I love Venice, need I say more....

These pictures are not really in order so I will give a breif explanation. The first is of Les in awe of this bakery. The Bakeries are beautiful in Italy. Les was in heaven. He fell in love with European bakeries on his mission to Poland. Althought the Italian bakeries are much different than in Poland they were much closer than American bakeries. The second picture is of me on a water taxi on the grand canal. I was grateful for the shelter. the third is of Les eating Gelato our first night in Italy. The Gelato is so good there. Some flavors much better than American ice cream. The last two pictures are of the beauty that is Venice. Canals where streets should be and boats instead of cars. It is not a fast paced city either so it makes this city expecially relaxing, and quiet.

The fun begins not in Venice but just getting to Venice. The flight was long, over 10 hours, and our individual T.V.s weren't working so the only thing we could do on the screens was check the flight status and play games. Well the person behind me elected to play games. So all night I had tap, tap, tap, tap tap, tap tap over and over again on the back of my chair. What a bummer! Needless to say I got about an hour or less of sleep. Les did a little better. We flew into Milan and figured out how to get to the Central Station, tired and a little in culture shock. The train ride was beautiful. Padua was a beautiful town but Verona was even better. We were sitting next to some people from Spanish Fork with ties to Heber on the way (what a small world). We got to Venice and then had to find out hotel, we were staying at a Hotel in a tiny town called Quarto D'Altino ( cute little town North West of Mestre) about 15 minutes from Venice by local train. That is where the craziness really starts. Too many trains all with a different system to ride them, but it was okay after we figured it out, and had some rest. We went straight back to Venice after we checked in and showered and boy were we

glad that we did. Venice is so peaceful and unique. We enjoyed getting lost in the city and finding new bridges, canals, and churches. Some of the buildings were so close together you had to walk single file to walk betweeen them. My claustrophoiba kicked in just a little. All of the buildings are at least three or four stories in height. We enjoyed finding an out of the way restuarant to try some real Italian food. It was worth it. We also had our first of many Gelato breaks. We went back to the Hotel about 9:00 to crash. The next morning we went back to Venice. It was pouring rain. We took a water taxi to St. Marks bascilica, and the Piazza there. The Piazza is lined with shops that have a covered walk way completely around it so we satyed out of the rain mostly. We wandered around Venice shopping and eating till around 2:00. This is a city that everyone should see. I heard there was not much to do there but just being there is the part that is the most enjoyable. I hope we get to go back to this city someday but with how big the world is it will probably not happen. I can dream...maybe someday.

Family Project

So we finally decided to buy a swing set for several reasons. We decided to buy a kit from Costco. Wow it is quite the undertaking. These pictures were taken after step 4 of 35 steps. The kids were excited to have a usable item built even if it was as exciting as a picnic table. We are finding time each evening to do a few steps and it has been fun and challenging. At this point we hope to be done by the 31st since I have a teacher inservice at our home that night. We will see. We are currently ready to start step 10 but the weather has not been cooperating. The clocks a ticking. The kids are so excited they can hardly stand it and the minute Les walks in the door they are asking if it is time to start building. Hopefully they are still excited when we are finished.

Indians Game

Saturday night we went to an Indians game compliments of Roche Diagnostics. We had free tickets and free dinner. How can you pass that up with a family of five. We made it till the end of the 7th inning. Which is quite an accomplishment since it started at 7:00 P.M. The kids had a great time. Isaac is officially interested (at least a little) in the game. The other two were content to play around our seats. Brennen stared down Les's coworkers' son because he put his feet on his chair. The son was a teenager. Bren is not afraid of any one and has a don't mess with me attitude. I wonder which Grandpa he got that from?

I feel the pressure!

I have finally decided to join the world of bloggers. I know it has taken some time. Time is something that I have a limited amount of as of late. I am a busy mother, wife, daughter, friend, babysitter, and primary president. However, I feel the importance of writing our story as our life meanders, twists and turns. I want to capture the memories and insights I am continually learning. I hope that I can share something that will enlighten or entertain those who are interested. I am eager to share with those who are also taking this blogging adventure. I also hope to use this as a tool to stay close with family and friends, and share my thoughts with any one who cares. Happy Blogging! Oh By the way, this picture of me was taken by my husband in Florence, Italy. It was a bit rainy. Look forward to more pics and stories from our recent adventure in Italy.