Next week I will be traveling to Napa Valley for a 3 night stay with my mom.  This was my Christmas present to her and the trip ended up being timely.  Sadly, my grandmother (my mom’s mom) passed away just a few weeks ago so it will be so nice to have some good quality family time together with my mom, who is still processing this huge loss to our family. I think it will be good for her to get out of Dallas for a few days and be somewhere beautiful where she can relax, reflect and remember the good times we had with Nana over the years.  I know my grandmother would love seeing us on this kind of trip and spending mother-daughter time together. Family always meant so much to her.

This trip we are staying in Rutherford at a very special hotel.  The concierge there has been amazing over the past few weeks and has made such wonderful arrangements for us.  We arrive on Thursday morning at SFO and will drive up to Napa that morning and likely stop for lunch along the way and maybe stop for a spontaneous tasting as well. We’ll be having dinner at our hotel’s restaurant that evening.

The next day, the concierge has us reserved for a private tasting with cheese pairing at Stag’s Leap Cellars on the Silverado Trail.  I have no idea what to do for lunch after our tasting but will likely grab a salad somewhere casual and stop for a little shopping in St. Helena. We have dinner plans at Farmstead that evening, which I ate at the last time I was in Napa and I loved its laid back atmosphere with farm to table concept.

Saturday morning will be spent at the hotel spa, where I will be getting a massage and my mom has a facial booked.  I look forward to checking out their steam room and whirlpool with view of the valley.  We then have an afternoon tasting booked at Darioush WInery, which apparently does special reserve tastings for hotel guests.  The concierge then booked us at Bistro Jeanty, which is a quaint French bistro near the hotel.

The only downer right now is that the weather is looking iffy for most of the trip and they are forecasting a 60% chance of rain the first two days.  It’s still a week out so I am staying optimistic that the rain chances decrease or that the rain at least only happens in the morning and we have some pleasant afternoons to enjoy our patio and views.  I’m really looking forward to this weekend and having some great food, wine, scenery, spa time and family time.

Fingers crossed for better weather than my trip last fall where it poured rain for 3 days straight!