Preparations

Are you ready to go on this wild ride with me?  The one where we move across the ocean? That is why you are reading this blog right?  Andiamo!

The fun has only just begun.  We managed to get the kids passport photos taken, which included the bribery of one toddler with one giant cookie.  I don't blame him for not wanting to stand on the overturned milk carton in the middle of a CVS while some guy snapped his photo.  If you think this post sounds like it is laced with sarcasm, you have earned one giant cookie as well.

Why am I feeling sarcastic lately?  While we prepare for this journey, I have had to make numerous trips to the post office because that is where passports for minors are assigned.  I would love it if all post offices were just renamed to more accurately describe what they actually are: the place that every person who does not want to work applies for (and gets) a job.  The workers there are unreal....if eye rolling were an Olympic sport, I would be scouting behind the counters of every post office in America.

Lots of other small details are coming along, but it looks like we will depart at the beginning of September sometime.  I love that there is no exact date yet (again with the sarcasm).  We will be staying until December of this year and then will be home for the holidays (including my 30th birthday...bring it on, I am totally not scared of numbers).  If everything goes well in the first three months we are there, we will return in January to begin our longer stay.

I bought Vance a world map and a dictionary and we have been watching some Italian kids stuff on you tube.  I am hoping he will at least be used to hearing the language by the time we get there and get settled.  Unfortunately the only word he recalls quickly as of now is "dinosauri" which may not get him too far.  BUT he is trying and it is adorable. 

Besides all of our trip preparations, we are trying to enjoy the remainder of our summer and not get too wrapped up in the millions of items on our to-do list.  Call it getting into the Italian state of mind.  I can see already that venturing into a country where the pace is much slower and the quality of life is taken into account more will be good for the soul!

My bandana baby

Starved Rock State Park






Reading on a rainy day

Sitting like a big girl!

Expats in Italy

The lazy days of summer have arrived and are in full force in our home.  Beach mornings, beach evenings, beach potlucks (that's a lot of beach!), camping trips, farmers markets bursting with color, parks, water fights, late walks in the evening while kids snooze in the stroller, and sunshiny goodness.

We were enjoying what we thought to be a normal summer when a huge piece of news came our way.  We are being relocated for a project my husband needs to work on. In ITALY.  TWO FULL YEARS in the land of wine, pizza, mountains, and beautiful dialect!  And we leave in just a few months!  I feel like just writing about it cannot do it justice. The excitement I feel is insurmountable. My children will be bilingual and will know first hand about architecture, history, and culture that otherwise would only be accessible through school books and slide shows (do they even HAVE those anymore?).  We will have the amazing opportunity to travel over much of Europe if we want to. My husband will have a world of career opportunities opening for him after the completion of this project.  As I keep telling Vance, we are going on a huge adventure!

I feel all at once so grateful, ecstatic, scared, and anxious.  Actually, most of the time I feel like it is a weird dream and it is not really going to happen.  The thought of relocating our whole family and moving an ocean away from everyone we hold dear is somewhat boat rocking.  We both know a little Italian but will have to do some major work to understand enough to live there.  There is a lot to be done before we move in a few months. Passports for the kids, relocation details, renting our condo, packing. Blah blah blah. 

I have realized already, now only a few days into the process, that it will be a test of my mindfulness practice. Just like parenting. I don't want to miss a moment of this adventure but the only way to succeed is to remain in the present, letting life unfold as it should in front of me.  We hope to have visitors, friends and family alike, to make the whole journey a richer experience.  We hope to see amazing sights and taste amazing foods. It requires all of our senses to behold these daily miracles that life is giving us. Here's to an amazing adventure for the Campbell's!  I will be blogging and posting pictures here so keep up with our travels and stories if you wish!