Monaca- what

Yesterday afternoon Giovanni had a Dr. apt on the northern outskirts of Milan- after leaving the apt. we decided to drive up to Como since we were not too far away. It was really nice drive with little snow flurries in the air and a little bit of snow on the ground- Beautiful!!!! Once we got to Como we decided to head up to Bellagio we did not get 5 min from Como when we slowed down to let a car pull out in front of us. You see they had been pulled over by the Carabinieri (one of the MANY police type of authorities here) and were now pulling out- we slowed to a stop so they could easily pull out and then the little uniformed man waving the white stick with a red target like circle flagged us to pull in!!! Gio and I were both confused- we had not done anything to merit the "pull over"!!! As one officer checked out Gio's license, registration-and the insurance stuff the other one did a little walk around the car with Giovanni *this is very different from USA they don’t care if you get out of the car* he was checking out the tires and telling Gio they needed to be changed- then he asked what we were transporting- nothing- Gio opened the back to show him the spare tire and empty water bottles rolling around back there. It was as if they were searching for something to nail us with! Then they asked for my documents. *Another difference, they usually ask for all the documents of passengers* we handed over the copy of my visa and my Utah drivers license- I could tell something was up when they started looking at it funny! Sure enough the visa- being only a copy was not valid- I have to carry around the real thing as well as my passport. Not only that but apparently my Utah license is not valid for them as a id- I know I need to get my Italian id card! I was thinking... "so what are they going to do? take me in b/c I don’t have my correct documents"?
Then came the best part!!!
Both officers came to my side of the car and asked me a few weird questions.....
Officer "how did you enter into Italy"?
Me: "On the airplane with my passport" Very perplexed
Officer: "okay, I understand that, but are you a monaca?"
Me: (not knowing what the heck a monaca was) "ummm I am a Mormon"
Officer: "I know the Mormons, I respect them, but for us the system shows that you entered Italy for religious reasons. When is the baby due?"
Me: "in less than 2 weeks, I entered in 2002 with that visa- in 2003 I went home and 2 years later I married him (pointing to Gio). I don’t understand why it shows that I am still under a religious visa- I have had 2 family visa's since then"
Officer: "My colleagues and I are curious, why is a monaca pregnant"?

Apparently he thought I was a Woman Monk- monaca, the word I did not know, and that b/c I was pregnant Gio was trying to take me to Switzerland to escape or something!!! How funny is that!!! We had to do a little explaining, but in the end we left (not going to Bellagio) without a ticket and lots to laugh about! Here are a few pictures from the drive back!

Happy New Year to you all!!! Buon Anno a Tutti!!

Buon Natale 2008!

Merry Christmas to you all!!!

3 years of love!

Yesterday we celebrated our 3 year together! I prepared clam chowder and lobster!!! While I was preparing dinner a delivery came- a beautiful bouquet of flowers! What a sweet hubby!!!
At first when I had told Giovanni that I wanted to make lobster and explained that they had to be alive then we put them in boiling water for 10 min- he was really concerned about them! Although when it came time to put them in the water he was excited to see how it would all turn out- he also understood why there is the saying "you look red like a lobster!!" When we sat down to eat at our candle adorned table I spied this little teal bag- Tiffany & Co. What a surprise! The bouquet of colorful flowers was enough- but my thoughtful husband had more in store for me! A delicate, silver heart necklace!
The fun did not end there- we spent the next hour or so decorating gingerbread houses and listening to Christmas music! It was a great day!
I love you sweet Giovanni! Thank you for your love and support! I love your enthusiasm and joy over the smallest things! You have a natural ability to make friends with anyone and put others at ease. I am grateful for the struggles we have been through and look forward to the adventures that lie ahead! TI AMO GIO MIO!!!

more countdown fun

We are getting a lot closer to the arrival of our little girl!

Interested in pregnancy? Read about pregnancy symptoms
and find baby names.
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Upload baby photos and learn about breastfeeding.

private midwife or no?

