I remember as a child dreading grocery shopping. I thought there was no chore more boring than roaming the aisles of a grocery store with my Mom. Sure it had some redeeming qualities once in awhile...like sitting in the shopping cart was pretty cool and once in awhile I would get treats...however since we shopped at the Co-op (aka.health food store) treats would consist of frozen yogurt pops or keifer. Things that today I think are great but at the time I found only to be mildly exciting. I did also like the bulk bins with the array of random stuff...nothing better than bulgar in bulk, right? And I did enjoy picking out things that I liked like oatmeal soap or picking the color of cheese I wanted.

However, my attitude towards grocery shopping has evolved greatly. Now I love it and live for it! I alternate grocery stores and I plan my trips as if I am going on an adventure. I often look forward to my grocery store trips days in advance...relishing in the joy that each store can bring....salsa at Trader Joe's, fish counter at Albertsons, English muffins at Fresh and Easy...you get the idea...and yes I am very easily amused and it doesn't take much to make me happy. I always go shopping with a list which usually includes the ingredients for what I plan on making that week. However, I never stick to the list as I grocery shop like I live my life with a tad bit of A.D.D. (yes that is attention deficit disorder). So I see a shiny object and I am off to the next aisle and excited by the random find...whether its homemade tortillas, a new variety of cheese, a cut of meat or a wine label I haven't seen before.

Oh and to all of you who cut coupons I think you are amazing! I have tried the coupon thing time and time again and I am not too bad at cutting them out but remembering to bring them and to buy the items on them totally different story. I relish the idea of the money that can be saved by their use but it just isn't happening and I have given up hope.

Anyway I digress I truly do enjoy grocery shopping and I feel like a kid in a candy store as I roam the aisle looking for my next food addiction, trying to locate the random ingredients on my list that will make up my next food adventure. However, have you ever noticed that there is always 1-2 items on your list that can't be found at the store of choice. It never fails for me that something that I need is not at the store...and it so defeats the purpose of shopping for ingredients for the weeks meals...as sometime during that week you have to track down that allusive item that is always a key ingredient to the meal. Blah!

Although I had a short weekend this week consisting of 1 day (aka today) I do have to say I made the best of it as I had a fun filled dinner last night with close girlfriends, followed by a campfire in a backyard (yes there were smores but I ate chocolate chip cookies instead). And today a great day of wine tasting in Santa Barbara.


Here are the wine tasting rooms that were visited:

Jaffurs http://www.jaffurswine.com/
Very good wines and quaint tasting room. I especially liked the grenache blanc and the petite syrah but all of their wines were a very high quality.

Oreana http://www.oreanawinery.com/
This was actually a groupon that I purchased for wine tasting so I had to try it before it expired. I wasn't thrilled with the wines however the atmosphere in the tasting room was awesome. They had live music, a great patio where you could sit enjoy the weather and have a glass of wine. They also had great marketing as their labels, merchandise and tasting room was fun.

Santa Barbara Winery http://www.sbwinery.com/
My favorite wine here was the chardonnay. It was oakey and buttery just the way I like it. This tasting room was packed but they had good every day wines. Nothing that amazed me but everything was drinkable.