completely awesome!
4. Started Season 4 of Modern Family. Laughing should always be on a to-do list.

So, the week is running out and here I am, blogging instead tackling the furnace room or a closet I had my sights on. Truthfully, my purpose in organizing those areas was to find our wedding video to get it transferred to digital before our thirtieth anniversary (next August). When Mom told me she has a copy, my drive to organize areas drifted a bit.

I truly do believe in the power of lists though. Anyone remember Phil Dunphy mentioning how his wife, Claire, can create to-do lists that last for days? I'm with Claire. The only problem is my hubby doesn't usually see the need to do these pesky household tasks unless it has a monetary value associated. "If it doesn't make us money, why do it?"  I should say that to him the next time he feels amorous.

I can be a bit sneaky in my approach in getting Doug to do something. Sometimes it's appealing to his need to be challenged. "Think you can mix me up a cocktail of weed killer?" He's on it.  Sometimes it's appealing to his sense of fun. "We should refresh the basement. Maybe add a bar." We conquered that in a few months. Sometimes it's appealing to his sense of adventure. "How many limestones do you think we can dig up in the cattle yard?" My Indiana Jones found so many we were able to recreate Stonehenge. And sometimes, if it's possible, I find a way to make it a smart financial decision. "Couldn't we write-off a new garage if you use it for agricultural purposes?" 

Our son figured out how to manipulate the list process at a young age. I usually left a list of chores for each of the kids in the summer. One day, when I was cleaning out a drawer, I found an old "list" notebook and came across something interesting – and just a bit off. It was the kids' lists with a few normal chores like filling the dishwasher, vacuuming and cleaning the toilets. But Alex had more on hers. And she had a special task in her column: Play video games with Cole. It even really resembled my handwriting. I'm not sure it worked, but I liked the thought behind it – integrating normal chores with the thing he really wanted done. And having Mom sign off on it.

I have just a few hours left of this stay-cation to get things done. (Tomorrow we leave for Iowa City to perform the critical job of cheering on our Hawks at the season opener.) So, there's still a furnace room and closet to conquer. But there's also a cat that needs petting. And it's almost lunchtime. And I wouldn't mind playing a little piano. And hey, when I return to work next week, I'll be armed to discuss my main accomplishment for the week: Finishing Stranger Things. Kidding. Sort of. Truly, and not kidding one bit, the best thing I did this week was spending time with my best friend: Doug. I'll never cross that task off the list.

A Little Place Called Napa

We went. We drank. And unfortunately, we left. But the experience was unforgettable – except for those times when we imbibed too much, of course.

Doug and I have never been huge wine drinkers. Blame youthful experiences with Mad Dog and Night Train. But some time ago, after watching Sideways, we became fascinated with the idea of visiting the California wine country. Since we like to take our kids on vacation, we decided to wait until they turned of age. They were seven and three when that movie came out, so we had a few years to wait.

Finally, the time had come! Four Seasons Travel gave us some amazing guidance and set us up on a Top Five trip. Doug, me, Alex, Cole and his sweet girlfriend Anna. The weather was perfect. The people were welcoming. The towns were quaint. The food was spectacular. The vineyards were bucolic. And the wine? Well, the wine was not Night Train to say the very least.

We all came with agendas to learn more about wine and in the process increase our sophistication index. (Alex and Anna didn't really need this, but the rest of us sure did.) Cole had other agendas though. As a matter of fact on the way to Napa, he let it slip that he couldn't leave California without eating and In-N-Out burger. Ironically, "in-n-out" was how Cole took his wine on our first full day of touring. Not that the wine wasn't perfection, but he couldn't bear to watch his sister let her portions go un-drank. It had always been an important lesson in the Kramer household, not to let anything go to waste. Especially alcohol. Luckily, Cole's unleashing of the Cabernet's on our first full day didn't slow him down the rest of the week.

A day trip to Calistoga provided quite a memorable experience for Doug and I. The kids shopped while we made appointments for a "Mudslinger" at Dr. Wilkenson's Backyard Resort and Mineral Springs. This treatment involves slipping into a large tub of warm, bubbling mud (think Shrek's jacuzzi). Completely naked. Mind you, I don't even like my husband to see me naked, so I can't deny I was a little self-conscious. But there was only the attendant, Doug and me. So, I got comfortable in a hurry. Amazingly comfortable. The mudbath was followed by a natural spring bath with special soothing salts. Our old bodies were as loose as a goose, if goose are indeed loose. After this little slice of heaven, we wrapped up in a towel and were directed to the sauna which was a staggering 300 degrees. I only managed to remain in there for about thirty seconds. Doug lasted longer. He had been training in 300 degree grain bins. Nonetheless, the spa was amazing. 

We did lots of great things. We joined a wine club, of course. We drove an hour north of Calistoga to visit a redwood forest that wasn't THE Redwood forest. But we snapped a few nice and weird photos there. We went on an e-biking tour to more vineyards. We drank delicious olive oil. We saw Barbie. We did more wine tastings. We ate In-N-Out burgers. I bought the book Sideways that I'm ashamed to admit I didn't know was a book before the movie. And on our last full day, we picnicked all afternoon in a picture-perfect winery eating charcuterie and blasting through five bottles of vino. As we chatted about the wonderful vacation, I admitted that I learned an important lesson that week. If we want the hubby to try new things, bring the girlfriend. While I can hardly bring up an idea without it being dismissed within the first five seconds, Anna's ideas were met with "Sure -– that sounds fun." (Thus the ebiking and Barbie outings.) 

I loved almost everything about Napa. And one of things that struck me most was the agricultural identity, like our community. Maybe not exactly like ours. Grapes are a little more charming than corn. Just a little. Nonetheless, the residents of wine country carries a great love for their land and what it produces. Now, that's something we Iowa folk can relate to.

Cheers! Salute! Prost!

The mythical Poseidon Winery!