Buona Domenica!

Buona = good  and  Domenica = Sunday  in Italian

Lovely, lovely day today.  Waffles for breakfast as is our Sunday tradition, followed by church and then a nice lunch with friends.   Ahhhhhh.  I LOVE Sundays!  Have I mentioned this before?

You know how sometimes your husband throws out an idea that at first seems so crazy you laugh hysterically and secretly wonder if he's insane?  And then it starts to grow on you, and then you actually find yourself thinking it might be a good plan?  Has your husband ever mentioned putting all your stuff in storage and living in a motor home while travelling the continental US for a year or so after retirement?  Crazy, right?

Anyhoo, here are Sunday's 3 things
1.  I am thankful for my new hand lotion
2.  I am thankful for Claudia's profiteroles (if you've never had one, you have no idea what you're missing)
3.  I am thankful for mozzarella di bufala (mozzarella made from the milk of  water buffalo, yummy!)

Profiteroles

Mozzarella di bufala

Miracle in a tub

This stuff is awesome!!!!!

As you know from my complaining  updates my dishwasher is broken which makes me, by default, the dishwasher.  Water here is harsh, my hands are suffering.  I have tried every single lotion out there, even my Aveeno wasn't working well on my hands (still great on my body though).
Two days ago my friend Jennifer asked if I wanted this lotion.  Her sister-in-law had come to visit in December and apparently this had fallen out in their car.  Jennifer does not like the hemp smell so she gave it to me and truth be told I could live without the smell but it's not offensive.
I've had these weird extremely dry raised and rough streaks on my thumb and pointer finger - dry to the point of cracking and bleeding - painful!  After only two days using this lotion they're better, clearing up, the cracks and bleeding areas are gone!  It's a miracle.
Thank you Angie!!  Sorry for your loss but so thankful for my gain.

Hoarding

Did you know there's a disorder called Compulsive Hoarding?  While I don't think I could technically be labeled, I've noticed lately I've got some issues.  But, in my defense, it's not entirely my fault.

You see, I live in Italy.  I'm an American in a foreign land and Italians ONLY eat Italian food.  So I rely on my Navy Commissary to supply me with all those things I want that I can't get "out in town".  Ketchup is one of these things.  Europeans typically don't do ketchup.
Are you ready for this?  They eat mayonnaise on their french fries!!!!!!  I know, I know, YUCK!  But hey, different strokes for different folks. 

That's not to say you can't get ketchup here, you can - it's just not the same.  It's like saying all ketchup is the same, let me tell you folks, it. is. not.  There is a huge difference between Hunt's and Heinz (despite what my husband says) and I don't even consider that Del Monte stuff ketchup - it's not worthy of the label.   Not that I'm biased, but Heinz rules!  And now that you know I'm 100% brand loyal, let me share this - I only buy the organic ketchup because I avoid high-fructose corn syrup like the plague.

Three weeks ago, they ran out of the Heinz organic ketchup and my home supply was running low.  You see, I typically buy two at a time because the Commissary isn't exactly reliable with their ordering and stocking process.  So, they ran out, we ran out.  There was a small rebellion here at home - anarchy if you must know.  My children were beyond upset.

Last week, I rounded the aisle where they display the ketchup and silently said a prayer that there would be organic ketchup in stock - HALLELUJAH!!!  my prayer was answered - but, there were only 7 bottles.

What to do?  Be greedy and take them all?  No.  My friend Jennifer also uses this ketchup and was out (she's weak, she actually caved and bought the regular stuff)  so I decided to get 3 bottles for me and 2 for her leaving two on the shelf for some other unfortunate mother who desperately needed this item.  And when Jennifer went back yesterday they were out again - slight edgy feeling bordering on panic (yes, I still have two in reserve).  But, HALLELUJAH!!!!!! today they were restocked when I went so I picked up two more. 

That's right, I now have one open bottle and 4 in reserve - all is well with the world.
 
I also have 3 bags of coffee, 4 jars of apple sauce, 2 bottles of maple syrup, 2 jars of peanut butter and 2 boxes each of the cereal we eat - all in reserve because these favorite items also tend to be out of stock a lot.
 
OK, I may have a problem.

Military moms around the world who depend on their commissary understand this, the rest of you will just have to trust I'm mentally sound and not a compulsive hoarder.  Right?

