Stephanie Howell

As We Speak…

March 19, 2014

She…

1. Is doing CrossFit again. After a REALLY long time. And it’s hard and she hates it sometimes but she also loves the way it makes her feel. She’s not very in shape or very coordinated, but she’s tired of excuses and she’s ready to treat her body like a temple instead of a trashcan.

2. Got through an entire discussion in Italian the other day. And she felt unnaturally proud of herself when he finished.

3. Has a million blog posts she wants to write but no time to write them. Life is flying by lately and it seems like there are less hours in the day.

4. Hit a reading plateau. It goes in cycles. Now she’s wanting to create again instead of reading. Ebbs and flows.

5. Is currently planning a trip to Positano. Paris one weekend and Positano the next. April is going to be a good, good month. 🙂

He…

1. Is currently away training in Germany. He’s missed terribly.

2. Called tonight just to talk to Harper about how her play audition went. He’s such a GREAT daddy. He makes each of them feel so very special and cherished.

3. Might love Frozen as much as the girls do. He does the Olaf voice a LOT.

4. Has the funniest voice when trying to speak Italian. It sounds kind of German and very stuttery. HAHAHA.

5. Has now officially knocked both side mirrors off of his car. AKA the Green Machine. Oh my. Italy is treacherous for drivers!

She…

1. Has become a voracious reader. In the photos above she was telling me alllll about Nancy Drew.

2. Auditioned for her very first musical last night. The Little Mermaid. She blew me away. Tears and goosebumps. Her confidence is amazing. I love that she has found something that she is passionate about. I really want to cultivate that.

3. Will be eight soon. EIGHT? How is that POSSIBLE?

4. Never stops singing. Ever. Ever ever ever. Harper’s life is a musical. And it’s magical.

5. Is really blossoming this year. Improved self-confidence…not so hard on herself. She’s finding her niche and it’s beautiful to see.

She:

1. Is really walking that fine line between spunk and sass lately. We struggle with that. I want her to be respectful but I don’t want her to lose the spunk. The spark. I love her so much but being her mama can be hard!

2. Rocks at gymnastics. Definitely her “thing”.

3. Has a crazy desire to LEARN. She absorbs everything. She is competitive with herself in a good way.

4. Asked me if she could hold my hand today. It melted my heart. God may have made her wild and stubborn…but he made her extra sweet to even it out.

5. Wants to grow her bob out. This breaks my heart but I’m honoring her wishes. I SO hope she wants to go back to the bangs and bob one day.

She:

1. Wears this crown almost every single day.

2. Is the leader in the “Howell scowl” competition. She makes this face at me multiple times a day.

3. Has taken to saying “SURE!” in a Boston-esque accent. Lucy? Can I hold you?? SHOOWAH!!!!

4. Likes to tell people she likes them. “I YIKE YOU!” She once said “I NO YIKE YOU” to someone but I nipped that one in the bud.

5. Does a dance to “Happy” by Pharrell Williams where she shakes her bottom and looks over her shoulder at it. HILARIOUS.

She:

1. Wears this monkey hat just as much as Lucy wears her crown.

2. Weighs 4 1/2 pounds less than Lucy.

3. Could eat yogurt 9240820384 times a day if I let her.

4. Is in a whining phase. WORST PHASE EVER. I tell her I’m deaf to whining.

5. Loves playing baby/mommy with her sister. Watching them is HILAROUS!

xoxo

On Learning a New Language.

March 5, 2014

It is hard. Harder than anything I’ve done in a really long time. I leave Italian class each day with a tension headache.

I have a theory that I’ve gotten dumber with each child I’ve given birth to. And the twins were a double whammy.

Italian class proves that theory.

I have a hard enough time with English. Truly. Sometimes I start a sentence and can’t think of the word to complete it. So one of my children fills in the blanks. Often it’s my three year olds.

So mastering a new language…yeah. It’s tough.

I mess up a LOT. The other night I was out with friends for dinner. I wanted exactly what my friend ordered and so I told the waiter

“also to you.”

What I meant to say was “me too”. Yeah. You should have seen his face.

But here’s the deal…I’m trying.

I’m putting myself out there. I am constantly putting myself in situations where I’m surrounded by Italian. I refuse to order meals in English. I have made friends with Italians and I’m perpetually learning, messing up, and asking endless questions.

You want to know something sad? I see a lot of not trying.

Many people just expect Italians to speak English. And I’ve seen frustration that they don’t. Complaints. WHAT? IT’S ITALY! Learn the language.

You know what I overheard the other day?

“I’m not here to learn the customs and language. I’m here because I have to be.”

Um. Ew? Wonder where the phrase ugly American comes from? Not okay.

I might butcher Italian, but I’m trying dammit!!! And I’ve noticed that if you try, people are nice for the most part.

I also smile a LOT. A big, manic, frozen my-brain-does-not-compute-what-you-are-saying panicked smile.

My favorite phrase?

Sono sempre confusa. I am always confused.

But my hope is that in the next 2 1/2 years I will become less and less confused.

I want to leave knowing some Italian. I want to leave just a little confused. I want to leave saying Sono un po’ confusa.

I was not prepared for how terrifying it is to not be able to speak the common language. I wasn’t prepared for how helpless and overwhelmed I felt when we moved here.

Have you ever tried to order a standing rib roast in another language? Using weird facial expressions, hand motions (pointing to YOUR ribs), and Google Translate? Yeah. Not so easy.

So bit by bit, little by little, SO SLOWLY and kind of surely…I’m learning.

Mi chiamo Stephanie.

Sono Americana.

Sono in Italia da sette mesi.

Abito a Vicenza.

Sono sposata, mio marito è Jimmy.

Ho quattro figlie…Harper ha sette anni, Sadie sei. Caterina e Lucia sono gemelle e hanno tre anni.

SONO SEMPRE CONFUSA.

xoxo

wordless (ish?!?!?!) wednesday

February 26, 2014

A real man/true gentleman isn’t afraid to carry his daughter’s Hello Kitty umbrella.

🙂

xoxo

Exploring Italy | Nove

February 25, 2014

Last weekend we decided to finally head to Nove. Nove is a small town north of Vicenza. It’s known for the beautiful ceramics you can find there.

We went to the biggest ceramics shop in Nove, La Ceramica VBC.

I was told beforehand that it was amazing and overwhelming. And that I needed to prepare myself ahead of time so that I could focus.

But let’s just say that no amount of preparation could have stopped me from freaking the freak out.

As soon as we stepped through the doors, I started flapping my hands like a drunk chicken.

Jimmy actually stopped and tooked my pulse. He claimed I was hyperventilating. Hmmph. I claim he was exaggerating.

Or maybe not. I did swoon. That swoon might have come close to a faint.

Y’all. I cannot explain this experience. Hopefully the 23984028403 photos I took will somewhat accurately convey the store.

I.Wanted.EVERYTHING.

I got a full-on case of the greedies. You know. The voice screeching “I NEED”? The one that drowns out the resposible “I want”?? Yeah. It happened.

But thankfully cooler (Jimmy-shaped) heads prevailed.

VBC houses ceramics that you can find at Tiffany, William Sonoma, Lennox, Neiman Marcus, and more. Dana found her parent’s plates there. I spied Tiffany piggy banks that cost over 100 dollars in the US. At VBC? 15 euros.

We wandered. With our mouths wide open and our eyes popping out of our heads.

I had calmed myself sufficiently…until I came until this display.

Yes. Those are doily/lace dishes. The artists actually place lace on the dishes as they are making them.