Montefioralle Winery & Pisa

The drive through Tuscany was stunning -- rolling hills covered in grape vines and gorgeous stone homes and wineries dotting the valleys. We toured a very small family owned winery which produces less than 1000 bottles annually. We sampled several aged Chiantis and a Prosecco. We all got to enjoy fresh bruschetta with oil pressed from olive trees on the grounds, and homemade almond cookies. The girls found a playground and enjoyed teeter tottering and swinging in the park surrounded by the gorgeous views.

After the winery, we drove onto Pisa and checked into our hotel. We had a gorgeous view of the leaning tower of Pisa from our hotel balcony and almost didn't want to leave. We did eventually head into the town center and checked it out in person. After enjoying dinner al fresco and listening to the tunes of a guitar player we crashed out early.

Venezia

Venice is one of my most favorite cities in the world. The kids loved it just as much too! On our first day in Venice we caught a boat to Murano and had an amazing tour of a glass blowing factory. At the end of our tour, we got to make bracelets from glass beads. That evening we caught a gondola ride with Venice's first female gondolier. It was a gorgeous night and we enjoyed watching the sunset from our gondola. The next morning we climbed up San Marco and enjoyed a view of the piazza from above. After that, we caught a boat to Burano, an island known for its lace making and colorful buildings. The kids stumbled across and amazing alley of homes, each of which was painted a color of the rainbow. They had a blast running up and down the colorful alleyways. We were sad to leave Venice, but excited to explore more of Italy.