Shopping and Sightseeing

I spent today with one of the girls that I met at the HeartLink class. We went to two different malls in Pordenone, including the one with an H&M! Apparently, H&M is so not cool to Italians, but I love it! I got a super cute dress and cotton top there, and two tunics, a pair of shorts, and some leggings from other stores in the mall. And only one item was over 10 Euro! There is so much fashion inspiration here in Italy, that I want to buy trendy clothes. I love it! My fashionista nieces would love shopping here!

Then we drove up the side of the mountains and saw an AMAZING view of the town of Aviano and the base. I didn't realize how LONG the flightline really is! I'm really sorry that I didn't have my camera with me, but we did make plans to come back next week with cameras, so I may be able to post that next week.

Then, when I called Jake, he was on the golf course, so Meagan and I went to dinner without the boys at BEFeD. (Not a typo, the e really is the only lowercase letter in the name) They serve amazing chicken with french fries, yum!

A pretty fun filled exciting day in the life of a military wife.

Cinnamon Swirl Cake

I tried a recipe for a cinnamon swirl cake today. As you will soon realize, I don't really make anything from scratch. I love recipes that start with some kind of mix from a box, and then you add to it to make it better. Those"semi-homemade" recipes are the perfect kind for me! So if you have any favs, please share!

It comes from the July 09 Wives Cookbook Blog that I contribute to. Here is the complete recipe.

I loved the recipe! SO easy, and SO yummy too! I don't have my mixer here in Italy, so I had to hand beat the batter for 10 minutes (OK..really I only lasted like 5!) but it turned out fine. And I used two round cake pans instead of the bundt pan.

My ingredients


Here is the batter, right after I "cut in" the cinnamon/sugar mixture.

My final product. Don't make fun of the icing. I'm really bad at icing!

Happy Early Birthday to Jake!

Jake's birthday isn't until next Wednesday, but his gift came in the mail today. I told him he couldn't have it until next week, but he put on the charm and got to open it early.

I got him a Mr. Beer Home Brewing Beer Kit. The Brewmaster Deluxe kit, and let me tell you, it is for sure DELUXE. Tons of bottles, 8 different mixes, EVERYthing you might need to brew a lot of beer. He started a batch tonight, but it won't be done for at least two weeks. :(

Isn't he a cutie?

Pizza Pizza!

Since we are in Italy, I figured we should try making some of the local cuisine, so Jake and I made a pizza tonight. Well, I made the pizza. Jake sat at the table and kept me company. I used mozzarella and provel cheese, mushrooms, and italian pepperoni. I thought it turned out pretty good. At least as good as the cafes down the road!

Thank You

No news today. I had a very uneventful day. I did laundry and dishes while Jake was at work, then this evening we went grocery shopping. We are just a boring married couple now.

I did finish addressing my thank you notes. They have been done for two weeks now, just waiting for addresses, so now they are finally done and will be in the mail tomorrow. Now I don't have to think about ANYTHING wedding related!

Where in the World Are We?

When I tell anyone that we are living in Italy, they want to know where in Italy. I can say, "100 kilometers north of Venice" or even just "In the northeast corner" but for simplicity, here is where I live.

See the red star in the center at the top? That's our town, Fontanafredda.

Venezia

We went to Venice yesterday, so as promised, here is an extra long post with lots of photos!

One of my favorite pictures of us ever!

Rialto Bridge.

Grand Canal.

Just a small canal.

San Marcos Basillica.

The Campanile.

San Marcos Basillica.

Gondolas.

We have had too much Italian food lately, so we had dinner at Hard Rock Cafe!

In San Marcos Square.

Big Clock.

Close-up of San Marcos Basillica.

Jake likes his cappuccino.

Cartier, and an old building.

Just another small canal.

Window shopping!

Gelato time! By the way, the guy beside me is Jake's friend Chuck.

Jake wanted to share his gelato.

One last picture before we catch the train.
Drinking beer on the train ride home.

Class Time

Today I went to a HeartLink meeting on base. The meeting was for new wives to help us learn all of the crazy acronyms and where to find all of the benefits and resources we have available to us. I was really amazed at how much there was to learn! And, I met some other brand new wives!

