Chianti

One day while we were in Tuscany, Tony and I snuck out and took a drive through the Chianti wine region. About five hours later we made it back - we were having such a great time!

Chianti vineyards

Our first stop, after driving on a really long winding road, was the vineyard Badia a Coltibuono, which had a restaurant where we lunched on great food and great wine (well, for Tony at least).

Stomachs full, we headed out in search of wine

We eventually made it to this little town in Chianti

That had a cute little Italian church

And a very nice wine store

Which gladly shipped a case of wine to Belgium

Pizza Night

One evening the homeowner's cook, Imperia, made us homemade pizzas in the outdoor brick pizza oven. With Grayson as her assistant, she kneaded the dough, rolled it out, and topped it with tomato sauce, soft mozzarella (not grated), and rosemary from the garden.

Watch the flour fly


It was delicious!

Florence

The highlight of our trip was our visit to Florence. This beautiful city enchanted with its fine art, sculpture, architecture, and gelato!

The Ponte Vecchio

Here we are standing on the Ponte Vecchio. Grayson wasn't in this picture because he was napping peacefully in his stroller (below).

We visited the Accademia to view Michelangelo's David, which was sculpted from 1501 to 1504. We also visited the Uffizi and its famous art collection.

When Grayson woke up we found a carousel!

Which, of course, he loved.

And we toured Florence's Duomo

The Duomo has a famous dome, designed by Brunelleschi.

The gelato in Florence is supposed to be the best in all of Italy. We do not disagree.

To view more photos of Florence, just click here.

Pisa

Our first city stop in Italy was Pisa, to visit the famous Leaning Tower.

We also toured Pisa's Duomo

This is the inside of the Dome

And took a look at the beautiful Baptistry

But the Leaning Tower was definitely the star attraction

Of course I took a lot more photos in Pisa, to see the rest just click here.

Tuscany

We've just returned from a week in Italy. We stayed with Tony's parents in a villa in Tuscany that was close to the Umbria border, just outside a small town called Monterchi. While in Tuscany we visited Pisa, Cortona, Florence, the Chianti wine region, and Siena. But most of our time was spent relaxing in the country, under the Tuscan sun.

Podere Borgacciano - our home away from home

The view

Gardening with Mima

The pool was too cold for swimming, but that didn't stop Grayson from playing

The gardens surrounding the pool were immaculate

A New Baby

We have decided that Grayson needs a little sibling. Someone to play with, someone to teach, someone to share in the attention. So we're happy to announce that baby #2 is due Nov. 5th.

We'll be back living in Atlanta when the baby is born - settled in our house, back with the same Dr. who delivered Grayson - it will be great!

And because we live in Belgium, and they do things a little bit differently here, like a high-level ultrasound very early, we can already announce that - - -

in keeping with the trend set by my Dekalb Playgroup, 9 out of 10 who have had repeats - - -

It's a BOY!

3 1/2 months pregnant in Pisa, Italy

And if he is half as handsome, funny, and intelligent as Grayson, then he will be perfect.

When we told Grayson, it took a little while for him to grasp the concept.

First he had to confirm whose tummy the baby was in. "The baby is in your tummy Daddy?" No, Grayson. "The Baby is in my tummy?" No, Grayson. "The baby is in Mommy's tummy?" Yes!

Then he had to know for sure who this baby was. "I go into Mommy's tummy?" No, Grayson. There's a new baby in Mommy's tummy. "I'm too big to go in there." That's right, Grayson. It's another baby in there. A very little baby.

Then he got it, and everything became about the baby.

"I want to hold the baby Mommy." OK, Grayson, when the baby is bigger you can hold it.

"What's the baby's name Mommy?" I don't know, Grayson. What do you think the baby's name should be? "The baby's name is baby Bu-woon." Ok - very good Grayson.

"I want to show the baby my toys. I want to show the baby my Buzz Lightyear." Ok, Grayson, that will be nice. The baby will like your toys.

"I want to give the baby a hug" [makes hugging motion with his arms] Ahh, that's very sweet Grayson.

Then suddenly, and in a very concerned and serious way, he says "But Mommy, WHERE is the baby's Mommy?"

Poor kid - his little world is about to be rocked.

Coming soon - more photos from Tuscany

Debbie D!

Back in high school I had two best friends - Sara and Debbie. We were Fletcherettes together, we ate salads together at Applebees on a regular basis, and we were so much alike. Since high school Debbie and I have stayed in touch, sending the yearly Christmas card, the occassional visit, but as time went on our lives went in different directions, or so I thought. So when she contacted me and said she was going to be in Europe and could she and her husband stop by I said YES - of course! What a great chance to catch up!

What I didn't expect was to find that after more than 10 years we are still so much alike. And our lives, while lived in different places, have grown in similar ways. She was living in New York, married, and with four little ones. I was in Atlanta, then Brussels, married, with one little one. She's a stay-at-home-Mom, and I am too. We're doing the expat thing in Brussels, they're seriously considering doing it in Barcelona.

And our husbands both love fast cars.

It was a great visit - short, but really wonderful. Catching up was so much fun. Sharing stories about our kids was so much fun. Showing them Brussels and telling them about expat life (the good, the bad, and the ugly) was great.

Miss Fletcher Contest 1993

So my friend Deb is still my very good friend. We may live thousands of miles apart but you would never know it.