Welcome our sleepy little Vincent!

As I look at my sleepy baby, I am so amazed at God’s goodness and in awe of His handiwork.  The miracle of life is just that, a miracle!  I always knew I wanted to be a wife and mother, little did I know I would be a wife to a man of such character and strength (seriously, have you seen his arms?!) and mother to 3 beautiful children!  Adding the 5^th member of our family was a well thought out and discussed decision and I cannot wait to see who he becomes!  He already has such expression in the faces (and noises) he makes, I’m certain he will add more wild adventure to our lives.  The road will not always be easy, there is no doubt.  If it is really true that history repeats itself, I anticipate moments like this…

And this will probably happen during what was supposed to be naptime…

Along with Brady and Juliette, Vincent will spend his early moments of life in Sicily seeing the orange groves filled with the bright oranges.  He will hear the church bell chimes filling the air, marking the time passing each day.  He will smell the delights of what our neighbors are cooking for lunch.  He will feel the love and acceptance of our community welcoming these foreigners into their lives!  This will be all he knows, this will be his home. 

There will be many things Vincent will need to learn and lucky for him, he has a big brother and sister who can show him so many things.  Juliette will be able to teach him many things about her first love…

Pasta!  How to swirl the noodles in the bowl to get optimum cheese coverage, how to dip the bread in the empty bowl to soak up the bits of goodness left behind, and how to fit several servings into his belly. 

and she will teach him about cuddles, puzzles, and how she loves to play!

Brady, with his wild imagination, will show him the proper way to play dress up…

 

Just like he taught his sister...

Playing "Grown-ups"

How to draw and paint, and perhaps more importantly, how to create figures out of play dough then leave them out to dry.  Brady will also be able to teach him how to look a year in advance for gifts he would want to get for a birthday or Christmas present.  

 

Our family is nowhere near perfect and we get a lot of things wrong.

There are tantrums…

And we get angry…

But, through it all,

We do dessert really well…

We celebrate life…

and we get excited…

We grow and learn, but most of all, we love.  It started with just 2 of us...

And our love grew a little more with our sweet Brady...

 Even more still with our "moose" Juliette...

 

and our hearts are full!  Welcome, our sleepy little Vincent!

Let us introduce you to this thing we call life.  We will love you, care for you, do our very best for you, and inevitably, say things our parents said to us (that we swore we would never say).  We are honored to get the chance to raise you and support you as you become the person God created you to be!

Carnivale in Acireale, 2013

Festivals are year round here in Sicily.  Most nights you can hear fireworks exploding from towns all around us.  In February, there is a particular festival called Carnivale that is similar to the American Halloween festivities.  Children dress in extravagant costumes and parades with intricate floats roam the city streets.  This year Greg was back in the States, so along with a friend, my kids and I loaded up and we were off for an adventure in Acireale.  My primary concern was parking.  Italian streets are not known for being, well, car friendly much less when many cars are involved.  Thankfully, we found a spot easy to load in and out of with just a short walk to the parade route. 

 

On the way down, we purchased a couple bags of confetti the kids use to throw at the floats, or at each other, or at me… or basically whatever or whoever is around!  We plant ourselves in a spot that is clear of people all round us.  Not 5 minutes later, we were bombarded by teenagers and a large group of nuns.  The entire block was clear and the entire block across from us was clear, so apparently we found the best spot and it was necessary for everyone to crowd around us.  Or maybe we are just that cool.

We cross the street and begin to be passed by some extraordinary floats!  

 

 

 

 

 

The kids had a blast throwing the confetti and we even met up with a couple of other friends.  After meandering through the venders, finding a booth filled with olive wood wares, and buying lighted swords (that I didn’t realize until it was way too late that they played obnoxious music), we made our way back to the car.

Now, I had the kids in a sit ‘n stand stroller and it was all good going downhill toward the festival.  On the way back, however, uphill with a 1,000 lbs stroller and 2 giant kids (that’s how it felt anyways), I just about died.  Exercise isn’t my thing but totally worth it for the great time we had!

**Special thanks to my friend Rebecca for several of these pictures