Here are Saturday's three things I'm thankful for
1.  I am thankful for organic ketchup in stock!
2.  I am thankful for my husband who suggests I should get away and take some alone time while he stays home with the kids. 
3.  I am thankful for all the reasons I've had to smile throughout my life.

Have a great weekend,
Sabrina

    

TGIF!!!!!!!

Whew, another week gone by.  Sometimes it feels like life is flying and sometimes it feels like it's crawling.  I guess it all depends on what you're doing and if you really want to be doing it?

Tonight was family movie night and we watched Nemo.  I still love that movie, so many cute one-liners and such a good story.  Afterwards Lewis said, "Mom, this story teaches us not to give up"  yep.  And then he said "I'm never moving away from you, I'm gonna stay with you forever".  How sweet!  Luckily we had a great day yesterday and this thought actually seemed appealing, as opposed to those days when I think I won't make it one more with these little monsters in my house!  ;-)

Great day homeschooling, everything we did was art related - which to the 5 and under crowd means crayons!!!  It's amazing the stuff you can find on the internet to print for your kids.  My kids love worksheets - strange.  I have found these great pages for William where he gets to color all the things on the page that start with the letter we're studying.  I found a color by number clown for Lewis.  In order to know what colors to use, you had to do math problems and read the color word.  He loved it!

We're getting into the final phases of planning some awesome trips, I'm so excited!  Looks like we'll go to Paris in May, Crete in June, Germany in August and a trip to the Venice area in September or October.  We're trying to decide what to do in July and all those three day weekends.  I can't believe I have less than a year to do all of the travelling I want to,  time does indeed fly.

Hoping you all have a great weekend,
Sabrina

Friday's 3 things-
I am thankful for my travel opportunities.
I am thankful that my children think it would be nice to stay with me forever.
I am thankful for all of my homeschooling choices and for friends that help you narrow them down.

A good read, and photos of the yucky stuff.

http://donmilleris.com/2010/03/04/every-good-story-must-endure-conflict/

Mold.

We have a mold problem. Probably every house in Italy has a mold problem.  You see, houses here are built with cinder blocks and covered with a skim coat of plaster or light concrete.  They don't seal it.  The paint they use isn't "mold resisitant" - those things cost too much money.  The walls attract moisture because winter here is nothing but a rainy season and they're nothing but a pourous cinder block.  Mold.  We're all sick.  Today I was trying to rid our house of mold and started moving the larger pieces of furniture to find - an entire wall of white and grey fuzzy mold growing behind my husbands' armoire.  After many hours of bleaching, washing, and vacuuming I'm done. And I'm literally done.  I'm ready to move.  I know, I know, everyone thinks living in Italy is like being on a lovely vacation everyday.  Far from it.  I know, I know, I'm not supposed to complain - but this is not merely a complaint, this is full fledged gripe.  Like I said yesterday, every single family I know has been affected with breathing issues since moving to Italy.  The US Navy has done air samples and decided there's nothing wrong with the air quality here, in fact, they say it resembles the air quality in some of the US's larger cities so we shouldn't complain.  I think they should start testing the indoor air quality - mold is a big issue here and it's something we're not readily adjusting to- in fact, we're suffering.  Sorry to vent, but if you have a family full of hacking, wheezing, snotting, nose bleeding folks you get to a point where you just want to SCREAM!!!!!

OK, I'm done, thanks for listening.

I am thankful it's not worse.  I am thankful there are medicines that can treat our symptoms.  I am thankful we'll be moving from here this year.  I am thankful I have friends in the same boat that offer support and allow me to support them when it gets rough.  I am thankful for the power of prayer.  I am thankful my husband brought home pizza tonight for dinner so I didn't have to cook.  I am thankful that I have lived near Naples that produces the absolute best pizza in the world.  And I am really thankful for my new pillow- it's fantastic!!!!!


Today Lewis got out of the tub and said "Lewis has left the tub".  LOL!  He can't help it, being an Elvis fan is in his blood.

Catchy Title

I couldn't think of a "catchy title".

I skipped writing yesterday, I didn't even share my 3 things.  I don't know why, other than I just didn't feel like it.  I think I was in a funk. 

