holiday parenting!

You learn eventually that holidaying with children is just parenting in a different location, albeit a more picturesque one and where drinking wine at lunchtime is acceptable! All of their little personality peculiarities are still there as are their need to eat and drink (and rely on you to provide it) and the petty squabbles between themselves. Of course holidaying is enjoyable but as I have learnt - you can't expect the little bits of life not to get in the way when you are away - it is all still there just happening in a new place! So the bottom line is that we go far slower than I thought possible to see and visit things. At times it seems one continuous move forward (and sometimes backwards) to the next place the children can eat and drink at! Time between 'fuelling stations' in the heat is very small!

Still we made it out of Naples with ice coffee in hand (after an enormous breakfast and a comprehensive lunch prepared for the train ride) and then enjoyed the continuous drinks and snacks provided by the 'luxury' of travelling business class!

Within moments of making it to Florence we were out searching for a supermarket to buy provisions for dinner and after that an evening stroll to discover the best ice cream places! The search for nourishment was sandwiched either side of the discussions over who had which bedroom, how Sienna was going to cope with the 'absolutely unacceptable' chequered cover on her allocated bed (seriously!!!), the rules the girls set for the boys regarding the use of the bathroom, what was the wifi number and whose turn was it to charge their device, whose shoes had been left to trip everyone over and who had the last bit of ice tea!!! Yep typical family life.

Still we got them all out again in the evening - enthused them with stories of the construction of the Duomo (seen here!), then took stock of our expectations of our time in Florence and revised everything down a bit! All helped by a very large glass of wine!