until suburbia!

Jonah and the Whale mechanical bank at the Napa Toy Museum

Adore Vintage Toys at the Napa Toy Museum, Napa

August 9, 2025Silvia

They name themselves the collectors of collections. The owners of the Napa Toy Museum proudly display their collections of wind-up toys, mechanical and still banks, patent models, and salesman samples from 1890’s to the 1960’s. It’s as fascinating as it is whimsical.

We were offered a tour that was included in the admission, and we gladly accepted. Our guide, one of the owners of the museum, opened cases and demonstrated how a mechanical bank works, and showed us vintage wind-up toys.

The Barbie collection is on loan from the collector Myk Ciapusci. Ninety-eight Barbies with accessories prompted us to share memories and stories about miniature outfit creations.

But there is also a lot of history in those pieces. Like the patent models that inventors had to submit to the patent office with their inventions. Or the Ark toys that were popular in Germany around the late 19th century. These toys were also called Sunday toys because they were the only toys kids were allowed to play with on the Sabbath. Although only a fraction of the 150 ark animals are displayed in the case, we still appreciated the love that went into carving the animals.

Thank you to the Halls for sharing and explaining your collection.

The Napa Toy Museum is located at 964 Pearl Street in downtown Napa and is open Wednesday to Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is $8 for adults with discounts for seniors, locals, first responders, and kids. The museum is free for under-8-year-olds. If you bring an unwrapped, new toy for Toys for Tots through December 17th, 2025, you will receive one free admission.

Hike the Grist Mill Trail, Bothe-Napa Valley State Park, St Helena

August 1, 2025Silvia

Last week I talked about our visit to the Bale Grist Mill in St Helena. An added bonus adventure is to hike the 2.4 mile round trip starting from the Bothe-Napa Valley State Park.

We began this hike by stopping at the visitor center at Bothe Park. The nature exhibit, history, and 3D map of the area are informative. The center has a little shop where they sell ice cream and popsicles. If you need something to fend off ticks, they have that too. They also have a Native American plant garden next to the building. But our agenda was already tight, so we skipped the garden.

We parked the car in a shady spot on a loop near the cemetery. The cemetery is the final resting place for some of the original settlers in Napa Valley. To go on the grist mill loop, start on the right towards the cemetery loop and hang right. A little while in, I wished I had studied the 3-D map. The hike was surprisingly steep and narrow. We came from the direction of Napa and had passed the mill. So walking up when the goal was near the street seemed counterintuitive. Since the mill is water-powered, it needs to have water flow from an elevated reservoir. So once you are near the resevoir, you will hike down towards the mill.

We picked a hot day, but the weather can differ, so be sure to check ahead. But for us, the heat led to another bonus adventure. Once you return to the visitor center at Bothe Park, you can buy tickets to the swimming pool at the visitor center! The $5 per person was a great price for cooling down.

Information

The Bothe-Napa Valley State Park is open daily from 8 am to sunset. The entrance fee to the park is $10 per vehicle. The swimming pool is only open Saturdays and Sundays from 1 pm to 5 pm, during the summer season.

Water wheel for the Bale Grist Mill in St Helena

Grind Corn at the Bale Grist Mill, St Helena

July 25, 2025July 30, 2025Silvia

A grist mill converts grains such as wheat or corn into flour and animal feed. Built in 1846, the Bale Mill in St Helena is one of the oldest structures in Napa County. This marvel of ingenuity still works; you can watch it in action on the weekends.

Tours are offered at 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 1 pm, 2 pm, and 3 pm. We got there a little late, but it was no problem to join a tour midway and then stay a bit longer to catch up on what we missed.

Our guide was very knowledgeable as he presented the history of the mill and its owners. Then he turned on the waterwheel. He set it at the slowest setting so he could demonstrate it and yet still be heard once we moved inside. The mechanics for the mill are efficient. It can be operated with just two people. Cup elevators transport the grain through the system. The pinnacle of the demonstration is to watch the flour come out of the grindstone. There is also a hands-on element where you can grind corn by hand.

You can buy various flours at the historic granary gift shop. These are marked ‘Not for human consumption’, as the mill operators opted for a personal demonstration area that doesn’t meet the high hygienic standards.

The Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park is located at 3315 St Helena. Parking fee is $10 and the entrance fee for adults is $8, children 6-17 pay $3, and children under 6 are free. The mill is open Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 4 pm.

A bench that looks like a stick of butter under the MAC sign

Experience the MAC, St Helena

July 17, 2025Silvia

Riding through Napa Valley with my husband we were talking about how much of Napa feels like chasing experiences. For example, the wine train is a luxurious experience on a vintage train ride featuring elegantly curated menus. The price tag starts at $225 and can easily go for $600 a person for an experience.

