Saying Farewell, Ommegang, and The Red Devils

July 1st was our last night with the Keown family in Brussels.  Of course, they couldn't leave Brussels without a farewell dinner at Hard Rock Cafe!  I'm guessing that will be our farewell dinner spot as well. 

Someone was pretty excited about her milkshake.

But then this happened….

And well, she wasn't so happy anymore.  Poor thing.

The boys spent most of the time watching the World Cup.  Addicted!

The whole group (minus me…your trusty photographer.)  What an awesome send off!

It's always ribs for these boys.

Allison is going to miss Preslee so much.

Really?!

I made Lucinda a Shutterfly book of all of our adventures together (57 pages worth!)  I was sad I forgot to include the Nickelback concert from last November.  That was a great night.  

Starbucks for the girls.

The WHOLE group! :)

Friends for a lifetime.

I held it together very well.  The kids decided to spend the night with each other.  We took Pres, and they took Thomas, so we were able to say goodbye one more time before they left for the airport in the morning.  We'll see each other again.  That I know!

Someone is drinking that Starbucks as fast as she can before it gets taken away from her. LOL!

One final Vastine/Keown shot in Brussels.

So sad to say farewell to these two.  We've had a lot of fun together!
As we were leaving, Lucinda handed me a Shutterfly book.  She too had made one, but she remembered the Nickelback concert.  I love our friendship.

The following day was the Belgium vs. USA game.  What are Americans living in Belgium supposed to do with this situation??  

I loved their Instagram posts!

 That evening (before the match) we attended Ommegang in the Grand Place.  Ommegang is the historical portrayal of the festival/processional that was held in 1549, but Ommegang dates back to 1359 when it was mostly religious in nature.  The procession starts at the Sablon Church and ends in the Grand Place. 

We attended with the Kring family.  About half way through, Chris cut out to go to Hard Rock to watch the match.  We joined him after.

Loved the stilts!

Front row seats at the bar at Hard Rock.

They were so excited about the Red Devils' win.  Next time, we'll be living in the USA, and I am sure they will be cheering for the US again.

Too bad I don't have pictures of them hanging out of the car windows and celebrating with the other Belgians at 1:00 am.  They were hilarious and will remember that night always.

Next up…the Knepps return from Italy!

Until next time,
Wendy

Spring Break 2014 The Grand Finale ~ Florence!

Friday morning, we were off to Florence.  I am a firm believer that all cities should stick with the name they are given by their home country.  Florence is Firenze in Italian.  Why don't we all call it Firenze??

It's still funny for this girl to see these road signs.  The GPS says, "Exit right towards Paris…or Keep left for Firenze."  I'm used to heading to Chicago, Springfield, or St. Louis.

We loved being in Florence, but even more, we loved being in Florence with the Keowns!!  We were thrilled to spend Friday with them. First stop was lunch.  With six kids in tow, you keep those little people fed!

Up next was the Duomo!  Wow!  

Loved the floor tile!

We usually light a candle in cathedrals.  I look over and see this….

….and then this!  Tears!

The mamas!

We ventured over to the Ponte Vecchio.  This is a medieval bridge with shops built along it.  This was common in those times.  The earliest records of this bridge date back to 996!!

We were kind of relying on Allison's knowledge of Florence since she was here on a school trip last year.  That wasn't such a good idea.  She could only seem to remember where their hotel was and where they bought Oreos…..terrific.  Makes ISB proud I'm sure.

We went to the Accademia to see this guy.  Wow!  Is it possible to have a crush on marble?  Yes, yes it is…...

That's not confusing at all.

Making our way over to Michelangelo's lookout with a great view of the Ponte Vecchio.

They found bubbles.  Bubbles are so much fun!

I wish this wasn't blurry, but he moves really fast!

What a view!

We have a tendency to stand right in front of what needs to be seen…every. single. time.  Ugh!

Lucinda and her mom

Where is Mike Keown??  We have just about every combination of individuals and no Mike.  Sorry Mike.

She can't help being this adorable!

That's a lot of love right there.

Super Sleuths…just for Farrah!  We miss her!  And, there is one unhappy little brother in there as well.

We were sad to say farewell to the Keowns.  It was time for them to head back to Volterra.  

Making our way to the Piazza della Signoria by way to the Uffizi Museum.

"The Fake David"
This is where the David used to stand.  But, due to weathering, he was moved inside and replaced with the fake one.

In front of the Loggia dei Lanzi…an open air gallery.  My favorite spot in Florence.

As I have said before, I love every city at night.  Florence was no exception.

Thomas and one of the Medici Lions

The Palazzo Vecchio (town hall) and one of the Medici Lions

Saturday brought rain, cold, and lines!

Waiting to get into the cathedral.  It was Easter weekend after all.

Waiting to climb to the top of the Duomo.  Looks like spring break in Italy, right?!  Hahahaha!

After 2+ hours of waiting, we were headed up the 400 stairs to the top.

Worth the wait!

It was just a little windy up there.

Family picture take #1

Family picture take #2

The inside of the dome…the paintings of Hell were very interesting.  We'll just say that Thomas and Allison are going to work very hard to get to Heaven after seeing that.

The Duomo Museum

The original Gates of Paradise from the Florence Baptistery.

Michelangelo's Pieta

The current golden gates on the Baptistery.  Can you see it through the construction and scaffolding?

The Ponte Vecchio from the Uffizi Museum

The town hall and dome from the Uffizi.

Strolling through Florence.  Oh the places they have gone and the things they have seen!  Lucky kids.

Well, we were starving.  And quite frankly, I was tired of pizza, pasta, and bread.  So, we caved and went to Hard Rock Cafe.  This one was huge, and the food was delicious!

You could go on the stage!  Fun times!

The setting sun over Florence.

Good night Florence….

On Easter Sunday, it was time for us to head home. What a wonderful trip we had.  Thank you to Chris for all of his amazing planning.  It was nice to just be along for the ride and enjoy the moments.
Arrivederci, Italy!  We'll be back.

Until next time,
Wendy