Category: casual outfits

Up Up & Away (Napa Day 4)

Madewell wrap, wrap outfit casual, Spanx moto leggings, Domain Chandon Napa Valley

When: March 7 // Weather: 50s & cloudy // Real life: more adventures in Napa Valley

Madewell wrap, wrap outfit casual, Spanx moto leggings, Domain Chandon Napa Valley

Madewell wrap, wrap outfit casual, Spanx moto leggings, Domain Chandon Napa Valley

Madewell wrap, wrap outfit casual, Spanx moto leggings, Domain Chandon Napa Valley

Madewell wrap, wrap outfit casual, Spanx moto leggings, Domain Chandon Napa Valley

Wrap (on sale) // similar Hat // Leggings (on sale and I highly recommend!) // Sneakers

Not to play favorites, but Thursday was my favorite day of our Napa Valley vacation. We got up before 6am (not usually how I start a great vacation day, but stay with me) and headed just up the road to Yountville. That’s where we met up with Napa Valley Aloft for a hot air balloon ride! I was kind of nervous (even though the excursion was my idea) but I was pleasantly surprised at how peaceful it was. As long as you don’t think too hard about the fact that you’re dangling precariously a couple hundred feet above the ground in a tiny basket, one faulty cable away from certain death, it’s really quite enjoyable.

Here’s proof of my adventurous spirit:

If you want to see more photos and videos I took on the balloon ride, check the “Napa Valley” stories highlight on my Instagram profile (@sarahsreallife)! Truly spectacular views.

Afterwards, they fed us brunch, and the pilot taught us about the history of hot air ballooning. Apparently, champagne plays an important role (I’ll let you Wikipedia that if you want to know why), so it only seemed appropriate to visit Domaine Chandon just across the street (where these outfit photos were taken). The sun was finally starting to peek out, we had bubbles, and we were still on a high (pun intended) from our early morning adventure, so it was pretty fantastic. In fact, we even joined Club Chandon and bought ridiculous swag to prove it. So yeah, that happened. We be fancy, y’all!

We had lunch back in Napa at Compline, which I would give 5 stars for the most creative veggie sandwich I’ve ever had (broccolini – whaaat?!). We had just enough time to make it to one more tasting (most places do their last tastings around 4:30), and we picked Jamieson Ranch. Since I was feeling like a baller after joining Club Chandon, I splurged for a bottle of 91-point 2016 Petite Sirah to bring home. We enjoyed our last sips out on the heated patio, which was pretty much empty because Californians apparently don’t go outside when it’s below 60 degrees. Whatever, more room for us!

Who’s hungry again? Yeah, me too. We wandered around doing a little shopping, then stumbled upon an Italian place, Ca’ Momi. It didn’t look super stuffy or fancy, but holy crap was it delicious. I also had a pretty tasty gin cocktail (with all that wine, it’s important to keep variety in one’s diet, obviously).

That was our last full day in the Napa Valley, and it was a pretty damn good one. I’ll have one more vacation-centric post, and then we’ll return to the old limestone backdrops and short, snarky commentary you’ve come to love (I hope).

Cheers!

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Napa Days 2 & 3

striped sweater, cropped straight leg jeans, cashmere scarf, Napa Valley wine tasting

When: March 6 // Weather: 50s and cloudy // Real life: exploring Napa Valley

striped sweater, cropped straight leg jeans, cashmere scarf, Napa Valley wine tasting

striped sweater, cropped straight leg jeans, cashmere scarf, Napa Valley wine tasting

striped sweater, cropped straight leg jeans, cashmere scarf, Napa Valley wine tasting

striped sweater, cropped straight leg jeans, cashmere scarf, Napa Valley wine tasting

Sweater (on sale) // Jeans // Shoes // similar Scarf // similar Bag

Here’s a key wine tasting tip for you: remember to eat! Otherwise, a classy, adult vacation quickly turns into sophomore year spring break. Don’t worry, I’m not speaking from experience. I planned our meals strategically and even carried protein bars with me just in case. Our second day in wine country started with a hearty breakfast at Oxbow Public Market; if you stay in Napa proper, you’ll want to get familiar with this place because it’s great for grabbing good, quick, reasonably priced food.

I planned out our days so that each one more or less focused on one town in the Valley. Day 2 was St. Helena. Our first winery stop was Del Dotto where we opted to pay for the cave tour and tasting. You get to taste wines right out of the barrel, which was cool even though I’m fully aware it’s just a gimmick. They also served a charcuterie plate and a fresh pizza (remember what I said about food? yeah).

After that, we walked around St. Helena’s downtown area and stopped by Model Bakery, which I’d heard a lot about. I was kind of surprised at how high-end the boutiques were such a quaint little town. But judging by the prices of the real estate I saw advertised, I really shouldn’t be shocked! Luckily, pastries were still in our price range.

After that, we went to Robert Mondavi, which is one of the more well-known wineries in the Napa Valley. They have some in-depth tours, but we opted for single glasses so I really can’t tell you that much about the place. The weather during our week in California was – I’ll just say it – crappy. It was chilly and cloudy/drizzly pretty much the whole time. But crappy weather in California is still better than what they were having back in Indiana (10 degrees or something horrible like that). On the bright side, the “crappy” weather seemed to keep everyone else away, so everywhere we went was practically empty. I think we waited in one line the whole time! Still, the gloom kind of got to me on Tuesday and by the time we got to Robert Mondavi, I just wasn’t feeling it.

I got kind of down on myself when my perfectionist tendencies took over and I was annoyed that I didn’t want to keep exploring and tasting. But luckily, my better half reminded me we were on freaking vacation and we could do whatever we wanted. So we went back to the Airbnb, made guacamole, and watched Crazy Rich Asians.

The next day was much better. We started by driving to Guerneville to the Armstrong Redwoods reserve. If you can find an opportunity to see redwoods in person, I insist that you take it. I’m kind of obsessed with them. They’re incredible.

Then we headed back over the mountains to Calistoga and hit up two wineries: Sterling Vineyards and Castella di Amorosa. The main draw at Sterling was the air tram that takes you over the hill to the tasting area. Oh, and the views (like the one in these photos). And where do I even begin with Castella di Amorosa? It’s absolutely ridiculous. There were actual peacocks. Peacocks.

I saved the best for last. Calistoga is famous for its hot springs and mud baths, so we ended the day at Moon Acre Spa. On Wednesdays they have a happy hour special where you can get 2 short treatments, plus a glass of bubbly, plus hang out in the hot tub, for $85. There are tons of spas in Calistoga, but the retro vibe of this place was so fun and unique. I would definitely go back…like, tomorrow preferably.

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