Giovanni and I have been going back and forth about hiring the private midwife who has been following me here in Italy through my pregnancy to be "on- call" for when labor starts. She would come to our house and work with me through the first part of the labor until I dilate to 6 or so then head to the hospital, thus avoiding staying in the hospital too long. Once there she would be a personal coach to me, but has no legal rights in the hospital to do anything as far as delivery goes. From what I understand at the hospital there are about 2 midwives running between 6 labor and delivery rooms that seem to normally be full with one maybe 2 Dr's on call, so the care is not very personal.
I really want to labor and deliver all natural with out any kind of drugs (however, I have taken the steps to meet with and get paper work complete from the anesthesiologist JUST IN CASE), I think that hiring our mw will help me in this goal- but trying to understand if the cost is worth it is another thing! We have to call her tomorrow and let her know what our choice is....
Time is ticking and our little girl will be here shortly after the new year starts!!! How exciting!!!
I do have some new belly shots to post, but need to sort through them- stay tuned for that!

a beautiful lesson

The other day I was watching CNN International (the only English channel I get), there was a special story on genocide in the world. There was one specific story done on survivors of the horrible massacre in Rwanda. The story was highlighting how the survivors are living back in their old homes and healing from the horrible acts committed and lived through. I was very touched by a woman who was serving dinner to her basket weaving partner (they now weave baskets sold in Macys department stores for money) and her husband. This may sound normal- but the unique part of the story is that the husband of her basket friend was the one who killed 5 of her children!!! She was serving them dinner!!! What a beautiful story of forgiveness!!! She is has forgiven and she is healing! What a great lesson for all of us to learn- especially during this season! We should all be more forgiving!

Thanksgiving dinners

Ciao Everybody! It is long time I don't blog so I thought Thanksgiving is a great opportunity to be back!
On Thanksgiving day with some dear friend we had dinner at "Fiori Oscuri" restaurant in Brera area, in the center of Milan and we had so much fun! Food was really great and the company too! Rachael and myself spent a fantastic evening with our new friends from Madrid, Spain, Mike and Maria Plonsky (Mike is my best friend David's brother that lives in New York), Emma (she looks likes my best friend Sienna Miller!), Aaron and Amie, and some other great people I sincerely do not remember the names.. you know how terrible I am sometimes in remembering names!
Yesterday, we had the second celebration for Thanksgiving at our great and very very dear friends Amanda and Zeno Tutino's and we had the best tacchino (turkey) ever! That was so yummy! There were nice friends and we really enjoyed it! I decided to start a diet tomorrow because I really need it after all this fantastic food! Anyway, tomorrow is tomorrow, and today is still today, so I say HI to all of you and I run to slice some pumpkin pie and buttermilk pie leftover Rachael made that is so good! Ciao belli e brutti!

Thanks Giving

Today in America most families will be gathering together around a really yummy meal and giving thanks for great and small things, this is yet again another holiday I really miss. However, it will not go uncelebrated! Tonight we are going to be dining in a restaurant with some other Americans giving our thanks (I think with a turkey too)! The fun will not end there- Saturday night we will be with friends sharing food (more traditional thanksgiving dinner), games, and fun!!! Since the holiday will last a few days for us I think I will take advantage of sharing my thankfulness on another post! A presto! Enjoy your day all!

what's another year?

Sunday (Nov. 23rd) was my 28th Birthday!!! yup I am one year older! It was a pretty normal Sunday: church in the morning and a little hanging out in the afternoon with some phone calls. Giovanni was acting a little weird, but I did not think much of it. He wanted pizza for dinner so I started the dough and thought it a little unfair that I was cooking what HE wanted to eat, I did not want to put in the time to bake a cake so I was trying out a microwave chocolate thingy and placing candles on when he hurried out of the house just before 6pm to take a rented movie back. In the mean time I took to sitting on the couch lounging and web surfing. A few minutes later he came back in saying that he had left something... then in walked about 15 people!!! I was really shocked- needless to say he really did pull of the surprise! I just wish I was not sitting in little stretch pants and a t shirt when everyone walked in!
There was all sorts of yummy things to eat and fun people to talk to! Thanks Giovanni for pulling it all together! I love you!

makeup mishap!

This morning I started getting ready, I pulled out my foundation and started to apply it.... but as you can see the color was WAY OFF!!! So much for Smart Shade makeup!!! I look like I am painting my face for a umpalumpa part in Willi Wonka's Chocolate Factory!

Oreo Truffels

I saw this recipe on another blog http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/01/grocery-item-turns-gourmet.html It was great!!! I can't wait to try it at Christmas with crushed candy canes! YUMMY!

