Pandamania- VBS

I had the opportunity to volunteer at the chapel on base during vacation bible school (VBS). I was a member of the Panda Preschoolers. I spent my days with three and four year olds. I had so much fun!! Of course, I ended up catching a cold afterwards from all the little tikes, but I think it was still worth it. Kids really say the darndest things!! I had one little boy who was somewhat attached to my hip you could say. One morning as I walked up he looked at me and said, "Your late, where have you been?" I said, "I was in the back setting up so you can have fun today." His response was a simple, "oh." Then later he proceeded to ask me, "Are you a mom?" My response, "No, I have a husband that's enough for right now." Then he says, "Where is your husband?" My response, "well, he's at work." Then I was asked, "where does he work?" My response, "he works here on post, he's in the Army." The little boy grins and says, "Is he shooting today?" "No, not today" I replied. Then it was back to the mom thing again. "When are you going to be a mom?" Ohh my ohhh my, kids crack me up. He had me rolling the whole time. Oh and another child asked if he could go home with me. They were sweet and funny. It was a good experience for me. On the last day I was interviewed about it by the base's paper. That was quite interesting. :) Haha!

Benvenuti

I was able to participate in a welcome to Italy class. It's called Benvenuti which means "welcome" in Italian. It was a great opportunity to learn more about Italy and meet new people.

Day one consisted of basically a class type setting. We learned things about the base and some information on the Italian culture. We also had a cooking lesson where we were able to not only eat the food, but help fix it. We made a pasta with a pesto-zucchini sauce, bruschetta (which I have discovered the Italians do not pronounce it with the "sh" sound in the middle, it's pronounced "brusketta" with the "k" sound in the middle), fruit salad, and regular salad. Everything was delicious and I look forward to making the dish for Thomas one day.

Day two consisted of a trip to Verona. We weren't able to see everything as planned, but I loved all we were able to see. We saw Juliet's house which had a balcony and a statue of Juliet where it is custom to grab her right boob for good luck. There were too many people in line for that so we weren't able to grab her boob. ;) I will have to go back and do that so I will be blessed with good luck :)  We saw an old roman street and a tomb. The churches and architecture were beautiful. It amazes that people were able to build such wondering structures without the materials and equipment we have these days.

Day three consisted of a bus ride down to downtown Vicenza where we visited the local market. It was at the market that I bought a dress that I was told the style of it was very "in" right now. There were vendors with fresh fruit, fresh meat, fresh veggies, and fresh cheeses. We also went to one of the local grocery stores and did some shopping/browsing.

Day four was supposed to be a trip to Nove and Maristico where we would encounter the "Chicken Man" who has a furniture store and a ceramics store. The story behind the "Chicken Man" is that chickens would sometimes randomly be in drawers, etc. and would pop out from time to time. However, I overslept and missed this part of the class!! Ugh, I was very annoyed. I will just have to go on my own one day.


I'm glad I was able to experience this. I met some nice people, learned a lot, and saw some amazing sites.

Ciao!

Little Reminders

Everyday I fall more in love with the views that surround me. I love it when the mountains are clear and you can see all the ridges and some of the towns. It's so beautiful and I never get tired of it. I miss home and my family, but the mountains make me think of them. We've taken several trips to the mountains over the years and my family loves them. Another reminder I have of my family is the church bells that ring every hour in our neighborhood. I think of a certain mountain trip we took. It was a lovely day in the mountains and me, my mom, and aunt were sitting outside. All of a sudden this bell like sound began to chime. Immediately, my mom and aunt were in heaven saying, "Oh, how wonderful that we can hear church bells." They were so excited that there was a church close by ringing it's bells. To their dismay, it was the cabin's doorbell. My dad was pressing it and it sounded a tad like church bells. Needless to say, it is a story that will live on and be laughed at for many years. But, anyway, s0 everyday when I hear the church bells and see the mountains I think of my family and how much they would enjoy it. Especially the authentic church bells. ;) Ciao!

Holes in the ground and roses for the loved. This is Italy.

Italy gives new experiences constantly. I am getting to the point that nothing should surprise me anymore. I went out to eat with a friend. It was imperative that I find a place to pop a squat and relieve myself. Little did I know how literally I would be popping a squat. My friend was kind enough to warn me that this particular restaurant had a squatty potty. Of course, after I used it and she saw my reaction to the squatty potty she wished she had left it as a surprise. But, basically it was a hole in the ground. To assume the position you pop a squat. I'm pretty sure for those who are elderly or have bad legs this could present to be a challenge. However, it is less to touch so at least they won't catch as many germs. Of course, if you can't squat and accidentally fall this would sort of defeat the purpose of being less exposed to germs as you would be sitting in this huge hole in the ground. But, nevertheless, it was definitely one of those experiences that I will never forget. 