You may already know that I am trying to find more frugal savoir-faire for you in this blog. But I’m also a foodie; sometimes these worlds collide. No, I did not ride on the wine train. When you rarely drink alcohol, you don’t have a problem skipping offerings centered around wine. However, I learned about an exhibit featuring Julia Child at the MAC (The Napa Valley Museum of Art & Culture) in St Helena. The $25 entrance fee per person made me pause. I paid it, I enjoyed it, but my husband decided to wait outside. If you can’t share your experience with others, is it worth it?

I did not grow up watching Julia Child, but I read her book My Life in France, and I saw the movie Julie & Julia. The exhibit starts by introducing Julia’s upbringing and then her work for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II. While in Kandy, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) she met her husband, Paul Child, who also worked for the OSS.

Although Child was not the first TV cook, she was the first to win an Emmy for an educational program. I really enjoyed seeing a set up of the TV kitchen with an old-style monstrous camera as my highlight. It becomes clear in this exhibit that Child was an icon, beloved and admired by her colleagues. Through the black and white photographs of Paul Child, you can see the love the couple had for each other.

Additional Information

To round off your experience, the café at Under Study, next door to the MAC, offers a three-course prix fixe menu inspired by Julia Child for $38.

On Saturday, 7/20/25 at 11 am, you can meet John Donohue at the MAC. Donohue is a cartoon artist who has famously drawn restaurants in Paris, London, and New York. Some of his drawings can be viewed at the MAC gift shop for free! The event on Saturday is also free.

Julia Child: A Recipe for Life is on display at the MAC until March 8, 2026. The MAC is located at 607 St Helena Hwy, St Helena, CA. It is open seven days a week from 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is $25 for adults, $15 for 5 – 17 year olds, free for children under 5.

The entrance of the Bodega Marine Laboratory

Tour the Bodega Marine Laboratory, Bodega Bay

July 11, 2025Silvia

Did you know that UC Davis has a Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute in Bodega Bay? And more importantly: Did you know you can tour this place for free?

Every Friday from 2 pm – 4 pm the Bodega Marine Laboratory offers free docent-led tours. You sign up online for an hour-long tour, which has a maximum of 10 participants. This gives you a great opportunity to ask questions!

When you arrive, you can admire the aquaria in the entrance way displaying local fish and other sea life. The tour starts with a history lesson about the area. One is an amazing story about community activism, preventing the building of a nuclear power plant on the fault line.

After that, you walk through the center with your docent and hear about the work of the institute. The highlight is a stop at the tidepool where you get to hold an urchin. The work they do for white abalone breeding is also amazing.

The Bodega Marine Laboratory is open for public tours by appointment on Fridays from 2 pm – 4 pm. The tour is free, but a donation is appreciated. It is located at 2099 Westshore Rd. in Bodega Bay.

Taste Point Reyes Cheese, Point Reyes Station

June 27, 2025Silvia

Point Reyes blue cheese is my go-to blue cheese. It was a real treat to see where the cheese comes from – the pastures and the cows.

The road towards the market is winding and narrow. You may need to pull over to let the ongoing traffic pass. On our way back, a cow was blocking traffic. But after we took her picture, she gracefully moved away.

The cheese tasting was in the little market. Note: The signage was a bit confusing – all we saw was a ‘No Access’ sign. We wandered around a bit before finding the stairs to the entrance. But the gift shop was lovely. With a warm welcome, we were educated about the cheeses and enjoyed all of them! The fennel blue cheese was my favorite!

For our picnic, we picked out a soft, ripe cheese and a passion fruit jam.

Make sure to check out the patio and the garden. All comes with a healthy portion of country air!

Point Reyes Cheese marketplace is open for free cheese tastings Mondays through Saturdays from 11 am – 3:30 pm. It is located at 14700 Highway 1, Point Reyes Station.

They celebrate their 25th year anniversary this year with a special tasting ($55 per person ) on June 13th, July 18th, August 15th, September 26th, 2025.

What is your favorite cheese?

I did not receive any compensation for this post.

If you are more into goat cheese I highly recommend Hartley’s Farm in Pescadero.

Learn to Shuck Oysters, Hog Island Oyster Company

June 6, 2025Silvia

I usually recommend some frugal adventures. But as a special treat, we visited the Hog Island Oyster Company in Marshall, CA, near Tomales Bay, and learned everything about how to farm oysters.

This is a true gem if you like oysters. They taught us about different oysters and how they manage them. One fun or rather interesting experience was holding a sea cucumber. Not as firm as a cucumber and it moves like a snail!

The grand finale is a lesson in how to shuck oysters. You take the oyster, hold it in a towel, and pry the shucking knife into the end of the oyster. With not too much force, you twist and turn as if you are holding a key and the oyster is your lock.

The other two couples in our group were celebrating birthdays. With a price tag of $48 per person, it is truly a special occasion activity.

Hog Island Oyster Company is located 20215 Shoreline Highway in Marshall, CA. The Classic Farm Tours are offered on Fridays through Sundays at 9:30 a.m. Online registrations are required.

