This week was full of ups and downs. The tot and I had a few disagreements (but what’s new, right?), a couple of things changed with my work stuff, and the cats continued being cats and waking me up the minute they saw the sun. But, there was one wonderfully, shining moment early in the week – the moment an actually somewhat-hunky guy showed up on my doorstep bearing wine – and he wasn’t my husband.

Thanks to Echelon Vineyards and the Clever Girls Collective, I had the opportunity to sample a few bottles of Echelon wine. Let me tell you up front, I wasn’t paid to write this review – just offered a few bottles to taste test and then share my honest opinion. I mean, really, twist my arm and all that stuff.

(I couldn’t wait to start sampling!)

Honestly? I pretty much like all wine. But, I do have a bit of a wine-snob husband. He worked his way through college while waiting tables at the San Ysidro Ranch and part of his job was checking out wine – and we’re talking the good stuff. He’s a bit of a snoot and is brutally honest while tasting, so I enlisted him to assist. I decided what better way to really get a full understanding of the flavors than by cooking up a special dinner for each bottle.

Let me tell you.

All kinds of wonderful.

We started out with the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Chardonnay that I paired with grilled garlic and oregano marinated boneless skinless chicken thighs over rice and fresh spinach topped with homemade tzatziki sauce. We had a sip of the Chardonnay before eating and both commented on how light and smooth it was. Neither of us had read the label, but the husband noted instantly the hints of honey, pear, and apple. It went wonderfully with our dinner, and, I’ll be honest, there wasn’t any wine left once we were finished. Echelon’s Chardonnay is a complex but light wine that I would bring to any barbecue.

The next night we cracked open a bottle of the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Red Blend. We both had a bit of hesitation – the idea of a red blend had me concerned (headache in the morning), but we figured we’d have a glass and then (potentially) use the rest for cooking. While putting the finishing touches on our oven-baked vegetarian eggplant parmesan, we sampled a small glass and both couldn’t keep sipping. Once again, neither of us had read the label, but commented on the light, fruity flavor of the blend and called out the oaky-ness as well as the smoothness, which didn’t leave a dry feeling in the mouth. Once again, there wasn’t any wine left at the end of dinner….

A few nights later I made barbecue chicken breasts along with a hot lentil salad with roasted red pepper, radishes, and beets. We couldn’t wait to try the 2010 Echelon Vineyards Pinot Grigio because the other bottles had been so good. Let’s just say we’d both had a nice, big glass before we even sat down to dinner. It was so cold and fresh and the husband noted the light but super-crisp flavor with the slight fruit undertones.  I simply tasted all kinds of goodness. We both decided this was our favorite bottle of the three – by far. It also went wonderfully with our dinner. This is a perfect summer wine and lovely with anything from grilled meats to big salads

Echelon Vineyards has won its fair share of awards and I can see why. Their wines are easy to drink and not overly anything in any way. And, they are wonderfully priced ($10-$15 per bottle), making them taste even better.

Head on over to Echelon Vineyards for more information about their wines and where you can pick up a bottle. Do it – seriously, do it now. You’re entitled to a nice glass of wine!

*Once again, I wasn’t paid to write this post – just provided with some really amazingly good wine to sample. I also wasn’t asked to write a blog post about the wines, but I did because they were that good.

It’s been a long week. The tot came down with a pretty nasty sick ick and the husband was super busy. On top of all that, the hubs had something going on tonight (Friday), which meant I would be on my own all day and evening with the tot. Yeah, yeah. I know some of you are rolling your eyes. But, after being with her all week, and the husband only seeing her for about two hours total each day, I was a wreck.

Last night the husband had a crazy idea. What about a date night – with the tot in tow? She and I could take the ferry into the city, rendezvous with him at the Ferry Building to enjoy a quick dinner (and a sampling of other tasty goodies), and then the tot and I could return home on the ferry with the hubs following behind an hour or so after.

At first I thought he was joking.

