4th of July in I-O-W-A!

On the 3rd of July, the kids and I headed back to the great state of Iowa for a month.

These smiles say it all!  At 6:30 the next morning these cousins were so excited to be reunited!

Rolling out to the Ely Fire Department 4th of July Pancake Breakfast

The Kasparek Cousins :)

Lori, Julie, Jan, and me

 

 Bring on those flapjacks!

For my last meal on earth, I am pretty sure pancakes made on one of these HUGE griddles would be on it.  

Our first breakfast in 'Merica was amazing!

 Babi and her girls

Playing wiffle ball with Pops

 When you have jet lag on the 4th of July and are ready for bed before it gets dark :)

Festa Americana 2019

Carney Park was our home for the weekend as we celebrated Festa Americana.

Trying to keep cool in the shade at cabin #7 with Sherri and Ron Saturday afternoon.

Gabriela, Emma, and Jillian

The rockstar MWR team

American Authors put on an incredible concert Saturday night

Luca, Emma, Thomas, Izzy, Jillian, and Gabriela hanging out at the cabin

Kirby, Ben, Ron, and Chris

 Jake, Camden, Dylan, Brody, and Peyton

 Mr. Festa entertaining the crowd

 On Sunday, the Mississippi State Women's Basketball team, representing the USA in the World University Games, came to Festa

So proud of this guy!!!

Warthen Reunion in Naples

The Warthens made their way south after they attended the World Cup in France.  

Chris and Allison hanging out in our pool Sunday afternoon

 Emma and Claire at the beach

A sweet flashback of the girls 9 years ago

Floating on the watermelon with a ferry and Capri in the background

#italianlife

 Camden, Keller, Allison, Emma, and Claire enjoying a granita

Jake, Keller, and Camden

This awesome trio hung out for the last time until their paths cross again one day!

Wednesday we had marathon (steaming hot) day on the Amalfi Coast

First stop: ceramic shopping in Vietri

 Lunch in Amalfi

Aperol Spritz and beer cheers with Chris 

 Boat ride to Positano

 Wandering along my favorite street in Positano

 We had a fabulous dinner, followed by gelato, in Sorrento

A walk down memory lane looking at photo albums from Washington

Life Lately: June Edition

Friday Prosecco on the Patio with Mel

The America's Kids Run was postponed due to rain in May. There was not a big crowd when Camden ran it the first Saturday of June and he was the clear winner!

Just a boy and his dog studying for a social studies test after church

After the stomach flu took 3/4 of us down, we re-entered civilization for Camden's last baseball game

Check out Camden and his mega bubble in the front!

MWR hosted the Mess Lords Chefs

When Emma and Chris got back from France, we spent a day at the beach with the Schutt family

Granita for the kids...

Mojitos for the mamas...

Lots of mornings playing volleyball

Camden and Carter enjoying a pool afternoon

We ended the month with Emma's braces coming off. Love that new smile!

Women's World Cup 2019

Emma's 14th birthday gift was a ticket to the USA vs. Chile World Cup Game in Paris. After rocking out to Ed Sheeran, Chris & Emma trained to Rome the next morning and flew to Paris.

A gorgeous evening with an Eiffel Tower backdrop

Photobomb from Fox Sports Analyst Alexi Lalas 

 Pre-game fun with other Americans

They made NBC Nightly News!!!

Inside the stadium 

 Meeting up with old friends from Yokosuka! 

Stew, Flynn, and Schuyler House

Happy dad and daughter after the USA victory!