Italy Day 1: Vernazza, Lake Como

So begins the recap of our most awesome family vacation!  Warning:  Lots and lots of (beautiful) pictures ahead!

Day 1 - Travel and Vernazza, Lake Como



Making our way through the International Terminal at JFK at 9pm.  The kids are natural travelers, and Solana was excited to have the responsibility of keeping track of her brother.

Yes, natural travelers, who slept for most of the 8 hour flight to Italy, which took off at 11pm and landed around noon the next day in Italy.  It was as easy as a flight with two little kids can get!

Travel-weary crew, trying to keep it together while waiting for our rental car.  Adam didn't sleep at all that night, so he is doing an especially good job.  We had a little drama at the rental counter - like a scene from a movie, they tried to stick us all in a tiny compact even though Adam had reserved a much larger family car.  We ended up settling for a small minivan, and it turned out great.

So excited to be driving in Italy!  Or maybe just excited to be driving!

Just like that - 12 hours of planes, trains and automobiles and boom - we are on the shore of Lake Como, one of the most beautiful places we've ever seen.

Our first evening in Italy was spent jet-lagged and spell-bound as we wandered the old-world beauty of the Gardens of Villa Monastero.

We staying in Varenna, a gem of a town that comes highly-recommended by our favorite travel buddy, Rick Steves.  As usual, Rick was right, and Varenna was captivatingly charming.  These little walkways are everywhere in the town leading down to the water, and we instantly wanted to stay forever.

Months of planning went into this trip, and it paid off with awesome set ups like our comfortable and affordable flat with an outrageous view! 

Yeah, Adam felt like he was in his element.

Collecting flowers was an activity that ran through the entire trip.  Always fun to stop and smell (and pick) the roses.

Waiting for our first meal in Italy!  Honestly, this was a rough one.  We were all super tired and jet-lagged, and the kids just weren't accustomed to sitting still for the long Italian dinners.  BUT, by the end of the trip, our family was dominating long dinners like it was second nature!

Every corner in Varenna felt perfect for a picture.

August

August was so so so busy and incredibly fun. All summer long we couldn't wait for our big family trip to Italy.  And I'm so glad we took all summer to prepare for it, because August got pretty crazy. We had lots of family come to town and it was so much fun to run around in the heat. 

We also did a random photo shoot for the church. I guess they have a roaming photography crew that takes photos for their publications and stuff, and they were looking for volunteers so we signed up on a whim.  It took us about 4 hours, and it was such a fun experience. The kids were exhausted by the end, but I'm actually surprised they lasted as long as they did. We were selected to be a family being taught at home. So the photo shoot took place in a home up on the UWS right above Central Park. We have no idea when or where the photos will be published, so let us know if you see our faces pop up :)

Then right before our trip my mom came out a few days early to tour the city and we had a blast running around like crazy. I would say we were pretty tired  before our trip even started. But it was so worth it!

Here are the best of August!

One World Observatory, maybe our favorite sight in the city. 

Hitting up the Today Show was really fun, we saw ourselves so much on TV and even got a free Carly Rae Jepson concert out of it. It was so much fun!

Boating in Central Park has been on my bucket list since we moved here. It was crowded and hot, but so worth it. I loved it! And Adam was a champion rower. 

When your married to a corporate lawyer, he has a hard time separating his work life from his vacation planning :) You end with a huge folder and a strict outline for your whole trip. But it worked out perfectly  for the trip. We almost completed everything on each page. 

Off to Italy!!! (And Solana is wearing the stewardess' hat that all of the flight attendants were wearing on our Emirates Airlines flight.  In case you're wondering..) haha!