Jesse celebrated his 40th birthday with lots of family and friends this year.  We used to go on our annual international trip during this time of year but with 2 kids it makes it much more challenging.  So, for his birthday, we planned a trip to Napa with his buddies.  Dayantha drove up on Saturday and the boys went out for dinner at Fringale and drinks afterward.  In fact, they ended up staying out (finishing on our rooftop) around 3am.

The next day was his actual birthday and it was spent at Zoe’s birthday party first and then dinner with family at R&G Lounge.

https://youtu.be/4RLacbEzUrE
Jes blew out his candles at home surrounded by his family.

On the following day, we drove up to Napa for a 3-day trip that we planned months ago with Jimmy, Eleen, Dayantha, and Krissy.

It was super hot that weekend but we made the most of it anyway.  We stopped at V. Sattui before checking in to the Westin and met up with Ranee and family for lunch and some wine.

At the Westin, the Agustins and Fernandos arrived and checked in in time for our wine tasting appointment that was just a few steps down the river from the hotel.  We lucked out with some very well-behaved kids that afternoon so we were all able to sit around the grown-up table and sip wine at the Robert Craig Tasting Room.

The next day was spent being lazy at the pool with the kids.  Jes took KK into the pool while I hung out under the cabana with Peanut and a glass of wine.  Heh heh.

For dinner, we went to Morimoto for a fancy dinner.  Unfortunately, the A/C was broken in the restaurant and dining with 5 kids is a huge change from our days without kids.  Luckily, we were all able to share a variety of tasty dishes while taking turns with the kids.  The restaurant staff was also surprisingly accommodating and nice to our party of 11.

We had enough time on Wednesday morning to do some swimming and have breakfast together before check-out.

We had such a fun time with everyone and the Westin was a great place for all of us to stay.  Their 1-bedroom suite was perfect for our family of 4, they have a decent pool, and it’s walking distance to a bunch of restaurants and tasting rooms.  We didn’t need our car all weekend and the kids had a fun time. Traveling with kids is definitely a different experience but totally worthwhile.

Happy 40th, Jes!!