A Christmas of Peace and Joy

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!  I know I am a little late for wishing Merry Christmas but I sure hope it was true for you and your families.  This year as you know, we were here for Christmas and it was quite wonderful.

But before I get to Christmas, a very exciting thing that happened was that one of the fellow wives here, Gini Diener, who I have mentioned before had her baby boy Louis Antonio on December 23rd at noon exactly!  It was such a sweet Christmas miracle and he was so cute and perfect.  I went to see him right after he was born and he was so adorable.  Gini did amazing during labor, she really was a trooper all the way through her whole pregnancy, I hope I can do that well someday!  She was truly an inspiration of staying positive and being strong even in not so perect conditions.  Later on that same day I went back with Ro while the guys were at practice.  It was so much fun to just hold him and witness God's amazing gift of life.  But one of the best things was to watch Gini look at him and just light up with joy.  I don't know yet what that will be like, but it sure seems magical.  Louis is home now and doing really well, I see him pretty much everyday and love every minute.

Louis Antonio Diener 7 pounds and 3 ounces and 21 inches long.

Tony is such a natural with babies.

Louis and his little red Christmas outfit...so precious!

Christmas here was very peaceful.  That morning we opened presents, ate a Christmas breakfast, and then just relaxed together until Tony had to go to practice.  After practice we had dinner at Travis and Ro Diener's house, they were so nice to have us over, and even though there was only four of us, it made it really feel like Christmas to be with friends.  The Dieners (Trav and Ro) have been so much fun getting to know, and it feels like we have been friends forever...we almost even went caroling, but saved the neighbors at the last minute ;)  The team also hosted a dinner earlier in the week to celebrate which was very nice, and great to be all together. 

The Dinamo girls :)

Merry Christmas!

The American table...

The day after Christmas was another festive day, since the Dieners had made it home safe and sound with baby Louis, we had a big Christmas dinner with all six of us.  The food was amazing (thanks to Ro's cooking...I learn a lot from her), and the friends even better. 

Christmas dinner with the Dieners (yes both couples are Dieners, the boys are cousins)!

Look at Tony's hair in this one...I think it is the longest ever!!

Like I said it was truly a Christmas of peace and joy.

The team had a game on the 27th and lost, but now will have 5 more games in the span of 2 weeks!  Game night tonight against Pesaro and then they head out of town Monday for a road game.   UPDATE:  The team BEAT Pesaro...way to go Dinamo.

Looking forward to a fun New Years eve tomorrow night with the team...and welcoming 2012!!

CIAO TUTTI!!

Being a Stranger in your own home.

SO back again to living in an apartment that is fully furnished and everything we have is not ours.  It is kind of a funny concept if you really think about it.  We just show up here or any city we have played in and we move into a place that has totally random things that someone else has picked out and put together. But this season we have lucked out for the most part and uur apartment is nice and everything in it is new, so no complaining here.  But I must admit at times I dream about un-packing our wedding gifts that have been boxed for over three years and getting to pick out my own furniture, decorations, paint colors, etc.  It is just funny feeling over here of being a stranger in your "own" home.

For now here are a few pics of our 2011-2012 digs:

Living room

My Bathroom

Master Bedroom...do you like the tree stickers on the closet?

Spare Bedroom/Laundry drying room that has a secret bed sytem which is quite nifty.

Our brand new kitchen...what a treat :)



Our view from our balcony.  The sunsets right over that hill, so pretty at night.

Sweet ride...love having an automatic.

So there is a quick over view of our home away from home...if that is what you can call it?  Tony's team just beat Varese at home to move them into 7th place as of now.  The team looked great and we had a fun time at Tony's Pizza after the game.  This week they head to Treviso to play on Saturday for a TV game.  I am expecting some more fun times with the wives. 

CIAO TUTTI!!

Summer Sweetness straight to Winter Wonderland

I honestly can hardly believe that we are already back in Italy for another season of bball.  This year started a little bit differently for us, but we have landed back in Sassari on the island of Sardegna.  This is the team Tony played for two years ago when they won the championship to move up to Lega A.  The team is still in Lega A and right in the middle of the pack as of now. The season is well under way and again...can't believe it is already December!  I feel like we skipped from summer to winter in a blink of an eye.

SO since I haven't blogged in forever, I have to give a run down of our extra long summer at home.  It was busy as usual...so here we go:

-10 Weddings including my cousin Chris to Gracie, and Tony's cousin Nicole to Joe.  All of the weddings were extremely fun, and Tony and I were able so see so many family and friends which is always the best.

-Trips to California, Nashville, Las Vegas, Ocean Shores and about 5 trips to lake Chelan :)

-Working for me, house flipping for Tony, and a lot of bball workouts for us both (well OK just rebounding for me)

-We got to meet our new nephew Mason who joined the now Schmidt family of five.

-Lake days at my parents house with lots of swimming, tubing, volleyball and of course family&friends&food.