Load up a sickie, drag her onto a ferry, and then try to have a tasty meal out in the city?!

Yup.

I did it.

We had an awesome time. Sure, she yelled the entire time on the ferry that she was going to see her dada. Sure, she wasn’t wonderfully behaved while we were eating – but we sat outside and it didn’t matter. And, yeah, I forgot to take a picture of our dinner (but we can partially blame that on the margherita I had with the meal).

But, here are a couple of other pics…

Happy Friday!

Just about every girl daydreams about her wedding at some point. No matter if she’s hoping for a princess dress or something simple and elegant, that gown is a big part of her romantic musing.

While reading The Magic Room by Jeffrey Zaslow I was reminded of my experience while trying on wedding dresses. I was with my sister at a re-sale and seconds wedding shop and we were on our own. I would’ve loved if Shelley, or any of her staff from Becker’s, had there to help me make my decision and then lead me down to the Magic Room for my final selection.

This book is such a good read and reminds us all that life happens when you least expect it. The stories shared in The Magic Room tell of anxious young brides, mother-daughter relationships, and the irony and tragedy of love.

Make sure to get nice and comfy before starting to read The Magic Room. Once you start you won’t be able to stop.

Head on over to BlogHer and join the book discussion!

Last night we did something many parents of toddlers would think unthinkable. Most of us hunker-down in our houses after the witching hour. We all know when that time is – usually after dinner and right before bed. Your child transforms into a crazed whirligig bouncing off the walls, declaring she wants anything and everything, and demands that the same book is read over and over and over again….

Those minutes before the tot’s bedtime stretch into what seems like hours and hours as you just try to stay sane.

Our friend, Brett Kaufman, had an art opening at 5 Claude Lane Gallery and we wanted to go.

It was slated to start right in the middle of the tot’s usual temper-tantrum time.

But, we wanted to go and show our support and share the wonders of art with our daughter. Brett’s work is really something special and makes you get a little closer for a better look. His work is comprised of itty-bitty perfectly placed photographs positioned together in a dizzyingly amazing mosaic, which creates a full finished image. Really, you get sucked into an artwork and find there are so many layers to unfold.

We got all gussied up and headed out for the city. It was a bit of a rainy night, but it was still exciting and fun to be doing something different from our “normal” routine.

(I used a curling iron and everything.)

As we made our way up the steps to the gallery, it was awesome to see a packed house and all of our friend’s artwork shining in the lights. We had a few moments to chat with him, but he kept getting swept back into the crowd. And, it turned into a Dada night, which meant all the tot wanted was for her daddy to hold her while walking around the colorful artworks.

I actually had a few brief minutes to chat with other adults before the tot started her meltdown. We made it about 45 minutes into the opening, but it was enough to see our friend have great success at his opening, catch up with others, and enjoy some fun in the city.

Congratulations, Brett!

(here’s the blow-by-blow)

So this week I had jury duty. Sure, loads of you cringe when you get that mailer, but my toes curl with excitement. Jury duty is all about potentially countless hours with a book spattered with momentary interruptions of people watching, small chit-chat, and announcements from the jury duty people. I’ve been called about three times since I’ve lived here and each time I spend about four hours in the holding room and then am released to go about my day.

With a tot at home and a full-time-working-hubs, serving on a jury is pretty much not going to happen. But I sure wasn’t a bit enticed with the idea of serving on a one-day trial just to experience the wonders of our judicial system.

I packed my bag with a book, the laptop, some notes for work stuff, and tried to suppress my excitement.

Not only was I heading off to jury duty but to the Marin Center – a building designed by one of my mostest-favoritest architects ever.

Frank Lloyd Wright.

Yup.

That’s right.

The Marin Center as one of Wright’s last commissioned buildings and controversial from the start. The site was supposed to be a hospital, people weren’t excited about the space being used as a music venue/civic center, and Wright had some baggage – and was really at the end of his career. But, with all that said, this building is one of the biggest landmarks in Marin.

And it’s awesome.

