Marcus James Malbec ~ Wine Review

In my infinite search for great wine under $5, I've recently become aware of and a fan of Marcus James. My local store must have been depleting their inventory of the Marcus James Merlot because, up until 3 weeks ago, a 1.5 litre (equal to 2 bottles) was selling for under $7. I think I may have bought them all. Yesterday I noticed a new label and and was excited to be able to try the Marcus James Malbec.

Priced at just under $10 for the BIG bottle, it is definitely a great buy.

On immediate opening of the bottle the original aroma was grape juice and I was a little leery. I let it breathe for a few and on second sniff (yes, I am actually sniffing wine now) I caught an aroma of berry, cherry and pepper . A very different aroma from the first sniff.

It's flavor is a little lighter than other Malbecs I've tasted but enjoyable nonetheless. It was light and inviting and went very well with the spaghetti and french bread we had for dinner. The subtle spiciness complimented rather than overpowered the sauce, loaded with garlic and crushed red pepper. It also gained strength as it sat.

This bottle will last for the next couple days and I am eager to see how the taste changes over the course of it's short life on my counter. I'll update after the last glass.

Happy 4th and Who Grills Your Steak

I was recently having a FB or Twitter conversation about grilling and thought I'd share my views here. While I love to go to Summer Cook-outs, it's rare that I find someone who can cook food to my preferences. Why does everyone insist on cooking everything well done? Do they prefer them that way or were they in a hurry (which really makes no sense since it takes longest to do well done)? Maybe they are occupied doing other things and forget about them? Isn't the "grill master" the one who never leaves the grill. gets others to bring him his beers, because he is grilling? I mention all this because I am not a fan of well done anything. Hubster's family is all about the well done. Hamburgers, steak and even chicken has all the juices sucked right out of them.

I am gracious at cookouts and eat whatever is made, burnt or not, and always compliment the chef, but at family cookouts (unless it's my family, we all grill things the same) I will not let anyone tough my meat on the grill. Say we're at my In-laws. I am now in charge of making the burger patties. Hubster is in charge of grilling and he puts all burgers on the grill except mine. When he flips everyone else's, he calls to let me know I can put mine on. Mine is still ready with everyone else's.

Steaks I am very picky about. Yes, I've eaten way too many well done steaks to tolerate it any further. I do not like it any more than medium and prefer medium rare. I do not want my steak flipped a gazillion times, I want those pretty little criss-crosses on both sides. I cook my own. I also seem to digest "less cooked" meat better than the well done variety. Take a med-rare steak and a bottle of red wine and you can skip the Colonix the following morning.

We had a restaurant nearby that offered a large indoor grill and a cooler full of fresh cut steaks. You would pick out your steak, grab your favorite beverage, and head to the grill to grill your own. While some thought it was a less than ideal "eating out" experience, it was, by far, our favorite restaurant. We'd stand around and chat with complete strangers at the grill. In my opinion, they had the best steaks in town, and the cook was Fabulous!

When heading out to your cook-out today, or hosting your own, don't be intimidated by my thoughts, I really will eat anything, I just prefer my meat at certain temps. I think I'll borrow my FIL's large pig cooker grill next year and have everyone bring their own meat/chicken and let everyone grill their own. It really is a lot of fun.

Have a happy 4th and eat some great food...even if you have to cook it yourself!

Another Clue

Okay. Is it too hard? Do you not like my little game? Are you busy getting ready for the big holiday weekend?

Here's another clue: I do not sell wholesale computers .

Where do I work?

I'll admit it's in a field I am unfamiliar and I am learning a lot. It's fun and a nice change of pace from my full time Mom job. I mostly deal with adults.

Any guesses? Wanna play?

Let's Play a Game

Are you ready for a little fun?

I recently took on a part time job (I know, big gasp). It's been great fun getting out of the house. It's my "quiet time". I'm only working a couple shifts a week and it's during the times that the kids are out with other activities anyway (somewhat). It's my "me" time that I would have alone in the house. It's Wednesdays (causing me to miss winewednesday) and Sundays.
I'm not going to tell you where it is or what I'm doing but instead I will give you little hints and see if you can figure it out.