Here is a glimpse of our summer in pictures...

Our Nephew Brody...such a stud muffin!

Disneyland 2011

The family at our favorite spot, La Quinta Resort in Palm Springs.

Sara, Ashley, and I enjoying the Disneywalk.

The first gal we see in Disneyland, she is always so funny!

The night Liz told us she was prego!
Blakely Ann was born November 23rd, and she was perfect!

At Tony's Grandparents 60th wedding anniversary surprise party.
Had to document Tony's summer choice of facial hair too.  

Celebrated our 3rd Anniversary!! 

Celebrating at Joseph Magley's wedding!

Tony surprised me for our Anniversary, with dinner at Palisades and a night at the 5th Avenue  that was playing Aladdin!
Loved it!

Great friends who I miss dearly, Beth and Jessie!  Enjoying Brooke McCully's wedding!

Nashville where I surprised my Sister Kristin...whoop!

Our darling Nieces Taya, and Hadley up in Seattle for a visit!

The newest Schmidt family member Mason!  He is SO cute...love him!

The day after Nicole and Joe's wedding...such an incredible event!

At Krystal Mattich's wedding, here is a shot of a good portion of the supper club kids!

My Love

My niece Gwenny's first day of 1st grade!

The Gondola ride up at Crystal.  SO cool, but want to go back on a sunny day.

Congrats Yuen's, what a beautiful wedding!

Waiting for the Tower of Terror :)

Happy 60th Wedding Anniversary to two very amazing people.
Tony's Grandma and Grandpa Binetti

Congrats to Lance (my B-I-L) and Kevin for getting hired on at the Enumclaw  Fire  Department.

Wedding shower for our cousin Chris...here with the Miller girls :)

Our badges were awesome in Nashville...so was our hotel the Grand Ole Opry .

Goodness gracious....this summer was a blast!!

We ended up signing a little bit later then normal, so I have officially been here 3 weeks and Tony almost 2 months.  This is the first time that we have been back to a place that we have lived before so that is a new twist on things.  I haven't needed to spend my first couple of weeks walking around with my neck strained in every direction trying to find something cool and interesting...I already know most of those things!  It is actually kind of nice knowing how to get to the gym, the grocery store, re-visit our favorite restaurants etc.  Not too mention this is one of my favorite places we have ever been...so I'm a happy girl.

The best part about this team is the huge group of Americans!  I am in heaven :)  There are 6 American wives/gf's and then three other wives/gf's that all speak English....so we take up an entire row at the games.  I already knew one wife, Gini Diener back from our first season in Castelletto so it has been so great having a close friend right out of the gate. She is due with their first baby boy Jan. 1st so we are all very anxious to meet this baby Diener soon.  :)

The only real downer of this season and being in the first league is that we do not get to come home for Christmas.  If you know me, you know how sad this makes me.  I absolutely love love love Christmas and I am truly sad we don't get to be home with our families.  BUT, that is the way life goes sometimes and being able to share it with my husband and the good friends we have here, will be special too.

OK first blog back from the summer is officially up and running.  You will see me back here soon.  Tony's team heads out of town this weekend so the girls will do some shopping, shopping and more shopping ;)

CIAO TUTTI!!

Home Sweet Home

Well I honestly can't believe it is this time again, but I am heading home!  Prima Veroli ended the season in 6th place in Legadue and is heading into play offs this week against Rimini.  We didn't get home court advantage so Tony will play the first two games away, the second two games home, and the third one away again.  GOOD LUCK BOYS!

I am excited about going home but I will say it has been a really different experience for me here this year...I finally have had FRIENDS :) It was so nice to have wives here the entire season, we all became close and I will miss them!  Thanks Adriana, Amanda, and Cinzia for a great time this year...and I am really hoping for a reunion in Italy next season :)

I thought it would be fun to blog about a few things I will miss and a few things I can't wait for...so here it goes!

Things I will miss:

-The one on one time with my lovely husband.  We really get such quality time together over here, and when we go home we are SUPER busy and this special time doesn't happen very often.

-The peace and quiet...this culture still honors siesta which is basically a four hour nap time in the middle of the day.  And as much as it can be annoying, it is a great excuse to hang out at home with no where to go (because everything is closed).

-The very nonchalant driving!  I have to re-train myself when I get home that I can't go any speed I want, roll through stop signs, pass when I feel like it, park where I want to, and not even worry if I slightly bump another car. ;)

-The food!  I really love Italian food, the freshness is amazing!  Of course my favorites...the pizza, pesto, Parmesan cheese, and gelato! Mmm....

-The basketball of course!  I love watching Tony play and his team too...such incredible athletes, and makes me miss playing even more.

Things I can't wait for:

-My FAM!  I miss my family so much and it is always the best thing ever when they are all waiting at the airport when I get home.  This year will be a little different with out Kristin and Teej there, but I know I get to see them in June :)

-My friends...it is so fun to finally be able to talk in person with my good buddies and go for walks, play volleyball, basketball, cards, starbucks runs, and fun times out on the town!

