Emilia's First Christmas

Three weeks in Italy went by way too fast and we are now back in London. The whole time there was simply amazing and of course Christmas was even more magical this year thanks to Emilia. 

In Italy we celebrate Christmas three times: we start with a fish dinner on Christmas Eve, we go on with a lunch-feast on Christmas day, and we close the festivities with another big lunch on the 26th. As always, we spent the first two days at my parents' and the 26th at my uncle Massimiliano's.

This year our good friends Ilaria and Cristian joined us for the 24th. They came a little bit early to play with Emilia; however, she fell asleep early that night! And she stayed asleep even when passed from one person to another, barely opening her eyes every now and then. 

 

And when she wasn't sleeping, she was very good, allowing us to enjoy dinner and have a proper adult time. Every year on the 24th, after dinner, Rob and I work on the meatballs for the Xmas lunch. This year, Cristian helped us. It was so much fun! Rob got creative and made two *meatballs* shaped with his initials (R O).

We also always make the table for the big Xmas lunch. All the women helped: mum, aunt Marilena, Bea, Ila and I all contributed to make this lovely table that seated 15 people, 12 adults and three kids. Even Emilia got her place-name! The decorations this year were all in Emilia's honour: bright colours, teddy bears and rocking-horses were all part of the decor.

Needless to say, the food was AMAZING, all lovingly prepared by my grandmum and mum. 

We like to think that Emilia enjoyed the day as much as we did. She even got to meet Santa (my mum!) and showed some interest in her gifts - cheeky! 

 I have always loved Christmas but now that we have Emilia it's even more fun. I look forward to next year already!

Photo book

Emilia has got more pictures than a professional supermodel! And now that we are in Pescara she has got even more photographers at her service. I take pictures with my camera, my mum takes pictures with her mobile phone and my dad takes pictures both with his camera and his phone! One day we will have to gather all these pics in a nice photo book.

Here are some of my favourite ones from the last couple of days.

Emilia's handmade bibs: Xmas edition

Emilia's colletion of handmade bibs grows every day and she now has two beautiful Xmas ones. Arent's they beautiful? One is hand-painted (thanks, Fiorella!), and the other is embroidered (thanks Lucia's mum!). As always, thanks everyone for loving my little one so much!

Emilia and friends

Since we arrived in Pescara, Emilia has been receiving many visits (and gifts!) from lots of family members and friends. It is an absolute joy to see how many people love her and want to come and meet her for the first time. So, on Sunday afternoon we hosted a little tea party for my girlfriends who wanted to see Emi. We had a great time. I have known most of these girls since we were three years old and it is always quite emotional to spend some time together when I am home. Now that some of us have kids too, it is even more special! 

This is the gang: nine adults and three little ones.

My girlfriends and I are so close that even if I don't have any sister, Emilia has got many aunties on my side anyway!

Emilia was literally showered with gifts. Isn't she adorable while she looks inside the box containing all her presents?

Thank you very much, my dearest friends. Emilia and I love you very much!

It's tummy time

One thing Emilia doesn't like is tummy time. However, she needs to do it to strenghten the muscles of her little neck. Usually, Rob and I fail miserably trying to convince her to do it but the ultra patience of grandparents has no limits. Here is little Emi impersonating a leopard :)

Let's talk

This afternoon Emilia got a visit from Gaia and Matilde. When they arrived she was sitting on the swing and enjoying a long chat with her nonno Walter. Here is a short video for you. Enjoy!

Meet the Godparents

Saturday morning Emilia got to meet her godparents, our good friends Federica and Lorenzo. It was love at first sight. It was a short but intense visit and Emilia got all the attention and love she needs.

And that's not all she got. Lory and Fede gave Emilia the most beautiful and regal robe. We can't wait to bathe again! Thanks so much dearest friends.

We made it. We are in Italia!

Today I am writing from my parents' house. I can't believe we are in Italy! I had been waiting for this moment since we booked the flights and was so excited to take Emilia to my motherland for the first time.

So, here is a little account of our adventure yesterday. Rob and I only managed to go to bed around 1.00am after we packed everything, Bugaboo included, and checked that we had all the documents needed. Emilia woke up at 3.45am and you can imagine how tired and sleepy we were. But, it was time to wake up for our flight anyway. So, we fed and dressed her and then took care of ourselves. The taxi came to pick us up at 6.00am and drove us all the way to Stansted Airport. This was a great idea, it made the trip so much easier. Emilia slept the whole ride and Rob and I were able to close our eyes and rest a bit. Once at the airport we checked in very quickly and then fed Emilia.

