Napa...Continued...

Hello again :)

Well, I promised the last couple of photos as well as a story so here we go...

First, let us begin with the story that could have been the end of ash 'n' dusty as we know it.
The Wagners, the wonderful family we were staying with in Napa, asked us if we wanted to take one of his buddies blow up canoes down a 3+ river. Dustin jumped on the opportunity right away. I was pretty excited about it too. I love white water rafting. I didn't really start having second thoughts about it until the day before we went. I think the fact that we were going to be going down a river that neither of us know, without a tour guide and in a tiny dinky raft really started getting to me. Ok let's pause for a second... I just want to make it clear that I was incredibly hormonal at this point. I won't go into details but I was, indeed, very unstable.

Anyway, so we start out... first thing, we get in the raft and it fills with water (I am pretty much cursing at Dustin in my head). So we blow up the raft a little more and get on our way. The first little rapid we go down Dustin smacks in the head with the paddle. That, as they say, was the straw that broke the camel's back. I burst into tears. It didn't even hurt that bad but I think I was so freaked out for my life in the first place that that put me over the edge (I hope you are laughing hysterically at me right now). Continuing down the river we go through the first BIG rapid and our raft folds in half...I lost it. Hyperventilating and all. I hated Dustin so much for torturing me like this. I made him pull over to the side so we could get onto dry ground while I blubbered away (I really am not usually like this I swear!) Dustin was very sympathetic and told me we would pull off before each rapid so we could check it out. That made me feel a little better. Anyway, to make a long story short, we kept going, I kept crying but we lived... barely. The last rapid known as "The Mother" could have resulted in a divorce except for Dustin allowed us to skip it. He must love me.

Alright, I am sorry I made you read all of that. But just so you can get a picture in your head here is the picture of the raft. Don't let the nice calm water behind Dustin decieve you.



And here we are the next day at a Padres vs. Giants game in AT&T Park. As you can see we are still friends. :) The Padres played terribly but it was a fun stadium and we always love supporting our team (my allegance is still for the Rockies however).

I love Napa!

Updates! Dustin and I spent a marvelous 2 weeks in beautiful Napa Valley, aka Wine Country. We decided not to get drunk this trip, maybe next time. Instead, we took full advantage of our surroundings and recreation. We went hiking, mountain biking several times. We went sailing, almost died white water rafting, baseball (Giants vs. Padres) and ate great food! etc. etc. We were doing some kind of activity every day. It was awesome! We were able to stay with some family friends. I will have to say it is now one of my most favorite vacations spots.



The first of our hikes. It was probably the most intense of the trip. It was pretty much a continuous incline. What a tree hugger!



Easter Sunday! I have never gone an Easter without dying Easter eggs and despite Dustin's scroogey attitude towards Easter traditions he was kind enough to humor me and my inner child. He always does the cutest ones.



We couldn't go to Northern California without spending at least a day in San Francisco. We walked the entire city and pretty much saw everything you could see. We mapped out our mileage of how far we walked and discovered that our sore feet were well deserved. We walked a total of 13 miles.



Macy's was having their botanical gardens which is where the decorated the who store with beautiful flower creations. The flamingo was definitely my favorite.



We HAD to stop at Mrs. Fields for a cookie. The smell was too mouth watering to pass by.



Dustin and I love to watch Iron Chef and on a few episodes they have used Gooey Duck which, as you can see, is somewhat disturbing. It doesn't actually have anything to do with a duck, which I am sure you guessed. It is also known as a King or Elephant Trunk Clam. I would like to try tasting one one day. Personally I just think it looks like a nasty tongue.



We made the most awesome discovery ever while walking around trying to find find a park. We turned a corner and there sitting before us was a statue of the one and only Yoda. So of course we had to take a picture with him. Then, while Dustin was on the phone with someone, I decided to venture into some random building behind him. Lone and behold it was a George Lucas museum. We were in heaven. There were life size replicas of Darth and Bobo Fet as well as the lightsabers and a few other gadgets from the movies. It was the coolest discovery ever.



Dustin with Darth



Me, trying to be Bobo Fet


We also walked over to the planetarium where they have this beautiful architecture. It was like a Greek temple.



Our second hike... We made our way to a cave that had some serious graffity. Not as exciting as we thought it would be. There was, however, a perfect seat for Dustin to pose. A special prize for anyone that can guess who he is trying to be. :) What a dork.



Dustin, in training for the Strongest Man in the World competition.



One of my favorite adventures we had was the Jelly Belly Factory. We went right after our hike so that is why I look so retarded (besides the hat). :) It was so cute. We went around on a little tour and saw how they make the Jelly Beans. At the end of the tour they give us each a little bag of Jelly Bellys.



Look how happy Dustin was after we went. It was almost as good as Disney Land.



Dustin finally took me sailing! We found a little lake in the middle of Oakland that rented sail boats for a super good price. It was a beautiful day with a perfect wind.



Dustin was kind enough let me take charge for a few minutes.



Our last hike in Napa was amazing. Once we reached the top we could see all the way to downtown San Francisco. Gorgeous. We were so high we were looking down on the birds.



The last few days of our trip we went white water rafting and to a Padres Giants game. Pictures to come! I will have to explain all about the white water rafting trip when I post the pictures. I am surprised that one of us didn't ask for a divorce after that one...