To round out your experience, you can have lunch at Tony’s Seafood restaurant and enjoy fresh seafood. We tried the fried oyster lettuce wrap and it was delish!

Hog Island Oyster Company, in the SF Ferry Building Marketplace, is the San Francisco oyster bar, full-service bar, restaurant, and retail outlet for this Tomales Bay oyster farm.

I am not affiliated with the Hog Island Oyster Company or Tony’s Seafood restaurant.

Be Grateful at the Children’s Bell Tower

May 31, 2025Silvia

When I researched things to do in Bodega Bay, the Children’s Bell Tower rose to the top of the list. I am always interested in large sculptures and local oddities. So, we absolutely had to check this one out.

It turned out that the coffee shop, Sea Flower Cafe, where we had breakfast, was a short walk away from the bell tower. The bell tower itself includes a small parking lot if you decide to skip the coffee and delicious breakfast.

Before we reached the tower, we admired the small community garden. We were fascinated by the vast number of wind chime collections hanging from two trees.

The bell tower is a very touching place. First, you see the inscription, a dedication for Nicholas Green. Nicholas, just seven years old, was shot by highway robbers in Italy. His parents donated his organs to seven Italians. In gratitude for this selfless act, Italian families donated 140 bells for the tower. The largest bell, the centerpiece, has the name of Nicholas and the seven recipients engraved on it. Pope John Paul II blessed it. This is a very peaceful place. But I’m sure kids have a good time running around and exploring, too.

The donation started a wave of organ donations in Italy known as the ‘Nicholas Effect’. The Nicholas Green Foundation is an advocacy group promoting the best gift you can make: donate your organs so others can live!

The Children’s Bell Tower is located at 2255 CA-1, Bodega Bay, CA.

This was a humble reminder that organ donation saves lives and gives hope. If you’d like to sign up to be an organ donor you can visit this website: https://www.organdonor.gov/sign-up

The two towers of Saint Vincent de Paul Rectory

Explore the Churches of Pentaluma

May 23, 2025May 22, 2025Silvia

In a recent adventure we stayed in Petaluma, CA. We had an amazing dinner at the Wild Goat Bistro. This farm-to-table restaurant combines fresh food with casual dining. We shared a salad and a wood-fired pizza. Both were inventive and very tasty.

As we walked out into the evening, we discovered the two towers of Saint Vincent de Paul Rectory. Drawn to the towers of this Spanish Romanesque-style church with its gold-painted details, we started an after-dinner stroll. Although we weren’t able to see the interior, the details in the outside decoration brought heaven to mind, and the rosette above the door pictures a version of Jesus.

To our surprise, we saw, just a few steps away, a much plainer-looking church. Nevertheless, the intricate gothic windows with their glass art are equally beautiful. This is the Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma, on 16 5th St.

The St John’s Episcopal Church, just another few steps away, on 40 5th St, with towers on top of the rotunda looks quite medieval.

And last but not least I spotted the square tower of the United Methodist Church.

This, of course, is only a short selection of the churches in Petaluma. It was interesting to see such different architectural styles within a short walking distance. We did not attempt to go into these churches. I’m sure all the glass windows are stunning, with sunlight shining through them.

Churches

Saint Vincent de Paul Rectory

35 Liberty St, Petaluma, CA

https://svdppetaluma.org/

Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma

16 5th St, Petaluma, CA

https://www.uupetaluma.org/

St John’s Episcopal Church Petaluma

40 5th St, Petaluma, CA

https://www.saintjohnsepiscopalpetaluma.org/

United Methodist Church

410 D St, Petaluma, CA

https://petalumaumc.org/

For more information on Petaluma churches I found this website: https://visitingchurches.blogspot.com/

Thanks to Rudolf Rentzel a Christian of Petaluma and the author of the blog: Visiting All the Churches In Petaluma.

I am not affiliated with any churches.

Get together and play! Next Level, Mountain View

May 2, 2025Silvia

Community building can be done in many ways, like meeting people in churches or at political rallies. But one activity that gets people together like no other is playing games. If you like to play board games, your next level community building can be done in Mountain View. Actually, the place is called Next Level. They have little game rooms that you can rent and hang out with your friends. There are lots of games to choose from, or bring your own. The staff is super helpful and can guide you to get started.

For $7, you get access to the game library and can hang out as long as you like. They just had their soft-opening and they are working on their food and drinks menu. If you like the game, you might be able to purchase it here, too!

I know that game stores around the Bay have been offering tournaments, especially for the card game Magic. But Next Level understands the need to spend time together in a comfortable setting. Now, more than ever, we need to enjoy ourselves with others. If you are looking to connect with other board game enthusiasts, check out the social board game meetups every Thursday at 7 pm and Sunday at 11 am, or see their event section for their monthly events.

Next Level is located on 888 Villa St, in Mountain View. They are open Tuesday and Wednesday, from 5 to 10 pm and Thursday to Sunday, from 10 am to 10 pm.

What is your favorite board game?

I am not affiliated with Next Level.