Gelato at La Carraia in Firenze (Florence)

We spent the first 3 days of our trip in Firenze, Italia (Florence, Italy, as we'd say). 

  

 After our first dinner at Salumeria Verdi we promptly christened our Italian journey with an inaugural gelato.

Pinos Sandwiches/Salumeria Verdi in Firenze (Florence)

1 Uber ride, 2 long flights, and 2 train rides and we're finally in Firenze (Florence). Last night my parents, Bryce, and I settled into our hotel and kept ourselves moving in an effort to ward off the jet lag and any spur of the moment naps! We had our first true Italian meal at Pinos Sandwiches/Salumeria Verdi. 

Italy and Greece

Well friends, it's approaching midnight and our alarm clocks are set for 5:00 am. We leave tomorrow for 2 weeks in Europe and I feel like I've done more today than in my previous 30 years of life!

I've read, planned, mapped, and poured over travel guides. My phone has been a constant source of weather updates, travel tips, exercise tracking, and so on. I even borrowed maps from the library for each city we're visiting. Did you know that you can do that?

Brunch at Cafe Nola - Bainbridge Island, Washington

Hello my friends! Are you still there? Is this thing on ((taps microphone))? It's been entirely too long! Three months, you say? I am truly sorry. 

Things are going well although I have been quite busy. My career has kept me jammin'. Our house has undergone some serious remodeling, resulting in our using the small, dishwasher-less kitchen in our downstairs mother-in-law suite. I've completed 2 Italian language courses and have planned an adventure to Italia for next month. Excuses, excuses, right?

Not quite. Life has been hectic and crazy and AWESOME. I've considered quitting blogging. I've wanted to start a new blog altogether. I've oscillated between the two! Have I made a decision? No. Am I sure that I will keep eating, cooking, and writing in the future? Yes.

My goal is to make things a little more simple around here - write (more often) about delicious foods, post photos that make me happy, and keep myself laughing. Won't you check back again soon? For now, a sweet little post about brunching with babes...

From Seattle you can hop on a ferry boat and escape the city hustle and bustle for a more laid back lifestyle on any of the nearby stops or islands. We took the ferry on a grey Sunday morning over to Bainbridge Island to meet up with our friends for breakfast.