-Shopppppping...I can't wait to get back to Bellevue Square, Downtown Seattle U Village, Costco, etc! :)

-The food!  OK so this one is on both lists but I love the food back home too, so much variety and you can get whatever you want when you want it...that is great!

-My car...and as most of you know she is an oldie, but she is a goodie!  I am just excited to have an automatic and big enough car so that people don't have to crawl into the back :)

So back to the United States I go!  I am so excited to see everyone...CIAO TUTTI!!

Easter Weekend 2011

Easter is such a special and spiritual holiday weekend.  Tony and I both tried to take time to reflect and digest the greatness of what Easter means to both of us.  It means so much to our faith's and we are so blessed to share those feelings together.  Not too mention the fun part of Easter with the eggs, cute decorations and last but definitely not least (if you know me at all) the CANDY!  My sister Kristin and I are candy freaks and we have officially named Easter the best candy holiday by FAR :)

We started off the weekend with a great opportunity, the GM called Tony and asked if he could come to the hospital to meet some of the children that are currently staying there for a long period of time for various reasons.  I got to go along for the ride and it was so awesome.  The team mascot was also there, and him and Tony went into several rooms and passed out big chocolate eggs to the kids.  It was so nice to be reminded in a big way about sacrificing in our lives and doing things to help others.  The kids loved seeing the huge giraffe and getting a few autographs.  It was a good way to start the weekend.

Saturday morning we were up and out the door by 6:30am!  We were headed North all the way to Florence for a day of sight seeing and relaxing.  It was a good three hour drive but it was beautiful as we drove through the Tuscany region for the last bit of it.  Once in Florence we realized that this was probably not the best day to visit, considering it was the day before Easter and we were there with thousands and thousands of tourists!  SO we ended up not visiting any museums (crazy I know), but we only were there one day and didn't want to stand in line for 3 hours at every one.  And really that just means that we will have to go back someday...right?  Florence was great, and it was so nice just walking the side streets with Tony and relaxing!  We had such a fabulous day and finished it off with a stop at Piazza di Michaelangelo which has one of the best views of Florence ever.  It was a perfect way to wave good bye to Florence and head on back to good old Veroli :)

Finally in Florence!

Making our way through the crowds

Ponte Vecchio (one of the first bridges that is still standing)

Mia amore...

il Duomo 

Tony using his artsy/photography skills ;)

The replica statue of Michaelangelo's David 

Easter morning we got up and went to church at Abbey Casamari which is a beautiful functioning Abbey about 15 mins away from our house.  It is one of my favorite places to take visitors because it is so beautiful and simple at the same time.  The place was PACKED with people even though there was services every hour.  It was a great service about how Easter can be thought of only as a story (even though a great one) and not taken or remembered for it's true meaning and impact.  Obviously I had to have Tony translate a little of that for me ;)

Then we came home and just spent time together with no bball!  I made a big dinner for the two of us that was yummy and then finished off the night with goodies from our Easter basket and a movie.  One of the best weekends in a long time :)

Easter dinner!

Baby Shower!

So after a fun filled couple of weeks with visitors I got to end the week throwing a baby shower for Adriana, who is another wife on the team.  Adriana is due with baby Serena in May so the other wives and I thought it would be a perfect time to throw her a shower!  We had a great mixture of Americans and Italians that were able to make it and we really had a wonderful time.  Our friends from Caserta even made the long drive up!  We ate, played games, and of course opened presents.  Adriana has been pregnant the entire season, so we are all very anxious to meet Serena, and are all praying that she has her when we are still here!  Our team heads into play offs May 12th, so there is a chance that we could lose and be out before she comes.  So we are hoping for an early baby so that we can all meet this precious little one!

We decorated with pink of course :)

Cute little Veroli babies!

Serena scored some adorable clothes!

Cinzia and AJ...thanks for hosting Cinzia!

Big Brother Jay gets a few presents too.

Pink flowers from Adriana's sweet husband Jay!

The Veroli Wives and kids...minus little Jay. :)

It was a wonderful afternoon, and Adriana seriously deserved a day of spoiling and love!  We can't wait to meet you Serena!!

The team played Scafati that week on the road and we won again...BARELY!  We have gotten super lucky the last three games, and hopefully this won't continue into play-offs because it is stressful.  Then on Monday I had one of my wisdom teeth taken out, so that was a blast ;) Tony was gone all day for team stuff, so thankfully Adriana was kind enough to take me and bring me home.  It is healing ok, but unfortunately I got dry socket which is extremely painful and is still killing me.  I am hoping to make a visit back to the dentist tomorrow to have him take a look.  

This week brings the last regular season home game against Pistoia.......and then only one more away game to go.  Time is flying by!

CIAO CIAO :)