Bottlerock 2014: Day 3

 Not surprisingly, Sunday morning at Bottlerock is quite peaceful.That's me in my Tilly, trying to carry my own shade around with me.

Our first band on Sunday was a San Francisco band called The Stone Foxes. I thought they were really good.

 At first I thought it was really nice of the security guard to offer to take our picture, but now that I see it, I wonder if he wasn't just trying to capture the short shorts of the concert photog on stage.

 The Stone Foxes have a violinist. I knew I liked them!

Plus, they offer wine to their fans (only in Napa). Actually, the best part of this picture is that it captures Carl, the security supervisor in the blue shirt. He was in charge of the main stage security both days we were there and he was beyond impressive. He has five kids ages 12 to 19, and I have a feeling there's not a lot that gets past him in that house.

Thee Oh Sees, also from San Francisco. I didn't care for them very much.

But look who did show up! The Spin Doctors (their lead singer used to have red curly hair) with John Popper from Blues Traveler on the harmonica.

And what would a music festival be without Barenaked Ladies? Here's a picture of Kevin for my mother.

 Jim

 Ed

And the requisite ridiculous cover from Tyler.

Bottlerock 2014: Day 2

 Our first show on Saturday was Matt & Kim, a super fun act we'd never seen before.

Though we were immediately grateful that we'd already dropped the girls off, since not all of their entertainment was G-rated.

They also tossed a bunch of balloons into the crowd and told us to blow them up so that we could throw them up into the air and watch all the pretty colors. Some members of the crowd may have had enhanced visual effects.

 When you're at the front of the crowd, it's easy to forget how many people are behind you.

 90s favorite, Third Eye Blind. Don't get me started on what I think of the lead singer.

These guys were being interviewed on stage right in front of us in between sets. When the turned around, the crowd cheered, and then a bunch of folks yelled, "Who are you?!?" The answer, apparently, is an L.A. band called No Age.

Weezer also was fantastic. 

We didn't end up sticking around for Saturday's headliner, Outkast (though we heard the next day that they were great), opting instead for a nice anniversary dinner at a Napa restaurant called Fish Story (beats the festival food stands any day).

Bottlerock 2014: Day 1

Andy planned an early 20th anniversary celebration in Napa this past weekend to attend Bottlerock, a three-day music festival.

We drove up after school on Friday and stayed in an absolutely gorgeous B&B called the White House Inn.

The girls loved their little nook.

 They even loved The Cure.

 Lily didn't think that Robert Smith had aged very well, but the music still sounded great.

The women behind us gave us verbal kudos for "having the cutest kids" and "officially being the coolest parents ever." One of them also happened to be a middle school teacher who gave Lily some book recommendations.  Naturally.

 Our B&B was walkable to the venue, just through downtown and across the Napa River.

Although the girls enjoyed themselves, I'm not sure the festival is meant to be entirely kid-friendly.

So on Saturday morning we took a quick trip up to Roseville to drop the girls off with grandparents and cousins. On the way back we stopped into Mary's because even Bottlerock isn't more important than spaghetti.

Green screen

The end-of-year school pictures came in digital form, with several backgrounds--the next best thing to teleportation!

Tent city

 We set up our tents and camped out in our backyard last night.

 This deluxe campground even has a hot tub (set a bit cooler for younger guests).

After a walk to the camp store (aka Walgreens) for supplies, we enjoyed microwaved s'mores before hitting the sack.

Ballet+anatomy

 Last night, Amalia's Daisy troop went to see the Los Gatos Ballet perform "Sleeping Beauty."

 Included in this special event was a backstage tour.

 The girls were entranced watching all of the performers get ready.

 This is apparently the easiest way to store the tutus so they don't get wrinkled.

 Learning about toe shoes.

 Getting to touch the toe shoes.

 A group picture before we headed into the theater to watch the show.

This is what happens when someone (not me) tells the girls to strike their best fashion pose. Perhaps Amalia was inspired by Benedict Cumberbatch.

My two favorite Amalia questions during the performance:

About 10 minutes in, in a disappointed tone: "Is this just going to be dancing?" (Me: Yes, it's a ballet.)

When a new male dancer comes on stage toward the end of the first act: "What's that lump?"
(After I quietly, but accurately, explained what it was, she said, "I wish he was wearing looser pants.")