SEARCHING THE BALANCE.

two sick little kids, a lack of sleep and a grey day can really put you down. i’ve always been that sad during the last days of winter… maybe because i’m preparing for the spring…a rebirth! but even when this winter gives us wonderful, warm days (this picture was taken last sunday and the weather was vernal), springs seems so incredibly far.

i need to find my balance. and i really need some me time. and i need to have a month of healthy kids!!

due bambini malati, la mancanza di sonno e una giornata grigia possono veramente buttarti giù. sono sempre stata triste durante gli ultimi giorni d’inverno… forse perchè mi preparavo per la primavera… la rinascita! ma anche quando questo inverno ci regala gionate meravigliose e calde (questa foto è stata scattata la scorsa domenica e il tempo era primaverile), la primavera sembra così incredibilmente lontana.

devo ritrovare il mio equilibrio. ed ho veramente bisogno di un po’ di tempo per me stessa. e di avere dei bimbi sani per almeno un mese!

COMMUNAL GLOBAL

JARDIN D’HIVER.

 

such a strange winter this year… today is sunny and warm (nearly 10°c), last friday was even warmer… no snow, no ice… but it rains. not as much as usually though.

i took these pictures of my garden last week and i’m really looking forward for some colorful flowers. but for now i enjoy the green.

OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY

 

A NEW HAIRSTYLE.

right now my hair is long. too long. and flat. it’s common, right after a pregnancy,  craving a new hairstyle. i resisted for six months, but now it is time for a change. my hair is not straight, not curly… that non-sense in the middle that drives me crazy. so the first step will be a light perm. and then a cut. nothing drastic… a layered cut. and maybe bangs.

more pictures in my pinterest board.

SAVOURY PIE (with YOGURT mixture!).

the pursuit of an healthy lifestyle has to go through the self-making, so i decided to try this recipe starting from the very beginning: the pie dough.

i found the recipe in this book (in italian) and it’s easy, fast and delicious!

i filled the pie with radicchio and robiola cheese and it was very hard for me and my husband not eating it all before dinner!!

you need:

250 gr of flour

1 spoon of bicarbonate

1/2 glass of yogurt

1/2 oil ( i used sunflower oil)

a pinch of salt

mix everything together until you have a smooth dough. roll it and fill it with your favorite ingredients.

easy right?!

7/52

 

"a portrait of my daughters, once a week, every week, in 2014"

Zoe Tiare: you, your dummy and the new clock made by daddy (he’s a genius!)
Alma Aiko: you, your favorite toy and a candle.

my favorites from the last week are all b/w pictures: ivana and sofia, mila’s post breakfast face, and william sitting in the nature.

Taking part in Jodi's weekly portrait series

TURN OFF THE LIGHT.

I took a picture of candles. For two reasons : today is valentine day. I was lucky enough to find my valentine fourteen years ago (really?! so many years ago?!). but deciding to have dinner candlelight has another reason: in italy today is "enlighten less" day, a day to celebrate a more sustainable lifestyle. a popular radio program, caterpillar, has declared today "M'illumino di meno" and we're supposed to turn off lights, tv, computers, washing machines between 6pm and 7.30pm and think about the wastage of energy that we make. i'm trying to change my lifestyle in a greener way: LPG cars, walking as much as I can, cloth diapers, no fast food or junk food, buy local products, avoid meat as much as i can... and i'm trying to teach simple things to my girls: turn off the water while you are brushing your teeth, turn off the light going out from a room, don't throw littler on the street...
the earth is one and it's beautiful; i want to leave it the best as i can for my children and grandchildren.

pictures from pinterest 

happy friday folks!

FAVORITE PHOTO FRIDAY

FRIDAY FINDS

A BLACK & WHITE MORNING.

 

this morning i wanted to take pictures in b&w and i started with the sky. but – believe me – the sky was so terrific that i couldn’t take off the colors! i’m preparing a serie of “sky portrait”… yes, i think that the sky has a face and sometimes it smiles…

that’s my b/w mornig: coffee with a friend, even if they are black on white i can loose them! – a new dress for alma.

 

MILLET & RED LENTIL SOUP

i’m trying to add more legumes and different cereals to our diet, in order to cut meat and discover new vegetarian dishes. i used red peeled lentils because they are more digestible for kids. alma loves it and zoe… well it’s not her favorite but experts say that a child must try the same food more then ten times to appreciate it, so…

the preparation is super quickly: fry slightly half onion and a carrot (we used water instead of oil), then add a pinch of salt and 2 lt of water. when it boils, add 200gr of lentils and 150gr of millet (wash  them before) and let everything simmer for 20-30 minutes. i whisked it for alma and - believe me – she was enthusiastic!

you can see the original recipe here (the author suggests other ingredients such as kombu and miso but i didn’t have them).

LET THE CARNIVAL BEGIN.

first carnival for alma – my little bee. and first carnival for zoe! we never dressed her with a costume or brought her to a kids party… so yesterday was her first ‘carnival for kids’. she was incredibly cute with that puppy costume!

if you are wondering, i was dressed as a swinging london girl – yeah – and i’m really thinking about cutting my hair exactly like these! 

i know.. it’s not rio de janeiro… but we live near venice… we have a reputation to keep!

6/52

"a portrait of my daughters, once a week, every week, in 2014"

Zoe Tiare: sometimes you just need to see la vie en rose…

Alma Aiko: playing with curtains.

my favorites: the light in these pictures, this crazy family portrait and this b/w.

Taking part in Jodi's weekly portrait series

OUT AND ABOUT.

still raining here, folks. so this week my out and about is a collection of pictures taken while going to and from the car. but, you know, even these days can help to see things differently. and sometimes discover the beauty in what is always under your nose!

we had fun anyway. alma loves umbrellas… i don’t know if it’s the color or the sound of rain… but she stays quietly while walking in the rain. and zoe… well, everybody loves jumping up and down in muddy puddles, right peppa?!

no b/w this time… that grass was too green to give up colors!

OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY

COMMUNAL GLOBAL

SHOPPING: NICE THINGS.

shopping has never been easy for me… if i can’t find something nice in the first one or two shops, i become depressed, and sad. but this sale season i really found my dimension. i discovered some new brands and i’m tottaly in love! one of them is nice things, a spanish company (check their about us page, full with family portraits!)

the new collection is wonderful, filled with colors and great little dresses. i’ve seen from the site that they have a mini collection (for kids)… how cute are those dresses?! my littles will be adorable with these clothes!

5/52

"a portrait of my daughters, once a week, every week, in 2014"

Zoe Tiare: obsessed by dinosaurs.

Alma Aiko: everyday more self confident.

last week i loved: he and his deer, the symmetry and colors in wendieland, this simply beautiful girl,  this b&w.

Taking part in Jodi's weekly portrait series