Italy Trip: Siena

Blue skies and cathedrals. That about sums up almost every day of our Italy trip. This day the sky and church were in Siena.

Noah was avoiding family pictures, but we got him into this one somehow.

 
Sienna took a blurry one of us with my phone.

And one more of the tower because I love the black and white stripes so much.

 Coming into Piazza del Campo.

 We didn't go inside any of these buildings but we sure enjoyed the heck out of the outside. Adam's mom requested at least one photo in the square of Sienna and her daddy. Adam was a missionary in this square 15 years ago! He said this is where he really caught hold of the Italian language, and because of that, he learned to pronounce the c's as h's, which is the Tuscan dialect. When he was transferred to other areas he had to unlearn that because he sounded like a boy from the country. He remembers meeting only locals in this square. Nowadays, the place is overrun by tourists and you'd be hard pressed to find a local.

Sienna's name choice didn't necessarily come from Siena, Italy. I had liked the name for awhile, having heard it a few times growing up. When it was on our list, I'm sure Adam's love for this town played a part in his affection for the name. She loves knowing that there are four Siennas: herself, the color, the crayon and now a city! She really liked this visit and all the attention we showed her. What a little sweetie.

And by the five millionth shot, Noah had run into the picture. Hey guys, remember me?

And finally, John and Krista. We spent maybe an hour sitting on the piazza. It's the perfect place for settin'. It's clam shaped and slanted toward Palazzo Pubblico (that orange/brown building) and you pretty much want to stay there as long as possible. 

Adam and I took turns having foot races down the ramp and back with the kids. They were going a bit nutty and needed something to do. They also entertained themselves taking pictures of each other with my phone. 

Krista and I bought some of the regional specialty cookies, ricciarelli, and passed them around. They were sooooooo good. Soft almond cookies sprinkled with powdered sugar. I must find a recipe and make them ASAP! We all talked about them the rest of the trip. As the kids neared explosion, we sprung for gelato. #asyoudo

 
Then we all separated so the kids didn't strangle each other and took walks wherever we wanted. Sienna and I found some quaint back streets.

 I bought the kids these dumb little fuzzy keychains. Sienna named hers Fly Flufferton (I think with the help of John) and Noah named his Hedgehog Ware (I think all on his own). These two crack me up! They were good sports going from town to town and square to square, but having something to hold made it a even more bearable.

 And down we go to the cars. That's a wrap, Siena!