Days of Wine and Otters

We began our second morning in Carmel with breakfast in the Barnyard. I know it sounds like we should have been dining with chickens and cows, but the Barnyard is actually a shopping center - no cows and chickens in sight.

Breakfast was at From Scratch.

Thatboy ordered 2 eggs and bacon. How boring. I don't think you could convince me to order something so blah sounding.

Instead, I ordered the huevos rancheros which as billed as "best on the peninsula." I can't speak to that. but Thatboy decided it was the best huevos ranchero he'd ever had. I won the ordering game!

After breakfast we headed to Point Lobos Reserve.

We started at whaler's cove, which, given the name should be obvious, was where the whaling center was once located. Where we parked our car is where the whales were hauled, stripped of blubber, and then the blubber was melted into oil. Both fascinating and disturbing. Currently it is where all the divers enter the underwater portion of Point Lobos.

We walked up to Whaler's Cabin. Unlike the description, this cabin was not built by whalers, but rather a Chinese fishing family. The cabin currently hosts a historical museum depicting the many industries that once took place in Point Lobos; fishing, whaling, dairy and ranching, abalone farming, coal, military, and the movie industry.

Because of the whaling history of the area though, next door to the cabin are the bones of many whales that have beached on the shores as well as the tools used during the whaling period. Gruesome.

I had read that sea otters were abundant on the reserve, so I was determined to find one. I have seen sea otters at the zoo, but never in their native environment. We hiked to the top of Whalers Cove, giving us a gorgeous view of the area and coves as well as several harbor seals, sunning themselves on the rocks, but no sea otters. We also got to see some sharks swimming around right where the divers are. Another thing that will keep me from learning to scuba.

Then we were off to another hike,taking us up to sea lion point, although we saw far more seals than sea lions. The sea lions were obvious by ear, but not so easy to see. The seals were silent, but on almost every rock in every cove we passed. Still no sea otters.

We headed to Bird island trail where I FINALLY got to see a sea otter.

We hiked past China Cove which is one of the most gorgeous places I've ever seen until we came to Bird Island Lookout. Thatboy described Bird Island as a piece of the moon that had landed in Carmel.

We headed back downtown for lunch at Cantinetta Luca. It was the perfect place for lunch and I knew I would enjoy it the moment we saw the hanging salami, made in house.

Both of us ordered the most fantastic paninis. Thatboy ordered a panini with housemade salami, I ordered one with buratta.

Both were fabulous, but we decided mine won the ordering competition. After lunch we headed to Carmel Valley for some wine tasting:

Bernardus - we weren't impressed by either the tasting room or the wines. It was crowded, hurried, and the guy who was pouring didn't have a winning personality.

Parsonage - This tasting room was unique in that it was also an art gallery. If you look at the wine labels, you'll notice they look like quilts. And that's because the labels are prints of the quilts made by the vintner's wife. Similar prints hang throughout the gallery. The intricate quiltwork is beautiful. Parsonage is known for their reds, and we were able to taste a good sample. Torn between their Syrah and Cabernet, we ended up bringing a bottle of the Cab back to the hotel with us.

Georis - We ventured here on the recommendation of someone in Bernardus. She did not steer us wrong. The tasting took place in a garden at a table, beneath trees and beside parrots. Thatboy chose a seat in the gazebo and our tasting of 5 reds and their new pinot noir, along with cheese and crackers were brought out to us. We enjoyed both the pinot as well as their 2004 estate cabernet, but this time we chose to get a bottle of the pinot since we were already all cabbed up.

Talbotts - In general, in case you haven't noticed, we're more fans of red wines than white. So when we find a good white producer, it's kind of a big deal. We started out here with the Kali Hart Chardonnay. I raved about it SO much that even Thatboy decided he'd taste it. He enjoyed it so much, we convinced the woman next to us, who didn't like whites, to taste it to. She was hooked. We both bought a bottle. Next came the Logan Chardonnay, which I liked even better - it was so sweet! Too sweet for Thatboy who preferred the Cuvee Carlotta. We weren't nearly as impressed with the reds.

