I remember well. My best friend in high school was Italian. The food was heavenly and cooking all the time. I think I ate at their house more than I ate at home. Everything was homemade and from scratch. They even made their own Italian sausage. It was a very large close knit family with plenty of activity - and noisy. Never a quiet moment. In fact, that has always been the way I evaluate a real Italian restaurant. If there is not a bunch of commotion coming from the kitchen, it may not be Italians preparing my meal.
The grandparents were from Sicily. The entire family line ended up in the US - to Chicago first and then to So. CA. They bought up several blocks of homes in a new development in Ontario, CA - all the cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents - basically the whole family.
I grew up next door to an Italian family. We definitely didn’t experience what you described. The mom was always yelling and chased the kids around with a wooden spoon. I wish they were as you described!
On another note: we just picked up my son, DIL, and grand baby at DTW. They were coming back from Italy. They said the food was terrible. My son loves pizza but got quickly tired of it. They reported that all the restaurants served the same items, just with greater or lesser quality. Also too much bread.
Since my grand, Tucker, is only six months old and has the biggest blue eyes, the Italians (and visiting Asians) were fascinated with him. My DIL noticed there were few children around under two. She didn’t know why.
She said that around here Tucker may get attn twice on an avg trip to the store. But there it was over 10 times a day. Lots more stories about the culture that they noticed but not appropriate to continue taking your time.
Italian culture is extremely family-centric and they love kids - there are plenty of blonde haired, blue Italians (not to mention the throngs of tourists from all over the world), so I doubt it was his blues eyes. They just appreciate children and families. And he’s probably the only person to return from Italy and report that “the food was terrible.” Pizza is only a very, very small part of Italian cuisine, which is incredibly diverse and varies hugely between regions.
My friend's family were from Sicily. All parts of Italy have different types of Italian food based on locality. They very seldom ate pizza. They didn't like it. As far as the noise and family interaction. I didn't say there wasn't drama - it kind of comes with the Italian territory. I remember my friend's younger brother being chased by grandma wielding a dog's choke chain. Grandma tried to nail him with the choker chain and he ducked. Instead of hitting him, she hit the side of a huge fish tank installed above the fireplace and took out the side panel on the tank. That was fun - fish and water all over the front room. Wooden spoons also seem to be a favorite weapon as well for unruly kids. There was no such thing as quiet. I just got used to it. I did love how they would all come together when a family member was in trouble. You did not just deal with one, you had to deal with the whole family. They definitely had each other's back.
Damn Right!!!
Nothing like a spit fired, hot headed Italian Woman!!!
I was blessed to have 4 generations of these powerful Italian women in my life.
My beloved
Great Grandmother Catherine
Great Aunt Theresa
Grandmother Alice
My beloved Mother
Growing up was Bliss with having extended family to visit for awhile.
Homemade
Pastas
Breads
Pastries
I'm grateful that such awesome memories are Eternal like their collective, individual Love ❤️
"if you're lucky enough to have an Italian mother, then you are lucky enough!" i loved my Italian mother very much also!
I remember well. My best friend in high school was Italian. The food was heavenly and cooking all the time. I think I ate at their house more than I ate at home. Everything was homemade and from scratch. They even made their own Italian sausage. It was a very large close knit family with plenty of activity - and noisy. Never a quiet moment. In fact, that has always been the way I evaluate a real Italian restaurant. If there is not a bunch of commotion coming from the kitchen, it may not be Italians preparing my meal.
The grandparents were from Sicily. The entire family line ended up in the US - to Chicago first and then to So. CA. They bought up several blocks of homes in a new development in Ontario, CA - all the cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents - basically the whole family.
You are blessed to have those memories of family.
I grew up next door to an Italian family. We definitely didn’t experience what you described. The mom was always yelling and chased the kids around with a wooden spoon. I wish they were as you described! On another note: we just picked up my son, DIL, and grand baby at DTW. They were coming back from Italy. They said the food was terrible. My son loves pizza but got quickly tired of it. They reported that all the restaurants served the same items, just with greater or lesser quality. Also too much bread. Since my grand, Tucker, is only six months old and has the biggest blue eyes, the Italians (and visiting Asians) were fascinated with him. My DIL noticed there were few children around under two. She didn’t know why. She said that around here Tucker may get attn twice on an avg trip to the store. But there it was over 10 times a day. Lots more stories about the culture that they noticed but not appropriate to continue taking your time.
Italian culture is extremely family-centric and they love kids - there are plenty of blonde haired, blue Italians (not to mention the throngs of tourists from all over the world), so I doubt it was his blues eyes. They just appreciate children and families. And he’s probably the only person to return from Italy and report that “the food was terrible.” Pizza is only a very, very small part of Italian cuisine, which is incredibly diverse and varies hugely between regions.
My friend's family were from Sicily. All parts of Italy have different types of Italian food based on locality. They very seldom ate pizza. They didn't like it. As far as the noise and family interaction. I didn't say there wasn't drama - it kind of comes with the Italian territory. I remember my friend's younger brother being chased by grandma wielding a dog's choke chain. Grandma tried to nail him with the choker chain and he ducked. Instead of hitting him, she hit the side of a huge fish tank installed above the fireplace and took out the side panel on the tank. That was fun - fish and water all over the front room. Wooden spoons also seem to be a favorite weapon as well for unruly kids. There was no such thing as quiet. I just got used to it. I did love how they would all come together when a family member was in trouble. You did not just deal with one, you had to deal with the whole family. They definitely had each other's back.
🍻