Shaha Shenanigans: Tuscany Trip, Day 1&2

I've been seriously anticipating my mom's visit since she booked her tickets back in January.

Planning, daydreaming, researching our trip to Italy is what got me through the winter blues. I was so excited to have my mom come out and see this beautiful part of the world. So excited for the kids to have her undivided attention.

There it is: undivided attention

Of course, when you're expectations run so high, there's bound to be disappointment… naturally the trip didn't go as smoothly as planned. Nonetheless, it was a great trip. I'll give more detail in regards to the highs and lows later.

Mom arrived early on Thurday morning. I picked her up from the airport with the three kids in tow. We stopped by the new mall on the way home and did some last minute shopping for Emily… she outgrows her clothes so fast it's ridiculous. It was fun to show Mom the new gorgeous mall. Mom took a short nap when we got back to the house and then we spent the rest of the day relaxing at the park across the street while the kids ran around. I finished some last minute packing… Ben had deadlines breathing down his neck at work and didn't get home until 1 a.m. The next morning we were Italy bound!

Last October I took this same route to Italy when I ran my race. I was by myself and it was the most gorgeous drive… through the Bavarian Alps, crossing into Austria through Fern Pass, and then taking the Brenner Pass over the Alps into Italy. So, I was excited to show Ben and Mom how beautiful it was. April's different than October though and I was surprised at the amount of snow on our drive! Much different look than October, but still beautiful.

Adorable Caroline showing off the Zugspitze (highest mountain in Germany) from the Austrian side

We arrived in Bolzano, Italy (the foot of the Italian Alps) late afternoon. We went to an archeology museum where we learned about Otzi, the 5000 year old mummy discovered recently in the mountains nearby. We explored the town a bit, ate dinner, and went back to our hotel. The next morning at breakfast Emily took a bite into an apple and lost her second front tooth! Why didn't I take a picture?!

Here they are running around the hotel grounds:

The girls were very sad we didn't swim in the pool. I wish I would have worked that into the itinerary… but it was pretty dang cold!

Day 2: we took an adventurous cable car ride up to Renon, where we had a beautiful view of the Dolomites. This cable car ride was awesome. It took you up and up and then it glides across the top of this huge valley. Beautiful but not for those with a fear of heights!

Once we were up on top we took a train to the last stop and then hiked to the "earth pyramids"

The "hike" was more of a very long walk through a town and why didn't we bring the stroller and scooters??? Oh, because I thought it was a hike in the woods, which it wasn't.

This is the view we were rewarded with: