Better late, than Never

I always put off posts that I want to spend time on, its like I'm afraid if I don't devote enough attention and time then it won't be exactly what I want....and then it ends up being 3 weeks later and looks as if I have totally forgotten, so I'm trying to pull it together now.

May 11th, James and I picked ourselves out of bed and drove to the airport to pick up Mike and Amanda. Long drive...but it was a wonderful blessing that we had waiting for us at the end, so it was totally worth it :) We did a little driving around- went to post and the top of Monte Berico to help the day pass, but it ultimately ended in a much needed afternoon nap for everyone. That night at dinner, James was hashing out stories of our previous weekend in Florence, and Mike and Amanda looked at each other and then us, and said, We wanna go! So we started scouring the internet and found an awesome little place outside of town! Perfect for a last minute get away.

Saturday we drove down to Florence- the drive was beautiful- fields and fields of yellow flowers are right outside of Bologna, which put a smile on Amanda's face. As we weaved our way through the Florentine hills, we found ourselves twisting around tight turns and narrow alley ways in search for our house. Unfortunately, we had to slow down really slow to make a sharp right turn and found a steep incline on the other side, and our little car just couldn't make it. Even in first gear we were ROLLING down the hill. What made it even more interesting/worse is that there was NO where to go...except off a cliff. After trying 3 times to make it up the hill, we ended up on a man's front step. Yes, front step to his house. And our back tire was half way off the step...leading down the mountain/hill. Great. So everyone got out of the car, and I got tasked with the duty of attempting to get it up the hill. Why me? I asked the same thing...luckily the boys had it all figured out. They didn't show me exactly where the car was, or where it would have been if I had backslid at all, and encouraged me in my "experience" with driving a manual. And just to brag a little bit- I made it up the hill without dropping the car off the side of a cliff or backing up into the man's house. Props.

 The house we stayed in was a gem. Seriously- beautiful. It was set on top of a mountain/"hill" and surrounded by an olive grove and flowers. We had homemade panzella, beer, and prosecco waiting for us as well! We relaxed, drank, and ate before we headed into Florence! We spent the first night watching the sunset on Piazza Michaelangelo and wandering around to find some food. The first couple of restaurants we stopped at were full...blah. But we found a pretty decent place to eat and definitely enjoyed some famous chianti wine...my favorite. I love it!

The next day, we hit up the famous Academy and Uffizi Gallery, and wandered around hitting the hot spots- little markets, big churches, the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, and the big piazzas. It was so fun. Seriously- Florence is one of my favorite cities that I have found and wandering around is more than enough. It's beautiful...and you hear a lot of English, and the art is beautiful! Home of the Renaissance! Full of history! Definitely looking forward to my next trip back.

We of course, had to back to Vicenza, because James had to go to work. Silly Army. During the week, I put the Simpson's to work :) And by the end of it, I had a new living room chair and a pot rack! It was fun though- we spent some time at the local hardware store trying to figure out how to make a pot rack without actually buying a pot rack (I needed specific dimensions).

One of the highlights during the week was our trip to Nove. Amanda came over here with the intention of buying all new dishes!! And Nove is the place to be- great ceramics at a great price! We spent a lot of time looking around VBC- the main ceramic store, with the most popular and name brand selections. We looked and looked, and debated, but she just wasn't feeling it. And let's be honest, if you are going to replace your dishes it better be with something you love. So we left empty handed :) Then I had to pick up some mugs (the ones we used for coffee all week) from a much smaller ceramic store called SK Larry's. This store is the place to go if you want anything at all personalized. I love it!The crazy thing is that I didn't even think of it for a place to buy dishes!! IN the store, Amanda found a pattern, brought it over to me and said, I'd like something like this...and then it clicked. Larry could do that! He could make plates and bowls and mugs with that design! We asked, we ordered, and even got to go in the back and watch him hand paint a bowl for us!! It was so special!

