I last left you all on New Year’s Day with wishes of a happy and healthy New Year after December dropped me off like the end of a wild roller coaster ride. Even though I’m not one to make New Year’s resolutions, it did feel great to know that 2009 was now behind me and I could start fresh. On Saturday the 2nd I went out to lunch with Lucia and our friend Vittoria. We got pizza and walked around Naples a bit, talking and laughing, and having a great time. Tuesday the 5th was Chiara’s 4th birthday and I have never felt more like a mom than that day! I just couldn’t believe ‘my’ baby girl was turning 4! She’s getting so big! We had a wonderful birthday party for her here at the house, complete with a jumpy castle, face painting, music, games, tons of food, and of course a Hello Kitty cake. All of her little friends from school came and we had a great time. That night, ‘Le Befana’ came and left presents for us to wake up to the next morning! Befana is an old witch from Italian folklore who brings candy and small gifts to children on Epiphany Eve. She rides a broomstick and leaves candy in stockings :) The day after Befana came, the girls finally headed back to school after a break of almost four weeks. Once the girls were back in school I had the chance to do a huge cleaning and organizing of all their toys. I produced several bags of trash along with several bags of toys they don’t play with anymore that we’re going to donate to charity. I also organized all their toys in a way that makes everything more ‘playable’…this is a term I’ve come up with, basically meaning that beforehand, all of their toys were just randomly thrown is baskets and boxes and looked like a bunch of ‘junk’. But now that everything is organized, it is more ‘playable’ because the Legos are all together, the Barbies are all together, the dress-up stuff is all together, etc. We’ll see how long this organization lasts :) Along with consolidating and organizing their toys, I have begun implementing some rules with the girls, such as “When you’re done playing with something, put it away before starting a new activity” and “Put everything away where it belongs, don’t just throw it all in one pile.” They are getting the hang of things but sometimes it’s frustrating because Rosa and Bruno aren’t very consistent with me and I also can’t help but wonder about what my replacement will be like. Oh well, I can’t worry about those things too much, I just need to do the best job I can while I’m here. Speaking of my replacement, Rosa has been talking with several girls who are interested in coming here to work for the family. It’s so odd and I get jealous all the time when she tells me about these new girls! But then I remember that it was around this time last year when Rosa and I started communicating. It’s just weird to think that a new girl will be completely taking over for me, sleeping in my bed, going to birthday parties, taking the girls to school and to the pool, riding the R4 bus down to the city center. It makes me think…to me, this is one very special family who I will never forget, but to this family, I am only one girl out of a long-line of nannies that they have had and will have over the years. It is actually a bit of a depressing thought, but I try not to dwell on it so much!
On January 11th, at the start of the new week, I went to the gym and did a huge grocery shopping. After eight months of enjoying Italian food, I think it is finally time to get back to the healthy lifestyle I led at home. That meant a huge change in my routine. However, it has been 2 weeks and I feel really really good. I paid for another three months at the gym and have been going every morning. I’ve been eating super healthy and instead of eating dinner late at night with Rosa and Bruno I eat earlier in the evening with the girls. I’ve been going to bed earlier and sleeping a lot better (anyone who knows me, knows I have sleep problems). I've been drinking tons of water and green tea. During the day I have more energy, feel refreshed, feel healthier, happier, my skin looks better, my hair looks better, I just overall feel really really good. It’s great to be getting my own lifestyle back, and although it IS a challenge to do while in Italy, I know that it is possible. I’m planning on running a 5K in November and although I haven’t started training for that yet, I know that every little thing I do now will help in the long run. So it’s been 2 weeks and I’m weighing-in tomorrow to see what (if any) my results are. I’m also planning on updating my exercise routine a bit on Monday because everything is starting to get easier. It just feels so good to be going to the gym everyday and eating healthy. I’m so proud of myself! I also have planned to make a weekend trip to Paris the first weekend of April, similar to the weekend trip I made to Liverpool. On top of that, Rosa & Bruno are planning for the five of us to go to Venice from March 12th-15th to celebrate their anniversary. And even further, they are planning a cruise for either the end of April or end of May, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will be the end of April so I can go with them!
Overall, things are great here in Bella Napoli. Actually, as I write this, I’m sitting out on the terrace (which we recently had closed-in), in the warm sunshine, looking out onto the water. We can’t see Capri today, but it’s still a beautiful view. As corny as it may sound, I just feel so happy and content in this moment. The weather is beautiful (which is enough to make anyone giddy), I’m exercising and eating right and finally getting control over my body back, I have many exciting plans for the next few months and even the next couple of years, and I’m just so happy where I am in my life right now. Sometimes I get stressed over things like my love life, but it really helps to just sit back and relax and reflect on my life – where I’ve been, where I’m going, and what I have going for me. I know that everything will fall into place exactly as it’s supposed to, because although I may have faced hardships in the past, things have always worked themselves out. Cheers!
Lucia and I out to dinner with friends!
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