Arrrgh...hAppY HalLoWeEn!

Pumpkin Patch

Here are some pictures from our afternoon at Chesterfield Berry Farm last weekend. 

First Day of School

 How do you like that pose!?

Europe...FINALLY!

Blogging has definitely taken a backseat this summer.  It's high time I get back into the swing of things.  I have a lot of catching up to do.  I'll start with our trip to Europe this summer.

In honor of my mother's 70th birthday (I know...she doesn't look or act like a 70 year old, but it's true - I hope I am blessed with her genes) we took a Mediterranean cruise to Italy, Greece, and Croatia.  Dear friends of ours, and another mother-daughter pair went with us. 

 

 

We all met at JFK and took a direct flight to Venice, Italy.  We arrived there at 11am, and exhausted, and trekked our luggage through the cobblestone alleys and over bridges through the city to our hotel.  Since there are no roads, taking a taxi or bus was out of the question.  On our way back to their airport we were smart enough to take a water taxi!  We explored the city by foot, ate, drank, and just had a wonderful time.

 

Our hotel was delightful.  A quaint, quiet, and WARM place, with no elevator.  Are we spoiled or what! 

The following day, we leisurely made our way to the cruise ship (by water taxi) and prepared to embark on a truly unforgettable trip.

Our first stop was Bari, Italy.  We toured the Old Town on our own.  The Old Town was a quaint town  filled with narrow, winding streets lined with old 2-3 story apartment buildings adorned with beautiful, colorful flower-filled windowboxes and laundry hanging to dry from the balconies. Just outside the curtain covered "door", an older woman would typically be sitting on a metal kitchen chair smoking a cigarette and watching the passersby.  What amazed, and frightened, us were the speeding motorcycles, small vehicles, and bicyclists that all shared the narrow streets with no apparent concern for the other.  There seemed to be no "right of way" and it was scary to watch them speed around the winding streets.

 

We spent the following day at sea on our way to Pireus (Athens), Greece.

Athens was just as amazing as I expected it to be.  Ahead of time, we had hired a private tour of the city, which I highly recommend.  It was so strange to be standing on the street or sidewalk and see a modern apartment building on one side, and the remainder of an ancient temple on the other. THe city was filled with excavators trying to uncover ruins and learn more about the ancient Greek way of life.  Climbing up to the Acropolis, one couldn't help but think, in awe, about how on earth the ancient Greeks maneuvered the marble and stone all the way to the top to build the Parthenon and other temples up there.  The Parthenon was under construction, but just UNBELIEVABLE.  Definitely one of my favorite sites!

 

Olympic Stadium

 

Then we were off to Corfu, Greece which is a common European vacation spot.  Our tour guide drove us around the island, which allowed us to see ordinary life amidst grapevines and olive groves.  Corfu was home to the most beautiful, clear, turquois water I've ever seen.

 

Next stop: Dubrovnik, Croatia

We "walked the Wall" that surrounded the Old Town.  It was H.O.T, but allowed the most breathtaking views of the city and Adriatic Sea.  Because the city was built in the mountains, everything was a climb!

 

We rode this cable car to the top of the mountain.

 

Sadly, this marked the end of our cruise, but boy, did we have a lot of fun on that ship!

We returned to Venice for another night and saved the best for last!  We took a gondola ride and were even able to lure our gondolier into serenading us.

 

 

What a once-in-a-lifetime trip.  Happy Birthday Mom!

 

Wordless Wednesday

Birthday Party

For this year's "Camping" party, we had ten (yes, 10) 7-8 year olds over for some camping related fun.

First, the boys had to "Jump the River".  If they fell in, they got wet (we squirted them with water bottles)!

 

Watch out for the bugs!  A game of "Bug Bites" (traditional tag with bug stickers)

What fun is camping without a Scavenger Hunt?

Dinner time!

Some Camping BINGO!

Note: I made ten of these stools from PVC piping to put around the firepit.  They were super easy!

S'MORES!

and then a game of Flashlight Tag once it got "dark".

Before they left, they each child made their own trail mix to take home and got a "s'more for later"

 

I think the boys all had a great time.  I know I was pooped!

8

It's going to take me a while to get used to saying that.  It just seems so OLD.  How can I have an eight year old?

In honor of my sweet boy's birthday...

Eight Things I Love About You

(although there are so many more)...

