Potty Training and bug catching

You may not realize this yet - but the best way to potty train is to combine it with the art of bug catching! The 1st Saturday that we really went without diapers we bought a bunch of small Diego toys to reward Jack with each and every trip to the toilet. One toy was a butterfly net, another was the "observatory." We actually managed to CATCH A BUTTERFLY and Jack stared at it in wonder while on the pot.

SPRING!

This picture is back from when we went to the Gambino Winery - Leah and Jack ran around and gathered all the roses that had already fallen to the ground. Jack obliged by hamming it up for the photo op. That's my boy!

A Real Siciliano

We went to Donna Fortunato the first night Leah was in town and had a great meal...happily created in part - by none other than - JACK!

1st italian soccer shirt

We bought Jack his first official italian soccer shirt the other day and he LOVES it because it has a number on the back! He is so proud of his shirt that as we walked and toured around with Leah he was showing it off to strangers everywhere.

Etna and Gambino Winery

The other day we had a super clear and warm day so we decided to head up and show Leah Etna. The drive up was gorgeous and full of a wide array of spring flowers blooming. When we got to the top it was VERY windy and chilly so we shopped at the local shops and then headed out to check out some of the close craters. It was so wind that even behind my monstrous sunglasses my eyes were still watering!

Afer our hike we headed back down the other side of Etna and had a nice wine tasting at the Gambino Winery. We tasted five differnet wines...three whites and two red. Gambino grows their grapes in a specific region of Etna that the government has labeled DOC. I especially liked the Murgalione red. The winery has a beautiful garden that we ran around and played in before heading home. (The flowers used to spell Jack's name had ALREADY fallen to the ground...we DID NOT pick them in order to take this picture.)

Taormina Garden and Greek Theater

We have been busy little tour guides since Leah has been here and I wanted to show you a few of our favorite pictures from the garden in Taormina. I am not 100% about all of the military equipment - I am assuming that the park is dedicated to all of the soldiers lost in WWII - - - it is kind of strange seeing all the beautiful sights and scenery and then noticing the ammo that borders the garden. We spent some time letting Jack run around and play on the playground and then off we went to the Greek Theater. The weather was rainy when we first got to town but it subsided over a few snacks and cappucini's no problem...however we were unable to get a clear view of Etna from the Greek Theater. Next time maybe.

Castlemola and Bar Turrisi

After we left Toarmina we drove on up the hill to Castlemola and suprised Leah with the Bar Turrisi. When we first walked in she truly had no idea why were so excited to take her out to this particular bar. We just allowed her to take it all in on her own and she soon noticed that the decor has one major common theme. I've added a few pictures - see if you can find the theme yourself.

We did not get up to Castlemola until about 5 pm and Jack had not slept even a wink so he crashed in the car on the way up the mountain and slept all through our Bar Turrisi experience. (which was WONDERFUL!!) Leah ate some of the best Pasta Alla Norma I have had since moving out to Sicilia and Matt and I shared a terrific pizza. We just sat and talked, ate and drank until Jack woke up and then we headed back home to prepare to go out in Catania!

Leah is here in Sicily and we're hitting all of our favorite spots. We started out with a night out at Donna Fortunata here in Motta Saint Anastasia. Jack was able to even help with creating one of our pizzas! After stuffing ourselves on bruschetta, pizza, pasta, and wine we walked up the hill towards the castle and decided to stop in and have some gelato. We have hit Taormina, Etna, Gambino Winery, Syracuse, South Beach, and both markets in Catania.!!

We still have a week left for getting to Agrigento, Notto, the Aci's, Matt and Leah want to take the boat out weather providing and we have Jack's big birthday party on Saturday too. We're busy but having a blast too. Here are a few random shots of the past few days and in a minute I'll post some more too.

Goofing off with Jack!

Matt found these glasses somewhere along our travels and he has been wearing them around the house lately - Jack decided that he HAD to have them for his bath the other night...this was the end result...we had a great time watching him ham it up. I will totally use this photo to tease him when he's older.

Abbigale returns to Sicily

We are honored enough to not only have Leah here visiting from Denver but Ellen and Abbigale are also in town for a visit from Spain. Spring Break started Friday and we kicked it off by celebrating with a happy hour at home with Leah, Ellen & Abbigale, the Schlechter's, the Andre's and the Corey's'! We had fun snacking while the kids all ran around and chased each other in the yard. It is absolutely spring here right now - the sun will pop out and it feels so warm and wonderful - but within seconds the sky will turn dark and we'll get a downpour. We have had lots of random thunderstorms but we have also had some incredible rainbows too. I have many more pictures to come but we have to download them all from Leah's camera. More to come soon.