First clue: Part of my job is selling gps systems .

Where do I work?

Keep the guesses coming. There is nothing to win, but we can have a little fun anyway, right?

Barefoot Zinfandel Review and Some Info on Hangovers

Finding affordable wines that taste great is a guilty pleasure of mine. I'm always quick to boast about my great finds to friends and family while watching them shake their heads in dis-belief that a $5 wine could be any good. They are slowly but surely seeing the light. What, in the past, would be a sure indicator of a bad or poorly harvested wine, price is no longer a determination on the flavor and quality of wine. Sure, there are some pretty bad, low cost wines but there are other failures with high price tags as well. I'd rather get stuck with a $5 loser than a $30 one.

Barefoot Wines have never disappointed me. Originally being able to only get the Merlot and Cabernet in my area, the choices have broadened and the new selections are even better than the firsts. For $5.69 a bottle ($10.99 for a 1.5L) the price is in no way indicative of the quality.

Winemaker's Notes (Jen Wall): Medium to full body, balanced tannins. Dark berries, plum jam and notes of prunes. White pepper and varietal spices complement the chocolate mocha flavors and lingering jammy finish.

I really enjoy the spiciness of this Zin and it goes well with any food but is also a treat on it's own. It is smooth and bold without being overpowering. At close to my $5/per bottle preference, it is definitely a best buy for Zinfandel's.

While were talking about inexpensive wines, I was having a conversation the other night at the Twitter Moms Wine Tasting about a specific wine variey (not Barefoot) that always gives me a hangover, regardless of the amount I drink. The individual that was drinking it made the comment that it was a "cheap wine and they always cause hangovers." I've heard this before but totally disagree...with the cheap part. I'm the Queen of under $5 wine and rarely get any resemblance of hangovers. I had to know what caused this with certain wines.

Red wines are almost always matured in oak barrels and should be matured for at least 3 years to avoid the higher level of nasties that cause these hangovers. The "rule" is that if stored for only six months. wines should be suitable for consumption within the first year. If stored for a year, the wine should continue maturing for at least four to neutralize the nasties into stable substances which do not cause hangovers. Some winemakers add oak chips directly to the wine for flavor which takes years to neutralize.

The next time you think your hangover is due to the amount you paid for your wine, think again. Maybe a little research into their bottling practices would give you a better idea of whether it was the wine...or the amount (consumption not price).

A special Thanks to Lauren & Friends at Barefoot Wine and Bubbly for sharing this bottle with me. It was truly enjoyable.

Sorry and Thank You

My last post was more inspired by an attack on a friend than on my self. I appreciate all the kind words and the support. I'm not sure what this blogging adventure has done to me. I witnessed a friend being attacked and something in me just snapped. Not snapped really, more like something got fired up in me. I don't like to see people, any people, get picked on. While we are all entitled to our opinions, to outwardly attack one's character and then get others to follow is just wrong. I set myself out on a mission to bring awareness to the individual I was fighting for and help increase his "army" for future battle. I don't think I'm explaining that right, but that's how it felt. As for the immature, negative talking individuals...I can only hope that they get a good colon cleanse to remove whatever it is they have stuck-up-their-butts. In the end, their views and wishes were ignored and the person they were "fighting for" opted to join our side.

Has this happened to you before? I've witnessed a few of these public battles in the past year and this was my first. It was just something I felt like I had to do. Does that even make sense?

Why Drink Wine?

I drink wine because I enjoy the flavor, the complexities of all the different varietals and because I think sharing a bottle of wine with someone is more personal than just sitting down and ordering "drinks". I've been fortunate, through blogging, to meet other like-minded enthusiasts who help further my enjoyment by teaching me more about wine, offering suggestions, and just being fun, nice people who I can enjoy a "virtual" bottle of wine with. I consider myself lucky to be able to call them friends.

