Mark rides his bike to work on a daily basis, unless there's hail in the forecast. His 16km ride round trip, a climb of more than 600 feet on the way home inspired him to sign up for the Chieri Mountain Bike Race, along with 3 other guys. We showed up early at the finish line, and waited until our rockstar mountain biker sprinted through the finish line. The race was 35km with a total climb of 2,600 feet through the torinese hills and countryside.
waiting for Daddy.....
after only seeing sponsored bikers come through, there he was! Our athlete, in his Bazooka gum tshirt.
On Saturday May 9th we joined several expats couples on the 3rd wine tour hosted by the McGraws. I think of it as Spring Break for Parents of young children.
Brian's 8:45am tailgate at the Pecetto Market
a mini keg, coffee cake, mimosas, egg casserole, and a billion muffins to get us started.
Bridget, mixing Mimosas on the bus
Stefana translates the story of Cascina Rossa
Cascina Rossa's properites after 7 generations in the wine business
Mi piace.
Time to work.
on our way to lunch.....
our group at Marchesi di Barolo
when she's not learning American slang, Irene tells us the history of Marchesi
time to taste
Sandy leaves her mark
Loading up the boot.
Jessica leads us on with her playlist
"Up all Night to get Mexican Lucky!"
cackling Brian.
The McGraws have started a tradition that will not die quickly. Jessica, the playlist coordinator was nominated to organize Fall Wine Tour 2015. We may or may not be around for that one, but the McGraws have insured us that there is an equally good time to be had in Lexington, Ohio.
Our little Princess Bugoo is Three. We'll see how many nicknames she loses as she grows older! We headed to Tre Querce to celebrate with 17 of Luca and Ella's friends. Ella loved her first zipline at 2 years old, so this year, we knew she was ready.
suited up, Ella is happy as a clam sandwiched between Alby and Evan
like a pro
waiting for the zipline, Viola, Carlotta and Maria
Luca and Alby
Marianna and Davide head for the Big Kid Course
Caterina keeping tabs
Sophie on her 4th zip ride....ancora!
jane of the jungle
hammocking and picnicing
and sleeping
the daunting task of lighting 3 candles
two peas in a pod
girly alert! Beware of singing "my little pony"...."no, MY little pony!"
A few months ago we were talking to our friends the McGraws who wanted to visit Ireland. Mark piped up and said he would love to go back, and 24 hours later our plane tix were booked and we started researching hotels, apartments, and rental cars. The Palcisco Family decided to join the party as well making us 6 adults and 6 kids, a good balance.
It was the long May day weekend and with a 9:45pm flight out of Milan we thought we were timing things just right, until a massive lightening storm kept our plane from refueling, let alone, taking off. So the kids entertained themselves, some went back for beer, and other's read their books until our flight was allowed to leave at midnight. At 4am we fell into bed in the Temple Bar district of Dublin. People were still stumbling in and out of pubs. The next morning we explored our ancient hotel and had breakfast in the pub below.....scones!
Some went to the Guinness storehouse while we meandered the streets of Dublin and it's parks, and found a delightful pub called the Hairy Lemon. We found our rental car, and despite our most covert efforts, they discovered that Mark's liscence was expired so I would have to drive the left-handed stick shift on the Left side of the road during Dublin rush hour traffic. Perfect. I don't know who was more stressed out, me or my navigator. We found a good rythym, Mark shifted while I did the pedals and the wheel. Sigh of Relief.
We drove the 2 hours to Galway were we met up with the rest of our crew at the Galway Seaside apartments. They recommended the newly openned restaurant downstairs. Fresh seafood and the best fish and chips I've ever had.
We explored Galway the next day on a long walk, and whenever it rained we ducked into a pub. The kids were perfectly happy writing postcards, eating snacks from Bridget's endless supply, ordering hot chocolates, playing "restaurant" and breakdancing on one of the lit up floors. Mara picked up a six pack of the local Pale Ale, Galway Hookers for a post party after the kids fell asleep, but we fell asleep with them.
The next day we headed south, way south to Baltimore. At the time Baltimore Maryland was all over the news, but most people had never heard of Baltimore, Ireland, not even the Irish. Sounded like just the place. On the way down we stopped by Kinsale (recommended by both Nonni as a place to visit). It's colorful houses, and bobbing boats in the harbor were so cheerful, even on a rainy day.
After lunch and a stop at the bookshop, we head to the western tip of Ireland and arrived in Baltimore, just in time for dinner. We opted for Pizza, and it was actually pretty good. The kids played with the pool table and befriended a group of 25 year old guys who entertained them. Nice.
The next morning we took a walk to Balitmore's "Beacon" and watched the waves crash into the surrounding cliffs and saw an approaching rainstorm. We walked back to town through the downpour, and rather than changing clothes, we got straight on a little ferry that took us the 10 minutes over to Sherkin Island. There we walked another 400 meters to the nearest and only pub on the island. We dried ourselves off in front of the fire, the kids found a library to rearrange, and the parents got a few pints and some steaming mussels. Outside the sun broke so Brian went outside with the kids, he was asked if he was familiar with horses. Could he watch Sally while her owner went in for a pint?
