The girls loves horses and so do I

Tabby's Summer camp seems so long ago.  In June TT went to camp where she normally goes to learn vaulting on horseback.  Basically gymnastics on horses and some circus skills on the side - perfect concoction of danger and animals.  I love this place it feels me with calm, I breathe slowly when there and I adore the old horses that enjoy their retirement surrounded by laughter, love and children.  I would spend all day hanging around the horses snorting in that stable smell and laying on the ground looking at the trees.  Chiara who owns the farm has an amazing effect on me and often I leave feeling that my life is full of hope which of course it actually is.  After each camp they have a little show and I love watching the children show the skills they have learnt.  This summer was not the best for the girl as she simply wants to be with the horses and there were some girls who were 'in your face' which bothered her and annoyed me and distracted from the essence of this special little spot in in Tuscany.  BUT that's reality, different personalities bring about different reactions some good some not so good.  For me nothing with distract from the positive effect this special place has on all of us.

https://www.facebook.com/lacasella.cavalgiocare?fref=ts

Wet and Windy Easter memories

I am slowly catching up with my blog as the last few months have been overloaded with work stresses and various illnesses, not a whole heap of fun.  That said, I strongly believe that you have to squeeze in the good stuff and at Easter one of our clients let us use there cottage up in the hills north of Lucca, our plan was to work in their garden in the day, have bbq's in the evening, do lots of walking and have picnics etc.  The reality was very different, howling gales, flash floods, non-stop driving rain, dense fog all meant our plans changed and instead included:

• Kids first skiing mission at Abetone (so proud I cried) - thought this maybe a promise that would never be fulfilled but we did it, yeah
• Walking in the rain
• Hot Tea
• Cooked Breakfasts
• Open Fires
• Damp Dogs
• Cycling the walls of Lucca
• Rustic Osteria Lunches
• Downtown Abbey DVD's
• Homemade vegi curries
• Hot Chocolate and Biscuits
• Baileys
• Mittens and Hats
• Egg Hunts and Chocolate Smiles

Finding the little pockets of happiness on the long dark days keeps us going, in my little family at least.

Nostalgia, Duran Duran

Its time to come out of the closet, in terms of my rather dubious taste in music at least.  As a teenager I loved, truly loved Duran Duran and absolutely believed at the age of 11 that one day I would marry Simon Le Bon.  However, over time my relationship with the God of pop wained a little and we lost touch, well I stopped listening to The Reflex a million times a day on a huge brick like Sony Walkman anyway.  But nostalgia is nostalgia and I remember clearly heading for Wembly Stadium 30 years ago with my Mum in her TR7 to see Duran Duran and it was truly awesome.  So when I noticed they were playing here in Italy, the deed had to be done, this time the roles were reversed and I took my 11 year old on the train to Lucca where the boys were playing in a historic piazza.  We booked into a youth hostel which was once an old monestry and spent the day riding around the old fortress walls on a tandem.  We ate expensive icecream and I enjoyed a gold plated coffee (4 Euro), we shopped, we absorbed the atmosphere of one of Tuscany's most impressive Medieval Walled Cities and prepped ourselves for the concert.  The Piazza was packed, filled to the brim with people all of which were sadly a similar age to me but a wonderful melting pot of nationalities, tourists, locals and families.  The boy was nervous as he never has liked crowds but after 2 hours fantastic, nostalgic and truly uplifting music, he was seriously happy.  He loved hearing the instruments, the guitars, saxaphone etc and he loved the whole experience, the lights the crowd and the overwhelmingly happy atmosphere and he was even able to see, just.  I on the other hand indulged in a really good boogy, couldnt stop myself from singing very loud to all the songs and reflected on where the last 30 years have gone, please tell me if you find them!!  I did stop myself from screaming though, but only just.  Thank you to Lucca and Duran Duran, fond memories of a teenage bedroom covered in posters of Simon Le Bon - is this just a little tragic?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1s1M_mbuhU&feature=related

Some pics from the trip - lovely, lovely time with my young man!  Now best described as an 'inbetweenager' as he's 12 next month.

Easter pics

 Craft, Fresh Air, Chocolate Gazing, Gardening and more...

Lovely relaxed Easter weekend.