As the new (temporary) header suggests, I recently had my first taste of wine snobbery. I had heard that these people exist, but they are so off my radar that I hadn't seen them in action...until now. I am very disappointed in their childish antics and bashing of others they have never met. Wine, to me, is for enjoyment. To be so obsessed that it reflects negatively on one's self totally contradicts my reason for drinking and sharing MY opinions.

These individuals have made me want to drink Margaritas! Are there Marg snobs too? Gosh I hope not.

How to Get Over a Fear of Spiders

1.Wine
2. Kids

Just saying...

I think I may have instilled my dislike for spiders onto my children. I don't like them. When I see one I call for back up or leave the room. I can, however, step up to the plate when needed. I had a friend in High School who was more terrified than I, when she called from atop her bed and insisted I come right over to get the spider in her room I did. She had already trapped it under a jar and we removed it from her bedroom.

Today as the kids were playing in the yard and cruisin' in their Power wheel, I was enjoying a glass of wine and checking in on Facebook. They parked right at the bottom of the porch steps and carried on a conversation. Then it happened. My son jumped out of the power wheel with shear terror on his face, watery eyes, and screamed to his sister "Get Out! There's a spider coming right for you." She, of course, breaks out into tears, scared to death, wailing. I was impressed by his apparent fear for his sister and laughing at the terror they both possessed...due to me.

I ran down, scooped her out of the power wheel, and immediately went after the spider. I would have loved to whack it with a Kettlebell, but a screwdriver was the only thing handy. My dislike for them never had a chance to enter my mind. I was saving my children (from the fear I caused them). It may have been the liquid courage from the couple sips of wine, it may have been my maternal I'll-do-anything-to protect-my children, but I'll never look at a spider the same again. Bring it on.

Barefoot Beach Giveaway~ Winner!!!

Beth W. said...
My favorite beach trip is the coast of Maine - York Harbor. Love it! And, I'm a loyal drinker of Barefoot Merlot!

Congratulations! I need your e-mail to get your address info. You can reach me at Rachelebennett(at)hotmail(dot)com. You'll have until midnight Wednesday (6/24). If I can't get in touch with you I'll have to pick another winner.

Thanks to everyone who signed up for this Awesome Prize. We'll hopefully have more fun giveaways to post about soon.

My Overindulgent Wine Wednesday

Oh me oh my. In case you're not a regular here, Wednesday's are my night to chill out on my own. My MIL picks the kids up at 4:45 and takes them off to choir practice at church. Daddy meets them after work and the house is mine until 8:30. Go ahead and call Solo Slim now. See if they can overnight me a supply because I'm pretty sure my pants wont fit in the morning. The sweats I have on now feel just fine.

Earlier this week I received my VIP card from Domino's and it was for a FREE medium American Legends pizza. I read the descriptions and knew that only I would enjoy any of them so I waited. I ordered the Fiery Hawaiian.

Topped with ham, pineapple, red pepper, bacon, jalapenos and drizzled with Tabasco (which I think they forgot) it was very enjoyable. My standard toppings are ham, pineapple and banana peppers (jalapenos if banana peppers aren't available) so this was right up my alley and a nice change to our usual Friday night pizza (pepperoni) and movie night. There were just slightly too many toppings for me, but it didn't stop me from eating half of it. It was good.

To accompany my pizza, I finished last nights bottle of Barefoot Shiraz.

Barefoot never disappoints and can always be counted on when you want a sure thing.

I decided to watch some recorded TV. I do not normally watch Oprah, but happened to see the trailer for today's show yesterday and it looked good. It was all about miracle children and was as good as expected and a nice break from Sponge Bob. But then they showed this



Which turned me into a bawling mess. I'm now going to compose myself and rejoin my winewednesday friends on twitter. Have a great WineWednesday!

Sunday Social ~ Random Thoughts

Had a nice surprise this morning. A blogger friend sent me a nice little e-mail to congratulate me on breaking 100,000 in the Alexa rankings. As I told him, just after I broke 150,000 for the first time, I shot back up to almost 200,000 so we'll see if this sticks. it was nice to know that someone else was paying attentions. Thanks Joe.