Heller - Our final stop. Thatboy was interested in the concept of "organic wine," which is their specialty. We found the MOST perfect wine for Thatmom - a Chenin Blanc that contains reisling, her favorite wine. The reisling gave the wine an added sweetness we knew she'd love. Thatboy enjoyed the 2003 Cabernet Sauvingon.

Our next stop was dinner, at Pacific's Edge in the Highland Inn. I knew the moment we entered this would be a far more romantic dinner. It began with the dramatic view over Point Lobos. The entire front and sides of the restaurant are plate glass windows with every seat turned to face outward so there are no bad seats.

The hostess gave us a prime seat, under a skylight, so no matter where we looked, it was almost like being outside. We were soon greeted by two sommeliers who helped us pick out a beautiful viogner. Well I liked it, it didn't break through Thatboy's "I don't like whites" barrier.

After our morning at Point Lobos, Thatboy began with some abalone which he really enjoyed.

I went with goat cheese fritters which were heavenly, but what's not to like? It's goat cheese - fried! Like taking the best thing and making it better!

Next came dinner. Thatboy stuck with his shellfish theme and had some scallops, which he thought were cooked perfectly. He told me scallops are as close to steak as you can get with seafood.

At the recommendation of the waiter, I had the lamb. Perfectly cooked and much closer to steak than Thatboy's scallops.

We chose to forgo dessert, but when our waiter found out it was our anniversary, he brought out one of the best dessert wines we had ever had. It was a sauvignon blanc, which I don't usually consider a dessert wine, but this was very very sweet. Overall I couldn't have asked for a better day!

3 years goes by in a blink of an eye

On Thursday, Thatboy and I celebrated our three year anniversary. It's amazing how fast three years can go. I can actually remember our first three year anniversary, marking the date we had been dating three years. Thatboy's law school buddies all warned him that I was going to start petitioning for a ring. After all, it is "three or flee." I've never been impressed with his friends' relationship advice, because after three years, I was not the one petitioning for a more definite commitment. It took 2 more years before before I agreed to be Mrs.Thatboy, and another year before we made it happen. Maybe that's why these past three years have flown by - it's only a drop in the bucket compared with the many years we've already been together.

The past year has been the hardest "married" year for us. Which is symbolic given that the third year was the hardest "dating" year for us too. During both years our relationship has been given its hardest tests. It's a little premature to say now, so I can only hope that the tests of the past year will stregnthen our relationship. Our past experience has shown that we grow together in times of hardship and I know Thatboy has proven this year just how supportive and exceptional he can be.

To celebrate our relationship, we've filled the month of August with trips! One in "our own backyard" (California) and one a little farther afield (You'll have to tune in next week for that one).

Back when we celebrated our dating anniversaries, we took turns planning trips to explore California on our anniversary. We picked up the tradition again this year with a trip to Carmel. While Thatboy had taken numerous daytrips to this picturesque local, he'd never really explored the area, and as for me - it would be my very first visit!

We flew Alligent Airlines and got in to Monterey around 12:30. We managed to score an amazing deal from Alamo by booking re-diculously last minute.

Our car? The Nissan Versa - SO fricking cute. I'm in love with that car- except the accessories suck. No arm rest, no glove compartment.

We headed out to 17 mile drive. OMG gorgeous. We kept stopping for picture ops because we couldn't get over how beautiful it was.

The weather was unbelievably perfect. The report said it was supposed to be in the low 60s, but it felt more like the high 70s. The waves lapped the sands straight out of a romance novel.

The rocky cliffs formed a beautiful contrast to the white sands and clear green water. We got the chance to see sea lions, seals, very brave squirrels, and deer. And while we watched, dolphins and whales frolicked before us. It was as though Snow White had hit the peninsula.

The great part about the drive was not only the shore, but the beautiful forest of cypresses.

