kentucky, here we come

Well, we are packed and ready to go.

I am not sure how much sleep the girls will get because they are VERY excited!!!

We are hoping for no ice or snow and warmer temperatures than there has been lately. At least we know that it will be warmer in Alabama!!!

See you in a few days!!

happy valentine's day

Hope your sweetheart sends you lots of love!!

where have my little girls gone?

I was looking at pictures while the children I am babysitting are playing.

It is hard to believe we are coming up on three years since we first came over here for 6 months and two years since we flew back over to live.

2005

NOW

2005

NOW

finally!!!

We decided to drive up to Lakenheath tonight and stay at the hotel. There is high, high speed internet in the rooms, so I have finally added links for some of the Venice pictures. {I had to use Shutterfly because I c/n figure out how to link to Photobucket.} I hope you enjoy them.

Steve is doing well at the new base. He has to get up at 2:45am, be out of the house by 3:45 so he can be armed and at guardmount by 5:00am. It is going to be a long, tiring 60 days, but WE ALL will survive it:):)!!!!

**** He fired EXPERT on the 9mm and M-16!!! Should I be proud that he can shoot guns well??????hahaha

Oh yeah, and I have survived turning the big 39!!. That can't be right can it? Surely I am still in my 20's!!!!!

siamo a casa

Ciao a tutti!

Well, we made it home. It was a good trip. We all enjoyed ourselves.
Michaela loved looking at all the Murano glass jewelry in the shops, Emma loved all the masks in the windows, and of course, they both LOVED the gelato!!!!

We left at 2:30 am for the airport and made it with no complications. We went through security with Steve setting off the sensor as he always does (it's that BB in his finger!!!) and then were made to throw away our toothpaste because it was over 100ml. (It was CREST Neat Squeeze and I had to send it over from the States:). We boarded the plane and took off at 6:25am. We were supposed to be landing on Treviso at 9:25, but after 2 failed attempts at landing due to the fog, we were diverted to another airport 15 minutes away. We then waited for the charter buses they sent for us to transport us back to Treviso. An hour after getting onto the bus, we arrived at the correct airport! It was raining, our morning was gone, so we loaded into the rental car (remembering to drive on the right side of the road) and headed to Aviano to check into the Mountain View Resort--gorgeous mountains all around and Austria just on the other side.

Sunday morning we drove to the train station, parked the car, bought our train tickets, and headed into Venice. The plan was to take a trip down the Grand Canel, climb Campanella tower, spend some time in the square and then walk back to the train station to head back to Aviano for church services at 3:30pm. (There is a group that meets at the base chapel so they have to wait for the Protestant and Catholic services to be over.) Unfortunantly, we were incorrectly told there was only one train every hour going back to Perdonone and we did not make it back to the station in time (Walking for 15 minutes and ending up where we started did not help!!) So with worship services missed, we continued exploring.

Monday morning we drove an hour to Treviso and parked the car near the airport and train station. We took the train in and explored for the next 7.5 hours. We walked EVERYWHERE!! The mosaics in the basilica were amazing! Gondolas were intricate--and everywhere. The palaces of the sinking city were unbelievable. The costumes for Carnevale were extraordinary!!!!

Exhausted, we headed back to Treviso and to the airport. We arrived home at 2:00am, the girls fell into bed, and were up at 8:00am for school--tired, but excited about the trip.

*** Pics to be added as soon as I can get them to upload to the blog--running very slow right now and pics are not being added?????

un'avventura di famiglia in Venezia

We are off on a three trip to Venice, Italy to mourn--oh, I mean celebrate, my 39th birthday. We leave at 2:30am {Ugh!!!} to drive to the airport for a 6:25am departure. We will have three full days of exploring the fabulous city of Venice and experiencing Carnevale di Venezia. Look for loads of pictures next week!!!

**Here is my few sentences of justification--because I could name a few people who are reading this and shaking their heads like we are children needing to explain a poor decision:) Yes, we were just worried that we had no job and no income, but I planned and paid for this trip a month before the Air Force decided to add some drama to our lives--so the money was gone whether we had a job or not! We are just glad we are still here and can go on the trip!!!!!!!!!