London

Gene had to fly to London while Natalie and the kids were here, oh darn! haha. He enjoyed ever minute of his trip and would like to go back when I can go. He walked all over and enjoyed some alone time :)

Hammersmith Bridge 

Buckingham Palace

guards at Buckingham Palace

gate for Buckingham Palace

Tower of London

London phone booth with Big Ben, London's Clock Tower in the back

The London Eye, highest observation wheel in the world. Each  of the 32 capsules hold 25 people.

London Bridge

the engine for the draw bridge

St. Paul's Church

The Gherkin

family visit to Sicily

Natalie, Amelia, and Wyatt were able to make it to Sicily to visit Gene and I! We had an amazing time going all over Sicily trying to fit in as much as we could. We spent the first couple of days around Acitrezza so they could catch up on sleep and adjust to the 9 hour time change. After they felt a little better we drove over to Palermo and stayed in a bed and breakfast in Mondello. Next, we drove to Agrigento to see the Valley of the Temples which were absolutely amazing. We then drove back to our house and Siracusa while Gene flew to London for work. Natalie, the kids, and I went to Caltagirone which is famous for their ceramics and tiles. When leaving Caltagirone we followed our Tom Tom GPS directions which took us down a VERY narrow street. Unfortunately, this street was so narrow that I had to scrape the side of the car to get through :( There were garages down the street which means people have to park in these narrow streets and there was even a car parked on steps going down a street! Needless to say, Natalie got a true Italian experience. We had a ton of fun and were very very sad to see them leave ;(

they have arrived!

first night in Catania

dinner at Cafe Duomo in Catania

Natalie and I in Catania

in front of Massimo Theater Opera House in Palermo

dinner in Palermo

Amelia buying her very own dress :)

some familiar food

agriturismo in Agrigento we stayed at for 1 night

picking oranges at the agriturismo

the bear and the dragon at dinner

Agrigento, Valley of the Temples

Valley of the Temples

Acitrezza with the kids

carnivale celebration in Acitrezza

Amelia having fun throwing confetti 

view from Taormina

top of Taormina

Wyatt throwing rocks in Taormina

relaxing

Amelia getting some sun

the very narrow street in Caltagirone which scratched the car :( don't always listen to TOM TOM!

the steps in Caltagirone

the always cute Wyatt

family in Acitrezza

Mr. Boy

Natalie got her first cappuccino! 

another day in the kayak

Gene had work off for President's Day, so we took the kayak out again. It was much calmer and warmer today. We could see all the way to the bottom and little fish swimming around. This time we stopped at one of the rocks and got out of the kayak, one at a time, and walked around. We can't wait for summer!