Greece

Starting the first two weeks off right! 

This summer we were both fortunate enough to have off from work and decided to take a 'upscaled' backpacking trip to Greece and Turkey. This backpacking trip is a bit different than when one my best friend, Lindsay Reibold, and I travelled for 6 weeks (back in 2010)... we aren't staying in hostels and have a bit more clean clothes :) 

Unfortunately I don't take many photos with my iPhone (usually my camera) but here's a glimpse of what Greece was like. 

We flew into Athens and stayed for two nights. We weren't huge fans of Athens because there was a strike and we spent the majority of our time stuck in traffic on a hop on hop off bus. But our hotel had a roof top bar with a few of the Acropolis. The Acroplis was also closed because of the strike... you win some you loose some!

 After Athens we took at 3 hour ferry to Naxos... our paradise, divine abode, cloud nine, okay you got it.  I was really looking forward to meeting up with one of my best (Greek) friend, Zoe. But due to high winds her ferry never made it! Next time, right? We stayed at a beautiful hotel, Camara. In our 4 days we ate some of the best food (most of Greece gets the food from Naxos), relaxed on sandy beaches (we learned sand is uncommon), rode around on scooters and met some great people. By far our favorite island we've seen in Greece! 

 The ferry ride. 

 By far the best dinner I've ever had on the beach with my love. 

 Sunset view from our hotel. 

 Passageway to nowhere...

Next stop Santorini. After a few hours on a ferry and two crazy bus rides we arrived in Oia. Oia is what I pictured and more, the white buildings with blue caps, the views, and the narrow streets. We stayed down the hill at Pelagos Hotel. It was a nice escape from the massive amounts of tourists, which we weren't expecting. We spent five days on a four wheeler checking out different beaches (rocky?!) and monasteries. 

 Switched up from a four wheeler to a car for the day.

 Our hotel's bar and pool in Oia. 

Our last stop in Greece was Rhodes, in the south closest to Turkey. We spent a long weekend on the island which divided into Old Town and New Town. We stayed at Achillion Hotel in the New Town. New town was a beach town with high-rise hotels and small pebbled beaches. Old Town was surrounded by gates and inside was a massive castle. We checked out the town Lindos and on the way back we hitch hiked to avoid a long bus ride!We enjoyed Rhodes and a sunset next to their Acropolis.   

 Beach in New Town.

 Old Town

 *Children must be held by hadn ... 

 Sunset at the Acropolis! 

 Lindos Beach

I am writing this after a ferry ride from Rhodes (1 1/2 hours), a taxi, two buses (7 hours)... in TURKEY! 

All the love in the world to you all! 

xoxo

Vegetable Garden

Our Kids

Take a deep breath Dad our kids are our vegetables.... and they are growing up fast! We started our window box garden about 6 weeks ago. We went to the local hardware/gardening store and bought every seed that tickled our fancy. With a little help from Ryan's neighbors, Bev and Tom and my Dad, we are currently growing: 

• Spinach
• Onion
• Yellow pepper
• Eggplant
• Cilantro
• Basil
• Rosemary
• Garlic
• Broccoli
• Butternut squash
• Beans 
• Tomatoes 
• Sweet Potatoes ... maybe

The first picture is from week 2 and the rest were taking today. It is 66 degrees today! 

 The squash leaves are massive.

 Ryan found a way to grow sweet potatoes online, but it hasn't gotten warm enough for them to sprout... it's one of our favorite veggies!

      

We are really looking forward to seeing what comes of our garden and hopefully we will have some veggies to eat! Tonight we are headed into Ghent (a neighboring city) for a Jazz Festival. 

Happy Saturday x 

Playing Ketchup

End of the Year, London, and Week at Home 

Timing wasn't in my favor when I created this, but it will be fun to catch everyone up. 

June 28th was the last day of school. Which means the whole week is a bit chaotic. We had our last book buddies with our 5th graders, an ice cream party, the Spring Play, and an aperitif with the parents (champagne anyone?). On the 28th I met Ryan at the train station and we celebrated the end of the school year in London. We ate amazing Indian food, caught up with old friends, took a bike tour, and best of all saw the show the Book of Mormon. Highly recommended. We got back late Sunday night and on Monday morning I was off to 'Merica to surprise my extended family. My family was in Avalon renting a beach house with the Curry's. My Florida family also came up for the week. My dad had an 'emergency at work' and came to pick me up at the airport. After the big surprise, we spent the week getting rained off the beach, swimming with cousins in the pool, catching up on good reads (Where'd You Go Bernadette), and celebrating the 4th. Following Avalon I had a few days in Doylestown. On Sunday night I had about 10 friends from home over and it was just like old times. We got take out food and sat around the dinning room table. I'm not sure the last time we all sat around the table was, but we always all pick up right were we left off. 

Here's some pictures to recap of the past 2 and a half weeks. 

 Our roses in full bloom! 

 Make you banana pancakes... 

 A local high school had a raft race, right in front of our house! 

 Beautiful flowers from one of my students :) 

 Enjoying the ice cream! 

 My crazy kids. 

 Met up with Franzi (a friend from when I studied abroad)!

 The family :)

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer and had a great 4th! I am back in Belgium preparing for our next trip, while cleaning and unpacking. This weekend is suppose to be in the 70s! Wahoo. 
xoxo