Flat Stanley Goes To The Russian River Valley

That Flat Stanley is an adventurous little guy. He didn't want to sit around all weekend long waiting for our butterflies to hatch, so he convinced us to pack up our car and head north. Exploring is never a bad idea, so we followed his lead and made our way to the Russian River Valley.

The Russian River area is in Sonoma County. It's between the Pacific Coast and wine country. So, it has a mix of coastline, redwoods, rivers and vineyards. We were excited to tour this area. It is yet another part of California that we'd never visited before.

So, the first big thrill for Stanley on our trip was the crossing of the Golden Gate Bridge:



Just a couple of hours after this, we were in wine country. The Korbel Winery was the perfect place to stop for a break and a few bottles of champagne to take home.



After stretching our legs, we got back into the car and made our way to the little cabin in the redwoods that we rented for the weekend.



This little house was just gorgeous inside. There was a wonderful deck with a barbecue and hot tub which were all surrounded by ferns, clovers and sweet scented redwoods. I felt like an elf in a magical forest out there.

The following day we took Stanley out to tour a saw mill. It's hard to tell, but Stanley is near the chains on the logs.



The saws weren't running on that day which is probably a good thing. While it would have been cool to see the machinery in action, I didn't really want to watch those amazing trees sliced up.



On to the Pacific Ocean we went. The drive along the Russian River to the coast is spectacular. Green hills dotted with happy cows and the river calling you to its banks accompany you until the ocean is right before you. This is the view at Goat Rock Beach.



We didn't play around here for very long. It was very windy and cold. In fact, Flat Stanley almost lost his shirt in the breeze.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing. Normally, our vacations are exhausting. It was refreshing to slow down the pace a bit this time. I think we all had a great time. There was only one complaint. We took Sarah's "go bed", aka Pack 'n Play, which she just barely fits in at this point but loves to use when we're away from home. Anyway, she let me know on the way home that it "made her butt hurt, so we should give it away."

Now, I think I'll pack Stanley up and send him back home. He's been a great guest. We'll miss him.