Thanks a Tanti!!

We celebrated our 7th Pecettese Thanksgiving this year with 58 friends. And thank goodness for friends, because it took many of them to pull off our tastiest Thanksgiving ever! It all began with a 20 kg Turkey from Bra (courtesy of the Pasta Fresca)....

....and 10 kg of potatoes, peeled by Valeria....

Tacchino the Turkey was gutted and stuffed by Federico and Mark....

and some extra help from Piera and Carmine....

Just fits!

The moment we've all been waiting for....

Even the kids are taking pictures with iphones these days....

Ella approves.

The kids table, trashed and abandoned....

due to balloon entertainment courtesy of Davide....

and drawing on the adults table is too much fun....

Sandra and company enjoying the bounty....

all good things end with sweets! Cannolli and Lemon Cake by Maria Luisa, Tiramisu by Valeria and Miska, Pumpkin Pie by Jiyon, Apple Pie by Bridget, Chocolate Pepper & Pear Cake by Elena, Streudal by Maria Chiara, and a Chocolate Salami (only in Italy) by Michela. Grazie mille Ragazze!!

.....also, not to be forgotten, some Pumpkin Pie Turkey Cupcakes. One tray vanished during the party....someone said Mariana was responsible.....the end.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Coming soon....Thanks 2013

Wish you could all come!

a perfect sunday

It was a perfectly crisp sunny fall day so we headed for the mountains for a walk, strenuous enough to deserve a pranzo di montagna at Casa Canada, or almost strenuous enough.

village of Talucco

Sophie, Willy, Michelle, Mark, Luca and the path ahead

Me and my bug.

sophie and ella relaxing at the top

Time to dig in at Casa Canada 

(so named, as this was the lodge gifted to Torino from Canada when they hosted the 2006 Olympics)

on the menu: polenta, sausage, beef stew, cheese fondue, salami, quiche, bell peppers, chocolate and pear cake

and red wine to wash it all down.

this corner for the kids makes lunch taste even better

Viking Luca finds every rock there is to climb and jump from

our Canadians poise with their flag.

Dolcetto o Scherzetto.....

We got a little more into the Halloween spirit this year. A piece of hard sticky candy will make Luca's day so getting him excited about Halloween was easy. And Ella's at the perfect age to accept anything that you put on her or attach to her. Luca wasn't so thrilled about his costume, but as soon as I said he wouldn't get any candy without his Legoman box on, he was convinced.

Pumpkin cookies were our treat, and we got 6 legit trick or treaters that actually came to the door.

Luca the Lego Warrior and Matilde the Witch

our 3 Jack-o-Lanterns, the 4th rotted before we could carve it. :(

Time to Trick or Treat. Presenting Lady Ella Bug, SuperWilliam, Alexander Spiderman, and Legoman Luca

first stop, the pet shop

mobbing the bakery

Lady Ellabug, down one polkadot.

Asking for it

Ella bug was asking for it. Mark and I almost intervened, but it was kind of cute. You could guess how this little game was going to end as soon as it started. Warning: content may be to explicit for grandparents.

Tutto Zucche

Our party time without Daddy ended Sunday morning, yeah! But here's a few photos from the last days of single motherhood:

The buses arrive from Luca's field trip to a farm near the mountains.

Luca shows off his "Mela in Camicia", an apple baked inside a bun with apple marmalade. Yummers. The kids picked the apples, and helped make the marmalade.

We found the italian equivalent of a pumpkin patch, Tutto Zucche. Alessandro has studied the biodiversity of squash, and exhibits and sells over 500 different types of them in his villa.

uh, oh, where did Ella go?

Back at home, it's time to harvest the pomegranates.

our home exhibit of squash, both edible and non. Next step, carving!

Bath time with Bugoo