Today was William's 4yr well-baby check-up.  He's 45.8 lbs, 3ft 6in tall, 90th percentile.  wow.  He's developing normally, though I'm a bit concerned about his speech so I'm going to contact the school and have him evaluated.  (it's the school's responsibility since he's over 3)  He speaks well, but can't say Ls and sometimes lisps his Ss.  Dr. Pugh agreed that an evaluation wouldn't hurt, but said there's nothing about his speech that causes alarm.  He said if there's something that can be done to help him, now would be a good time.  And then, as the Dr. listened to William breathe he asked how long he's had this cough, I said about 3 weeks.  It's so hard to know when to take them in for a cough, especially here.  Everyone has a cough and many times I've taken in one of the boys only to be treated as if I'm overreacting and I get sent away with nothing but an "it'll pass".  He asked if I wanted to listen, and I knew then it wasn't good.  He definitely has a wheeze - a wheeze, the Dr. says, can only be caused by asthma.  I am 100% sure it's allergy-related asthma, but it's still a bit scary.  He's now using an inhaler and taking Zyrtec again.  Poor baby, though you would hardly know he's sick as it really hasn't slowed him down one bit.  I could spend hours complaining about the poor air quality in Naples, how every single family I know has been affected by living here and how not one single Navy Dr. will admit there is a problem.  It cannot be a coincidence that everyone I know has at least one family member on an inhaler and zyrtec, usually more than one.  But, I won't complain since I gave that up.  So, I spent the afternoon scrubbing the boys' room - bleaching the mold (a huge problem living here), cleaning anything that remotely looked dusty, vacuuming the mattresses and then encasing them in allergen covers, I bought new pillows with allergen covers, washed every sheet, pillow case, blanket, comforter and dust ruffle and beat the crud out of the area rug and then vacuumed it.  whew.  If there's an allergen left alive in that room I would be surprised.

School is getting better, finally settling into a groove that works. We're currently studying Washington.  I decided we needed to learn a bit more about our country so we'll go week by week focusing on a State.  The boys thought Washington looked great, loved the ferries and thought the chance to live near family would be really fun- until- they learned about all the volcanoes!  Lewis said "there's too many, we can't go there".  But we decided to leave it open for discussion.  I love watching my boys learn, they're so fun!

Paul is still hobbling around on crutches, he has an appointment on the 22nd and we're hoping the cast will come off.

So, here are yesterday's and today's 3 things- for a total of six!  wooohooo math!
1.  I am thankful for days at the park.
2.  I am thankful for yoga.
3.  I am thankful for prepackaged curry sauce!
4.  I am thankful for Dr. Pugh.
5.  I am thankful for medicine that helps my children.
6.  I am thankful for bedtime.  Goodnight!

Love,
the Reinhart family

Lunedi

Lunedi is the Italian word for Monday.

Another gorgeous weather day!  I could get used to this! 

Today's 3 things-
1.  I am thankful for the library.  Free books!
2.  I am thankful for humidifiers and Zyrtec - may they help my boys sleep well tonight.
3.  I am thankful for my Ipod.

Here is a link to the property where we'll be staying the last week of April - I'm so excited!
http://www.collesanpaolo.it/home/index.php

I found it through this site  http://www.ciaobambino.com/index.asp  which is a fantastic source of information for those travelling with children.

Buona notte!

Weekend

Ahhh, the weekend.  I didn't take time to write this weekend, I'm sure you understand the need to just be with family?

So, I'll make a list of six things I'm really thankful for that will cover Saturday and Sunday's gratitudes.

1.  I am thankful for dinner and games at the home of good friends.
2.  I am thankful for email so I can keep in touch with people I love.
3.  I am thankful for my big back yard and the exercise I get mowing it.
4.  I am thankful for my church (I know I've said this one before but I really am thankful so it deserves two notices).
5.  I am thankful for nurses, Drs, missonaries and people who are willing to help in a crisis - the need for them lately has been so great.
6.  I am thankful my life is safe and fairly routine on a daily basis.  I am so blessed!

I am off to workout!  Have a happy Monday!

TGIF!

Oh boy, Oh boy, it's the weekend!

Friday's 3 things-
1.  I am thankful for Vick's Vapor Rub, Cough Medicine and Motrin (please let them help my kids sleep)
2.  I am thankful for Friday family movie night.
3.  I am thankful my husband listens to my desires, even when they change minute to minute.

Buona Venerdi!  Venerdi is the Italian word for Friday.