We took the drive all the way to downtown Carmel where we stopped for lunch at Dametra Cafe.

I cannot rave enough about this place. When we were sat, we were already drooling over the smells and sights of the food. And then came the music. The owner came out with an oud and brought out the chef to serenade the honeymooners beside us with Besame Mucho .

They had the entire restaurant singing. There's nothing we like better than a good old fashioned restaurant sing-a-long. When our meals came, our love of the restaurant was confirmed.

Thatboy had the Istanbul kebab - ground beef kebabs over rice pilaf.

I had the great greek salad which we decided was the winner of the two - gyro meat over a greek salad. The gyro meat was phenomenal and the salad itself was noteworthy with creamy feta, and a delicious herby salad dressing. We're such a cute and sweet couple the waitress brought us a complementary baklava for dessert - telling us how much she liked us.

Thatboy thought it was the best baklava he'd ever had.

After lunch we headed to the hotel with a brief stop at the supermarket for a little after dinner drinks. Then it was off to Carmel River Inn. I'm not going to lie - it wasn't anything special. Kinda divey in fact. Thatboy felt like it was straight out of a B Movie Horror Flick. BUT it gets the job done. The room was cute with a dutch door and a balcony overlooking a very pretty wooded area. It's too far from downtown to walk, but just down the street from the mission which we then got to see on a daily basis. Besides - we do have that rental car for a reason.

After a brief nap, we headed in to dinner at Casanova - there's a story here. We were supposed to have our anniversary dinner at Citronelle , a Michael Richard's restaurant at Carmel Valley Ranch. I had made reservations and everything. Tuesday night I got a confirmation from "The Dining Room" at Carmel Valley Ranch. Wednesday I got a call from "The Dining Room" at Carmel Valley Ranch. I couldn't find any information about Citronelle being "The Dining Room" and finally I found out that "The Dining Room" was a transition from Citronelle . Well there was no need to eat at a non-Michael Richard's restaurant, so we changed our reservations to Casanova, which is supposed to be the "most romantic restaurant in Carmel."

It wasn't. To begin with, the tables were stacked almost on top of us. Then there was the kid behind me whose parents had never taught him table manners. Seriously, if I had behaved like him at a restaurant, my parents would have never taken me out. I was bumped so much I felt like I was on a turbulent air ride. He continued to get up and down out of his seat as his parents sent him all around the restaurant. SIT DOWN. IF YOU CAN'T STAY SEATED AT A RESTAURANT, YOU'RE NOT OLD ENOUGH TO EAT OUT. When he wasn't jumping in and out of his seat, he was pushing it back and forth into my chair, and moving around the table to hang on the other people's chairs. The meal was nothing to write home about. It's a three course menu, starting with fantastic tapenade and olives and an uninspired asparagus antipasta. Then came the redeeming "second course."

Thatboy had artichoke with a tomato aioli .

I had unbelievable spinach gnocchi in a cream sauce. Dinner did not meet the second course standard.

Jon was unimpressed with his filet mignon , feeling his mashed potatoes were the highlight of the dish.

I was equally unimpressed with my short ribs, which tasted more like pot roast. My crispy polenta side was surprisingly bland with the highlight being the green beans in balsamic vinaigrette.

We didn't even bother to stay for dessert, just got our check and headed home so we could rise and shine and see more of what Carmel had to offer.

I don't practice Carpenteria

Because Thatboy and I just can't get enough of car trips, on Saturday morning we loaded up once again and journeyed with Thatmom up to Carpenteria.

Nestled between the ocean and the mountains, Carpenteria is a little town with a big personality. Our reason for the trip was a visit to Knits and Petman. Shortly after Thatdad's death, Knits and Petman moved all the way from Georgia to California, opening up a pet store in Carpenteria. Thatmom and Knits were as close as sisters growing up, so ever since they moved she's been lobbying for a trip up. But life, as usual, gets in the way, so this Saturday was the first we were able to make the drive.

