Tuscan sun!

Our first night

 The bestest Auntie in all the world.

Tuscany!

After a very torrid driving regime and 4 days of stress and frantic navigation. We arrived at the Sticciano Villa close to Certaldo, where we could breathe, relax and enjoy the company of all Ian & Katie's friends and family.

Road Trip: Leg 1 Complete

We made it!

Austria!

On our way south we stopped for a swim and some ice cream, Austrian style!

Somewhere in Middle Germany

Road Trip: Day 4

Bath time!

Road Trip: Day 3

Ferry to Puttgarten

Road Trip: Day 2

 Denmark. Delightful!

Road Trip: Day 1

 Yes those are camels!

"Let's feed the pony"
Day one of our epic drive to Tuscany started with a stop in a small Swedish town, which just happened to have a circus, an Australian circus, with a pony, and umm some camels!

Wedding gifts finished

Using an old piece of shelving I found, a jig saw and about 3 hours, I made Katie and Ian a little sign as part of a wedding present. I thought it may be of some use afterwards too? I like the worn, weathered look of this piece a lot, and if it didn't say Ian & Katie I just might have kept it!

Her mother's daughter?

Pat a cake, pat a cake...

Bella

It was pre summer and the weather was starting to warm up. Bella decided to sit in a box to celebrate.

Stockholm Marathon

 Pre race craziness at the overcrowded train station. It was a great place to shelter from the cold.

 There we are...orange jacket and white hat, centre of the picture. The clothing we are wearing gives you an idea of how bitterly cold it was!

Well we finished the coldest Stockholm Marathon ever. 15 968 runners started, 14 686 completed the race. That means that only 8 percent did not finish, a surprisingly low figure, considering the harsh conditions. This being the 34th Stockholm Marathon was afflicted by the worst conditions ever. Unseasonal 3-4 degrees (C) and blasts of wind up to 18 meters/second attacked the runners at several points on the course, accompanied by persistent rain, it all become a great ordeal. The last few times I ran, it has been 30+ degrees and swelteringly hot....in fact it has been unseasonably warm. Unfortunately for Sara's first marathon, it was probably the worst conditions imaginable!

"Top Runner Andreas Bergstedt described the absurd conditions when the competitors did hit a wall of wind at the halfway mark. “One of us cracked up, and started to laugh unrestrainedly.”