My FIL has been feeling "under the weather" for several months now. It started with some irregularity issues and has developed into something else...we just don't know what. He doesn't want to go anywhere because he "may have to go". He hasn't even been to church in weeks. Hubby called him this morning and told him to get ready and get to church. When the problem started he took some laxatives to "get regular" and now, 2 months and 20 pounds lighter, we're not sure if it's the weight he's trying to keep off or if it's a bathroom issue. I think if it's the weight he should switch to a diet pill instead of the laxative. The laxative is doing nothing for his bathroom issues and is causing him to be tired all the time. He's been checked out by all his doctors and no one can find anything wrong. We'll just have to wait and see...I guess.

Changed my header. What do you think? I'm still playing around with it so let me know your thoughts.

Look for more wine reviews in the near future and my cork craft project should be coming soon.

Don't forget to click the button above to get in on the Barefoot Beach Giveaway. You have one week left to enter.

Triple Threat and Some Link Love and an Award

I've been sitting on these (some of them) for a while. Call it laziness, call it whatever you want, I just haven't gotten around to it and I'M SORRY. Trust me, I'm as good at this as I was at sending out baby announcements for my 2 kids (suckish) .

I have been given the lovely blog award from several people and to all 3 of my blogs. Since I so cherish this award and the individuals who gave them to me. I am going to post this on all 3 blogs and give credit to each of my senders 3 times. That's how much they mean, even if it took me a while to say thanks. I do appreciate the award and the givers.

So, to More Fun Than Allowed...With Kids, this award was received from Dawn @ Two Pretty Little Skirts and from Chris @ The Mommy Journey. To Wine at Five?, this award was given to me from Stacy @ Married With Boys. To Because Someone Cares the award was received from mee mOe @ When Life Becomes a Book. Thank you so much, I will display this award proudly. (There was one more sender but her post and comment on my blog were deleted so I'm assuming she no longer wanted to play in the blog award fun. If I'm wrong, let me know and I'll add you too.)

Oh yeah. Here is my wonderful award

Here are the rules:
1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.
2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

Normally I find it hard to select such a small group of bloggers to give awards to, but I'm going to make an exception. I've recently been blessed with many new friends and would like to recognize them now. Congrats to my chosen 15. Grab and Enjoy your award. FYI: It was hard to pick just 15 and even harder to find 15 that had not already received the award. If you have already received it, here's another anyway, 'cuz your good like that. If you don't do awards, that's cool, just know I appreciate you and your blog!

Sue @ Stay At Home Mom
Sarah @ God's Not Finished With Us Yet
Sandy @ Traveling Suitcase
Russ @ Grampy and You
Evie & Chris' Mommy @ Raising Irish Twins
Kelley @ 30 Something And Searching
Erica @ Parenthood for Me
Sandi @ Nothing Off Limits
Kristen @ All In A Mom's Life
Stephanie @ A Pocket Full Of Buttons
Tracy @ The Crazy Suburban Mom
Carolee @ Working in my jammies and lovin' it
Sherdenise @ A Blog With No Name
Joeshico @ Why Wine Blog
Randy @ The Wine Whore

Trader's Hub Review Contest

I'm taking part in another great contest. All the information is below. Head on over to Big Daddy Richard's place and get signed up to win. More than 25,000 EC's up for grabs. This is a contest you won't want to miss. Put away the diet pills , you don't have to look good for this one, your writing is all were looking at. Go have a Jumbo Marg or a big glass of wine, whatever gives you courage. Get the laptop fired up and get ready to REVIEW.Have an opinion? Here's your chance to share it. You could atually WIN just for sharing.











Traders' Hub's "review me" Entrecard contest has grown bigger and better. The top prize now stands at 23,500 EC's and still growing. But much more than the giveaway prizes, the value of participating in this contest is worth your time and effort as a blogger. Inspired by the success of our Entrecard Droplist, we have decided to turn this contest into another link building/networking activity. Participation in this activity allows you to link to quality sites with higher page ranks and therefore improve your chances of getting a higher page rank yourself. You may participate in three ways now!

