• MAKING MEMORIES

Trip to Italy: Daddy Album

  • By Brent Almond | September 24, 2012

As promised, here’s the Daddy Album. And this one was even more difficult to winnow down than the Designer Album. Again I went for the ones that told the best stories from the trip, as well as some variety. But I cheated a little and included 12 instead of 10 photos. My loophole is that two of these weren’t taken by me, so YAY, bonus pics!

Perhaps as a surprise to no one, the majority of these are of JJ. So WARNING: if you don’t think you’ll like photos of my adorable tyke charming the entire country of Italy, you’ve come to the wrong place…

Spider-Man and his Nonna strolling through the Bari airport, beginning their week-long adventure together.

Such a moment of relief for us. JJ was way off his sleeping/eating schedule, and we were worried he'd never eat any of Nonna's meals. Behold, the power of Italian cooking!
Meeting Zio Nino's rooster (who JJ named "Rocky"). JJ accidentally knocked down the door keeping this monstrous bird enclosed, but Zia Maria scooted him to safety.
We spent most of our time with family, but did enjoy our mornings at the hotel. In order to give us time to get ready for the day, I set JJ up on the balcony (post shower) with some pretzels and a "Bubble Guppies" DVD. Note the spa-style towel wrap.
Showing off the bracelet Zia Jo made JJ to match hers. Zia definitely lives up to her role as the "cool aunt."
Here JJ and his cousin Gaetano (they became fast friends) feed a giraffe some taralli at the Zoosafari. Too bad you can't hear all the squeals.
After the Zoosafari we took a lunch break. JJ hadn't pooped in a long time and retreated under this abandoned (and filthy) bar near the cafe. I sat with my back to him so he could have some privacy, except of course when I took this pic.
We had some pretty good family photos, but nothing as cute and unique as this. JJ loved picking every flower he could find (even after much scolding from Nonna) but always made sure to pick some for Daddy and Papa, too.
One night we drove into Torre a Mare for dinner and JJ (being off his schedule) fell asleep as we were parking the car. He then woke up as soon as my pizza arrived. I didn't mind, as these moments of snuggliness are precious and few. Photo by Papa.
The other photo not taken by me (mostly). I held the camera and let JJ press the button, and we got this cool image of Cousin Vito. I love the expression on his face, and the contrast of his youthfulness (and Hard Rock tee) with Nonna's very Nonna-like decor.
I had to include another meal photo. The stereotypes about Italians being good cooks, loving to eat, and spend hours talking around the table are all true. And wonderful.
Last but not least, a photo capturing the whole point of the trip: so JJ could meet his Nonno. And so Papa could show off how proud he is to be a Papa. Mission accomplished.

And again, if you want to see the larger albums: take a gander at Volume 1 and Volume 2 on Facebook.

Thanks (as always) for visiting and commenting — sharing these photos was a great way to reflect on the trip and how fun, emotional and meaningful it was. Ciao!

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