Leo and Seba market place

This afternoon Leo and Seba made up a great flea market in their playroom. Actually they were so quiet and i was so busy playing upstairs with the girls that i only noticed after a long while they were playing. Anyways i liked their idea and how they fixed everything in the smallest details that i had to take couple of pics.

In the first one the owners of the store , mr Leo and mr Seba ( still in his nightwear ... ) in the second one Leo with two customers, Ms Gaia and her son, Gianluca :))

29 december 2008 usual funny day ....

The last 3 days of the year. On 27 we had to say goodbye to our beloved guests. Sadness and tears, but the feeling of having friends, the heartwarming, sweet feeling of knowing what friendship is about. Anyways life goes on, with high and lows. Today, 29 december, was an especially funny day for no reason. Simply it went on smoothly, filled with laughter and fun ...

Green thin felt, black buttons, paper ... 'Mom this is the best caterpillar i've ever had' in Leo's word the wonder of being mother, in 5 minutes you can make the best thing ever ...


Heart shaped potato, can't be nature the most amazing thing ? Who needs boring tv ...


And after lunch Gaia and Seba had a little show for mom and dad. Here Gaia presenting the afternoon ...

Seba singing with feeling

Gaia is very professional

And to finish the show, a funny comedy :)

(Notice the two legs of the table missing )

Oh ! What's going on now ...

Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah !!!!!!!

Christmas Morning - 25\12\08 (of course !)

Finally Christmas morning arrived. First time i heard the kids chatting at 4:30 am.

Kids is still night, go back to sleep.

Then at 5:30 someone touched my cheek ' Mom, Gaia said is 5:30, is morning yet ? '

No Seba, is still dark, go back to sleep ...

And then at 6:00 ...

At 6:30 ...

7:00 ...

Finally around 7:20 we gave up ...

Ok kids, let's go downstairs and see if Santa dropped by tonight ....

What do you think ? Let's see if MamaF camera could get some evidence of that early morning ...

....Someone's been here tonight ....




....Wow ... elephants ... and much more ....




Let's go for a wild ride ....




Unwrapping time, that's it ...



What is this .... could this be .... YES !!








Drum roll please !








oh please ... my baby is sleeping ....






Better take the young ones having breakfast in our room ....




Baby Jesus arrived ... Merry Christmas to everyone, with all my heart.
(pic of our nativity scene )

Christmas dinner - 24\12\08

Christmas dinner ready, everybody is hungry, mouthwatering smells of homecooked goodies. But tonight is a special night, so the table deserve that special touch we worked on for days, maybe weeks in our minds. So please, be patient, let me set the table for you and took just a couple of pic as a memento of this special night, then i'll let you feast and won't bother you with more pics for tonight ... only for tonight ....

The table. I hope it could show the love i feel for all those around it.

Snowflake saucer cut out from baking paper, so that it could resist to every drop water might fell

Close up on the saucer. I think they came out quite nice. A good idea i'll keep in mind for special occasions.

Oh happy day, oh happy day

When Jesus washed, oh when He washed

When Jesus washed, He washed my sins away (oh happy day),

Oh happy day Oh happy day, oh happy day

When Jesus washed, oh when He washed

When Jesus washed, He washed the sins away

Oh happy day

He taught me how to watch and pray, watch and pray and we'll rejoice everyday,everyday

Oh happy day, oh happy day

When Jesus washed, oh when He washed

When Jesus washed, He washed the sins away

Gingerbread house - 23\12\08

On 23rd december, after songs and snowflakes, we proceeded with another Christmassy afternoon, building the gingerbread house and inhabitants (the gingerbread men ... ). Since gingerbread is not in our tradition i don't know (yet) how to make it from scratch, so we had storebought house and dough, but all the rest was homemade ( caramel, icing, frosting ... )

Seba, Milla and leo watching closely the first step

Close up on the first step completed



Dear Mrs K, the art director af the afternoon, fixing a collapsed chimney ...

Decorating some more ( if you watch closely on the window in the bac
kground you can see the snowflakes we did the day before )

Done !!!!! Do you like our brand new gingerbread house Gingerbread world !!!!!!!!!! :))

Gaia's and Milla's braids - 21\12\08

After spending the day kindly teaching us how to cut out snowflakes from silkpaper or napkins ( sorry, no evidence of it, i was too busy learning and cutting ), Mrs K combed the girls' hair . I hardly can make pony or pig tails and normal braids, i'd need probably a billion years to lear how to braid hair this way, but i'd love to. Maybe i should start practicing on dolls ...

Milla from behind

Milla from the side

Milla drinking ... i know it has nothing to do with braids, but she is too lovely :)

Gaia from behind

Gaia from the side ...

