Hoover Happenings: 2008

Cinque Terre (Manarola)

2008 is off and running. Many blessings, and a lot of good stuff took place in 2007, but we're excited to see what the new year will have for us all.

Our first Christmas as a married couple was a success. Other than some travel delays and cancellations, it was about a perfect week in the States for us. Let me tell ya, though... Alitalia's not exactly climbing the ladder of airline power rankings lately. We got in to Kansas City on Christmas eve around 10:15 pm, after stops along the way in Ancona, Milan, Frankfurt, and Chicago. Brenna's brother, Tim, came to get us in KC, and we arrived at Gus and Sandy's house in Sabetha within minutes of midnight. Although tired and weary, they welcomed us with open arms, Christmas tunes, egg nog, a fresh-cut tree, and lights illimunating the way. They didn't even seem to mind that we wore the same clothes the whole time while we were at their house, since our baggage got lost along the way. We spent 2 good days with the Aberle's, as well as many other friends and relatives around the Kansas and Nebraska area. A big thanks goes out to all of you that came to spend time with us there. We enjoyed seeing you during our short visit, and appreciate you making time for us over the busy holidays.

This is a pic of us with our Aberle "nipoti"---Gideon and Azzariah (nephew and niece)

From Sabetha it was off to Rockford. Although more travel challenges ensued, we made it up to see my parents, as well as my sisters and their families the evening of the 27th. It was more good times there with the Hoovers along the Rock River, including some games, a family-wide snowball fight, the creation of a rather unique snow "woman", and a good time on the 29th at Brad and Sarah McLarty's wedding. All of our luggage finally caught up with us piece by piece, too... thankfully... I don't think Brenna could've stood to see me in my gray Notre Dame sweatsuit for one more second. So, our bags were just in time to head back to Italy with us. It all made for a short, but sweet, few days in the good ole US of A.

Back to Jesi we came. Due to our regularly scheduled flight on the 30th being cancelled, we got to welcome 2008 with cheer, vino and champagne... along with our new friends... on Alitalia. We actually got to bring in the new year in 7 different time zones during the flight, although we might have slept through a few of them.

We returned to work right away on New Year's Day, as we quickly tried to settle back in and adjust to the travel. Our team had practice that evening, as we had to prepare for a road game on the 6th in a city called Imola. It seems as if the week off for Christmas was good for our team, as we won that game in Imola, as well the next 2 on the 13th and 20th, both of which were home games. The win on January 13th had added importance for us as well. Not only was it a big win over one of the top teams in the league, but it also qualified us for a mid-season tournament that is held for the top 4 teams at the half way point of the season. And, on top of all that, it brought us closer and closer to the top spot in the league. As it stands now, we're 10-7 in a very balanced league, leaving us 2 games behind the 1st place teams, and we play one of them at home this coming Sunday. We're almost doing as well as my beloved Fighting Irish. Look out for ND... they've already enjoyed big wins over the Wildcats of Kansas State and Villanova this year.

We had our first visitors to Jesi recently. Brenna's parents, Gus and Sandy, arrived on the 16th of January, and just left on Tuesday the 29th. We really enjoyed our time with them, and hopefully they had a good time, as well. They saw quite a bit in their 2 weeks here. Some of the highlights included trips to Rome, Siena, Gubbio, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terra, Lake Como, and of course, Jesi and the surrounding Marche region. I have to admit, Brenna was quite the tour guide, as her ever-improving grasp of the Italian language never ceases to amaze. I think 4 crucial things were realized throughout the trip:

1. Gus and Sandy are glad they packed their walking shoes
2. Italy has some very diverse, but very beautiful, regions of the country

3. Gus picked up some unique souvenirs (ask him)
4. The food and wine in Italy aren't too bad

We wish you all a great new year, and hope to hear from you soon. We now await our next guests for the weekend. Some of the finest that London has to offer... the newly wedded Melley family will be arriving via RYANAIR on Saturday, February 2nd.