During the hours I was planning on cozying up with a good book (in a filled room while sitting on a crap-tastic folding chair), as soon as the sun streamed through the morning fog, I was off with my camera.

When I started this blog my goal was to share sunshine and unicorns – happy little ideas for art projects and yummy things to cook and bake sprinkled with various So says Sarah wisdoms. I’ve tried to be somewhat vague about where I live, my child and husband, and some of the more personal stuff that goes on behind the scenes. I guess I felt like I was protecting my family from stuff. You know. The real stuff.

Really. I was protecting myself.

Shit happens.

This week was not so great at my house. Behind the scenes sucked some pretty serious ass. When everything was happening, the last thing I felt like doing was sharing. After a couple of days, I’ve realized sharing is necessary. Not because I want you all to go, “oh, poor Sarah.” Nope. I need to write this down, hit publish, and walk away. It’s as simple as that.

I have to let this out and then move on.

So, here goes.

I found out last week on Tuesday I was pregnant. The hubs and I figured it was time to think about baby number 2, so I stopped taking those itty-bitty pills and threw caution to the wind. Sure, we didn’t expect things to “happen” the first month out, and I had NO idea I was pregnant – because I wasn’t expecting it. You know the story, spotting is thought to be the regular monthly (even though a week or so late), and everyone has a glass of wine (or two).

When I woke up feeling super-sore and tummy sick, I couldn’t believe it. After three pregnancy tests, I was amazed. I told the incredulous husband that night, and we sat and stared at the TV for what seemed like a couple of days wrapping our heads around it.

Over the weekend we started getting excited. I was enjoying some full-on all-day sickness, my boobs were sore, you know, all the fun early pregnancy stuff. And we were tossing names around, every time we saw a new baby we oooohed and awwwed, we told total strangers we were pregnant just to get the feel of it….

Sunday night I took this picture of my husband and daughter having the awesomest time and, after we put her to bed, we sat and chatted about all the things we hoped and dreamed for our new addition.

I started spotting that night, but didn’t think anything of it. The husband reminded me I spotted with our first child, too.

The next morning I knew things weren’t right. I was bleeding.

Bleeding.

While pretending it wasn’t happening, I continued on with my day white-faced and nauseous. I wasn’t cramping or anything.

But I was losing the baby.

I knew it.

I was overwhelmed.

But, what did I do? What have I always done? Push it aside and pretend like nothing was happening. Don’t feel. Don’t get upset. Don’t think.

I was in the middle of a somewhat important conference call, trying to toss a bit of humor into something not so exciting (spreadsheets) while feeling my body releasing that potential future totally kick-ass little being.

I kept on going.

In the middle of it all, the tot was in the other room watching Caillou (of course) and began repeating, “mammammma lloooooooook LOOOOK!”

I walked into the living room all while hoping the other conference call attendees wouldn’t hear annoying Caillou to see what she was all frustrated about only to find a very large and very angry blue jay stuck in our fireplace.

Seriously.

The hilarity, sadness, and utter all around horrible-ness of this whole mess hit me.

Luckily, the mesh screen was containing the mongo blue jay, but his screeching call was bone rattling and disturbing. I quickly signed off from the conference call and yelled for the hubs (who was in his man cave working).

While we both cried and cried, we stared at that stupid blue jay and tried to figure out what to do with it.

The cats came up and began circling like sharks. The child was crying because she didn’t understand why we were crying and kept repeating, “no bird, NO BIRD.”

Total shit mess.

As animal control pulled up, I headed to the gyn to get the final word.

The bird was set free, our daughter has been walking by the fireplace checking for “NO bird,” and I am no longer pregnant.

*It turns out what happened with me is considered a “chemical pregnancy,” which means the egg and sperm happily connected, but that wee embryo got lazy and didn’t cozy itself in properly. So, technically, (as the gynecologist explained over the phone) I wasn’t ever actually “pregnant,” and shouldn’t really get all caught up with this. Nothing was wrong with me and, obviously, I was fertile.

