A Modern Italian Father

My July article for La Voce is now available under the "Mamma Mia!" tab of their website (www.lasvegaslavoce.com) Also, double click on this picture to enlarge the text.

A tribute to my husband, I had the article framed and then kept the July issue of the paper away from him for as long as possible and gave it to him for Father's Day. It now hangs in his new office, at his new job, in a new state, because - you guessed it - we moved! About 8 weeks after our newest addition, I was busy packing and moving la tutta famiglia to Washington State! What a change from the desert (a welcome one). So thats my excuse for the lack of posts. But I still write for La Voce so please, continue checking for my articles there until I get back into the swing of posting here. Ciao, and Buon Natale!

Una Mamma's article on "mammas"

If you ask me, every day could reasonably be mother's day and we would still be under-appreciated!!!! So although a bit late, here is one mother's tribute to all the mammas out there -Italian or not. This appeared in May's issue of La Voce Newspaper. ENJOY!

Stay At Home Mom

The phrase "stay at home mom" has had many adaptations through the years. Let's face it, it's even been rephrased into "stay at home dads." Well, I am a "SAHM" in every sense of the phrase, but even more so lately.

Tomorrow will mark the four week birthday of our newest addition, Maria Fiorella, who we affectionately call "baby Mia" or "our little flower." Life has been a filled with an abundance of love and exhaustion lately, neither of which I can complain about considering our little blessing arrived perfectly healthy! We are so excited to have another baby girl in the house, but it HAS made us stay exactly there - in the house!

Outings with three children and a newborn is not on my 'to do list' just yet, so we've been thinking of a lot of "stay at home" activities for our family to enjoy together. This way, the other kids don't feel like they got a raw deal when #4 came along!

Our latest endeavor was a day full of homemade bread and pizza dough. Okay we cheated on the pizza dough and used the bread machine (my new favorite invention, by the way) but it was pretty darn good nonetheless!

We then topped our pizza with some homemade marinara and fresh mozarella. It may have looked like a bunch of kids put it together, but it tasted like a bunch of 100% Italian Nonnas labored over it for hours!

The pizza and the cooking process were equally memorable! See for yourself......

Cinque Giorni Piu

So, anyone who has been following my (lately uneventful) blog posts knows that our fourth baby (and third baby girl) is due any day now.  Well, Thursday is the scheduled c-section and it has come WAY too fast!  

(NOTE: In no way does that imply that I am not thankful that the end is near)

But truly, this pregnancy came and went (as did my energy) so I haven't done a lot of blogging, but I assure you, after a little time off with the baby I will be back at it.

So, wish me luck because there's only five more days till this Una Mamma Italiana has four little bambini instead of three! CIAO

Vacationing with kids...

Anyone with kids knows that an otherwise RELAXING vacation might not be so when you bring the little ones along...but that does not mean it can't be fun.  Plan accordingly and you'll create a memory for la tutta famiglia.  Need tips? check out my March article for La Voce Newspaper ( www.lasvegaslavoce.com )

CIAO!

I'm still alive:)

Okay, so maybe I haven't been real lively about my blogging, but I wanted to assure everybody that I AM still alive....(I know you were all agonizing over my lack of posts)

I guess the only pathetic excuses I have to offer are: three kids (four if you count my husband, five if you count the one on the way)....and..........basically - I'm tired!!

But Easter is around the corner and there will undoubtedly be a plethora of dishes to photograph and blog about at my family gatherings!  So, prepare yourself for a joyous time of year, the coming of great weather, and a new baby girl!  

To fill you all in, we are thinking of naming her

  Maria "Mia" Fiorella

She will lovingly be called ia from the moment of birth:).......opinions anyone?

For those non-Italians, "Fiorella" means"little flower" in Italian....and so that's where we are at with the baby names.  We still have almost two months till she arrives, though, so suggestions are welcome!

 Ciao for now

A Love Note to Nonna

Okay, so I haven't posted in a while....in fact, my last post was on Valentine's Day.....and oddly enough, my Valentine's Day article for LA VOCE is now posted online!

So take a look - although a few weeks late, the story is still relevant. It is somewhat of a tribute to my Grandma Rose, who was a wonderful woman, and who would have been 81 this month.

Click here to read "A Nonna's Love" from LA VOCE Italian American Newspaper