The airport was basically empty and it took us no time to check in and go through security. Meanwhile, we decided to check in the pram too, and I carried Emilia in our baby carrier, which turned out to be VERY useful (thanks Ila and Cri!).

Emilia was very calm and attracted by the novelty. She kept looking around and loved being in a new environment. I even had time to have a nice breakfast! We then moved to the gate and boarded very quicly. Again, we were shocked at how smooth everything went. Once on the plane and ready to take off, we started feeding Emilia again and she was so happy to eat that didn't realise what was going on. The first half hour I had to get up and walk with her a little, but other than that, she was an angel! We arrived in Pescara a few minutes early and of course my mum, dad, and grandmum were waiting for us.



My dad even took a picture of the plane we were on for future memories (in the end, it was Emilia's first flight, something to remember!).



It was great to see them. Emilia loved the car ride and once home started exploring her surroundings. My mum has made an amazing Christmas tree in Emilia's honour this year (pictures to come) and Emilia was in heaven with all the colours, the glitter and the lights. In the afternoon Emilia got the first visits from Ila and Cristian and uncles Max and Luciano joined us for dinner. And then, after a day of travelling and entertaining friends and relatives, Emilia fell asleep like a little angel in what used to be my crib.

She is enjoying the new environment and is loving all the attention. This morning she had her first ride on the swing...and loved it! Thanks Emilia for making everything so easy on us. We love you!

And we are off (well, almost!)

Time has finally come. Tomorrow morning we will be heading to the airport, destination Italy. At the moment we are a bit stressed and overwhelmed by the amount of things to do and remember but I am sure it will all be worth it once we get to Pescara. And the good thing is that Rob and I will finally be able to nap; as soon as we are at my parents' house, Emilia will receive all the attention she needs and we will rest FOREVER! 

So, with Emilia's British passport in hands (it arrived a couple of days ago, did I tell you?) and everything packed, we are ready to start this new adventure. Getting ready for a trip with a baby is no pic-nic and there are so many things to remember to pack. Also, we are going for Christmas, so all the gifts and festive outfits need to be packed too. I usually pack all at once and make a list of what I have packed so that I have an overview of what I am bringing. It always works. This time, however, I have been throwing things into the suitcase over the course of a week and have no recollection of what I put in there. Let's hope the essentials are all in. 

So, wish us luck and pray everything goes well. I will update you from Italy.

Three months

Today we have celebrated three months with Emilia. I know I say it every time, but it's true: time really flies! I can't believe three months have already gone by...and I can't believe in less than two months I'll go back to work! 

So, as usual, we have dressed Emilia up (isn't that peplum top adorable?), put a sticker on and had a delicious cake (compliments of Elena and Alessandro this time). 

The last few days have marked some nice moments. Emilia is smiling and laughing on a regular basis now and enjoys making funny faces. She "sings" and "dances" and is officially grabbing and chewing everything that comes close to her mouth. She made us laugh hysterically yesterday when she tried to put an entire soft book into her mouth. Of course, she got frustrated when she realised that it was impossible. As you can see from the picture below, her hands and wrists are constantly in!

Happy three months, love! We have enjoyed every minute of our new life with you and can't wait to see what comes next.

Tree Trimming Party

And speaking of Xmas trees, this afternoon we headed to Natalie and Dave's for some good tree trimming. We had such a great time. We listened to Xmas songs, decorated cookies, built a gingerbread house, and of course trimmed a beautiful Christmas tree. There is something magical about Christmas and it was simply wonderful to spend some relaxing time with good friends. All the guests contributed with some decorations and despite the fact that they were all different, they perfectly glued together in the end, and the final product is simply amazing, I think. Have a look. 

We brought a purple felt Xmas tree that I made and four ginger-men decorations. Other decorations included vintage-looking toys, robots, gold reindeers, gold bells, knitted jumpers, and colourful baubles. 

Thanks very much Natalie for a lovely afternoon. You really put us in a festive mood. Can't wait for Christmas!!

A Baby Tree for a Baby Girl

December has finally arrived! The most magical month of all. And even if Emilia and I will be in Italy for most of the month, we thought it would still be nice to have a little Xmas tree in the house. And little it is! Happy December everyone! 

Part of this year's decorations is a very sweet rocking horse that grandmum JoAnn gave to Emilia when she came to visit back in October. It's a lovely keepsake that I hope to pass to Emilia's baby one day...