**This conversation didn’t change the fact that I had thought I was pregnant, my body had thought I was pregnant, and it still hurt that I wasn’t.

I’m just going to acknowledge first and foremost that my mother isn’t going to like what I’m about to share with you. Nope. She’s already shared her feelings, but, I’m going to have to go out on a limb and do something she’s not going to be excited about (sorry mom). I’m getting a new kitty-cat. Since we had to put our long-time pal Delilah down in November, our little kitty Shasta just hasn’t really figured things out without her. We picked Shasta up when she was a kitten, and the hubs picked up Delilah from the pound in Santa Barbara. I lived with Delilah for almost 10 years, and have had Shasta for just about seven.

It’s hard to explain to someone who doesn’t have pets at home what it’s like having pets. I love having animals around, heck, I’m partial to fish, too. But, when your pet isn’t right, it’s the worst thing ever. They can’t just come out and tell you, “hey, I’m feeling a bit lonely.” They do what they do, which usually involves behaving in a way that isn’t fantastic, sometimes annoying, and often darn-right-out-of-control horrible.

So, when we walked in the house the night we put Delilah down and Shasta saw she was now the lone cat of the house, she let out a truly sorrowful yeowl that caused both the hubs and I to succumb to horrid gasping dry heaving bawling.

And, guess what? The Shasta cat hasn’t stopped yeoooooowling.

She meeeeeeeeeows all hours of the day and night. It’s not like a social “what’s up” kind of meow, it’s a “I’m lost” kind of meow.

And, it’s the worst.

We’ve been up with her in the middle of the night, we’ve given her loads of extra attention, we’ve played with her, we’ve talked with her, we’ve chased her, we’ve thrown things at her, and we’ve doused her with the water gun.

She’s still yeooowling.

Getting rid of the Shasta cat isn’t an option.

So, another kitty-cat it is.

Meet Coco.

(sorry mom)

After Valentine’s Day, and our exciting vacation adventures, the husband and I have dedicated ourselves to being more attentive to each other, which really means being nicer to each other. We haven’t been doing a great job with that thing called communication, and also tend to just zone out, go to sleep early, or (gasp) toss back a couple of extra drinks when Friday rolls around. So, I’ve decided to change things up a bit and start Friday night movie night! And, I’m thinking the babe can get in on the action, too.

Here’s the deal. My husband loves kid’s movies. I like them, too. But, he really likes them. Anytime there’s a new animation flick coming out, he says, “maybe this is the one.” The “one” refers to the being the right movie for the first potential visit to the movie theater with the babe….

I remember going to a movie for the first time at the dilapidated movie theater in our small downtown and being totally AMAZED. It was a packed theater, one of the coolest movies of all time (E.T.) and I was totally hooked – HOOKED! I love movies. Really. I love a good movie just about as much as I love me some good chocolate. I want my daughter to have that same connection with the big screen.

Our daughter’s a bit young for sitting through an hour-and-a-half of colorful moving things that may sing and then get her totally hooked on characters (and products), but the husband really loves seeing movies in the theater and it’s been over two years since that’s happened. Yeah, we could get a sitter and go out ourselves, but do you know how much a babysitter costs? Much much more than the price of seeing that movie – and dinner combined.

So, we’re hoping to hit the theater with the babe, but before that crazy adventure takes place, we’re gearing up by having movie night in the comfort of our own home! My friends over at the Motherboard gave me some great ideas for how to make the living room ready for the event and ways for the whole family to have some fun – without dishing out a tons-o-cash, just the price of the movie rental! I figure we’ll start out with a kid-friendly movie, watch for as long as the wee tot is interested, and then whisk her off to bed.

Then, I’ve got plans to reconnect with the hubs. Once the babe is blissfully slumbering, I’m going to dim the lights, cover the ottoman with a tablecloth and some tasty food, and toss on an adult movie! Hey, not that kind of adult movie – we’re talking something along the lines of Inception or The Social Network. Heck, I’d be happy with Red.