Thursday

This morning, as I am getting dressed Lewis asks "Mommy, why don't you exercise?"  "Well Lewis, I should.  I'm lazy."  And in his never ending quest to be just like is father  helpful he continues "you know, you have that machine thingy in your bedroom you could use."  "Yes, thank you - I'll take that piece of advice under consideration." Not done with this exciting conversation, he continues "I learned on 'Sid the Science Kid' that you should exercise everyday".  To which I replied "No TV for you, two weeks!"  Just kidding.  That's what I get for letting my kids watch "educational" TV.  From now on, nothing but mindless fluff.  William (being a bit more like me and silently observing until now) says "Is it snacktime?"

Needless to say my "I'm giving up being lazy for Lent" isn't working out as planned.  I've exercised, once.  Pathetic.  I'm currently planning a trip to Greece to do nothing but lay by the pool or at the beach - something must be done!  But in other good news, I have kept to my no wine promise, my less complaining promise and one other thing I gave up as well.

Excellent day weather wise - beautiful, sunny and 61 degrees.  We went to our last art class and had lunch at the playground.  Which got  me to thinking about Spring/Summer clothes for the boys.  If you have boys you know that boy clothes are not cute.  Moms of girls are really lucky in this department.  If you have boys who have crossed out of toddler land you know these big boy clothes are really not cute.  What are they thinking?  Why does everything have to be an ugly graphic or camouflage?  And don't take this personally - but I despise shirts with cute (I use this word loosely) sayings like "He did it"  or "it wasn't me".  WHY?

Today's Italian lesson:  la lavastoviglie =  dishwasher.   Still broken, still not complaining.

Today's three things-
1.  I am thankful for seasoned homeschooling Moms who give good practical advice.
2.  I am thankful for my Nana.
3.  I am thankful my boys are concerned for my health.

Buona Notte!

Spring is Springing!

Another lovely sunny day without rain.  A sure sign spring is coming and the rainy cold season is almost over is the rain only comes at night and the sun is out during the day.  Other signs are evident all around my yard.

I love this bush.

I love orange flowers.

My lemons

My oranges.

I have two types of lemon trees.  The larger lemon is a Sorrento lemon.

And my all time favorite sign of Spring - daffodils.

But these are my favorite wild things growing in my back yard.

Today we spent a lot of time outdoors, mainly due to the fact we had no electricity for 5 hours so absolutely nothing could get done inside.

Just in case you're wondering, the Italian word for Spring = Primavera.

Wednesday's 3 things

1.  I am thankful for fun days outside.

2.  I am thankful for my new camera lens.

3.  I am thankful for my soft fuzzy socks.

Buona notte!  Good night!

Out of the mouths of babes

Today I hear "Mom, I'm done"  which means one of my boys has pooped and is ready for me to wipe his bum.  What a glamorous life I lead.  So I go to the bathroom and get the paper and wipe William's little bum - he reaches out with both arms and grabs hold of my leg, tightly.  I ask "why are you holding on so tight?" and he replied "well, I have to hold on to your big ole leg so I don't fall off the toilet.".  Seriously?  So I ask "do you think Mommy has big ole legs?" (yes I'm a glutton for punishment) to which he replied "yep.  and you got a big ole bahooty too".  Bahooty is the new word in our house for bum.  Good grief.

I wore my new boots today, fabulous!  Did I mention I have an addiction to boots?  Not an addiction where I buy every pair of boots I see and own 200 pairs - but an addiction that means I see a pair of boots that I love and I cannot rest until they are on my feet.  I am up to 4 pairs.

Excellent day homeschooling, though I admit I am not cut out for Preschool/Kindergarten level homeschooling.  At first I thought it would be so easy, so basic, no challenge.  Now I realize I would much rather teach calculus because at least my mind would be stimulated too - we could all learn or relearn together.  But today when I almost lost my composure as I tried to explain to William that b,b,b flower does not start with B I realized this is going to be hard (imagine a 4 year old sounding out names - b, b, b boat - b, b, b, flower - ugghhh).  It's difficult to understand when they don't get the most basic concepts.  Lewis is currently learning to add money.  Nickels and pennies.  Easy, right?  NO.  After explaining and explaining that nickels are 5 cents and pennies are 1 cent and you count by fives and ones (which he can do no problem) and then add up the numbers - he looks at me and asks "why can't we just do 15 + 3 instead of this silly money?"  I have no answer.

Here's a picture of  "art time".  The boys were using their imaginations to play "Indiana Jones" and decided they needed maps to find the treasure.