Oreo Truffles

1 package oreo cookies (divided… use cookie including the cream center)
1 8oz. package cream cheese (softened)
white chocolate bark

1. Finely crush 7 cookies in a food processor or place them in a ziploc bag and crush into a fine consistency. Reserve for later.
2. Crush remaining cookies and stir in softened cream cheese. Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together.
3. Roll the mixture into 1" balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry. You can sprinkle the tops with the 7 crushed cookies for decoration. (I usually eat mine before they make it to this stage.)
5. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

Note... Here in Italy I had a harder time finding Oreos, but found that Chocolate Ringos work just as well.

my mom

BUON COMPLEANNO MAMMALINA!!!!
Today is my mother figures birthday! My mom (Mother Teresa) is a fantastic person! She is easy to talk to (for this reason she easily makes friends), compassionate, willing to try new things (as long as heights is not too involved), non judgmental- but she will let you know clearly her opinion, creative and a GREAT MOTHER! I have am honored to have her as my role model for what a mother is. I love you mom and am so proud of all that you have accomplished!!! I am really looking forward to your arrival in January!!!
Enjoy today and know that although not there, we love you and are thinking of you!!!
(If any of you see my mom please pass along a hug and a kiss on each cheek from Gio and I, no doubt she will know who the hug and the kisses are from)!

another belly picture

This morning Gio and I got up extra early for our last ultrasound appointment! We were extra tired because we had been out pretty late at our neighbors for dinner, but made it early to the appointment and did not even have to wait! Our little girl is head down with her legs to the left, every time we have seen her she always has her ankles crossed! The tech while measuring her femur commented on how long it was, looks like she will be long! She weighs 3.8 lbs (1.7kg) and looks great! How fun to see her! You can see from my picture that she is really starting to "POP" out! This past week I have gotten bigger! Giovanni was feeling a little left out so here is a picture of him too!
We checked out another hospital this week! While there it was visiting hours and we got to see one of the nurseries! I counted 29 babies!!! I have no clue how many were in the other nursery, but they sure were cute, all with lots of dark hair, no blondes or baldies in sight! We really need to make a decsion soon on where to go come January!!!!

Pumpkin Swirl Brownies

These were really tasty!!! Recipe from marthastewart.com

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (ATTENTION: I used less then half of this amount, it was plenty)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts or other nuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan or dish. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter lining.
2. Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until fluffy and well combined, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in flour mixture.
4. Divide batter between two medium bowls (about 2 cups per bowl). Stir chocolate mixture into one bowl. In other bowl, stir in pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Transfer half of chocolate batter to prepared pan smoothing top with a rubber spatula. Top with half of pumpkin batter. Repeat to make one more chocolate layer and one more pumpkin layer. Work quickly so batters don't set.
5. With a small spatula or a table knife, gently swirl the two batters to create a marbled effect. Sprinkle with nuts.
6. Bake until set, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 squares.

sweet smells!

Today I have cleaned the house, thrown in some laundry and ironed. Giovanni comes home tonight instead of tomorrow!!! YEA!!!! He left last Thursday for NYC and yesterday had a short layover (3 hours) here in Milan before leaving for London, I went to the airport to see him and take the luggage that he no longer needed.
While he has been gone for me this past week has been really LONG and BORING with out him. However, being alone has given me time to think about all the things that will change in the next few months, the responsibility that will be mine (and of course Gio's), the happiness that we will feel as well as the anxiety of trying to protect a little child from the evils of the outside world! What is it really like to become a parent?
While I write this I am waiting for my pumpkin brownies to come out of the oven, oh what a sweet smell!!! If they are any good I will post the recipe!

Election Party

Last night Giovanni and I attended the Election Party hosted by the US Consulate. When we arrived around 10:30PM there was a 40 min. line outside to get through security and in!!! But lucky us, not only my current state of pregnancy but thanks also to Giovanni's friends on the "inside" we by-passed the line and went right through the metal detectors and in to the PARTY! It was totally nuts inside! There must have been at least 1,000 people there!!!! We hung out with some friends even had a little free massage and snacked while watching CNN and other news networks. There was much excitement in the air!!! In the taxi on the way there I told our little one that even though we live in Italy it is important for her to attend these events and learn about the USA!!! The decor was full of US flags as well as flags from all the different states! As you can see we found UTAH! We only lasted until 2:30AM or so... then I had to sleep, and poor Gio had to get up for work. We did not find out who won until this morning, although I was not so happy about either of the choices that were presented, Gio and I are looking forward to see what this new change brings for our country (Gio feels apart of it too)!
Tomorrow Gio will be traveling to NYC and Monday on to London for a few days. I miss him when he is gone. My days feel long and boring, but I am glad that he is happy with what he is doing and hope that in the new year we (little one and me) can travel with him! Is this wishful thinking on my part?