Karaoke night - 20\12\08

Finally, on december the 20th we've had the incredible pleasure and happiness to meet in person two of the best friends we have , Mr Ed and his lovely wife Mrs K from Helsinki. The last time we met them was in november of 2007, the day before our move back to Italy.
So welcoming them at the airport here in Rome has been such a touching and hearwarming experience, and of course soon the fun begun.
On the same night we took them at the karaoke. Mr Ed felt immediately at ease and we all had a lot of fun. Following the evidences of the night :D

Mr Ed singing 'Olen Suomalainen' Kari Tapio hit from the '80s

Leo tasting a teaspoon of coffee. the best treat ever for him :)

Mr Ed and Uncle Max singing together 'Wild Horses' the Rolling Stones hit

Gaia chatting lovely with uncle Max

Milla and Mr Ed

Milla and Mrs K

Gaia on stage near Uncle Max while singing ' The Final Countdown' the Europe song from the 80s. Still she doesn't feel to sing, but she's getting closer and closer

A great night !

Gaia'a Christmas recital - 19\12\08

The last day of school before christmas holidays, Gaia's class had the Christmas recital.

Since i don't like to post pictures that includes other kids then mine without permission i will only share some of the faboulus 4 after everything was done.

Anyways, Gaia's been really good and she's also been one of the two lead singer for the christmas song. Not even to say i was moved to tears ....

Close up of Gaia soon after the recital

Funny Milla acting in front of the camera

The foursome in the school corridor.

.....

Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

(Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)

I'd like to be the sort of friend that you have been to me;

I'd like to be the help that you've been always glad to be;

I'd like to mean as much to you each minute of the day As you have meant, old friend of mine, to me along the way...

(Edgar guest, A Friends Greeting )

For my husband, my best friend.

For my far aways friends, always so close to me.

For my children, always here to lift my heart when needed.

(The flowers where a gift from my husband for our 10 years wedding anniversary, last summer )

jukebox&tubeamp

I'm proud to announce the birth of my husband's website
jukebox&tubeamp

He's been working real hard in starting a business on his own and this is one of the first steps. He's always worked on and off in the music field as a dj, a sound engeneer or as a technician, so he decided to put together his education and the love he has for this 'vintage' music gear, especially jukeboxes and so jukebox&tubeamp was born.
I wish him to realize his dream, i'm sure for the kids it's such a great example, to see their father work so hard creating something he loves and that will be a great thing for all of us. I already dream of a future when our boys will work side by side with him on our family business.

Good luck my love.



One of my husband's masterpiece. This jukebox arrived complitely worn out, and came back to his owner perfectly functioning and restored.

16 years ago....

.... i was a 16 years old girl. In Italy 8th december is holiday, we celebrate Holy Mary ( the mother of Jesus i mean ). So on 6th december 1992 i've been invited to my girlfriend's place to spend two days with her. On 7th december it was a snowy day ( incredible for the Rome coast ) so my friend and her boyfriend took me to meet her boyfriend older brother who was working as a Dj in a radio station. From that moment on it's history, so to say. 16 years later, 4 children later, 3 houses, 3 cities, 2 different countries later, we're still together. Half of my life. Not always a piece of cake. Not always the icing on the cake, but still together. There must have been something in those snowflakes sent from above.
Yesterday at the karaoke night, my brother in law, that kid brother who took me meet his older bros, dedicated us 'Knocking on heaven's door', such a touching moment.
We were all kids, we grew together, we're graying together, we're nurturing the next generations.
The biggest gift i ever had.

Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge.

Brother and sister

Milla and Leo are at the moment best buddies. Seba has always loved more to spend time with big sis Gaia and learn new things, instead Leo as soon as Milla has been old enough to play has been more then happy to have a younger sibling to share more 'kiddie' ways of playing. The other day they were colouring a book together on the kitchen table. They caught my attention because of they're dialogue. Leo told Milla something like' You see, if we work together we're faster' and of course she agreed at big brother staring him in awe of his wise words. I love to watch them, listen to them, as i usually say, they're my tv set :) i don't need the other kind ( i don't watch tv at all ).
Anyways here a couple of pics of them




Aren't they absolutely lovely ? Aren't children a blessing in our lives ?

Advent Calendar

November went away with very few posting, but time is short in this period and mostly when i try to accomplish several seasonal crafts at the same time.
Here my latest Christmas craft, the Advent Calendar. Traditionally every year i make a new calendar, this should be the 5th year and the kids love it and expect it so much every year. So here it is. Along with it, it goes a small booklet of Christmas tales we'll read BEFORE getting to the calendar ;)

Here the first step, Santa's big head cut out from cardboard and painted. At this stage it was hidden in the sauna drying the colour
















Here the 24 bags i handsewed and decorated. They're lined on the piano drying.













Here a close up of bag number 24, the most important !

















Here the calendar hanging on the wall, with its bags filled with goodies :)

I love Christmas time ....