Family Pictures from October 2010

High time I shared these, eh? This was the first time we had professionally taken family photos, and I am so very very glad that we did.

As you can see, H1 was, and continues to be, the star of the show.

...exactly what I was thinking.

Before heading downstairs this morning for breakfast:


K1: Should we have cereal for breakfast? Or make some oatmeal?

W1: Let's have ice cream!


Tempting. Very tempting.

Badia a Passignano, Italy

While in Tuscany, we rented a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom converted stone barn for a week. It was perfect. Centrally located between Florence and Siena, on the outskirts of a tiny village.


The couple who own it are from Australia originally, but they have lived in Italy since the 1970's.


The farmhouse and barn are right next to each other, bordered on one side by the road and on three sides by an olive grove.


It had everything we needed; a kitchen for creating tasty meals,


steps for H1 to practice on,


flowers for W1 to pick and tuck behind his ear...



It was olive pressing season while we were staying there, and the owner brought us some freshly pressed olive oil. Delicious.

R1 took W1 and L1 walking through the grove and found them each a pruned olivewood branch to carve into a walking stick. Did it fit in our suitcase for the airplane ride home? No. Did we fold up our stroller and shove the sticks into the middle to sneak them on the airplane? Yep.

One lazy day, we took a walk around the countryside.


We were following some vague directions to a lake. It was rainy, muddy, and beautiful.



Somewhere we missed a turn, but followed some dirt (mud) tracks down to a pond that we think was above the lake we intended to reach.


We decided to call that good, and headed back up the hill. By the time we arrived back at the farmhouse, we were wet and muddy up to our knees.

W1 and L1 declared it a fantastic hike.

Like fish to water.

Today was a gorgeous day. Sunny, with at least a foot of fresh snow on the ground. R1 skipped out of work early and we all headed up to our favorite sledding hill. I say favorite, but we have only been there once before. Perhaps I should say nearest?


When we were almost through (i.e. H1 was turning into an icicle), W1 declared that he wanted to go highest and fastest. Partway down the highest and fastest run on this hill someone braver than us had built a jump. W1 plopped right down on the sled and took off. We assume he didn't know what he was getting into.



Sometimes, having no fear for your own safety really pays off.

Florence: Duomo, Uffizi

The majority of our second day in Florence was spent at the Duomo and the Uffizi gallery. I had seen pictures of the Duomo in guidebooks, but I was amazed at the beautiful pink, white and green marble facade. It is so different from all other cathedrals I have seen.




The main bronze doors of the cathedral.


After the gorgeous exterior, I was a little disappointed in the interior.


Impressive in scale, but not as ornate as I was assuming it would be.


The Baptistery with it's fantastic "Gates of Paradise".



The Uffizi Gallery.

W1 and L1 spent their time in the gallery parked on a bench watching Toy Story 3 on the ipod, while R1 and I took turns looking at the art. It worked out rather well.

On the rooftop of the gallery, we recharged with chocolate and a glimpse at the Florence skyline.

A kind stranger offered to take our picture, and we managed one good shot before H1 ran off, L1 announced he had to use the toilet, and W1 turned and started chasing the pigeon.

Ah, Florence

Whenever we travel somewhere new, I always wish we had more time to explore. That is definitely true of Florence. We only spent two days there, which was barely enough time to hit some of the highlights. There are many museums, churches, and squares that I would love to go back and see. (And more gelato I would love to eat...).

The first day, we parked our rental car, and walked into the city center. Past the old city wall and in through the gate.

With a city as ancient as this one, every view and every turn is picturesque.

The building styles are so different, and much older than what we are used to.

Coming from London, which is a city of shades of gray, we noticed that the palette of Italy is entirely earthtones. Including the river Arno.


The city center is full of narrow, windy streets.


Lined with shops, the most important (to me) were the gelaterias.


We took every chance we could to stop and eat gelato.


Wandering along the narrow streets, we would turn a corner and be surprised by a large open square.


Filled with sculptures, fountains, and people.


Beautiful during the day, Florence is even more stunning at night.