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!

First stop: Salerno, Italy and a snapshot of the Amalfi Coast

The car was packed (it was organized too until we were in the car for about 5 minutes) and we were off for a 2 week driving extravaganza!  After driving up to Messina, we boarded the car ferry that took us across to Calabria.  This was the first long day of driving and quite frankly I was concerned about how it was going to turn out.  It turned out to be no trouble at all!  Could it possibly be true that we were all going to survive this vacation?!  It was a beautiful drive and it was clear that driving through Italy and France was going to be a feast for our eyes.

Of course, a gas station stop must include ice cream!

 

I wanted to go to the Amalfi coast.  I had heard how beautiful it was and didn’t want to leave Italy without visiting.  I had also heard many times over that people with motion sickness would have a hard time managing keeping breakfast down with all the winding roads.  I felt like I had prepared myself for this and was going to enjoy our time.  We made it to Salerno, Italy a town just before entering the coastline drive and settled in to our hotel with a fabulous view.

 

We took a walk through this charming town while waiting for restaurants to open for dinner. 

 

I love these tiles with the painted scenes! 

 

 

Tiny door!  My friend found the smallest door I've ever seen in Sicily, so I got excited when I found a small door too!

 

After the kids finished dinner, they played in the piazza while Greg and I sat at our table enjoying watching the children from a distance!

At this point I would offer an entire post to the drive along the Amalfi coast, but we didn’t make it very far.  I thought I had prepared myself for the curves but I think all of the stories got into my head.  I was scared before we even left the hotel parking lot.  We curved and turned and I was managing OK until Juliette said she was going to be sick.  I get sick and nervous when a family member feels ill, so that set me off.  I panicked and just wanted off the road as soon as possible.

 

My only picture from the drive along the coast.  Sad but true.

 

Just before we reached the town of Amalfi, we took a road that took us off of the coast and wound us through the mountains. 

 

 

It was once again a beautiful drive and we eventually found ourselves overlooking the city of Naples.  Pompeii here we come! 

 

 

 

Segesta

On our second day in San Vito we ventured out to Segesta.  The ride was breathtaking views of farmland and tree covered hills.  Every time we explore our island I am taken with all the beauty.  People complain about living here and are quick to mention "it's not Tuscany."  This is true, however, Sicily is beautiful and charming in its own way.  Our favorite guidebook describes Sicily as "well-preserved decay" which I think is most appropriate.  Anyways, I digress.  On to Segesta we go!

 

 

The temple was started in 424 BC, but was never completed.

 

 

 

We boarded a bus and took a short ride to the top of a hill near the temple to view some other ruins.  We made our way to the ampitheater and oh the view!  We sat down for a quick snack and made sure we were back down to catch the bus on time.

 

 

 

 

 

Across the island to Cefalu

The views in Sicily change dramatically as you drive across the island.  Scenic rock beach views, to citrus groves, wide open farmland, vineyards, marble quarries, over to sandy beaches.  All of it is charming and beautiful.

 

 

For the long Memorial Day weekend, we hit the road across the island with our first stop in the town of Cefalu.  What a beautiful town it was!  A beach town with aqua and bright blue water, shops filled with pottery and various gifts, laundry hanging across the narrow streets, and vibrant flowers spilling off of balconies.    

We had seen on a Rick Steve’s video when he had visited Cefalu, he had eaten a fish baked in a thick salt crust, so we were on a mission to find a restaurant that served this kind of fish dish.  We wandered the streets reading menu after menu with no luck.  Finally we asked someone and were told a restaurant just up the hill would have it.  Umm, negative.  However, we didn’t read the menu before being seated, so we were stuck.  Turns out that even though the sought after fish wasn’t on the menu, our meal was absolutely fantastic!  We devoured every crumb!

After lunch, we headed out to take a look at the church and a much needed gelato break! 

 

After making our way back to the car, we were bound for San Vito Lo Capo!  The ride was smooth sailing until I spotted one of the only olive wood venders we’ve seen on the island (the other was at the Carnivale festival).  A friend had given me GPS coordinates for this roadside display situated in a scenic overlook, so I was on a serious lookout mission!  Thankfully Greg was with me, so together we spent A LOT of money (as opposed to me spending the money and him being informed about it later).  Our car was already packed ceiling high with bags tucked around the kid’s carseats, so finding places to stash cutting boards, bowls, serving pieces, ect., was no small feat.  I ended up riding the rest of the way to San Vito with wood packed around my feet and on my lap.  Totally worth it!