Italian Capers

Not even a week before spring break, I had a conversation with a good friend during which I mentioned we used to take vacations without reservations. We would just "hit the road." Of course, the other mother and I agreed, we would never do that with children. It wouldn't be prudent. Then we did : ) We had a vague notion where we wanted to go and worked out a rough plan the night before our departure. I did secure our first few nights stay and away we went. We headed south to Sorrento . The kids did great with the travelling- our fun started long before we arrived at our destination. They loved the adventure! It's a nice city on the coast- I thought it was very congested with cars and vans full of tourists. We were there during the off-season, and I cannot imagine the droves of people who must visit during peak season. The wooden motorcycle was a big hit. There were beautiful views around every corner. Fun! I think the only hitch we hit on the way down was an accident ...

We were walking along at the festival in Slovenia, when I noticed the girls were eating something. When I asked what they had, they said, "Nothing," and quickly hid their snack behind their backs. Panicked, I ran over to them and grabbed for their hands, only to see they held partially eaten bright pink mushroom with green spots. "Ahhhh!" I shrieked, but it was too late. Something was happening to the kids....they were getting smaller and smaller! Luckily they returned to their normal size a little bit later : )

We went to a tulip festival My Man wanted to visit- he loves tulips (little-known fact) and he really LOVES Slovenia! Really. When we are there he makes comments like, "These are my people." Hilarious. Of course there were rows and rows of flowers, but it was in a lovely park with walking trails and activities for children. The cultural differences between Italy and Slovenia are obvious. The children WAITED in line for a turn to play on the dinosaur. Oh, and before that, there were people in the parking lot helping festival-goers park in an orderly fashion.

I am the self-proclaimed queen of inappropriate laughter. Really. While it has been several months since my last spell of such laughter, it's been a life-long struggle. Yesterday, I went to the dentist here in Italy. It has taken me over a year to work up the courage- both due to my mild dental phobia, schedule conflicts (not really) and general inexplicable inertia. The office is clean and modern. Being who I am, I checked for signs of sterilization and am pleased to report all appears to be clean. (Note the use of the word appears.) So far, so good, then the dentist walked in.....he is handsome, has a nice smile (of course)and a kind demeanor. Then, my mind did a terrible thing- it jumped to the idea that he looks like George Oscar Bluth (GOB from Arrested Development)! At first I giggle, then all out laughter ensues, clearly inappropriate behavior at the dentist office. I sit down in the chair and get a sip of water....no change. He and his assistant start to work on replacing a...

We shall call this post: Portrait of the Perfect Pup As you may know, our little Fonz has had some health issues recently. In the face of his somewhat-fragile health, I only needed to remind myself that "Love is a Verb." I love him every day and he loves me right back. We have our little chats in the morning along with his belly rub. (This is when he reminds me that Life is Good : ) We have fun playing the "Ring the bell to go outside only to want to instantly come back inside Game." (Here is where he helps me understand the true virtue of patience.) He is also known as "Velvet Ears." Here he reminds me that all of the Earth's creatures are truly magnificent in their own way. And here is, quite possibly, my favorite part of his fabulous self....his Frito Feet. With his dainty (maybe stinky?) feet, he reminds me to keep moving- to keep on keeping on! To get out and about and have fun! Happy Birthday Little Man, may you have many more. We love you throu...

Some of you may have heard my story of when I was little, and I was inspired to be Amish. Don't worry Mom, I am not going to go into the details : ) I have learned, through observing and listening to my children, a little bit about how they process information. Perception really is everything. I have witnessed a situation involving my elder daughter. Later, I have asked her to tell me about it. I am always amazed at how she viewed the situation- how she re-told the situation. I suppose this same phenomena affects all of us. What we perceive as the situation is what we believe happened. Much like myself at her age, she was inspired to be a Pilgrim. I remember being equally enthusiastic about being Amish. Here she is washing her blanket in the river. I remember trying to play games, but apparently Amish kids don't play games. It was daylight, so she could see. I remember being told that Amish don't use electricity so I shouldn't use my light. Here she is smiling, I don...

H-bomb has been complaining about her hair all her life. She doesn't like it: combed, washed, brushed, touched, styled, dried, clipped, braided or pony-tailed! Enough was enough for both of us. I was sure she was sure, so we headed out to the stylist of choice- Anna in Compagna where we used to live! We let Anna loose with a pair of scissors and a beautiful, smiling, happy little gal appeared...here she is: I was concerned about how her new look would be received at school. But when she hopped off the bus- she was still smiling! Only one little girl made a negative comment. One of her pals stepped right up in H's defense and that was all she wrote. Happier kid, happier family. I caught up with Anna about the old neighborhood. I asked if Bruna was still alive and she is. She will be 94 next month. As we were about to leave, Bruna appeared in the door. At first, she just looked at me and I could tell she didn't know me. Then, I saw the veil lift, a spark of recognition in he...