• (1) As a contest advertiser (new)
Just post the Contest Badge by copying and pasting the code below anywhere in the sidebar of your blog for the duration of the contest. By posting the contest badge in your blog you will receive 500 EC's plus you get 10 entries to win 10,000 EC's in a raffle to be held at the end of the contest period for all the contest advertisers.( Please do not forget to inform me via a comment on this post once you have posted the badge in your blog to make your entry official.)

MORE ICING FOR THE CAKE!!! BE THE TOP COMMENTATOR OF ANY ONE OF THE CONTEST SPONSORS FROM JUNE 1 TO JUNE 30 AND YOU WILL GET ANOTHER 10 ENTRIES FOR THE 10,000 EC's TO BE RAFFLED OFF!

<a href="http://bigdaddyrichard-swirlingthoughts.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/5567/13790139431.jpg" border="0" width="125" height="125" alt="Powered by BannerFans.com" /></a>

• (2) As a contest participant
All you need to do is make an honest to goodness review of Traders' Hub and post it in your site. The review must at least be 150 words long and must contain a link to this site (paste the required code link below) plus another link to any of the contest sponsors. Once you have posted your review go over to Trader's Hub and post a comment via the comment link below the blog contest post. Please include the exact URL of your post in your comment. Every entry wins you 500 EC's automatically. The best five reviews will be chosen by bigdaddy in consensus with the other sponsors, and the top prize will be awarded to the winner who will be chosen using random.org. The four other non-winning qualifiers will get an additional 1,000 ECs each. The contest will run until June 30, 2009. Winners will be announced on the same day.

<a href="http://bigdaddyrichard-swirlingthoughts.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/4556/13790127686.jpg" border="0" width="125" height="125" alt="Traders' Hub" /></a><br />

• (3) contest sponsor You just need to add up at least 500 EC's to the top prize. As contest sponsor you get your badge posted in in my site as well as in the sites of the other sponsors. On top of that, a participant will be required to link to any one or all of the contest sponsors of his/her choice. To be a sponsor, simply send me an email via entrecard stating the amount of EC's you wish to sponsor.

CONTEST ADVERTISERS

(Sites Where you find the contest badge.)

CONTEST SPONSORS
Traders' Hub - 10,000 EC's plus all the residual prizes!
Zorlone - 5,000 EC's
Femme Power - 2,000 EC's
Mature Not Senile - 1,000 EC's And 1 Month Placement of your 125X125 Button on her site
My Freedom Wall - 2,000 EC's + 1 tweeter follower
Everyday Conversations Through A Mom Blog - 2,000 EC's
Singaporean In London - 1,500 EC's
Gadget Freaks - 1,500 EC's
Wine At Five - 3,000 EC's

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• Make A Review Of This Site And Win 10,000 EC Credits (EC Contest) (bigdaddyrichard-swirlingthoughts.blogspot.com)

Barefoot Beach Giveaway

I've mentioned on several occasions that I am a HUGE fan of Barefoot Wines. I also did a review on their Bubbly here, which, not being champagne drinker other than special occasions, changed my mind about drinking champagne...just because. Their wines have won several awards at the California Wine Festival and deserve each one. I'm a SAHM with a limited budget. Barefoot allows me to drink great wines without feeling guilty about what I spend.


Thanks to Lauren and the other Great people over at Barefoot Wines, one of my lucky readers will receive this fun beach tote. Included are a fluffy beach towel, a wine opener, a stemless Barefoot Wine glass, and a tote to carry it all in. How Fun!





With every contest there are rules, I want to make this as easy as possible, so here there are:


Mandatory: You must sign up at Barefoot Republic (it'll take 20 seconds) and leave me a comment with your Barefooter name. You can use my barefooter name as your referral (but don't have to) I'm MommyMerlot. (1 entry)



Extra Entries:

1) Leave a comment and tell me about your favorite beach trip, or one you would like to take. Not a fan of the beach...tell me your favorite Barefoot wine (1 entry)


2) Follow me on twitter. If you already are, even better. Just leave me your twitter name in a comment (1 entry)


3) Tweet about this contest and copy and paste tweet here in a comment (1 entry each tweet)Come back each time you tweet about it.


