This is a Wonderful Age

Most days, having a three-year-old is just delightful.  Cate is proudly sporting her new tutu, the black bolero that she had previously refused to wear with the fancy dress it came with, and Matt's old bizarre wig.  Picture her dancing like this to Beauty and the Beast.

Inside, now Outside

Besides the hose, this is the kids' favorite thing about the new house.  It's a bit rickety, but they love it and it has already provided hours of entertainment.

Dominic is learning all sorts of new things! (this is part of our front lawn--which reminds me, anyone know how to get rid of moles?  We're getting nasty mounds of dirt and tunnels.  Or how to keep deer from eating hostas?

Then, our next big project.  Getting the hole/crater/marsh filled.  You can see a little more than half of it in the picture below.  But we've got some nice old pine trees! :)

Photos!

We attempted to get a family Christmas photo.  It ended up like all our attempts...a little too candid.

And then I took 45 pictures trying to get a cute brother-sister picture.  This was at least amusing.

And then we tried once with Michael Gaetano, our godson.  This child is an angel.

Cate sporting her favorite present, her pink tricycle from MaMa and PaPa.

Dominic sharing his new Toy Story sleeping bag with Cate.

A great picture of the Gaetano siblings: Matt, Stephen, and Marialana.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Cate just adores her older brother. She tries to do everything and anything he does, no matter what it is. He throws a stone, she throws a stone. He spits, she spits. He gives me a kiss, she gives me a kiss. I feel like if we can succeed in making Dominic a respectable, godly child, we will have automatically succeeded with Cate too.

Her copy-cat behavior even extends to clothes and potty training. He goes to the bathroom and she always tries to take her pants off too. Here's her most recent display of "brother-worship".

I bambini (The kids)

Why do their hugs so often look more like attempts to strangle?

"You getting money, Daddy?"  I'm ready to spend it.  In fact, I'm researching my new toys right now! (see previous post)

Rome: Week 1

So, the real pictures of our new apartment are still forthcoming. But in the meantime, Dominic took a series of pictures from his point-of-view. Matt just flew home today for a week long mandatory "teacher training" session, taking with him loads of heavy books, winter clothes, and other no-longer-necessary items. So only now is the apartment just about settled enough to take decent pictures...stay tuned. We're having a great time and are getting the hang of making daily outings. There are some pictures from the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and Castel Sant'Angelo.

Miss you all! Say some prayers for me and the kids this week while Matt is gone in Philly.

Photos from Florence, Siena, Pisa!

I uploaded over one hundred images and videos to our Picasa web album.  So, if you're interested in taking a look at them (I didn't embed it directly because I was afraid my blog would start uploading, as my dad would say, slower than molasses in January) just click on that blue link.  There are also pictures in there of a funny photo shoot of the kids dressed up... (Grandma and Grandpa brought them adorable Easter outfits, so we put them on early so they could see them).  We had a great time with Momma and Poppa Gaetano.  They rented an apartment in Florence for a week, and then we made day trips to Pisa and Siena.  The weather was crummy for all but one day (Pisa), but it didn't matter.  Just being together again made all of us very, very happy. So between our joy and frequent cups of cafe, we had a marvelous time.  Blog posts to begin again soon...

Italian Fashion

"To be out of fashion is more criminal than to be seen in a state of nature, to which the Parisians are not averse." (Abigail Adams, becoming acquainted to French custom)

The Italians might agree...

These puffy, shiny jackets are all the rage.  Note also the man scarf on this stylishly-grayed husband. Knee-high boots (thigh-highs are also popular) and skinny jeans. Also notice their one child and his fur collar, who is sitting in their posh, very expensive stroller.  Gotta love the classic Italian style.  I'll try to periodically post some pictures of Italian fashion for your inspiration or amusement. 

A few recent "Dominic's"

Here are some pictures of Christmas Eve and Christmas.  After that, I listed a few of the funny things Dominic has been saying lately.

• We heard Cate screaming a sort of muffled scream.  Matt ran in to check on her and found nothing suspicious.

     M: What's going on in here? What'd you do?

     D: Nothing.  I'm just being her protector.

      It happened again just a minute later.  Matt went in.

     M: What's going on in here?  What happened?

     D: Nothing.  I'm just trying to help her be a good...uh...boy.

•  After cousin Michael was born, we were discussing this with Dominic.  He told us, Michael came out of Aunt Sarah's belly.  Then Dominic rubbed his belly.  I fully expected Dominic to say something about having a baby in his belly.  Then he started rubbing his chest.  "I have Jesus in my heart. Mommy, you have Jesus in your heart.  Daddy, you do too."  

