Hi everyone, I am back from my trip to Italy. It was a great trip and a very cultural experience for my two boys. I enjoyed myself but I did not rest for a second. We did a lot a visiting, ate a lot, and I mean A LOT of food and shared some great moment with family. There was a crazy heat wave the whole time we were there so the days spent visiting sites was brutal. My husband and I came back completely exhausted. It was a long flight especially since there was a problem with the plane door so our 8 hour flight became an 11 hour flight. The kids were great sports but with the jet lag we all struggled to get back into the routine of things.
Here a few pics of our trip:
The Boys in Tuscany in the Castle atop of Capalbio.
The boys at the Vatican
The boys at the ruins of Pompeii
Me in Ravello on The Amalfi Coast.
Ok now that I have buttered you up with gorgeous pix, I have to drop a bomb here and tell you the bad news. We actually had to cancel our trip to Hawaii.
What happened is that on our return we came to find out out that my husband's dad (biological dad) passed away. My husband was not close to him as he grew up with a step dad who he considers to be his father. None the less, they had recently been keeping in touch and they had grown closer together in the last couple of years. His dad had asked him to visit several times in past years so that he could meet his grandkids but he lived out in the Yukon and it was so far that we kept putting it off. Now that his father passed away, my husband felt the need to be at his funeral which I completely understand. He used the points that we had saved up for Hawaii to fly out there. We also had to use some of our vow renewal money to help pay for the funeral since his dad had not planned anything in the event of his death since he is still pretty young and his current wife is left with a handsome bill. Being his only son, my husband felt a need to help out.
To say I am not greatly disappointed about Hawaii would be a lie but I felt like my husband needed this for closure and I can totally understand this.
Also we talked more about it and after taking this trip to Italy I think we realized that the kids are maybe still a little too young to really enjoy all that Hawaii has to offer. We also were concerned about the jet lag on their return since they would be right in the middle of their school session so I guess it is a blessing in disguise (or maybe it is just the only way I can keep from crying myself to sleep tonight).
It isn't all bad. The good news is that we had enough points left over to fly to Orlando so yesterday night, I booked our trip. As you can see, I did not waste any time. We are flying out on Feb 29th 2016 and staying 10 days. My kids are just as excited for another trip to Disney if not more so. At least that makes me feel better. With half my budget gone towards the funeral I don't know what will happen with my vow renewal. This is the second time I had to put it off and I am starting to feel depressed about the whole thing.
Anyway I will keep you updated. Thanks for following along even though this whole thread was a complete washout!
I just need to sit down and right some TR post everything was AMAZING and trust me there are lots and lots of pictures!!
Excited for your TR!
I had to explain that Italy was a country not an amusement park. I guess I have brought them to Disney a lot!
and yeah just find someone who makes you feel comfortable my place was an all girl location which made a huge difference to me! and I have really been dragging my feet with my report waiting for my photos but don't worry you will have lots to read when you get back! 
