Living in Munchkinland

Yesterday we drove about half an hour in a new direction to Citta di Castello. We visited a gorgeous museum and saw some great frescos and art including a famous Raphael paintin, though the religious depictions of saints being tortured made Davis a bit uncomfortable. Our kids spent the whole time at the museum as their alter egos, "whiney mcwhiner" and "endless questions" and both kids ended up in a huge fit so we didn't finish the museum and instead headed for the nearest gelateria for ice cream. Michael got a bit frustrated, but after a break, the kids calmed down and we moved on to an old farmhouse museum. The kids were interested even thought it was very hot by then it was getting close to lunch time. We found it interesting as well to see how they lived hundreds of years ago. We came home for lunch and then headed straight to the pool where the kids played with their new best friend, Big Sam. After a couple of hours Big sam's parents and Michael a

Another long, fun filled dinner last night. We are making good friends here. we had an eggplant appetizer, a vodka, sausage pasta dish, saltimbocca and then grandmother's cake. Michael and I managed not to get too boozed up this time by alternating each glass of wine with a glass of water. When we got back to the room I chatted with my mom and dad on the phone. They are having a great time in Spain. the kids woke up way too early this morning and that combined with the fact that Davis didn't fall asleep till ten has made him feel and act a bit rough today. Still, we've had a good day. We spent the morning in Sansepolcro at their weekly market. I bought some truffles and the kids got some water guns for the pool and Michael got a very fine pair of black Italian shoes at a great shop near the market. this is what he has been wanting as his souvenir from Europe and we were happy to find a pair he loves. WE poked around in an old church and walked through the walled c

This morning the kids woke up early and we put a movie on for the and dozed for another hour. The family style dinners here don't end until 11, but the kids still wake up around 6:30. After we finally got up we had a quick breakfast and loaded into the car for an adventure into the Italian countryside. WE drove into Anghieri (about 15 minutes away) knowing nothing much about it except for the fact that there were supposed to be spectacular views of the Tiber River valley. We first stopped at a playground above the city overlooking the valley. Then we drove down a beautiful narrow street city that led straight into the valley and was surrounded on both sides by a medieval village. the town is in the middle of a festival celebrating their great battle of 1440. It was decked out in banners and their were flowers everywhere. We bough postcards, toured a museum of the history of the Tiber River and went to a wine shop where we tasted and purchased some Italian wines. We also f

I'm in heaven. this place is pretty much perfect. Yesterday we sat on a hill with the children playing with new friends below, a gorgeous sweeping valley below and a glass of wine and my kindle by my side. the kids went right to bed after the children's supper and our evening grown up meal was fabulous. We had four courses and the wine flowed. almost everyone here is British and it is so fun to talk with everyone and learn about how they do things. Our second story apartment is framed with jasmine growing up the walls and the smell drifts in through the open windows in the evening. today I asked the boys what they would like to do today and they told me they would just like to stay here and not travel. so that is what we are doing. We spent the morning playing with friends at the tube slide and dressing up in costumes from the costume box in the toy room. We had another amazing lunch and then we spent three hours at the pool which has a trampoline on one side and a sand

Yesterday we went in search of boulders to climb. we were unsuccessful though we managed to convince the kids that a few big rocks were boulders..They were underwhelmed. Then we went out for a fantastic French lunch in Fontainebleau at an old house called el Patton. we had three courses and it took two hours. We ate on the terrace and the kids played In the garden. After lunch we packed up the car and drove to the Fontainebleau train station where we dropped off the car and took a train to Paris. there we rook a taxi to a different train station and after a forty minute delay, boarded our overnight train to Florence, Italy. we had our own little compartment with sliding door, Harry Potter style. We ate a yucky sandwich and pringles washed down by a nice rose we smuggled in. then we converted our seats to bunk beds and tried to convince the kids to sleep. this took a couple of hours but eventually we all slept until about 7AM. This was the hard part of the trip. Michael has m

Yesterday at breakfast, we all decided to go on a day trip. I looked on line for medieval castles and found the ancient city of proving was only an hour away. Proving is a UNESCO world heritage site and is an old city that still functions that you can tour. there is an old fort, church and underground tunnels as well as an amazing wall that runs around the city. They also have a GREAT show with all sorts of jousting and knights and a love story and animals including real wolves, a camel, pigs, geese and goats. we watched the show with about three hundred French school children and it made it so much fun to watch it with their energy. It was way better than any show I've seen at a renaissance fair. We ate lunch in a cafe in the city and an English gentleman joined our table and gave us a history lesson on the town. It was really interesting. After several hours of walking t he city we all stopped for ice cream and then headed back for our cars. My little family was exhaust

We decided to spend the day at home yesterday. I cooked up a huge lunch just for the fun of it. I made pasta and seafood and merguez sausages and harticot verts and roasted broccoli and cauliflower. The kids slashed through the rain and got very muddy and loved every minute of it. Michael and I read our books and lazed around. In the evening Mom stayed with the kids and dad and Michael and I drove across the river to the Django festival. we bought tickets, waited in line and were thrilled to enter the festival. We got cups of dry rose wine for two euros a glass and a big plate of paella. Vendor food in France is amazing! As we ate we chatted with some other travelers. we took our seats in the bleachers in the third row. the first act we saw was Antoine Boyer a thirteen year old who was amazing. Tiff and Keith joined us at the end of that act. We dashed off for French fries (fried in duck fat!) and more wine and all enjoyed the second act. There was a great stand up bass a

We spent yesterday with the whole family at the villa holding our annual meeting. We had a good time and also had some meaningful conversations. after a full day of being cooped up inside, the sun came out and so did we. The whole family tumbled outside for a rousing game of kickball which I thoroughly enjoyed until Michael forgot we weren't throwing the ball to get people out and smashed the ball hard into my face hurting my nose. He was, of course, extremely apologetic, but I took it as a sign that I just was not made for sports. The game was fun to watch though. when it was over, we drove into Fontainebleau for dinner. It took a while to find a restaurant serving dinner at 6, but eventually we found one in a plaza right in front of an awesome carousel. the kids took two rides and loved it. We had delicious food and Kade and Davis tried escargot. Davis didn't love it, but that may have something to do with the fact that Davis has decided not to eat any meat anymore.

We are having a fabulous time here in France. the kids did great on our flight over. They each got about four hours of sleep on the plane and never napped the next day until bedtime (neither did we), but we all still kept in great spirits and enjoyed the moment. They fell asleep that night around 6 and slept the next day until 9 and have been on our regular sleeping schedule ever since. Our villa is a beautiful old house that was truly once a grand dame and has now fallen in disrepair. We love it and think it is very charming. It is old and creaky and so cool, with three stories of hidden rooms under the eaves, and doors leading to hidden rooms. It reminds me of those books where they have weekend hours parties on the weekend and everyone dressed up in costumes and played games. the lawn is huge and has two resident ducks that are like pets and provide endless amusement. There is a tennis court and swing set and secret fort and the kids have found bicycles which Michael has re