We also spent some time in Marsotica, a small walled city right outside of Nove. We travled up to the castle and even had a great lunch in the superior Castle. The plan was just to have a glass of wine and then head to Nove, but we got suckered into trying/buying more food. This always happens to me. The waiter though, was awesome! He practiced Italian with us and taught some a great Italian trick...just add -issima to the end of words!! It actually works! He even quizzed us throughout the meal...sadly, it took a while for me to catch on, Mike on the other hand was an A+ student.

We spent the rest of our mornings sipping coffee, going to a little pastry shops, reading, and waiting for the Boy to come home. We visited Nicoli, of course, and I got a really cute purse and Carolina blue wallet...duh. It was really relaxing just hanging around Vicenza and letting the Simpson's see how we live our life.

Lastly, their whirlwind trip ended in a weekend in Venice. We even got to spend the night! And let me tell you what- the hotel was incredible. We had bathrobes, slippers, chocolates on our  pillows, a handwritten personal note, and a bathtub!! Yes, I took a bath...it's been too long. We hopped on a train from Vicenza to Venice on Saturday morning and walked from the train station to the hotel. I don't remember who had that idea, but we should have taken a boat. It was hot, and poor Mike and Amanda were lugging ALL of their luggage around crowded narrow streets. But we finally made it, settled in, and made our way to find food. This is how James and I travel- everything centered around food. There was the little pizzeria right around the corner from where we stayed and it was really awesome. Our previous trips to Venice had not been filled with that good of food...its so touristy, but this little place was legit. People speaking Italian. Perfecto!

We wandered our way around trying to find the boat to Murano- the island known for glass making. By the time we made it to the island we were exhausted and only stayed for an hour because the last boat was leaving soon...it was fun to wander around and look at all of the beautiful pieces of glass that had been shaped. It is a little island, and I had really wanted to see some of the actual demonstrations, but we had missed it- oh well, another time! Afterwards, we went back to the hotel to find a place to eat and to rest up for a bit...it has been a long day and we all needed a break from walking. It was such a sweet reward to have a hotel to settle down in for a bit! We once again started wandering around looking for this one restaurant that of course ended up being booked...so we wandered some more and stumbled upon this other place to eat that was right outside of a little theatre. It was fun to sit and watch the locals come out of their show and give flowers and talk....it got pretty loud, but entertaining nonetheless! And Amanda found a cat :)

Our last morning together, we ate an "American Breakfast" together provided by the hotel- there were eggs!!- and took an awesome family picture. I wish I had taken more of them throughout the trip...I knew I was going to regret not...ugh. We found the water taxi station and sent the Simpson's on their way!

That last night was the beginning of all of the earthquakes Italy has been having recently. When I came down to eat, I found Amanda and asked her how she slept, and she said, "Not to well, I woke up at 4 and it sounded like someone was having a party up above me." Weird, right? Well, in fact, she had woken up to the earthquake! A 6.2! Everyone else slept right through it....typical.

We couldn't have asked for a better 10days. Not stressful and lets be honest, I got the better end of the deal- no jet lag, a new chair, and a pot rack! Happy girl :) 

Chosen Company Family Day

We had a Company Cookout on Thursday and the boys set up the Jump Tower for all of the wives and kids to jump out of...and of course I got roped into doing it. And I'll let you know...I don't like scaring myself. I think its pointless. It's why I don't like watching scary moves or intentionally jump off cliffs, free climb, or anything that my husband deems as "fun". But I had to jump out of this...so here are the photos:

Lake Como

James is leisurely reading while letting his small pox vaccine air out, so I decided I write a little. That way I don' t have to take time to do it later...at home. I have the time now, so why not. We are at Lake Como, in the little town of Mezzegra. It is a quite sleepy town, with no bank. We are staying on the main square at a family run Bread and Breakfast- which is awesome. The room isn't much- no sitting area, bathrobe and slippers like Venice, but enough. A bed, a clean bathroom, and a gorgeous view. The cafe downstairs has AMAZING gelato- creamy!