VOTE!!!!

I am sure you are all aware that tomorrow is Nov. 4th! Time to Vote! Here I am sending in my ballot, no matter who you support, it is important to be involved and let your voice be heard! Tuesday night we will be at an Election Party hosted by the US Consulate here in Milan, although it lasts till 6 A.M. I am sure Gio and I will be tucked in bed while the new president is announced. What will you do?

30 Weeks, the count down is on!

The last day of October will start the 30th week of pregnancy! As you can see from the pictures our little girl is really showing through! She is getting stronger and I feel her often in my ribs... maybe she is counting! As far as everything else goes I am still trying to understand the way the health system works here. I have been privately (vs going through the public system of seeing someone different for every visit) been seeing an Italian midwife who also worked in London for many years, because of this she has many views that are similar to those in the USA. In any case we are still in Italy and are going to be giving birth here so we must follow the system. Part of this includes choosing a hospital, now once that is done I need to have a visit with the anesthesiologist who will then decide if I can have an epidural or not... now this does not mean that I can even have one when the time comes, just that I have gone through the "paper process". Now lets move on to the hospital part. Now when the time comes and I go into labor and we go to the "chosen" hospital if they happen to be full (the largest one only has 10 labor and delivery rooms) they will send us away to another place! Crazy! The other part of all of this is that I pretty much bring all of my own stuff with me including what I will wear during the ENTIRE hospital stay as well as my own maxi pads and underwear, most places you have to bring your own TP and utensils to eat with and all of the needed clothing ect for the baby. Hopefully where ever we end up to welcome our daughter to the world the medical staff will be competent and kind! Now on a yummier note this last picture is of the Sicilian cheesecake that our friend Marco brought back from Ragusa Monday night! YUM! Wish we could have shared it with you all! I guess it is another reason for you all to visit us in Italy!

Monumental Cemetery

Since before I came to Milan as a missionary I heard about the monumental cemetery, I have even passed it a few times but finally this weekend Gio and I went to check it out! It was pretty cool! Check out our photos!

some of this week

This week Gio went to London for a quick overnight trip here are a few pictures he took while there.

Easy Peasy!

Kristi (my sis in law) just opened her etsy shop! It is full of fun creative baby clothes!Check it out!
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6374550

Dialogue in the Dark

This weekend and part of the coming week is an International Food Summit that Gio has been involved in planning. There are many representatives from different countries here in Milan for forums and events organized by the (non-existent *still no law signed) EXPO 2015 committee. This was planned around the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) day to "Stand Up against hunger in the world".
As part of this week of events Gio and I went last night to the Blind Institute here in Milan to participate in "Dialogue in the Dark". Basically you are guided by a blind person through a series of different environments: a park, the seaside, the city, a house and finally to a piano cafe where you can sit order a drink and snack on munchies, however, all of this is done in COMPLETE BLACKNESS! You are given a stick to map out obstacles in front of you, but you rely on your other senses to get you from one place to another, all in all it lasted about 2 hours. The group we toured with was small, one other couple along with us, and we had a great time! What an opportunity to try and understand how someone with no sight lives! It was a great date for us! The picture is the outside of the building we had this experience in.

Carless

Last week when I came home from my friend Natalies house I parked the car a street away from the apartment in a zone it could stay on while we were gone last weekend (the city cleans the streets and we have to pay attention where we leave the car). Last night Gio went to go get a few cases of water from the car, he called me to make sure he understood where it was, but to our horror and dissapointment it was gone!!! After calling 3 numbers and being on hold a LONG time we found out the car had been towed! Apparently a few days ago a sign had been put up that some work was going to be done on the street and the car was towed just the day before!!!! We had a good laugh! Now we need to go pick up our car!

I got tagged, tagged and tagged again!

I have been tagged 3 times in the past week, so here I will do my best to do what they all ask.