The big question is – what’s a good movie to watch with the babe?

Happy Friday!

I went to sleep last night at 9:00 pm. I don’t know the last time I’ve gone to sleep that early. It had been a long day and I was over-exhauseted, over-extended, and just plain tired.

While completely ignoring the husband’s taunts of being a party-pooper for going off to the cozy bed so early, I snuggled down and was snoring within five minutes.

Totally worth it.

I’ve been struggling with sleep stuff on and off for a couple of months now. I have no problem falling asleep, it’s a waking-in-the-middle-of-the-night-and-falling-back-into-dreamland issue. The husband snores, the baby cries, the cat yeooowls, and my eyes pop open and then won’t close again.

Most times this happens around 4:30am. This is that purgatory time of the morning. You’re stuck in that it’s-a-bit-too-early-but-not-really time. You could get up and start your day and be okay, but most normal people are still blissfully slumbering, and you know that, which makes things worse.

The National Sleep Foundation suggests that most adults need about seven to eight hours a sleep a night – but that it depends on the person, environment, elements….. Basically, they aren’t wanting to tell the general public a number so we all walk around touting that we deserve, should get, or need X amount of hours of sleep a night. But, I know I need at least six hours to function, and at least seven to fully understand sentences, feel confident driving a car, and not catch myself dream-walking through most of the day. If (and I say IF here because this option rarely happens) I get more than seven hours of sleep a night, it’s like being a new person. I feel like I was at the spa. It’s amazing.

So, last night when I slept for (wait, let me count on my fingers to make sure) just about nine hours, I am super ready for the day! Hell, I’m ready to take on the entire WEEK!

How much sleep do you get?

*this picture really doesn’t have much to do with this post, but I do love cupcakes and couldn’t resist.

It has been a long time coming. I’m happy with my life. I’m glad with what I’m doing and how I got here. I haven’t used anyone to get ahead, talked nasty, or trash-talked. And, along with that, I’ve gained a new life.

And, with that new life, I’ve learned how to say “no.”

I once had someone who I really respected (at that time) tell me that she wasn’t willing to continue working with me because I didn’t follow her lead – didn’t fit into her mold. I was so hurt by her comments because I had put so much trust in her, so much time. Then, my husband told me it was time to let go. That it was okay to say “no.”

And I did

And everything changed

I still have a really hard time saying “no” to adults. I have no problem telling my child “no” when the time is right. I think I understand that saying “no” to a child is something that only needs to be done in situations of emergency or extreme importance and it is not to be over used. But, when it comes to looking an adult in the eye and saying “no” – even a sugar-coated “no” – is still a bit hard for me.

You see, the guilt factor comes into play. Who am I to say “no” to a friend in need – that really could help themselves? How can I say “no” to someone who needs some extra time (which I know may end up taking all my time). What am I thinking saying “no” in the first place, right? I should be able to accommodate, help, assist, provide, entertain, and lend a helping hand to anyone who needs it, right?! RIGHT???!!!

No. I can’t.

And I won’t.

Sometimes tough love is the best love. This is hard to stick by, but sometimes offering no help is the best help. Sometimes it’s best to put first what is the most important, and sometimes that is you. You come first, and then whatever you find important next, and then next, and then next.

Hey, friends are great and all, but my family is definitely at the top of my list. I have to say “no” when they are put in harm’s way or when my time is going to be wasted. I have to say “no” when I think I may not be the best person to offer help, but that a professional or other loved ones may be better. I have to say “no” when I know by saying “yes” I will be led down a path that will drag me down down down into a bad place. I have to say “no” when I don’t think I am being asked to help for the right reasons.

So, the other day when another situation arose where I would’ve usually said “yes” (and there would have been bad results and things would have gone awry and I would’ve eventually become too involved and sucked in and ended up in a bad way), I said “no.”

And, everything is just fine, the world didn’t implode, things didn’t fall from the sky, and I went on with my day.

It’s okay to say “no.”