• Your infectious laughter.  You have such a goofy, all boy, sense of humor and it's not hard to make you laugh - and when you get started it's hard to get you to stop!  You love to be tickled and I love to listen to you being tickled.
• Your sweet, sensitive soul.  You have become such an empathetic person.  You think about how your actions will effect others and many of the things you do (or don't do) are a reflection of that.  You show such compassion toward animals.  When you are around, we need to be sure to carefully release unwanted bugs and spiders to safety (rather than killing them which I am more inclined to do!)     
• Your self-confidence.  You continue to amaze me each time you volunteer to get in front of a crowd whether it be to participate in a game or skit at church, play an instrument or help a speaker at school, sing karaoke at an unknown place, the list goes on.  You have no problem getting up in front of others, which is something I have always struggled with.
• Your friendliness.  You can strike up a conversation with a-n-y-o-n-e!  We lovingly refer to you at "the Mayor" because (just like your dad) you  can literally talk to anyone, anywhere, about anything at all!  It could be the cashier at the grocery store, a random fellow shopper, another male in the bathroom, a passer-by on the street, etc.  Elderly people, young people, classmates, teachers, babies, you name it!  You make friends so easily.  Within minutes of arriving at a park, you have introduced yourself and joined another boy or group of boys to play.
•  Your love for your sister. The two of you are very close, which is a wonderful thing.  Although you know how to push her buttons, for the most part, you want to be around her.  You stand up for her when she's being treated unfairly or unkindly, and want to make sure she's being taken care of.  You immediately take her side when someone has made her cry (you even get upset with Daddy and me when we punish her)
• Your endless energy.  How do you do it?  I would be wealthy if I could find a way to bottle up some of your energy and sell it.  You are on the move from the moment you get up until the moment you go to bed.
• Your sweet, snuggly side.  Always at bedtime, and occastionally other times, you snuggle up real close to me.  You tell me how much you love me and smother me with kisses.  My favorite is when you tell me that I am so cute you can't even stand it! 
•  Your intelligence.  You are such a bright child with an eagerness to learn new things.  You are very inquisitive and like to find out how things work. 

I love you sweet boy...each and every ounce of you!

Puerta Vallarta

Birthday Week was a little different year. We spent the week childless, in bathing suits, relaxing in lounge chairs, surrounded by lush green palm trees, and spending time with dear friends. Yes, this is the view from our condo at Villa La Estancia in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico.  Breathtaking, right?

This trip is just what Matt and I needed.  With Matt's new job consuming most of his time, we've barely had time to catch up.  As soon as the kids were tucked in, I was pooped and had little energy to wait up for him. This trip rejuvinated us, and allowed us time to catch up and spend some quality time together.

This guy was crawling along behind me as I sat in my lounge chair at the pool

Monday evening we took a cab into the small quaint town of Bucerias, right on Banderas Bay.  The locals set up tables selling their wares in the courtyard just to the left of where we are taking this picture from.  At the far end, booths lined the streets, with more vendors.  This is where we picked up our souveniers. Luckily, many of them knew the US Dollar to Peso conversion and were able to give us accurate prices - which of course were negotiable.  Thank goodness for Matt, because negotiating is not.my.thing.  (Actually, Doug was the expert.)

 The sunsets were the most beautiful I've ever seen.  Our camera doesn't even come close to capturing the true magnificence of them.

Chiveros on the Beach...on.the.beach...literally. Our feet were in the sand. We enjoyed our dinner by candlelight once the sun set.

 Tuesday...my birthday!  We spent the morning at the pool.  Matt took this picture from our balcony.  Sally, Doug, and I are the three people in the lounge chairs by the pool.

I was pleasantly surprised when our favorite pool butler, Juan Jose a.k.a. "JJ" and his buddies strolled up banging dishes and singing "Happy Birthday" to me.  They had a piece of cheesecake with basil, yes basil, ice cream for me.  We all wondered if basil ice cream is truly authentic Mexican or whether they just tossed some leftover basil into some vanilla ice cream and mixed it up :)

Then we headed out for a half day trip Whale Watching.  On the plane, a woman sat next to us who visits Puerta Vallarta often and she recommended taking a whale watching trip.  Our intial plan was not to leave the property and spend the entire week relaxing at the resort.  But she really enticed us!  Apparently, humpback whales make the trip from the waters of Alaska to Bandares Bay each year from December to March to mate and birth their young.  I must admit, we were a little apprehensive when we saw the size of the boat we would be taking out into the Pacific...see it below!  Yep, it's like a blow up raft!

This guy must've been really trying to impress a female, or us, because he continually performed for us!  A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

Then we went out to Mezzogiorno for an Italian dinner.  Yes, even the Mexicans can cook Italian!  Our food was delicious, but the view and company really made it extra special.

(And, yes, contrary to what the pictures portray we all wore sunscreen and reapplied regularly!)

 This was one of our favorite spots.  This hot tub was right on the Bay and adjacent to a fire pit.  We enjoyed a few fruity drinks in here, wathcing the sunset wondering how on Earth we could ever explain this to anyone.

The rest of the week we did more of the same...relaxing, reading, talking, swimming, walking, eating, repeat!  WOW!

What a wonderful, wonderful trip! 

This is definitely one birthday I will never forget!