4) Blog about this contest and put the url to post in a comment (3 entries)



Contest entry deadline : June 21, midnight EST

Drawing will be done by random integer on June 22



Now go sign up at Barefoot Republic and check out all the other cool stuff they have going on over there.

Great Things I Love About Blogging

It's been a year.
Yep, a year ago I decided to start myself a little blog and I never looked back. I have currently have 3 that are regularly updated but they have been all over the blogosphere. Domain changes, fleeing today.com, self hosted, it's mind numbing all the information I've gained and yet I know that I still have a long way to go.
So I sit here reflecting on the past year, all the friends I've made, the laughs I've had and the sorrows I've witnessed others go through. It's a world all it's own and one I am grateful to be a part of. It doesn't take an office with fancy office furniture , it only requires some way to connect to the Internet and a willingness to give of yourself and share with others.

Enough about me. It's time to thank the individuals who think enough about me (and/or this blog) to regularly stop by and to the really special people who take the time to sit around and chat.

The EntreCarders who stopped to drop the most

Family Health Avenue
Jean sQuared
Symphony of Love
Silver Sachet
Split Rock Ranch
Grampy and You!
Frugal Healthy Choices
First Time
The Matthias Chronicles
Photograph by KML

And the people who were kind enough to engage in conversation

The Wine Whore (aka Randy Watson)
joeshico from Why Wine Blog
Sandi from Nothing Off Limits
Sandy from Traveling Suitcase
Grampy from Grampy and You
Kelly from 30 Something And Searching
Lynne from The Sewing Mom
Michele Cameron Drew from By Any Other Name

I appreciate everyone who visits and just wanted to say Thank You. Blogging Rocks!

What Every Wine Lover MUST Have

I'm a klutz. No denying it. I walk into walls all the time. I do find that I am better after an adult beverage than I am before, maybe because I tend to be more careful. Anyway, since I am a klutz, and I have a dog and 2 small children who like to remain right under foot while I'm cooking dinner each night (which is when winethirty begins) I use stemless glasses while in the kitchen and around the kids. I'll use the stemware after they go to bed or when entertaining.

I've only had the stemless for 2 years and had a lot of spills before them (and some after as well). I tried all the old tricks; white wine, oxyclean, vinegar, and all sorts of carpet cleaners, nothing would get the stain fully out. Then I found this

Wine Away is an innovative, non-toxic formula for getting rid of wine stains in carpet and fabrics. I've even had success in getting out stains that the other stuff couldn't remove. It is safe to use around pets and children and is the best working product I have come across. Whether it's on clothes, the carpet or the couch, Wine Away is the first thing I grab when a spill occurs. If used at onset it really takes nothing more than spraying, allowing it to work itself into fibers, then blotting. It's a wonderful thing.

Visiting Family in North Carolina

We're having a wonderful time in NC. The kids stayed up late (11:30) playing with their cousins and both slept until 8:30 this morning...and so did I. I can not remember the last time I slept so late. My brother, in anticipation of our visit, mad a trip to Trader Joe's and bought a case of different wines and so far the selections have been wonderful. We had a cookout last night of BBQ chicken, a potato casserole, salad, strawberries, and carrots. The food was great, having uninterrupted adult conversations about everything from diet pills that work to what are the new hottest wines to try, all while sipping fabulous wine, was very enjoyable. Today we are headed to the pool to spend some time relaxing, and then tonight we'll have more great food, wine and chatting while the 5 kids amuse each other. I'll try to get in a review of one of the wine selections.

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend!

My Favorite Wine Accessory

A few years back my neighbor was at and Arts and Crafts show and spotted a unique gift for wine lovers. She purchased a variety of four wine coasters and delivered one to each of us Girls that play once a month at GNI (girls night in). We each got a different design and it was one of the coolest gifts I have ever received. In attempting to share it with you, I realized that my coveted coaster is missing (probably a nice cozy bed for an action figure somewhere in the house) but with the power of google, I found a website for you to get your own (because I know you'll want to).

