Things I'll Miss + Things I Won't Miss

Let me preface this post by saying that I have absolutely loved living in Europe.  Italy will always hold a special place in my heart and there are so many wonderful things about this country.  As we get ready to leave very soon, I'm beginning to realize just how much I'll miss Italy.  That being said, I'm also looking forward to some of the conveniences that come with living in the States.  And so, a list of things I'll miss, and a few things I'll be glad to leave behind.

Miss:

• Cappuccinos - Italian coffee is just so much better, plus they're way cheaper than in the US.
• Pizza - like coffee, pizza is way better here.
• Traveling all around Europe.
• The history and the old architecture.
• The wine.  Especially getting liter for under 2 euros.
• The gelato.  Holy cow, the gelato. 
• The sweet Nonna across the street, who is absolutely in love with Nixon and always tickles his feet.
• Running trails through vineyards with views of castles (this one is more Donovan, because lets be honest, it's been awhile since I've gone running).
• Traffic circles - yes, they take a little while to get used to, but they make so much sense.  And they're super convenient for when you need to make a u-turn.  

Won't miss:

• Showers barely large enough to turn around in
• Lack of a garbage disposal.  Digging food particles out of the drain gets old fast.
• Not having a dishwasher - this one is not specific to Italy, as many places here do have dishwashers.  Our house, however, did not, and I now despise doing dishes.
• No air conditioning, or AC that barely works.
• Tripping the breaker each time I run two large appliances at once.  I lost count of how many times I accidentally turned the oven on while the dryer was running and then had to go outside and flip the breaker.  
• An oven so small I can only bake six cookies at a time.

The Next Step

Sadly, our time in Italy is drawing to a close.  In a couple short weeks, we'll be flying back to the States, where we'll spend a couple weeks catching up with family before making our way to our new home in North Carolina.  We're sad to say arrivederci to this beautiful country, but we're looking forward to new adventures ahead.

The last few weeks have been filled with packing, organizing, purging, cleaning, and everything else that goes along with a move.  But despite the never-ending to-do list, we've taken the time to enjoy some of the many things we'll miss.

Snuggling with Uncle Ralphie at brunch

Sneaking cake crumbs with Aunt Jessica

Some makeshift baby entertainment while we pack the basement

One last walk around the lake

Baby human and baby swans

Cinque Torri

While trying to prolong our Labor Day trip as long as possible, we took the long way driving home and stopped at a few other interesting spots before leaving the mountains.  One of these was Cinque Torri, a group of five rock towers.  Nowadays, this area is popular for skiing in the winter and hiking and rock climbing in the summer.  During WWI however, this was the site of some harsh battles between the Italian and Austrian troops.  Many of the structures built by the Italian army have been reconstructed into a museum of sorts.  We spent a couple hours walking around, with Donovan lamenting his lack of climbing gear the whole time.  Luckily it's close enough that we can easily come back next summer.

A Weekend in the Mountains

One of these days, I'll get the hang of posting about things in a timely manner and not four weeks later.  

Over the Labor Day weekend we headed north to the Dolomites.  These mountains are a favorite hangout of ours, especially for skiing, but this time we enjoyed the end of summer with some hiking.  The weather was perfect, the views were incredible, and Baby B climbed his first mountain (with momma doing all the work).

It looks deceiving, but I promise mine is apple juice