Primo: Picture tag, Go to the 4th folder and post the 4th picture then add 6 quirky things about myself. This is a picture of my nephew Jameson taken last year while he was on grandma's giant exercise ball. 1.I have co-owned a PET chicken that ran away my parents always teased me that we were eating Goldie for dinner- how mean! 2. I love to be bare foot 3. When I was little I loved to lick the sidewalk (this would really gross out Gio). 4. My favorite animals are chameleons. 5. I don't like talking on the phone to people I don't know, phone phobia i guess 6. I am cursed with cameras, but LOVE to take pictures

Secondo: I think that because the last 6 were about me the next 7 will be about Giovanni!!! 1. Broke his nose when he was 3 months old (I think that is why he now snores). 2. I think Gio has more shoes then me 3. Gio is obsessed with washing his hands (BTW Oct. 15 was World Washing Hands Day) 4. Gio is a "little" afraid of heights (his words) 5. Prefers salty over sugary food 6. Even as outgoing as he is Gio is a bit shy when he is "in the spotlight" 7. He likes to sing, but is out of tune and was told by an opera singer that his voice needed to be educated and he would sing well I was tagged by Erica, her link is to the side, but I think she is private... sorry folks!

Terza:
Husband tag
1. Husbands name? Giovanni Antonio Criscione
2. How long have you been married? 3 years in December
3.How long did you date? Date? I don't think Gio and I really dated. We met in June 2005 and got married in December.
4. How old is he? 34 years old
5. Who eats more sweets? I eat more sweets, which is not much. However he eats more junk food
6. Who said I love you first? Giovanni
7. Who is taller? Gio is a little taller then me
8. Who is smarter? Good question! Gio has his areas of expertise
9. Who sings the best? Me, although he really likes to sing, even if he is a bit tone deaf
10. Who does the laundry? I do, unless I am gone, he does
11. Who pays the bills? both of us
12.Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do its closer to the bathroom we change every now and again
13. Who mose the lawn? we are apartment dwellers, there is no lawn (but when we are in Utah we both really love to mow)
14. Who cooks dinner? I do, but Gio is a good cook
15. Who is the 1st to admit when they are Wrong? Giovanni
16. Who kissed who first? Gio kissed me a few hours after we met, I pulled away then we he tried a few minutes later I kissed him back! Who would not want a story with an Italian?
17. Who asked who out first? I met Gio in church and he asked me to go sight seeing with him a few hours later
18. Who wears the pants in the family? I think it is pretty equal

I don't really want to tag anyone, so if you see this post and want to tag yourself... then you can say I tagged you! VIA!

searching for family

This past weekend Giovanni and I headed to a little town above Venice called Vittorio Veneto. He sometimes does contract genealogy work. It was a really great experience to be able to work along side Gio in this special endeavor. The local priest was very kind and left us for hours working and searching out the records of the church. We were able to get a lot done (there is still much to do)! Here are a few pictures of the records and a little bit of what we saw in the daylight. The hotel we stayed had bikes for the guests to use, what a great idea this was! It was so much faster getting around not to mention the fun we had! P.S. stay tuned for my turn at a few tags

Paper Mache Pumpkins

Italy is not a country that celebrates Halloween and I LOVE this holiday! It makes me a little sad not to be able to celebrate it the way I would in the states, but to make the most of it this year instead of trying to "hunt" out a pumpkin we could carve (every year it is a difficult task) I decided to use a Martha Stewart idea! We made paper mache pumpkins and "carved" them out! It takes a few days longer because of the drying process ect... I am very happy with how they turned out and since I had balloons here at the house and made the wheat paste my only cost was the tissue paper (not much at all). To light the inside you put a glass bottle with a candle inside, with out the glass bottle you would have a FIRE hazard on your hands! What do you think?

Gio in NYC

Gio has not had any time to update you about his trip to NYC, so I thought I would post a few pictures from the week in the BIG APPLE.
Giovanni has the opportunity to meet MANY well known people world wide through his work. You can see him in the background of a few pictures taken at the UN, one right after he introduced Bill Gates to Mayor Moratti and the other with Franco Frattini ( Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs), M. Moratti, in the center back P. Glisenti and Andrea Vento.
A picture with Susan (for those of you who don't know she is Gio's cousin) and with David Plonsky (one of Gio's GOOD friends). He had a great trip, meet lots of people and all went well with the work meetings! We are looking forward to November when he gets to go to London and be apart of a meeting with the Queen!!!!