The days of wine charms are gone, (although I have a ton of those too) as these gifts, if purchased in a variety of patterns, can be used to distinguish who's glass is who's as well as serve as a coaster that your glass will not fall off of... What?... Am I the only one that has happened to? Anyway, if you go to diningintheround.com, you can find beautiful linens for your table, as well as these. They get the "plug" since I'm using their photos in place of my own absent coaster.

How's that for a coaster? These would be perfect for the wine lover in your life for any special occasion...or just because.

Today's Wine at Five: Black Swan Merlot (what a pretty label)

Talking It Through

Tomorrow is the day. I get to go for the re-take of my Mammogram. I really should not have mentioned what a wonderful time I had, as they have invited me back for more tests. Yay. So as I sit here wine free (because the mood I'm in would surely lend itself to a nasty hangover), I'm becoming more and more convinced that what I really need is a vacation.

With Kissimmee giving away 3 weekend vacations (for 2) and 2 two-week vacations (for 4), I'm having a hard time deciding which I would prefer to win. Hubster and I could take a weekend trip plus an extra day for driving and spend some nice overdue time together. On the other hand, two weeks in a hotel with all the amenities and a pool for the kids and Shamu close by would be ideal as well. I don't think I've ever in my life been on a vacation that lasted 2 weeks. No cleaning, no laundry, no complaints of boredom, no cooking.

I spend a lot if time with the kids, in my current position, so having another adult to spend the time with as well as to share the kid duties would be a vacation all on it's own. We've talked about taking the kids to Sea World and if it doesn't happen this summer, I hope it will be in October, providing I can talk Hubster into taking the trip to Izea Fest.

With so many things to do in Kissimmee it's hard to pick. I am not one to over book vacations, nor do I need to have an activity scheduled for every day. I honestly think the kids would be happy lounging by the pool each day with an excursion to Sea World one day and a couple night time trips out for ice cream and a round of miniature golf. The important thing would be time spent together without the hustle and bustle of our every day lives.

I guess I do have a preference of which vacation I would like to win. Amazing how talking it through makes the choice clear.

It would also be a great opportunity to check out some wines that I have wanted to try and can't find here.

Wine Corks, Not Just for Preserving Wine

I'm in transition.

Several people get sent to this blog for the wine reviews and recipes through google and yahoo. I also have some readers who come back and comment that they think this is a wine blog, and want more wine stuff. As you know by my reviews, I am anything but a great wine Reviewer, you can find those here and here. What I am is a Mom who enjoys a glass or 3 of wine at the end of the day. I enjoy talking about wine and sharing. I do it in Mom-next-door terms like yummy, spicy and fruity verses talking about tannins and "old world dirt" flavors. If you want to know what the uneducated (in wine) people think, explained in terms you can understand, I'm your gal.

That being said, and with no firm promises to offer you. I will transition this blog to reflect more of my love for wine and all the things you can do with those empty bottles, corks, foils and labels. A little more wine, a little less of the kids. If you need to get an update on my parenting, you can now go here.

To kick this off, I went in search of the ultimate project for your wine paraphernalia and I do believe I found it. I can not properly give credit as the individual is only known as John D. over at Strat's Place. This guy did an amazing job. Read what he had to say:

John writes .. We started saving corks over 20 years ago and finally started covering one whole wall in our bar with them on New Years' Day this year. It took me two months to complete, working about 10 to 12 hours each weekend on it. As the years went on, we had a lot of people start saving corks for us, plus we went to a lot of wine tastings where we collected corks from all the wineries represented. I want it to be clearly known that we didn't drink all of these ourselves!!--Hahaha!
I used corks cut in half as the border all the way around and champagne corks on their ends around the central mirror. All the other corks are whole---give or take some trimming to make things line up. I am sending you a picture of my cork supply before I started, and also a couple of the completed wall.

Now, take a look at this...

How flippin' cool is that? I may have to redo my kitchen. I really love this look.

Okay. You've officially been warned that Wine at Five? is going to get crafty. I've found some other uses for corks I'm going to try and share. I just need a project for the foils. Anyone have any ideas?