Day 90: Mondello Beach and More

This morning after breakfast we walked down to the beach. We soaked up the sun, played in the sand, and splashed at the edge of the freezing water. The kids had such a great time.

After the beach we stopped by a place and got hotdogs and gelato. The gelato is a creamier version of icecream so it was delicious. 

We finished lunch and went back to our room to shower and change. We took the bus into town and little miss fell asleep. 

Once we arrived we got on a city site seeing your bus. It took us to the main spots in Palermo. 

When we finished the tour we asked the tour guide where the best place to eat pizza was. She told us where to go, and off we went. 

We got some pretty amazing food at this Vino restaurant. 

We also had cheesecake and chocolate cake that wasn't pictured. It didn't last long enough to photograph. 

We took the bus back to the hotel but got off one stop early. We walked along the sidewalk by the beach. The weather was perfect. 

We finished the night with more gelato and FaceTimed Nana and Poppy for a little while. The kids enjoyed playing with one another and ran all around. They had a long day!

We hope tomorrow is just as amazing. 

Day 89: Day One in Palermo

This morning began at 3 AM. Maddie woke up screaming so I moved her into our bed. I hoped she would go back to sleep, but she didn't. She tossed, turned, and watched tv. She was all over the place. I'm not sure when we actually "woke up" for the day, but we were all in and out of sleep for a while. 

We went down to the hotel's restaurant where we enjoyed breakfast. It was great overall, but our kids are still trying to figure out how to use manners (Caleb) and how to not scream when you can't get down and walk (Maddie). Fun times! 

We walked out to the garden area afterwards and we were slightly disappointed. Unfortunately, when you come to Palermo this time of year, the hotel is getting its repairs done for the upcoming travel season. The pool was drained and down (we figured it would be), but the garden area was muddy and under some construction. We walked around a little but left after a few minutes. We asked the clerk how to access the beach, and she told us we had to walk a block or so to get there. I think the garden leads to the beach, just not at this time. So, we walked down the street, crossed over, and found the beach. 

The beach was a little dirty but we found a place and to dip our toes in. When our fearless "I'll swim in any condition" kid told us it was cold, we knew it must be cold! He was right, but Maddie didn't care. She wanted Daniel to hold her arms and help her jump the small waves. She asked to sit down at one point so we took her leggings off and let her. She didn't last like that long! It was freezing. Instead, she wanted back up to jump and splash in the water. So, that's what she got. Caleb played in the sand for a few minutes, then we decided to head back to the hotel.  

We decided after being in the hotel that we would try lunch at the restraunt on the water, directly across from our hotel. It was a lot nicer than we expected and it was so funny when Daniel said, "I'm glad I put on a polo." We all enjoyed our meals and talked a lot about table etiquette. 

The restaurant: Alle Terrazze 

My first glass of italian wine: delicious! 

After the restaurant we took the bus to town and did some sightseeing. The views were amazing. We walked all around and saw inside some beautiful churches. I can't wait to do more of that tomorrow. 

Maddie fell asleep on the bus. 

Pizza for lunch. 

The fountain of shame. 

A small glance at the cathedral. It was both big and beautiful. 

Day 88: A Day of Traveling

This morning the kids slept in a little later and Daniel and I were up trying to finish up some packing. 

Once the kids were awake I think they tried to get in as much trouble as possible. They were both in their own special moods and wanted nothing to do with one another. 

We arrived to the airport in Warsaw and got through security without many issues. We grabbed a quick bite to eat and let the kids play in a play area for a little while. Our first tantrum of the day came from Maddie not wanting to leave the play area. She was carried off kicking and screaming. 

These are chocolate pieces displayed in the airport. 

The play area. 

I stopped by the bathroom for her to go, but the line was too long to wait in and our flight had started boarding. Because we had kids, we were one of the first few to board. I went ahead and took Maddie to the airplane's restroom where she had tantrum number two. 

The airplane toilet was not appealing and she had no desire to get near it. We talked to the potty and said hello to it. She was fine with that, but once I sat her up on it, she lost it. She screamed louder than I have heard in quite some time.  She refused to use that toilet or her travel potty. So, we walked back to our seats. 

During takeoff Maddie fell asleep and rested for 45 minutes or so. The flight was good and passed by pretty quickly. It was only 2 hours, so that was pretty nice. I thought I would enjoy the next time I heard strangers speaking English, but I was wrong. There was a lady two seats back that quoted statistics of plane crashes and discussed the most recent plane crash. She also talked about what she would do if our plane went down along with how those passengers of the most recent crash must have felt. 

When we landed in Rome we got ready for a 4 hour layover. Maddie still refused to use the potty so we found bread, gelato, and french fries. I went back for a salad and we hung out in the food court area for a while. Maddie played with Play Doh, Caleb did a word search puzzle, and they both watched letter songs on my iPhone. Overall, we passed the time by without many problems. 

Flying into Rome. 

Gelato! 

Selfie while waiting. 

We boarded the plane to Palermo and had first row seats. Caleb got to sit behind us, so I think he liked that he had his own space. The flight was great overall and the flight attendants were incredibly nice. 

Once we landed we retrieved our bags. And got a taxi. The taxi was a little more than we hoped but we made it to our hotel in one piece. After seeing the lack of rule following on the road, I'm thankful we did. 

We had a few problems getting the lights in our room to turn on. We didn't know that it needed our room key in order to work. Oops. We also ordered a club sandwich from the cafe area. It definitely wasn't the club sandwich we were use to and unfortunately no one liked it. Instead, Maddie ate the PB sandwiches I packed and Caleb ate a granola bar. Maybe we will have some luck tomorrow. 

We also don't have the right plug adapters, so we'll be trying to find a place tomorrow to purchase one. 

The kids loved running all around and jumping on the beds. They had a blast playing with one another. They were too cute. 

Now, it's time for bed. Goodnight from Sicily, Italy!