The kids were thrilled. They started pruning the bushes to find stuff to give to Sally. The owner returned with his pint, and gave Sally a bit of beer to lap up, out of the palm of his hand. Moments like these.
We took a nice walk over to Horseshoe Bay. Perched above was a lovely little house for rent. Next time. The kids found a puddle to rinse their muddy boots off in, and then Luca proceeded to roll in to it and complete his "drenchedness."
We caught the boat back to the mainland, took some warm baths and arrived just in time to hear some live music in the pub below.
Oh how I love Spring. The lighting is lovely, I wake more easily to birds chirping, the days are longer, the violet wisteria takes over our front door, everyone is in a better mood and finally say "Tutto bene" (all is well) instead of "andiamo avanti" (we will survive) when you ask how they are, and the cherry blossoms. This is why we've lived in Pecetto for almost 8 years. Spring.
wall watching with Adriana
the 100th Camminata, 6,000 people strong
easily lapping the old ladies on his scooter
our Torre in the distance
speaking of Torre, Forza Torre!!
spring picnic at the Estes
Luca's birthday gift from our Pecetto gang was a trip to the Zoo Safari. The kids loved the animals and the rides. Two theme parks in the 3 weeks! I think we're good for the rest of the year.
7 families packed into a single train cabin
excited up front
the stare down
back at home and free to roam
more daylight with wheels
our aromatic front door
and on April 18th, my nephew Lou Byron was born after only 40 minutes in the hospital.
Happy.
Reactions.
Only two more month and then Auntie E will be there!!
After a seven hour drive through 4 countries, the ABC game, and lots of crumbs we arrived in Munich at the home of our vicini lontani. Doeke and Anna's smiling son, Senne met us and eagerly showed Ella and Luca all his "autos". Little welcome packages with rainy day legos were on each of their pillows and we felt right at home. Tom Hardman, another dear friend from the early Pininfarina days flew down from England for the weekend. The days were filled with sandy playgrounds, a Daddy son/daughter tour of the BMW museum, a good dose of Asian food, a shopping afternoon for the gals, and a few beer gardens for the guys.
On Easter Sunday we were all invited to the Kottmann's home for Easter brunch, former Torinesi. We munched on Weisbrat (authentic white Munich sausages), easter eggs, italian colomba bread, and pastries of all shapes and sizes. The kids enjoyed a chocolate themed egg hunt outside, and we came back inside just in time for the snow to start falling.
On Monday we said our goodbyes to the DeWalles and headed west to magical Legoland. The theme song from the Lego Movie, Everything is Awesome was blaring at the main entrance in German and English on constant rotation. Luca was over the moon and naturally darting from one thing to another like a ping pong ball. Highlights: Lego Miniature villages (at the Munich Football Stadium camera's are flashing, the anthem is played and team flags are unscrolled in a packed stadium), a ride with Ella on a very fast merry go round, she was squealing the whole time, and then watching Ella run up to every person in costume and give them a big hug! I can only imagine what Disneyland will be like.
Perhaps even better than Legoland is Lego Village. Our themed cottage was the Racer. How appropriate! There were several playgrounds, paved paths perfect for Luca's scooter, 2 tricycle test tracks, a bowling alley, a tree park, putt putt, and every restaurant was well equipped with a Lego playroom. The Kottman's with their two kids Theo & Edda joined us the next day for one more run around at Legoland. By 3:30pm we got some last group photos, some tears were shed due to too much fun, and we headed home to Pecetto.
On the way home Luca asked if he could stay at home the next day to put together his new Lego boat. "I have a big job to do, plus I have to sleep." Who could say no to that?!
There were so many reasons to celebrate this March. Three birthdays, Father's Day, and a new family!
starting with a personalized crostata by Valeria using her mamma's homemade apple marmellata.
Ella can't wait to steal one of the stars
Mamme iper-tecnologica (-Angela)
Benvenuta Yi Lan! Yi Lan shares her "faccia brutta" face. Giovanni & Elena are in love.
Buona Festa di Papa! Notice Ella's face is covered in flour after experimenting in the kitchen.
Alice & Luca celebrating 5 years together with Rice Krispy treats
Luca's 5....and we're going to Legoland!
We celebrated the big day by doing exactly what Luca likes most. We had a big strawberry/blueberry crepe breakfast with neighbors Alberto & Giorgio. Then built Legos all day until it was time to go to Caterina's baptism. Played silently (not really) during the 1 hour mass, and partied hard with his best friends from Pecetto, fueled by Fanta, cake and potato chips. In the evening it was time to call the Nonni on Skype. A Skype treasure hunt ensued. They gave him clues to find his birthday gifts hidden in the house. Grandma had to be reminded of her clue, but in the end, treasures was found, and all was enjoyed. We watched a little bit of Despicable Me (Ella calls it "Pickle Me") and then Daddy read the bedtime story with a flashlight!
"Luca, how does it feel to be 5?"
"Good."
"Mamma, when I'm 7, I want to be a babysitter."
"Really? Why?"
"Because when I'm 7, I can drive a big truck and drive all the babies around."
To think it was only 5 years ago that our lives were enhanced greatly by this little bundle of energy. In a way it feels like a lifetime, and in another way, a few days. Luca still has the same zeal for life at 5 years that he did at 5 months old. Mark and I feel trully blessed to be the chaperones.
