Still a Work In Progress

Saturday was dedicated to all the house-related chores that had piled up over the past weeks. I spent the day vaccumming and mopping and scrubbing the bathrooms. For S, there was alot of drilling involved. Part of the alarm system that has been sitting in boxes for over 3 months has now been installed and verified working. Yay. I say part, because it's not all done. Sigh.

And the dining room light fixture that we got as a wedding gift is finally up. To be honest, I was initially doubtful as to whether I would like it. I mean, we didn't pick it. But it actually turned out pretty nice.


It fits our modern style of furnishing. And oh, that's the new dining table that arrived a couple weeks back. We had ordered it sight unseen from the Internet, and luckily it turned out pretty nice (plus it didn't cost a bomb). My favorite thing about it is the thin wooden table top, and the fact that it extends to easily seat 10-12 people. Perfect for the swinging dinner parties we'll be throwing. Um... ok, that does sound like alot of work, but it's a nice idea, right?


What's missing now are the chairs, a rug to 'define the space' (yes, I've been reading decorating websites) and some kind of buffet to store glasses and the 'nice' dishes that we don't yet have. Yeah, our kitchen cabinets are already maxed out and we're only still using the hand-me-down dishes.

About the chairs, we really love how the clear chairs look with the table, but I have to remind myself how uncomfortable they really are. It's not so much the plastic, but the fact that the seat is really narrow. Trust me, not that comfortable, and not practical at all. So while it would be so much easier to run out to Kartell 10 mins away and stock up on the Ghost chairs, we'll actually have to go shopping for chairs instead... arghh! Where to go? How not to spend an arm and two legs? I'd like to keep the look 'light' to keep the area looking spacious.

Friday Night

Kicked off the long weekend with Friday night aperitivo with some friends at Cafe Milano.




Things started to get a little wild towards the end of the night. hahaha


:)

Il Ponte dell'Immacolata

Next will be a short work week and we're all looking forward to it.

Monday, Dec. 7, is St Ambrogio Day, celebrating Milan's patron saint - Saint Ambrogio, of course.

Tuesday, Dec. 8, is the Feast of Immaculate Conception, a national holiday.

And that's about all I know about that. Which isn't much. But what I do know is that I don't have to go to work. La la la!

At first we thought of making use of the glorious 4 day weekend and going off on a trip somewhere. It's only a few hours drive to the Italian Riviera, or what about visitng the Christmas markets in Switzerland or Austria?

But the reality is that we have lots of chores to take care off around the house. Like cleaning. And organizing. And going shopping to complete the living room, chairs for the dining room, etc, etc... And for S, there is the alarm system to finish putting up, the lighting fixture to install... And that tree we got last night at Ikea? We still need to rescue it from the garage where we left it, and then it needs decorating.

And so this long weekend/ponte (bridge, as Italians love to call their long weekends) we will be in the neighborhood.

Oh, and the Fiera Artigiana makes its annual appearance starting this weekend. I first visited it during my first visit to Milan back in 2005 (wow, has it really been 4 years already?) and it's always fun. Lots and lots of booths in halls divided by the different regions in Italy, and then there's also the 'Mondo' (world) region. It's always fun to wander around looking at different crafts and products, sample delicacies, and not forgetting a stop at the Sicilia area for my favorite arancinis. Word of advice, try to visit in the morning or on weekdays to avoid the crazy crowds.

Let me leave you with a picture from our island getaway just a few weeks ago. These two were my friends' 4-year-old kids - they were so cute playing together hand-in-hand the whole time. The beach, sand, and the waves... it's the opposite of the weather here but doesn't that just conjure up the beautiful image of holiday?

Have a great weekend everyone!