Holy Boats!!! It's July!

I don't know about you, dear readers, but the month of July always fills me with dread!!! It marks (for me) the beginning of the end, the half way point of summer. Now I want you to know I really love teaching and I work with some awesome teens, but no teacher in her right mind will ever fail to also admit that they dread the 10 months of constant paper-shuffling and grading that comes with the job. So summertime, that blissful time where you can set your own pace, eat a long lunch with a friend, and do whatever you feel like come evening is SUCH an important and much-loved time.
So what have I accomplished thus far in my first half of summer? Sounds like a perfect opening for one of my lists! Here goes:
This summer so far I have:
1. Read a dozen novels of various types.
2. Traveled to Washington DC with Ed for 5 days.
3. Finished knitting a sweater for myself.
4. Gone to see 2 movies (yes,one was "Twilight")
5. Baked brownies or cookie bars at least once per week.
6. Spent at least one full day per week w/ Sydney.
7. Had a zoo trip/picnic day.
8. Cultivated two really decent gardens (at home & vineyard).
9. Gotten up by 7:30 every day but 3.
10. Spent at least one night each week with friends.

So you see... It's been a fine first half!!

The City of "David"

And no, I don't mean Bethlehem.... it's Florence! Michelangelo made a huge splash of an impact on this town, which has one of my favorite Duomos in all of Italy! Everywhere you look, there is color and beauty. They even have a famous pig! The Porcellino is a sort of Florentine Trevi Fountain... water drips out of his mouth and when you stick a coin in there, if it drops directly into the grate below (money going to charity, of course) it means you will return to this artsy city once more. It worked for me 2 years ago; I hope it does again!

The famous and beautiful Santa Maria del Fiore.... or Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Little Flower. Hands down, one of the most gorgeous cathedrals in Europe!

And here's the famous Pig (Porcellino) of Florence... a wild boar actually. He sits in the middle of an open air market daring all comers to put their hands (with coin) into his mouth.

To the Door and Back Again

We just arrived home last night from a week in one of the most gorgeous places in America.... Door County. For about 13 summers now we've spent at least one week in the Door Peninsula. It's a place where we all sort of "rediscover" ourselves, and we always return home refreshed and ready to tackle another year of work and life. This summer we were there from the 23rd through the 30th... so for the next few posts I'll have to share some photos and some "Door Time" with all of you!