Pictures are available!

So I'm obviously not on top of my game as far as posting about the trip goes, but we now have a slideshow available with a bunch of pictures....I will try to get the most current descriptions up soon. Until then, enjoy the pictures (thanks to Jessica!!!)....I just have to add...the kids are sooooo cute!

The goal today

We will try to have the blog updated with photos (yeah) by today....

Some down time...

The weekend (June 19th - 21st)
We spent the rest of the weekend recovering from the beach. Nathan caught a cold (too much beach air). He lost his voice and sounds so pathetic, but the quiet is rather nice!

The owners (Nick and Judy) live right next door and are so kind. Judy is originally from Kenya, so she is fluent in English (as is Nick). She has been so helpful and there are no language barriers which makes it very enjoyable. They have 2 sons – Filippo(23) and Mikele(20). Filippo and a friend, Maurizio came over to play on Saturday. We spent most of the day in the pool. We had a big game of sharks and minnows, where Jess was ALWAYS the first person tagged. Maurizio is an actual magician and was showing the kids some tricks in the evening. They are both really sweet with the kids and the kids spend every moment they can with them. I think the boys are quite suprised at how much fun it was to hang out with us!

On Sunday we went to the park in town with Filippo and Maurizio (I told you they enjoyed it!) for some basketball, kickball and outdoor fun. The boys won the basketball game (22-20), but there will be a rematch soon....

Maurizio is a lot of fun but he speaks minimal English. What he does say comes out very well, so the kids always forget he doesn't understand them. Poor guy! I tried to tell him that most of our family and friends don't understand them either....Luckily we have Filippo who translates for us!

Jellyfish, crabs and 6 kids...a daily adventure!

Thursday, June 18th
We have been pent up “relaxing” long enough and decided to go to the beach! We thought we would be there early, but getting six kids and three adults ready to go the beach isn't any easier over here. The traffic and construction didn't help either (or not seeing signs or being able to read them!) We finally made it around 11:30 and decided to grab some pizza before we actually went to the beach. The kids all love the pizza (especially Liam). However many we get, they eat in seconds! The only thing they consume more rapidly is the gelato (no surprise there).

The beach was gorgeous and nothing I write can remotely compare to the scenery. None of us (Jess, Jason, or I) have ever been to a beach where you could see the snow-capped mountains in the background. I did snag a picture, but it doesn’t do it justice. It was beautiful. The sand was VERY, VERY hot. We did all kinds of beach things…built a sandcastle, buried children (and one adult), jumped the waves, etc. We did see several jelly fish. Some of the kids weren’t too sure about swimming in the waves with them, but eventually got over it. One jellyfish washed up on the shore, so we were able to show them what they look like. We also found a crab, and later on in the day, a gentleman gave us six of them that he had found. It was great. They were much smaller than the ones we usually find, so it didn’t hurt when they pinch you. They couldn’t even pinch you because they were so little.

We ended the day with a visit to Pisa to eat ice cream and visit the leaning tower. We’ve all seen pictures, and the pictures make the tower look straight compared to real life. It was crazy! We snapped a couple of cute pictures and then went for some ice cream (do you notice the trend?)! The day was wonderful and our first adventure out was a success.

This is life in the slow lane?

Somehow we have managed to not keep daily, almost weekly blogs! In our defense, we are pretty active over here. We have been thoroughly enjoying our "home" for the next month.

A cute side note about Rebecca: She has been soooo excited to go to Italy. Before we left, she was always asking when we were going to go to Italy. Upon arrival to our house, we discovered that, to Rebecca, "Italy" is our house. We can be in the quaint town nearby or even down at the pool (at our house) and she will say "When can me go back to Italy?!?!" We chuckle every time!

Monday, June 15th
The past week was as laid back as it is having six kids in a new country where everyone speaks a different language! On Monday, Liam, Rebecca, Noah, Jason and I (the early risers) went to the market in San Casciano (the nearby town which is so much fun - old castle walls and even a castle playground!) where we could have bought anything imaginable. We were only there for some fresh local produce and some fresh fish....both delicious! Many older Italian women came up and touched the kids and would ask "Are they all yours?" (we can understand that question in any language - as well as the 'whoa!' that comes with it) Our kids love the attention so it's been really sweet to watch. We happened upon a little fish vendor at the market who doted on the kids. She had an actual (albeit dead) octopus, which she proceeded to hold up and shake and make loud noises at the kids with. Liam thought it was hysterical and loved the "crazy fish lady." She ended up giving each of the kids dead shrimp/prawns on a skewer. It was a strange, somehow endearing gift, and definitely a hit with the kids. They had fun with them all afternoon.

We spent the rest of the week just hanging out by the pool and playing outside with the dogs that live on the property (they have several labs and one fluffy dog named Baffo – which means mustache).

Can I under-size that please??

We spent all day yesterday at home getting adjusted. Maggie and Noah were both feeling a little under the weather from all the travel, but feel much better today. The villa is fantastic!! Here is a link to the advertisement for the villa, but we'll be posting more pictures as we go.
http://www.tuscanynow.com/Rentals/Villas/Il_Giogo_CardID_4837.aspx
Words can't describe the surrounding scenery. It looks like a postcard for Tuscany on every side and the sunsets are amazing!!

The kids are really enjoying the pool in the back yard and chasing after the local lizards. This morning, Bridget and I went to the local market in San Casciano that takes place on Monday mornings. It's more like a flea market than a produce market - selling everything from underwear to dress shirts, toiletries to leather purses. We were able to pick up some fresh fish and veggies, but most importantly - enjoy the local culture.

We made another trip to the grocery store to pick up a few things we missed the other day. I am amazed at how small everything is in Italy. It doesn't exactly make it easy for a family of our stuture to go shopping. I wasn't expecting to go down the road to Costco (my favorite store) and buy things in bulk, but come on - can I just buy a quart of milk? I'm not even asking for a gallon.....just a quart!! If we 'super-size' everything in America, then they 'under-size' everything over here!

"He blends...you'll never find him"

June 13th

After the kids slept in until 10:00 (that's really, really late for our gang), we headed out for a walking tour around the Duomo. It is truly an amazing sight!!! I can't wait to take the tour in a couple weeks and attend one of the Saturday Masses in English. We grabbed another gelato (do you see a trend here?) and jumped in the car to drive towards our villa.

After making a few wrong turns (including driving right up to someone's house on their private drive), we finally found our driveway. Since we couldn't check in until 4:00pm, we headed into the local town of San Casciano to do some exploring. We played in a local park for a while and then headed to the grocery store to pick up some supplies.

I was told and read that many Italians know English and jump at the opportunity to practice using it. Well, maybe I'm just in the wrong part of Italy because no one is practicing with me. I have yet to have any meaningful conversations with said Italians. My escapades with the locals at the grocery store encapsulate these experiences. I can't even get the guy to give me bags for my groceries!!!

Did you ever see the third Indian Jones movie.....I think it's called the Last Crusade? There's a great scene where Dr. Jones is captured, but his enemies realize that his assistant, Marcus, is still on the loose searching for the Holy Grail. Jones proceeds to tell his captors that "Marcus is fluent in over 30 languages, knowledgeable in local cultures, able blend into any environment.....you'll never find him, he blends!!" The camera fades over to Marcus - standing in a bright white suit in the middle of an Arab market yelling "Does anyone here speak English?". That's how well I 'blend' in Italy :-)