Rain, rain, and more rain

This week has been cloudy and rainy! We feel like Oregon weather has followed us here. Mark went to work every day and Joyce and the kids and I basically stayed in doors and read books and did housework and played. During the brief dry spells, Joyce took Cami and Hailey across the street to the Non Solo Pane store a couple of times for bread and incidentals, while I stayed back with Maisie & Ellie. Also when it’s been dry, they have been making good use of the terrace. Ellie took the initiative to make her own little picnic out there and invited her sisters to join her. On another day, Joyce bought the three older ones each a water color set at the Coop store, so one day they did some painting…

One afternoon I was particularly exhausted and (a’hem) very out of it, so Joyce took the three older girls downstairs to run around in the courtyard at the first floor of our building while I napped with Maisie. They needed that (and so did I).

The only major symptom of my pregnancy that I have been experiencing so far is tiredness. If I get cozy either in the car or on the couch, I nod off within a few short minutes. It was a miracle that I didn’t fall asleep with the kids last night (since I have done that every night for the last week.)

This week we finally found the larger grocery store that is in our area, Esselunga (thanks to the tips from our landlord, Franca, and Shandra Galloway.) It is much bigger than Coop and is a lot like the supermarket in the states that we’re used to. Maisie went along with Mark and I the first time we went and quickly charmed the ladies in the bakery. She had fun and even got a free piece of foccacia!

I have continued to have fun trying out some of the fun types of pasta they have here and experimenting with ingredients I have on hand. So far I’ve only used a recipe once. The ingredients here are so good that even the simplest foods taste delicious! I’m trying to enjoy it while it lasts because usually I avoid cooking during the first trimester of my pregnancies as soon as nausea and food aversions set in. I’m praying that those symptoms will be mild for me here so that I can continue to enjoy cooking and eating here!

We had fun with a “beauty parlor” one evening with the girls, before going out to dinner. Joyce did nails and I did the girls' hair. The girls had a blast, especially Maisie, who loved having her nails done.

Wednesday night we went to dinner near the Massa city square; more pizza and pasta. It was pretty good and the lady who served us was very kind. Cami enjoyed the "tartufa negro" for dessert (dolci), which I roughly translate to "yum".

Friday night Joyce took us to a beautiful restaurant up in the hills above our apartment. The name is Il Trillo. It was recommended to us by our landlord—one of her children had their wedding reception there and we could understand why when we stepped in the door…. The restaurant itself was modern and bright inside, unlike many of the common restaurants we’ve been to that are dark and rustic. They have a patio that I assume is open on dry warm days that has lemon trees growing overhead. Absolutely gorgeous! With the view from the hillside and the lemon fragrance wafting through, I’m sure it would be a spectacular place for any event. To say the food was amazing would be an understatement. We tried two pasta dishes that originate in Massa, so that was fun. A nice man- possibly the owner, picked a nice lemon and gave it to Cami. She carried it around with her baby doll for three days. We finally convinced her to enjoy it before it rotted, by making lemonade. (Well, one half she walked around the apartment, licking.) Thanks again for the great meal, Joyce!

We have been trying to get back into a regular schedule, too. Joyce helped this week with learning games for Cami and Hailey. Here Hailey and Joyce used some little toys that Lufthansa gave us on the flight to make equations. Hailey seems to be really enjoying addition and subtraction, and is really picking it up quickly. She also made up a code this week. “A plus A is B, dad! And D plus D is E!”