Here are my three things I'm thankful for today-

1.  I am thankful my children want to learn new things everday.

2.  I am thankful for the time I spent living in Germany.

3.  I am thankful for pizza.

Good night!

   

Monday's 3 things

1.  I am thankful for my new boots!
2.  I am thankful my children chose to use half of their Christmas money to help needy children.
3.  I am thankful for daffodils.


I hope you all had a great Monday!

Shoes

I just read about this company who gives away a pair of shoes for every pair purchased.  I LOVE to support companies who make a difference so I'm sharing this with you. 
The shoes aren't what you would call "fashion forward", but they look comfy - maybe a nice pair to wear around the house?  or to the beach?  Anyhoo,
here is the link.

http://www.tomsshoes.com/default.asp

Happy Monday!

OOPS!

Ok, I skipped writing my three things yesterday but I have an excuse!  Last night was Bunco night and it was my turn to host.  I spent most of the day preparing food for 11 lovely ladies and getting the house ready to be "seen by the public".  After a long night of fun and excitement (I won $25) I was waaaaaaaay too tired to write anything last night.  So I'll have to double down on the thankfulness tonight.

A quick update - Paul had a visit to the Orthopedic Dr. on Friday and had a brief moment where he thought they would remove the cast and give him a walking boot.  But a brief moment it was.  They first x-rayed the foot with the cast still on and the Dr. couldn't see the break.  After talking with Paul for a bit about what the Drs in Sicily had said he decided to cut the cast off and do another x-ray just to be sure.  And wouldn't ya know it? he saw the break- so Paul got a brand new cast.  He'll be wearing this one for 4.5 weeks and he's not thrilled to be on crutches, but what are ya gonna do?

The boys are doing great.  The weather is warming up a bit and the rain seems to be tapering off.  We've been outside playing the past few days and it has been so nice.  I hope to get outside and do some yard work this week, the neglect is starting to show.

On Friday I went with a group of girls for a tour of a local glove factory- fun, fun!  It was so interesting to see the process start to finish.   The best part being the finish where they let you buy gloves direct.  Some of them are slightly imperfect, some overstock, but all very nice.  I bought the most beautiful pair of red gloves!  I'll try to get a picture of them up so you can all ooooo and ahhhhhh.

I don't usually pass out advice on marriage but I have a little tidbit I would like to share.  If you're interested in keeping the peace - DO NOT wash your husband's passport!  Even if your intentions are pure (clean clothes) the end result will not produce a pleasing effect.  Trust me on this one.  In my defense, I have a long standing rule that once your clothes hit the laundry basket they should be ready to go - apparently no one is listening to me or following my rules.

Earlier today I posted a link to a blog - read some of it if you have time.  It amazes me to read stories of people doing extraordinary things.  Her blog reinforced my need to stop complaining over ridiculous things.

Sorry this is all a bit random and choppy but I'm still feeling the after effects of trying to stay up late and party like a Bunco rockstar.  I hope you all had a great weekend full of blessings.

Saturday's 3
1.  I am thankful to have the opportunity to be a host to great ladies.
2.  I am thankful for "Biscuit" books, my son loves to read them!
3.  I am thankful for my camera.

Sunday's 3
1.  I am thankful for my church.
2.  I am thankful for my neighbor Nora and her lasagna.
3.  I am thankful for missionaries out there showing the world what it really means to follow Christ.

New blog to read

http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/

An interesting read.

TGIF!

1.  I am thankful for cultural experiences with fun ladies.
2.  I am thankful for Beth Moore.
3.  I am thankful for Cecile and Blecile (my babysitters).

Goodnight.

Thursday's 3

Sorry about the lack of information or updates.  This has been a busy week.  And I'm discovering (though I already "knew") that my job, without Paul's help, takes a lot more time .  My husband is awesome!  Don't tell anyone, but I think he may be a better housewife than I am.

I should have something good to tell you about tomorrow.  I'm going with a group of girls on a tour of a glove factory.  Handmade Italian leather gloves, yum.

1.  I am thankful for spring-like days after weeks of rain.
2.  I am thankful Paul will be home tonight.

3.  I am thankful for the laughter of two little boys, and for their bedtime.

Only 3

Nothing to report today.
Here are my 3-

1.  I am thankful for my elliptical machine.
2.  I am thankful to Pastor Mark Driscoll for sharing his wonderful sermons.
3.  I am thankful for friends who invite me to dinner when my husband is out of town so I won't feel lonely.