When my mom decided she wanted to come visit me we came up with a plan to leave Ireland so that I could see another country, and so that she could stay in Europe for longer without feeling like she was staying in the Winkelman's house for too long. Florence was the perfect solution. My mom has already been to Florence a few times and loves it so much that she wanted to show it to me. I don't think I'll ever receive an (early) birthday present as amazing as this trip. Plus being able to share this experience with my dear mother is something I'll cherish forever.
The night before we were supposed to leave I wasn't feeling well, which made me weary because the stomach flu was going around Dublin, and Owen had been throwing up earlier that afternoon. I'm a pretty dramatic person when it comes to throwing up, so doing that on an airplane is a recipe for disaster. I woke up shortly after I went to bed and definitely had the stomach flu. Knowing that I had to get on a flight the next afternoon was enough to give me a small anxiety attack. I kept googling, "what to do when you are getting on a flight with the stomach flu" and I could not find a single bit of advice. I guess it's just not something people do ;) Bryce and Mandi heard me in the bathroom so MJ sent me a text and asked if I wanted Bryce to give me a blessing. I was so grateful for the offer and quickly obliged. After the blessing I started to feel even more sick, but I just kept telling myself that I needed to have faith that if I got on the plane I would be okay. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say it was a rough night, and I was only able to get a couple hours of sleep. The night and the morning all blended into one and I was still feeling terrible. Walking from the living room to the bathroom took all my energy and I could barely sit up to reach the toilet. This made me worried about the mile walk from my house to the bus stop (we had to take it to get to the airport). I was also really stressed because I hadn't packed yet. I managed to throw stuff in my suitcase but forgot some important basics like oh, you know, a bra! As I was packing I started to feel better and I was able to walk to the bus without a problem which in itself is a pretty big miracle! As we got to the airport I started to feel nauseous again but I just kept thinking of the blessing I was given, and I knew it would work out fine. When I got on the flight I was able to fall asleep before we took off, and didn't wake up until we landed :) I am so thankful for the power of the priesthood. It's given me much needed comfort on many different occasions in my life and it really is a testament to me that Heavenly Father's looking out for me, even in the minor things.
We flew into Pisa because our trip was booked somewhat last minute, and flights into Florence were crazy expensive. We planned to take the train to Florence, but there happened to be a non-stop bus waiting outside of the airport going to the train station in Florence. It was only 5 euro a person so we couldn't pass it up. When we got to the train station we walked to our hotel right by the train station. My mom hadn't eaten anything all day in case she caught the stomach flu as well, so by this time she was starving. Before she went out to grab food we witnessed a very passionate lovers quarrel outside of our hotel window. I'm sure it was a pretty nasty fight because the girl was running down the street screaming, trying to get away from him, but that's all I can tell you about it since I don't speak Italian. She got away in case you were wondering ;) After witnessing that fight I decided I didn't want my mom to go out by herself so I joined her for dinner. We found a little pizza joint by our hotel and shared a margherita pizza. It instantly made me feel sick, and I was so shaky when I went to pick up my sprite that I dropped my glass and it shattered all over the floor. It was embarrassing, haha. There was an insane thunder and lightning storm in the middle of the night that made it sound like Florence was under attack. There was also more passionate yelling in the middle of the night when a woman was hitting homeless people with a broom outside of our window trying to get them to get off of the streets. I promise we didn't stay in the ghetto :)
I find uncomfortably large spiders in our house on a weekly basis, and this one just happened to be by me while I was lying on the floor by the toilet. I thought about killing it but I didn't have the energy and I didn't want to make it mad. I took the 'kill him with kindness' approach instead ;)
My poor mom flew out all this way and ended up having the lamest travel companion. She was a good mom though, and really took care of me. Bless her heart forever and ever and ever!
When this seat opened up in the waiting area I was in heaven. It was the first time I had been comfortable all day (and night).
Isn't she lovely? I'm trying not to think about how much I miss her already! :(
Random cafe we ate dinner at.
The greatest woman around.
Sprite has never been better.
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