Wine about it

On Sunday we went to Wimberley Valley Winery, since Mark was so kind as to stop there BY HIMSELF and enjoy a tasting and commit us to another wine club.  Grr.. 

Every winery we visit is so pretty inside.  This one had painted stucco walls with ceramic tile work and gorgeous color everywhere, plus scented candles going and a stone fireplace with big leather couches.  I guess the atmosphere helps them sell wine.  Plus, everyone is always so friendly.   Or maybe it just seems that way since it's always a fun outing for Mark and I.

And this time we brought Spencer.

Getting edumacated at the cigar bus

I know he looks snarly, but I really feel like he enjoyed himself.  Not just because of the wine - I hope he also liked the one on one time with his parents as an adult.  For all but 20 months of his life he's been surrounded by siblings.  And a lot of his teenage years he was at odds with one or both of us as we struggled to get him to buckle down at school, manage his finances, and make healthy choices.  It took us a long time to realize that your kids basically come into this world with their own unique personality.  And you cannot mold them into what you want them to be, nor force upon them what you wish for yourself.

Spencer had some missteps along the way - all a part of the learning process, but still I wish some of it hadn't had to happen the way it did.  He was the kind of kid that learned by doing and making mistakes.  And I still worry about him being broke or living in a crappy apartment or not having a close group of buddies or a steady someone in his life.  He's 26 1/2.  By that age I had been married for a year and a half.  I know it's unreasonable to compare and my peeps are on their own timetable, and I accept that, but I still worry about their future happiness, as I'm sure all moms do.

We enjoyed our picnic snack of cheese, salami, peppers, salmon dip and crackers out in the leaky double-decker bus, since the picnic tables were sopping wet.

Not as beautiful as the inside of the winery, but but pretty fun to sit up there and listen to the rain.

Then we headed over to Fall Creek Estate Winery for a last minute tasting.

Hidden back there is a beautiful stone building with lush terraced landscaping, fountains, and outdoor patio and wrought iron furniture.  So beautiful.  I don't think Spencer loves visiting the wineries as much as we do, even as he is learning what kind of wine he enjoys.  

He actually does smile.  Really.

Maybe we shouldn't be taking him with us every chance we get, as there's a lot to be said for having time as a couple without your grown kids!  But I believe he enjoys being with us, enjoying a bottle of wine.  And I'm still hoping he will craft a life for himself a little apart from us - it's the hardest thing in the world to push your kids a little bit further out.