One of the girls told me there is supposed to be an H&M store in Pordenone, so I think we'll have to get together for a shopping day this week! I also found out where I can find a nail salon, but that a pedicure and manicure cost 75 euro. Yikes! I think I'll be doing my own nails while living in Italy!

No photos today, but we are going to Venice tomorrow, so expect an extra special update tomorrow night!

Yummy Gelato!

Not much happened today. Jake worked last night and got home at 7:30 am, so he slept most of the day and I spent the day catching up on laundry.

This afternoon, we went to a gelateria. This one is my favorite because it is only a 5 minute walk from our apartment.

Each time we go, I try a different flavor, but I think the flavor I chose tonight has been my favorite so far, bacio (chocolate with hazelnuts)

If gelato were more healthy, I would eat it everyday! Jake isn't as crazy for sweets as I am, so I have to beg him to go with me.

It's official!

I'm officially a military wife. We got the certified copies of the marriage certificate in the mail today, so we stopped by the DEERS office to get me enrolled as a dependent and get my ID made. Now I can get on base by myself, well except for the fact that I'm not allowed to drive in Italy yet.

Surprisingly, the process was much quicker than we expected, so we took that extra time to stop by the hospital to also get me enrolled in Tri-Care for health insurance. Again, much easier and quicker than we expected. The bad news is that the pharmacy will not accept a prescription from my doctor in Missouri. They are too particular. Now I have to try to get an appointment with a doc on base. How annoying.

I like to have a photo in each post, but I didn't take any photos today, so here is a photo I took last week of the view outside my bedroom window. I wish we had a view of the mountains, but I guess I can't really complain. I mean, it's Italy!

New Potatoes & Old Cars

Last night, Jake grilled steaks, so I wanted to try a new potato recipe that the ladies I worked with at Bismarck have always raved about.
The recipe for Onion Roasted Potatoes is right on the back of the box for Lipton Onion Soup Mix. It's just one packet of soup mix, extra virgin olive oil, and cut up potatoes. Mix and bake. That's my kind of recipe!

Jake is working nights this week, but he still got up early today to take a friend to Venice to the airport. He pulled the car out of the garage and turned it off for a few minutes to clean it out. And then it wouldn't start. So I had a little mechanic lesson this afternoon!

Something about the starter won't release some magnet thing. So, now we have to carry around a long extender tool so if it won't start again we have to pound on the starter until it releases. I had him put it in layman's terms so I can understand it. Jake claims cars are easier than math. No way!

Just to be safe, we are running our errands on the motorcycle today!

Italian Neighbors

I don't have any photos or adventures to share today, but I do have a funny little story.

We live in an apartment building with 5 other apartments. One of the apartments in our building houses an African family, mom, dad, and two sons. One of the sons is learning English in school and likes to try to talk to us. Another apartment houses a young Asian couple. Another, a young Italian couple with one son. A very diverse little apartment building huh?

Well, the Italian boy is named Marco, and sometimes the mom or dad will walk out on their balcony to call him to come back inside. So, often we will hear them say "Marco!" then a few seconds later "Marco!"

Let me tell you, it is very hard to not yell back, "Polo!"

Our First Italy Outing

Today we drove up to Barcis. It's about 30 minutes away, and right in the midst of the mountains. We had to drive through 4 tunnels to get through the mountains. I usually don't mind tunnels, but the longest one took 3 and a half minutes to get through (yes, I timed it!) and that one was a little unsettling. It was gorgeous, but it was packed. I guess everyone had the same idea we had for a Sunday afternoon.

Introduction

Meet Jake & Maggie.

Jake is a Staff Sergeant in the US Air Force. He enjoys playing golf and riding his motorcycle.

I (Maggie) was a math teacher in Missouri, but am taking a break from teaching to be able to live with Jake. I also enjoy playing golf, doing crafts (like scrapbooking & sewing) and baking.

Jake & I were married on July 4th, 2009. Jake was already stationed at Aviano Air Force Base in Italy, so I joined him there after the wedding.

We are scheduled to PSC (permanent change of station) in December, so we plan to use our time in Europe to travel and do as much as possible, but I am also excited to find out where we go next!

I plan to use this blog to post pictures of our travels, show some of my latest crafting creations, and share some of my favorite recipes!

Follow along in the ever changing life of a military wife!