Caught up in the romance

I admit it. There IS something truly enchanting about Napa on Valentine’s Day. First, the land is so lush and green and fragrant with the coming of spring. Not like NYC where the spring fragrance is... well, unmentionable. Here, everywhere you look there’s something that catches my heart (can you believe that's a REAL leaf?!) – like the way the golden mustard blooms weave across the land. In fact, there’s an entire Mustard Festival dedicated to this splendor.

Even Michael was caught up in the romance. He surprised me with reservations at the very romantic Martini House (check it out!) in St. Helena. First, we drove against a spectacular sunset. Then, once we were settled in at the restaurant we were like teenagers in love as we drank the perfectly pink Schramsberg Brut Rose (from Napa, of course) and shared a plate of the indescribably delicious wild mushrooms. It was truly divine.

The Natalie update:
After an initial (stifled) gasp from Michael we are settling in with niece Natalie. The kids have seen people with even more piercings, and Nat doesn’t even have tattoos (that I know about.) If she’s surly, she’s saving it. Though she has slept most of the time since her arrival… And yes, I have locked the wine refrigerator and hidden the matches. She was nice enough to babysit for us so we could go out for our special Valentine evening. Thank you Natalie!