Birthday Bliss!

My Aunt Cindy, asking if I would recommend Indian Springs or not, finally prompted me to write about my fabulous birthday trip to Calistoga this month. In a word - YES - Indian Spring Resort and Spa is highly recommended!

Last year, my mom and I took a special post-holiday, birthday trip to Big Sur and since then we'd been dreaming where we might go this year. After we chose to treat ourselves with the mud baths and mineral baths of Calistoga, Boyd and dad decided they wanted to come along too.

Again, the trip consisted mostly of relaxing, chatting, and good food. Plus, Calistoga had the added benefit of the huge mineral bath pool and attached sauna with steam from the nearby geyser. I used the pool as often as possible enjoying the feeling of being completely warm and comfortable. I burned this sensation into my mind to be recalled as needed during the Minnesota winter!

My birthday was also our spa day, which started out with the mud baths. I had no idea what to expect as we walked into the spa building with our Indian Spring bathrobes. We each had our own individual bathtub filled with real mineral volcanic mud. On the women's side, mom and I lay on our mud bathtubs and slowly sank into the warm goo as the assistants piled mud on top of us. It's hard to describe the feeling but it was something like a cross between floating in a warm pool and being buried in sand at the beach. That doesn't nearly describe how comfortable it felt!

Then we were ushered into our own full bathtubs of mineral water to relax some more, before sitting in the incredibly hot and lovely sauna. After all our spa treatments we all ended up on a beautiful patio with a open fireplace, relaxing on lounge chairs. I keep this moment in my mind as one of the most blissful moments in recent years. I just sat there so grateful for my family, for Boyd, and for California.

By this time it was still only mid-afternoon and the sun was so warm on my skin. I actually sat by the warm pool and read my book. That's not something I can usually say about a birthday in January!

Dinner was a fancy affair at the local "farm-to-table" restaurant, JoLe. Mom and I decided on the 4 course tasting menu, with wine pairings! They had a great wine guy that introduced the wine that was paired with each of our plates. It was fun to get the whole "bottled poetry" before tasting each lovely wine.

Here are some of the dinner highlights:

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon, Capers, and Balsamic 

Scallops with Red kuri squash, Spinach, and Brown butter

Chicken fried quail, with Whipped sweet potatoes, Chipotle tangerine salsa, and Maple bourbon syrup

Boyd had the best Rib Eye he'd ever tasted with Potato Gratin, Radicchio, and Shitake mushrooms

All in all, it was a perfect vacation in midst of busy lives and the Christmas season! Thank you so much mom!

Does anyone have suggestions for next year? :)

Dad, Mom, and Me on our way to the mineral pool!