• I was chopping up spinach and Dominic was standing on a chair next to me watching.  He kept saying, Mommy, be careful.  You'll chop your fingers off.  I told him, of course I'm being careful.  I have lots of practice and am very careful.  He insisted, Mommy, be careful.  You'll chop your fingers off!  I was having great trouble resisting the urge to laugh at his concern, but I managed to respond by thanking him for his concern, but again, I reiterated, I'm being careful.  I know just how to chop vegetables with sharp knives.  Mommy can do this.  Then he reached out and took my hand (the one without the knife in it) and pulled it away from the spinach.  No Mommy.  You'll chop your fingers off!

December Pictures!

Here are some pictures of our latest adventures in Padova. Actually, most of them are just the kids doing their thing around the house. We did make a little trip to Vicenza, though. The Christmas lights there were really spectacular, and it was extra special for Dominic because we were in the main piazza when all the lights turned on. It was fun to hear the entire city "ooh" at the same time.

We made an advent wreath from a yogurt container, wrapping paper, ribbon, and some taper candles. I would have preferred a more traditional wreath, but Italians don't seem to have them for sale anywhere. It'll do. Dominic gets very, very excited to light the candles each Sunday, and even Cate will stand in front of it and stare (when it's lit) and then stand in front of it pretending to blow the candles out (even when it's not lit). The Advent calendar is also a huge hit at our house, although I don't think Dominic has any idea that a box corresponds to a day. We open one in the morning after breakfast, and then later during the day he'll inevitably ask, "Can I open another one? Just one..." as he holds up his index finger and squints his eyes at me. St. Nicholas made an appearance at our house on December 6 filling the shoes of all four. Dominic could hardly sleep he was so excited the night before. We then celebrated the Sunday by having a special brunch of french toast with cinnamon and sugar on top. French toast may be Dominic's and Cate's favorite food right now.
During the last song at church Dominic said to Matt, "Just one more song. And then we get french toast!"

Beautiful Venice: City of Wonders

It's a shame. My first glimpse of Venice made me think I was in Disney World. Magical, yes. Crowded, yes. And surreal. So surreal. Disney has certainly tried to recreate the Venetian magic (and succeeded, in some way), but lacks the mystical appeal of being a real place. Sure, Venice lives off tourism. It could not survive without it. But this is a real city, created by people without power tools and the internet.

The narrow, cobblestone streets are lined with picturesque seashell-colored houses. I find myself in the shade provided by the endless vertical swathes of pink, white, coral, ivory, and yellow houses. Gaggles of people gawk everywhere, squeezed elbow to elbow between the markets of the Rialto and the Ruga where you can buy Venezia t-shirts, "Renaissance" masks, Murano glass items, and chili pepper bouquets (see picture). But when you've climbed to the top of the Rialto bridge with the other 500 people, it suddenly doesn't matter that you're not there alone. The Grand Canal is an almost indescribable sight. Water everywhere, bright colors of tall buildings, bridges in marble, shiny black gondolas with singing gondoliers, and cafes everywhere, allowing anyone to sit and enjoy an expensive espresso to top off the marvelous beauty. I shall include a few pictures in an attempt to supplement my inadequate descriptions.

St. Mark's Square, likewise, is extraordinary. After following dozens of signs leading us through the maze of alleys, bridges (all with steps), secret passages, and streets that we swear are dead ends, only to mysteriously lead elsewhere, we arrive at the square for one of the most magnificent basilicas in Europe. St. Mark's. The square itself is immense, bordered by dark, aged columns and stone buildings (old offices and Palace). We witness a parade of veterans (or something) with their flags and music, marching very slowly through the hoard of people gathered there. Making our way to the end of the square against the lagoon, we look up and are amazed to see 3 more unbelievable buildings. What are these?! A city would be proud to have just one of any of these and here, in Venice, we are at the feet of two, and see three on the horizon. Upon consultation with my Rick Steve's guidebook, I see that one is merely the old Customs House and another is a "simple" church!

St. Mark's Basilica itself is the pride of Venice and clearly shows the unbelievable wealth and prosperity that Venice enjoyed as a hub of the trading route for centuries. I heard it said that every expedition from Venice was required to bring something back for the basilica and, as a result it is a masterpiece of opulence and art, almost a vision of how glorious God must be. And that is merely from the outside! A visit to the inside remains for the next trip we make there, with my parents (soon!).

Mostly, we just wandered the streets of Venezia, taking in the old city, observing laundry hanging from a third story window over a canal, seeing a bridge go right to a doorway, wondering why the Gucci, Pucci, and Louis Vuitton stores were on (what seemed to be) an obscure alley way, shooing pigeons away from our (stealth) picnic lunch, figuring out the best way to carry the stroller over the bridges, and deciding on which of the horridly expensive trattorias to eat at. It was lovely. Magical.

And in need of countless more visits.

Here, for pictures.

May Pictures