Finding Balance in San Francisco

Nothin' like summertime in Tahoe

Just got back from a wonderful weekend up in Lake Tahoe. What a soul nurturing place Tahoe is.

Our friends Rebecca and Mike and their two darling children have been living up on the West Shore for the past couple years and we squeezed in a visit before they move to Switzerlandtomorrow. Hats off to Rebecca and Mike for having visitors the weekend before an international move!

We went rafting Saturday- the perfect blend of fun and relaxing.

Then this morning said 'ello to the neighborhood horse and logged some quality time on the beautiful beach down the street.

Rolled back into San Francisco to see that the sun is finally shining on our fair city. This has been the coldest winter in 40 years here (for crying out loud). Hope to see a little more sunshine this week.

Thanks again to Rebecca and Mike for a wonderful weekend, and good luck on a smooth move. Hope to see you guys in Switzerland next time

Family vacation to Nueva Vallarta

Last week we had a family vacation to Mexico (Nueva Vallarta- just north of Puerta Vallarta), and I'm still feeling the positive effects of our sun-drenched vacation. The boys loved it, too.

We did a Dolphin Encounter through Vallarta Adventures that was fun

and stayed at Paradise Village, which was a good spot for kids and the resort even has live tigers on the property. The mama tiger, Daisy (in photo below), had just given birth to 2 darling baby girl cubs a few days before we arrived that the boys actually wound up getting to pet.

Paradise Village also had some great water slides that we logged a lot of time on

Quinn on the Alligator Slide in Puerta Vallarta from kathy hassanein on Vimeo.

and lots of activities at the main pool (didn't keep Jordan awake though!)

Jordan asleep at the pool party from kathy hassanein on Vimeo.

We rented a Jeep and popped up the coast one day, to San Francisco, Sayulita and Punta de Mita

Here's Quinn in front of the Four Seasons' Infinity pool at Punta de Mita

The Four Seasons was of course lovely, but I think Paradise Village is better for young kids. Always good when kids are allowed to be themselves, and at the Four Seasons I was afraid they were going to break something or annoy a patron. Not so at Paradise Village- it seems designed for kids- and adults, too! Great spa, and gotta love the Kids Club : )

Spring Skiing at Northstar

We just got back from a wonderful extended ski weekend with our good friends the Puiggalis. The kids got along great, and we stayed in Northstar in a darling little cabin.

Trick or Treat, smell my feet from kathy hassanein on Vimeo.

Quinn and Clara are absolutely adorable together. They've been kindred spirits since they were babies, and the love fest continues.

and Quinn is a lucky man. Clara's a real beauty already

Northstar is a charming, lovely resort and is great for kids. As a huge bonus they even allow 3 year olds in the ski school program.

Friday we all skied the full day even though it was a snowstorm

We expected another storm Saturday, but when we woke up the sun was out! It was a truly gorgeous day

There's really nothing like a glorious and beautiful sunny day of skiing on 12 inches of fresh powder. Epic day of skiing.

We (especially the husbands) also had a whole lot of fun with this little skee-ball game where you bounce little silver magnets off of a blue launch pad and into concentric circles (with a bullseye in the middle). It was a running competition every time we were hanging out in the cabin.

A beautiful, memorable weekend. Hope we can pull together a ski weekend with our pals every year and that this was the inaugural ski trip with them.

Horsing around at the cabin from kathy hassanein on Vimeo.

Divas in Napa

Some of the Discussion Divas hit the road yesterday for some good wine and conversation, and to toast Stacey and wish her well in her upcoming nuptials. Discussion Divas is one of my favorite websites because editor Stacey Delo and her sister Carrice are wittily able to distill the news of the day in snappy, easy to read posts. I always feel that I better understand the news of the week after reading a Discussion Divas post.

I also enjoy meeting with the Divas monthly to discuss current events and issues - it's kind of like a book club for news junkies. The Divas women are intelligent and well-informed about a wide range of issues, and talking with them about everything from composting to women at risk has been a great outlet for me. Wine, women and world events- can't beat it!

Brittany was our event planner extraordinaire yesterday, and and we kicked off the trip with mimosas

Our first stop was the beautiful and stately Domaine Carneros, home of Tattinger.

Domaine Carneros has a lovely château and terrace from which to sip world class sparkling wines and Pinot Noirs while taking in the sweeping view of their vineyards. An elegant way to start our Napa adventure.

Next we went to the more intimate setting of Goosecross Cellars and after that over to Cakebread Cellars in Rutherford.

I really enjoyed our tour of Cakebread. The cedar lined buildings at Cakebread make the cellars smell clean and fresh, and our guide William was funny and informative. I'd definitely go back to Cakebread on future Napa trips.

Needless to say, the Cakebread wines are fabulous.  I thought that it was interesting that William said that Cakebread doesn't have a marketing department.

William also told us that Cakebread is one of the greenest vineyards in the Napa Valley.   It's a Certified Napa Green Winery, meaning that Cakebread has completed all the regulatory components needed for environmental sustainability.  Cakebread Cellars is also certified under the Napa Green Certified Land program, an even more rigorous standard of green.

Brittany brought a lovely picnic lunch, which we wanted to enjoy at Plumpjack.  Unfortunately, Plumpjack has a strict "no food on the premises" policy that they police diligently. 

Divas in Napa- a great combination.  Congratulations again to Stacey - cheers!