A little birthday getaway

The second week of June Daniele and 6 of his friends had booked a week in a camping site in Tuscany between Marina di Grosseto and Castiglione della Pescaia. We took him there by car and as it was my birthday the next day, I had booked a night for the rest of the family in a farm house in Sorano.

First we took a swim at the beach at the camping site, went to have an ice cream in Castiglione and then drove to Sorano to Agriturismo Le Gore.

I had found it on the internet and after having read lots of positive reviews of the place, I booked it. It was a bit hard to find as it really was in the middle of nowhere. Our navigator took us to a very small and not so good road, but in the end we got there. Actually the lady at the farm house had warned us not to take that way, which, as she said, was the worst road leading to them, but we ended up there anyway.

Well, when we finally arrived we found out it was worth it. The owners were really friendly and immediately made us feel at home. They cooked coffee and gave some juice to the girls and we had a nice chat with them before going to our apartment. There was lots of space for us.

Sofia and Carlotta took a swim in the pool, although the weather was quite cool up there. Well, good they did it the first day, because the next day the weather was really cold and rainy.

 

We relaxed and looked at the beautiful views and then had dinner there. We were the only guests eating there that evening. The food and their own wine was just delicious and we ate a lot. As a dessert we might have had the best cherries I have ever tasted and a yummy chocolate cake.

Armando had talked the owner, David in to coming for a run with him the next morning. After a lovely breakfast I had my birthday presents - a riding shirt from Armando and a brush, riding gloves and treats for the horses from my children.

Armando wanted take one of the cats to Rome and as they were looking for someone to give them to, we were about to do so. We even gave the cat a name during the dinner. But the cats were one year old already and used to living outside, catching mice and having huge spaces, so I thought maybe it wasn't that good an idea. Sofia didn't like the fact that the cat we were supposed to take just ran away and didn't want to be touched by us. So in the end we decided to leave it there. Carlotta was a little bit disappointed, but in the end said that she was quite happy without a cat, as well. We travel a lot and spend so much time with the horses anyway. That's the main reason why I'm a bit afraid of taking the responsibility of a pet, although I would love to have one.

 As the weather was bad and we had a little club jumping competition that day at the riding school, we then drove home. Actually I was the only one of the family participating this time, but after all, it was my birthday. We had dinner there afterwards.

A day trip to the surroundings of Viterbo

The first Saturday in June I had decided to go to see another flower garden that's near Viterbo. It's a botanical garden with lots of different peonies. Unfortunately their internet pages didn't tell me that the peonies weren't blooming anymore, so we will have to try to go there again next year.
I had my riding lesson in the morning and then we drove towards Viterbo. It was me, Sofia and Carlotta this time.
The place was nice with a cute café and it's definitely worth a visit next May again during the blooming period.

Nearby there was a riding school where one of Sofia's friends has her horse. We went there and the owner was very friendly and showed us around. She said she also has a bed & breakfast place, so if we could week-end we can go horse riding.

On our way home we were hungry and stopped in a small village called Monte Romano and had a piece of pizza there.

Then I drove to the seaside and we had a swim in Riva di Tarquinia.

The rose garden in Rome

One Sunday in May I visited the rose garden in Rome. I had never been there before and that Sunday we had nothing to do. I started looking for ideas on the internet and this one came up. Lately it hasn't been so easy get the rest of the family interested in doing things. Every one seems to live their own life. The teenagers want to be with their friends and Armando is concentrated in his training to the various marathons, so I decided to go anyway and hoped someone would be interested in coming there with me . Carlotta did. And I was so glad that we went there. Just like me, Carlotta loves beautiful things and what's beautiful if not roses? We went there on the 24th of May and I think that's the best period to see lots of roses blooming here in Rome. The entrance to the garden is free. 

It's near Circus Maximus, so we took the metro there.

There were lots of roses of different colours and kinds. So beautiful!

Then we went to the Orange garden where there's a lovely view over Rome.

While we were at the Aventino hill we also walked to the headquarters of the Knights of Malta where you can see the St Peter's dome through a key hole, but the queue was too long, so we will see that another time.

It was a nice afternoon and I think once in a while it's good to show the children the beauties of the city they actually live in, although we live quite far from the centre and very seldom go there.

First swims of the year

The first swim of the year is always something to document. This year I took my first swim in the sea on the 17th of May. Me and Sofia went to the beach of Torvaianica with our friends.

We had a nice coffee and a chat at the beach cafè.

Carlotta was at the theatre with her friend that day, so the next day when I had finished working I suggested to her that we go to Ostia to have a swim at the beach and maybe an ice cream afterwards. She liked the idea. 
I like going to the beach when it's not too crowded and not too hot and the best moment is when the sun starts going down and people go home and the light is so beautiful.

Then we drove to the centre of Ostia where there is a frozen yogurt shop. Yummy! You serve yourself and choose the toppings and pay by weight.

I love the golden hour!

 Driving back home.

Spring barbeques

Although our week-ends are quite hectic with Sofia's show jumping competitions and Armando's marathons, this spring I have managed to organize two last minute barbeques in our garden. They are always great fun. Everyone brings something to eat, so it doesn't get too stressing for anyone.

The first barbeque was on the 12th of April after the Easter holidays. That time it was with our Italian friends. Some of them knew each others, others didn't, but it turned out to be a very happy bunch of people and we got many good laughs.

The second barbeque was on the 1st of May and it was with our Swedish-Finnish friends and their families and also some of Armando's marathon friends. The more the merrier! Again a lovely day out in the garden. This time we had fava beans and pecorino cheese, which you traditionally eat in Rome on the 1st of May, strawberries and some very tasty cakes. Our teenagers seemed to get on well together, although they hadn't met for a long time.

A summer update

I'm very much behind with my posts here. What have we been up to? Well, lots of small things. Schools have finished and now for the second week all three children are at home. Well, Daniele is almost never at home. He has had a very active life since he started his summer holiday. He has a group of friends and they organize something everyday. They go to the beach, to the pool, they have barbeque parties, go out in the evenings and so on. Just now he is at a camping site in Tuscany with other 6 friends. Lucky him. This is where we left them playing football in the sea when we had taken him there.

My work has kept me at home in the mornings, so if Sofia and Carlotta don't get invited to friends, they are here at home, too. They sleep late in the morning and mostly watch TV. After quite some time we managed to get our outdoor pool assembled and filled with water. The outdoor pool is quite complicated, actually. You can't use the water from the well, as it gets brown and it wasn't easy to find a place to connect the water hose inside our house. Then the water leaked on the floor. Fortunately we got that fixed. Then you have to measure the PH and the chlorine content in the water and correct it when needed. Anyway now the pool is there and Sofia and Carlotta has spent some time there. Yesterday they made a brownie cake after a recipe found on the internet. Of course Carlotta got summer home work from school, too, but she is not so eager to do them. For me it would be more important that she would read some books and maybe write down her summer memories, which she already has started to do.

In the afternoon I turn off the computer and we go to the horse stables and come home quite late in the evening. After dinner we often go out for an ice cream. This week the evenings have been a bit rainy, so we have stayed at home.

I have decided not to let the summer float away without doing anything. So as soon as I will have time, we will go to the beach, to some pool, go out for an evening swim and other nice things. I have been more lazy exercizing than last summer, so I will try to start jogging again more regularly. There are also a thousand projects to do here at home and if I finish at least a few of them, I will be very happy.

Summer is finally here, so let's enjoy it!