We arrived after a LONG drive. The GPS decided to take us up to the middle of the lake and have us get to our B&B by riding the ferry across the lake. Wrong. So we had to "re-calculate". Seriously, everywhere we go the GPS decides to take us the longest route possible- it's always beautiful, but slow and irritating. Especially when we know there is a highway paralleling us...But we finally arrived to our little B&B and we started to wander. We found ourselves winding down this tight little alley that opened up onto the water...and a massive swan. James screamed like a little girl...well not really, but he was definitely startled. It was huge and we definitely spooked her.

We continued wandering, looking for food- because we were staving and always poorly plan trips around eating. We stumbled upon this hosteria that was still serving sandwiches and wine. House wine was the bomb.com. Bruschetta- melted in your mouth, sandwich, on homemade bread. It was a little gem. Plus we were sitting right on the water. Can it get any better? We also went back to have dinner at this place a couple hours later-once again the food was outstanding. And the waiter remembered us!! The town really didn't have much going on- definitely a sleepy little town, luckily for us, we were exhausted so started to watch a movie, but clearly passed out instead.

The morning was lazy. We took our time getting ready. Ate a leisurely breakfast of fresh croissants, cappuccinos, yogurt, and cereal. Then made our way to Villa Balbianello. It was so close!! This villa sits out on a peninsula that juts out from the west bank of the lake. We wandered around the garden and took an hour and half long tour of the house. It was awesome. The last man to own the villa, Monzoni, was incredible- his family, very wealthy from starting the first department store in Italy, provided him the financial security to literally go on expeditions for the majority of his life. His villa was a work of art- filled with beautiful glass paintings, stunning chandeliers, artifacts from all over the world, and documents of his travels. His 2 most famous travels included the North Pole and hiking Everest. He was the first Italian to make it to the top of Everest...even though he really stopped 200meters short...but I didn't mention that to the tour guide...that is technically not summiting the mountain. Details. The Italians were still very proud of him- and rightfully so.
We at lunch at a restaurant on a beach- literally, there were people sunbathing on the man-made beach. We sat on a bench, with a mini table in front of us- it actually came up to my shins- and ate salads. Well, I thought I was getting a salmon sandwich, when in fact I was getting raw salmon with buttered bread on the side. This is the THIRD time I have made this menu mistake on our travels. THIRD. Why have I not learned? Luckily, it wasn't bad and I still ate it.

We hurried back to the hotel to gather our thoughts and things- James had been suffering from a headache all day so far, so the daughter of the family-run B&B gave us some "medicine" from her house. She was so nice to offer us some of her medicine and even offered to go into the next town to get some more...if only I had said yes. Not exactly sure what it was, but worked for a bit.

The rest of the afternoon didn't go as planned. We had wanted to hop on a ferry to go to Bellagio, but instead, we couldn't find parking, couldn't find a bank to pull out money, and ended up driving up the west bank of the coast through several more little towns. The drive was well worth it...if only we had our Sunday convertible to drive with the window's down. We went back to the hotel and walked into Tremezzo, the next town, and hung out in beautiful garden- James climbed trees, walked around a little market, and once again ate on the side of the lake.

Unfortunately, James was up the entire night with a migraine. So far, aside from my Chick-fil-a cravings and a drive-through Starbucks latte withdrawals this was the first time I had missed America. Truly missed the 24hr drug stores, accessible banks, and stores that are open on Sundays. I felt so helpless! These towns around the lake are not big- there were no drug stores open on Sunday- I would have most likely had to get on the autostrada and find the nearest gas station to attempt to find pain killers- which even then might not have happened. I almost threw him into the car and drove him home at 4am. Somehow, he ended up falling asleep and woke up to a lesser headache. So we ate breakfast, jumped in the car, and came back home.

Only to stop to see where Mussolini had been been gunned down and executed. It was right up the street from where we stayed!!