Italian Summer Haps

It has been quite the summer here in Sicily.  I started the summer break as the fun mom with a daily schedule including chores and fun activities to follow.  Jason was gone for 4 of the 9 weeks of summer, which led to a much shorter fuse for Mom and quickly rising heart rate at any thought o rebellion on the kids part.  Now, my kids are eating spoonfuls of Nutella and bowls of Doritos for lunch.  I used to be teaching responsibility and accountability.  Now I'm teaching survival.  Only 3 more days.......new mantra for the week:  "Maggie, you can do this."

So, back in June, when we did fun things, we filled our afternoon with play and memories.  Luckily, I captured some photos of said afternoons, so we can try to remember happier times.  

We've had a lot of pool time this summer.  There's a pool on the base where the kiddos took lessons and then there's the Sigonella Inn pool.  It's right across the street from NAS 1 and Ben loved it there.  There is a big kiddie pool just his size and the steps into the big pool are big and long for him to play on.  We met friends there and had lunch together.  Sig Inn has an amazing $5 Magherita pizza.  Sooooo gooood.  

Lucy has swim practice every morning during the summer, so a lot of times, she wasn't up for hours at the pool.  So, usually it was just me and the boys. Graham was rarely ever happy to be going to the pool, but once we got there, as you can see from the pictures, he usually had a great time.  

Sullivan loved the pool, too!

Next up was Bellini Gardens in Catania.  Jason and I walked through this park when we first moved here and the kids were in school.  I decided to go check it out again with them in tow.  

Two words:  Super hot.  They played for a little while and then they just sat and drank their water.  Not much to actually "play" on.  So, we ended the day by getting gelato across the street and headed home.  Hey, at least we got out of the house, right?  No, we didn't adopt a red head.  That's Lucy's friend, Samie.  

The entrance to the park is beautiful!  

Early on in the summer, we ventured to Piazza Duomo and rode the little train they drive around downtown.  There happened to be a cruise ship that came in this particular day, so it was a bit crowded, but fun.  We sat next to an older couple from England.  They thought the kids were funny.....even when they fought and spilled their goldfish all over.  

 Don't mind the graffiti.  Parts of Catania are a bit ghetto.

Photo cred:  Lucy Jane

 Benny found this long piece of cardboard in the recycling bin outside our house.  He played with it for a couple days.  It became a million different items in those two days.  On the train, it became a pair of binoculars.  It was so funny watching him pretend them as we rode down the street.  One man's trash, I guess.  

The train stopped and started in Piazza Duomo.  We, of course, ended the outing with gelato and some pictures.  

I love these kiddos so much.  I wish I was a more cheerful Mom and spoke more sweetly to them, but I'm working on it.  Sometimes I get so caught up in all the things there are to do in a day that I forget to just enjoy them.  I often get stuck in a "what's next" mentality and forget to just smile and say, "Good morning".  I'm working on it, though.

Truthfully, I'm a little sad that school is starting.  I hate that other people see my kids more than I do throughout the week.  I thrive on structure and schedules, but with that comes early mornings when I have to scream them out of bed and act like a tyrant to keep them moving to make it to the bus stop on time.  Wish us luck!