Italian men have no shame. If they find you attractive in any way they will make it known. I have heard this, but had never actually experienced first hand. As I walked back from the bathroom, I thought I noticed a group of Italian men look towards me and say hello, but I just brushed it off thinking I imagined it. I didn't. Next thing I know they are buying two roses from one of those really annoying guys who comes around asking if you want to buy a rose. My friend and I were both presented with a rose followed by a declaration of love... "Senora I love you!" Thankfully we had finished eating already. On that interesting note it was time to go home. 

Never a dull moment in Italia. Ciao! 

An Army Sort of Morning

As most of us know, the Army hours are far from convenient or perfect. They typically don't leave on time and it's usually at odd hours or what most of us would consider odd and tortuous hours to be up. Thomas has left for training and will be gone for several days. Our morning first started with me tossing and turning and not being able to sleep at all. I kept thinking of things I meant to do or ask him before he left. I kept thinking of things I needed to add to a list and felt myself getting hotter by the minute. No, not menopause, just probably thinking too much. The alarm awoke us at 445 am. Now, this isn't unusual by any means. The part that was unusual and tortuous was the fact that normally I sleep at night and I don't typically get up when he does. We decided to just keep his car here while he's gone, so I was his chauffeur. Once we were actually leaving, it was around this time that my body decided it was time to go to bed. I got Thomas dropped off and everything feeling like a zombie. As I got out of my car and saw all the abundance of sun that Italy gives every morning, I found myself feeling a little more awake at an hour I should not be awake. This awakeness made me not want to go back to sleep, but at the same time I knew very well that it would hit me at some point. And it did. I decided since I was awake to make myself some breakfast. It was during my early morning breakfast that it hit. I barely finished it before I was cuddled up on the couch falling fast asleep. The rain that immediately began pouring did not help with waking me up. It helped with making me sleep that much more soundly. I have now forced myself to get up. I'm pretty sure I could have slept clear into the afternoon. The rain has stopped and the sun is trying to come out. I now have an important date with a pot of Community Coffee. Until next time, Ciao!

Narrow Roads and Fast Cars.

I finally have a brand new USED car! ;) It's a 2004 silver Pontiac Grand Am. The important detail to know is that it is an automatic. Automatic vehicles are so hard to come by around here. Everybody seems to want them, but there aren't many available. We had quite a busy week trying to even get this car. We bought it and went through days of trying to get the registration and switching of deeds. Finally yesterday it was final and it was time for me to begin my Italian driving experience. The first thing I realized was not even off base, it was in the PX parking lot. This car is definitely bigger than my little beetle bug. There was no wizzing into the skinny parks like in previous parking encounters. It took a whole lot of pulling up, backing up, pulling up, and backing up. It also didn't help that the car beside me decided to park crooked in his park. I finally made it into the park and out of the park. Then I was off for my first drive home.

Apparently, the speed limit isn't observed here. Thomas said that was  one of the things he could see from his car that I was having difficulty with. Cars zoomed around me. 

If you didn't already know, the roads here are very narrow. A two-way road looks like it's made for one lane of cars. Last thing Thomas noticed that I had trouble with was I sort of "hugged" the right side of the road a little too much. Cars would zoom by and it felt like they were right next to me.

It was definitely quite an experience, but overall, I think I did okay and so did Thomas. I made sure to have him give me some tips. ;) Now, I haven't quite made it to the heart of Vicenza or the Autostrada, but maybe there's hope? All I need to do is get used to narrow roads, fast cars, and a bigger car. Yeah, apparently my car has a bigger engine than Thomas's. This had made my car the "primary" vehicle. He said he feels emasculated. :) Bahahahaha!!!

Our New Addition

We have welcomed a new addition into our home. I guess you could say we have adopted. She is already grown some, but is still not full grown. With a little tender love and care we hope to raise her to beautiful and fruitful. She is a little skinny, but has blossomed already. She loves to spend time outdoors and loves it when we give her water on a hot day. She is not a child or a pet. She is a lemon tree and all ours. We couldn't be happier. 

                  AND WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE...!!


                                                   wait for it...
                                                  

                                                  wait...for..it..

          SHES ALREADY HAD A LITTLE BUNDLE OF JOY!!!

Just another quirky blog from yours truly,

Ciao!