Buon Compleanno America!

Happy Birthday America!

We had a beautiful time at the Fourth of July celebration on base.  The fireworks show was pretty awesome! I love it when the fireworks are choreographed to music.  And it is always fun to view the fireworks through the eyes of an 11 year old.  We are lucky to have Addy with us for most of the summer.

I am looking forward to showing her all of the new things we have discovered since she was here last year. It is hard to believe we have been in Italy a whole year!  Time has just flown by.  I am amazed at all of the friends and experiences I have had in this fast year.  It is also PCS season.  For those that don't have the "Alphabet Soup" glossary of the military, PCS stands for Permanent Change of Station.  In English it means that their time here in Italy is over and they are moving to a new post.  So friends that I have made are moving on....such is the norm in military life, I guess.

We are lucky enough in the social media age to be able to keep in touch much better.  I know that Facebook gets a bad rap sometimes, but it is a godsend to me to be able to keep in touch with friends and family all around the globe.  And it keeps me in the know about what is going on here in Italy.

We have a busy summer planned.  Addy has specifically requested to see Pompeii, so that is definitely on the list.  We have a murder mystery scheduled in Verona...a 700 year old mystery tour. The local festivals are in full swing and we plan to see what the towns do for their sagras. We already took her to Asiago and I believe she tried every cheese in the factory.  She is quite the formaggio aficionado. What else is better on fresh made pasta???  And we are turning her into the food snobs that we have become!

I knew food was delicious here, but I didn't realize just how spoiled we have become.  That is until we went home for a visit.  We are so used to fresh foods, with little or no preservatives.  I buy our meat at the local butcher shop, our fruits and vegetables at the local shop near the house (I even have a frequent buyer card that I get stamped every time I spend 10 euros), bread from the bakery on the corner and of course wine, from the local wine guy.  And I found the local cheese coop, just around the roundabout from the house. Shopping is done every few days in Italy, because if you don't eat it, it goes bad.


When we got back to the states, we did try to choose healthy food.  Ok, maybe PF Changs doesn't qualify as healthy, but we did try to steer clear of fast food and junk.  Even with being cognizant of our food choices, we both ended up with upset stomachs after less than one week.  Now, that is not to say that all of the food was bad, quite the contrary.  The steamed crabs lived up to my expectations and then some!

We traveled home to see Payton graduate from high school!  What a proud moment!  I know that Craig is wrestling with the fact that his daughter is old enough to be going to college and how quickly the time has flown.  After graduation we traveled to Ocean City for a fun filled week at the beach!  Oh, how I love the beach!  It was so nice to have a set place to stay and the weather cooperated for us beautifully!

For those that travel home for trips, it can be exhausting trying to see everyone that wants to see you. Typically there is a lot of "we have to go here" and "we have to go there".  We opted for "this is where we will be, come by and see us".  It makes for a much more relaxing time.  We had quite the revolving door of friends and family come by and it was great to see everyone.  It was so nice to catch up with everyone and what a welcome change to just be able to sit on the beach and have conversations.  No electronics to interfere with real face time!


We got our seafood fix, steamed crabs, soft crabs, crab cakes.....notice a theme?  Then of course, there were Thrasher's french fries.  I do feel sorry for people that never get to experience them, just the smell on the boardwalk makes me crave them!  There is a new favorite, Old Bay Cheese Curls....I see a care package in my future!! And there is not much better people watching than on the boardwalk....good and bad!  Really makes me wonder if some people don't have mirrors in their houses!












Returning back to Italy, was bitter sweet.  We love it here but we miss our family and friends.  We are hoping for lots of visitors!  Late summer, my mom and aunt will be coming over to visit.  We are definitely looking forward to that.  I see a cooking class in our future.

We are definitely living La Bella Vita here.  We hope everyone has a delightful and safe summer.  Spend time talking, put away the electronics, enjoy food, family and fun!  Life is short, enjoy it while you can! Oh, and come visit!!!

Felice Estate &
Ciao for now!

Buongiorno!

Hello,

It has been a while since I have blogged.  I was looking at my last post of Christmas and the gift of time.  It is a bittersweet read for me now, for what I wouldn't give for a little more time with loved ones!

When Craig and I embarked upon this journey, one of the many discussions we had was the difficulty of leaving family and friends for such an extended time.  We knew that inevitably there would be "goodbyes" that would be permanent; that there perhaps would be people that we would never get to see again.  I thought that I had prepared myself for that.  I had run through a number of scenarios in my head to feebly try and prep myself for those possibilities.

We made it through the holidays and were looking forward to hosting friends and family in the coming months.  I had my calendar all prepared and was ready to play hostess to friends in March, Craig's parents in April and my parents in May.  Excited, doesn't even begin to describe how I felt.  

Unfortunately, I got the midnight message that no one wants.  My step-father, Dave had a stroke and was in the hospital.  I prayed for good news....and then the phone call came...."I've got bad news".  My heart broke.  There is no amount of planning or prep, long or short that eases the shock and pain of the death of your loved one.  This wasn't supposed to happen to a young healthy man!

My sisters and I got lucky.  After my father passed away in 1976, my mother brought a wonderful man into our lives.  He came in wearing braces and driving an old VW bug.....and he was young! Ten years younger than my mom....she was an early cougar!  I never quite understood what he was thinking (maybe he wasn't) getting involved with a woman with 3 teenage daughters.  It was not a role for the faint hearted, but he stepped up to the role.  

I have never been a fan of the "step" parent moniker.  It seems to diminish the role.  I will say, that Dave "stepped" in, the best way possible.  He expanded our family and brought 2 adorable boys to our household of girls.  He was the best combination of adviser, friend, parent and role model!  He fathered me and my sisters for over 35 years and did an amazing job.  He was never obtrusive, but had the innate ability to come forward when needed and was always steady and strong in the background.

He taught me to drive a stick shift, something I never truly appreciated until I tried to teach it.  I called him after that to let him know that I never quite thanked him enough for the whiplash he must have suffered from so many of my stall outs.  He cheered me on at graduations and I'm sure took pride in my A's in economics. No one could teach "diminishing marginal return" like he could.  He walked me down the aisle....on more than one occasion! And he let me cry on his shoulder after my husband died.  

He wasn't one to show too many emotions, wasn't comfortable in crowds, but I knew that I could give him a look and a wink and nothing needed to be said. His laughter could fill up a room and although he was never one to look for the spotlight, he always had a good story.  He was a rock....steady and reliable.  I knew that he was always there, whether I had boyfriend troubles, needed a ride or need help getting rid of a tree...Dave was there. Men would come and go from my life, but Dave was always there....I never imagined that he wouldn't always be there!

It has been a little over a month since that phone call.  The stages of grief are a rocky road.  Anger is a big one - why us?  Hasn't this family had enough deaths?  Weren't we due a break?  Couldn't we have a bye this round?  I am trying to work my way through to Acceptance, but it is a difficult road.  I loved the man that fathered me, even when he wasn't required to.  I am grateful to have had such a wonderful example of how to be the best "step" parent. My heart aches for the loss that I feel, but I am trying to focus on the "silver lining"...I had a wonderful father for my first 12 years and a wonderful man who "stepped up" to be my father for the last 35.  Not many girls get 2 great dads!

My apologies for the sadness of this post; I just needed to do it.  I hope you, too, will see the silver linings in things, even when it is difficult.  Father's Day is approaching, give the gift of time....it is the greatest gift you can give!

Ciao for now!