Cerwood- Parco Avventura

Today I took Gio to Cerwood, an adventure park about 20 minutes from our house.  We came here last year as well, but what a difference a year has made. This year Gio was fearless and eager to do the bigger climbing courses.  We had had practice at a similar park in Kyiv so he was more adept with the clips.  Last year Gio refused to do the zip lines.  This year it was all he wanted to do.  It was 4 hours of manic fun.  Needless to say we are both about to take a nap! Here are some photos and videos from our morning...

At "Home" in Italia

Gio and I have settled into our routine here in Italy. Gio attends school each day from 9-2 and our afternoons are spent napping, playing and swimming at the local pool.  Paolo returned to Kyiv shortly after our return from Sardegna so we have now been on our own for nearly 2 weeks. Compared to Kyiv I find life easy here.  The language barrier is much less (though not fluent in Italian I get by quite well, thank you!) and everyone here is so friendly and eager to help us out.  I have been away from Kyiv for a month now but still catch myself being surprised when my encounters with strangers are friendly and warm.  Smiles at the grocery check out?  Still shocking for me!
So here are images from our last two weeks....

Probably the most fun thing about our summer life here is this little fellow Mohammed who lives down the road from us.  He is 6 so Gio's dream playdate (a BIG boy!).  He wanders up to our house nearly every afternoon and the two of them create their own fun inside and out until Mohammed's brother comes around 9 to drag him home.  This time plus the hours at school mean Gio's Italian is improving rapidly!

We have had Gio's wonderful cousin Cristina here with us which has been a true blessing.  Cristina speaks perfect English and has been helping me navigate hospital visits where my language skills are challenged, to say the least. 

And a 21-year-old cousin is MUCH more fun than an old mamma at the very end of pregnancy!

We adopted this wonderful fellow.  Gio named him Figaro.  He is two months old and has already established his dominance over Enzo.  Yes, he gets first dibs at Enzo's meal each evening.  Our gentle-souled giant simply sits and waits for his new brother to finish his snack before he dives into his dinner. 

Figaro has two favorite sleeping places: Gio's bed and....

....my giant belly!

Laughs with Cristina.  Lucky boy to have such a cousin.

For the last week we have had these two men working hard on various projects around the house, including completing our well.  Gio has taken on the role of supervisor.  He comes inside covered in mud, plaster and hopefully with the beginnings of an understanding of construction.

Figaro and I spend some nap-time hours watching VEEP.  

Paolo's best friend Angelo, who lives just down the hill from us, found this adorable box turtle last weekend.  Gio and I stroll down each day to check on him (her??).

Enzo is in heaven here.  It is hot (though no humidity so a whole lot more pleasant than all of you poor friends and family in DC!) so Enzo does not emerge until the evening when the breezes pick up.  He loves to hang out in a nearby field.  I have not put a leash or collar on him in the last two weeks!

This is my favorite part of the day- when Gio and Mohammed head up the hill to visit with another boy who lives up there.  This independence and freedom is exciting to see (and such a rare treat for a boy who lives in an apartment in the middle of a chaotic city most of the year). 

Here are some images of our house- still a work in progress but getting there!  The sign is in dialect and says "House of Gio".  I suppose we will have to repaint it to add #2's name someday!

Our field in the background.  We have planted fruit trees to the left.  

The soccer (correction, FOOTBALL) pitch.

The view from the top of the hill.  Not quite the same as the view I have in Kyiv of our neighbor's kitchen.  

The Bellis (and a big belly) invade Sardegna....

Gio's Italian sweetheart....

We have just returned from 10 days in Sardegna (Sardinia).  Paolo and his brother share a place there in the town of Alghero.  This is only Gio's second visit to the island though he does not remember the first (well, really his 3rd as I was there when I was pregnant with him).  In very un-Belli fashion we actually booked the boat in January (we are more of last-minute travel planners) as there is only one ferry line that allows dogs to stay in the cabin with us and those spaces fill up early.  So off we went, two days after our drive from Kyiv.  The boat is a bit like a cruise ship (a pool, restaurants, shops, etc)  with the added advantage of being able to transport 3 levels of trucks, cars and campers.  We left our trusty Volvo below and then ventured up to relax on the 8 hour journey.

In our cabin awaiting departure.  This window seat is even more fun than the one on the airplane!

Enzo seemed completely un-phased by the entire experience.  We were prepared for the worst as the year we brought Topher to Sardegna he really had trouble on the voyage.  While Topher was frightened by the movement, the engine noises and refused to pee for the entire trip, Enzo quickly marked the entire deck, made friends with a few dogs and then fell fast asleep on our cabin floor without batting an eye when the engines roared to life.  

Dogs are not technically allowed on most of the beaches in Sardegna, though we found that one of our favorites, a tiny one just out of town, was always empty after Gio's nap.  Here are my 3 boys on their first swim of the trip.  Despite the breed's reputation for not liking water, Enzo has turned out to be an enthusiastic swimmer.

Every morning we headed to a new beach (Gio's request was to see a new one each day).  We always left Enzo at home for the morning as it was a bit too hot for him then.  He was quite content with a morning walk and then to sleep soundly in air conditioning until the afternoon. 

Back to our favorite beach for an early evening crab hunt with Enzo serving as life guard.  Gio spent most of our time at the beach hunting jellyfish and various other creatures.  He really became an expert at capturing jellyfish (medusa in Italian) and often had a completely full bucket at the end of the morning.  He often was thanked by many people on the beach for his public service!

Enzo swam for at least an hour every day.  This is a LOT of exercise for our normally lazy beast!

In the evenings we often did puzzles (with Enzo serving as an excellent box cover holder). Later we usually headed into town (on foot, paw and scooter) for gelato, people watching and rides at the amusement park along the town beach.

We heard about a beach farther out of town that allowed dogs so one very windy day we headed there with Enzo.  He loved it even though he does draw the line at waves, and these were big ones!  Though not a hair on his paws got wet he loved the cool breezes and the lifeguard's female labrador....  

...and the many sticks.

Back again for more jellyfish capturing.

Got one!

One night we went to our favorite agriturismo for dinner.  Enzo always came along with us at night.  Italians welcomed him everywhere.  Gio joined us at the table for all of 5 minutes (this place had an enormous playground and a soccer field where we found him happily playing with older boys).  It was sort of like a date night for us!

Probably Gio's favorite day was the one he met Anna.

They played together for hours.  Gio experienced his first heartbreak when she was not back at this same beach the next day (he broke his own rule of a new one each day as he wanted to go back to find her!).  Luckily who showed up to console him?  The two big boys from the soccer field the night before.  Happy boy again.

Gio did a lot of swimming on this trip.
We are forever grateful for the early swim training he did in Washington at ages 1 and 2.  

I am not one who likes to have her picture taken EVER, but I did want at least one belly shot to show our daughter one day.  Here I am at nearly 8 months preggo (due date is August 7).

Yep.  More jellies.  

The roller coaster along the beach.  Gio clearly has my thrill-seeking spirit.  I cannot wait to take him to Cedar Point in Ohio- one of my favorite spots in the USA!

Enzo's swimming was always followed by a LOT of rolling about in the sand. 

Needless to say, it took us hours to clean our house and car at the end of the trip!

Vacation over.  Back on the boat home.  Gio has taken to wearing Paolo's shoes.  At the rate he is growing it might not be too long before they actually fit!

We hope all of your summer plans are going well!  

Happy 4th to all of my American friends!  xo.  Clara