Our first stop when we arrived was the beach, just two blocks from Knits and Petman's home. Thatboy is always insanely jealous of anyone who lives close to the beach. Luckily, the beach appears to be as calm as a lake, with no trace of surf, making it more bearable for Thatboy not to live there.

Then we walked over to the downtown area, which was a lot larger than we were expecting. Not quite as sleepy a town as you might think. We walked through the downtown and over to the pet store, which is such a great store! Filled with all the things you need for your dogs, cats, birds, rodents.....

Then it was back downtown for lunch at Giannfranco Trattoria, a little Italian restaurant with an outdoor patio that feels like you're eating in someone's backyard. Under the shade of beautiful old trees. It helps that the staff is a family. The son is the owner/chef, mom is the waitress, and dad does all the little in between things. There's nothing I like better than feeling like I'm eating out - in someone's home. So cozy.

After lunch we walked back through downtown to the house. Then it was back in the car and headed home for dinner.

Sunday we headed down to Laguna to meet Thatbrother and UDubb for breakfast at The Cottage. It's already August and we hadn't made it to The Sawdust Festival once! And since this is the last weekend we'll be in town while it's running, we thought it was about time we got over there. UDubb had never been, so while Thatbrother headed off to study, she headed over to the festival grounds with us.

We were pleased to see some old favorites, but as usual I always enjoy scoping out who is new - or at least a new discovery to me. This year my favorite booth belonged to Whimsicle Art. In general I'm not all that into cartoon-like paintings, and I'm not so interested in children's illustrations, but Laurel Meister has such fun stuff I was drawn right in. I especially love her take on B-Movie posters. But that could be why I like her stuff in the first place, it's a fun take on something familiar and iconic.

We introduced UDubb to the glass blower - one of our favorite booths.

The glass artisans at the festival take turns in a steel cage - I'm not quite sure whether the cage is for our protection...or their protection.

The rest of Sunday was spent running errands and making dinner. And speaking of chores - do those of you with pets recognize this scene? Everytime I'm folding laundry, Thatdog HAS to be a part of it. Nothing like nice, warm, good smelling clothes. He comes to "help" by laying right on top of the clean clothes. He's equally helpful when I'm stripping the bed or putting on new sheets.

Shuffle off to Buffalo

Everyone has a favorite drunk food, right? For Prez it's french fries. Thatboy likes doritos. For me, it's buffalo wings. It only takes a drink or two before I start begging Thatboy for those firey fried bites of goodness. He very rarely indulges my requests. There is NOTHING healthy about stuffing your face with chicken, dredged in butter and fried. Especially when you've already consumed what amounts to sugar in a glass after glass.

My solution to this situation is to make my own buffalo "wings" at home. And they're so much healthier that I don't even need to make them by guilty pleasure. We can eat it just as much as we like.

The first modification is to use chicken breast, not wings which has less fat - especially when you use skinless chicken breasts.

Next, nix the butter. You really don't need it anyway, there's plenty of flavor in that hot sauce. So much that it's a great addition to chilis, potatoes, soups, even barbeque ribs!

The third "get healthy" step is to grill the chicken instead of deep frying.

And finally, the dip. Here in California they dip their chicken wings in ranch - which has always been the bizarro dip choice for me. Everywhere I've lived we've done the original buffalo wing dip of choice - blue cheese! But blue cheese isn't exactly the healthiest dressing choice, so my lastest trick is to use greek yogurt for just about anything white and creamy - add some blue cheese into the yogurt and you have a dip with the flavor of the original, but with more protein and less fat!

Grilled Buffalo "Wings"

• 2 chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1/2 cup Franks Red Hot Wing Sauce
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

1. Mix chicken with wing sauce, cayenne, garlic, and black pepper in a ziplock bag. Marinate 2 hours.
2. Heat grill pan over medium high heat. Cook chicken strips 3-4 minutes a side.