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Unexpected Realities

Fighting infertility, growing in faith, and enjoying life through food, wine, and travel

  • About
  • Blog
  • Health
  • Infertility
  • Parenthood
    • Down Syndrome
  • Recipes
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    • Main Course
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  • Travel
    • DC Daytrips
    • Croatia
    • France
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    • Iceland
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    • Slovenia
  • Wine
    • Winery Reviews
  • Fluffy Einkorn Banana Pancakes
  • Let Them Mourn – National Infertility Awareness Week
  • Eat Your Way Through Ljubljana, Slovenia
  • Perfect Day in Friuli-Venezia Giulia
  • One Year Later: What the Doctors Couldn’t Tell Us

Let Them Mourn – National Infertility Awareness Week

April 26, 2020 By Jennifer Weitz Leave a Comment

People of faith mourn as they express theirfaith while suffering. We cry out for relief, forescape, for understanding, for perspective.“God, help me to understand this.” We desire something we don’t have. And we mourn."- Kimberly Monroe My daughter's favorite book of all time is a board book called First Bible Basics. Of all the choices in her book basket she pulls out this book to look ... continue reading...

Read More From the Blog

Latest Recipes

Fluffy Einkorn Banana Pancakes

Caleb’s Tuscan Pasta Sauce

Dark Chocolate ‘n Nut Butter Avocado Smoothie

Blueberry Peach Oatmeal Smoothie Bowl

30-Minute Healthy Mulligatawny

Asian Chicken Noodle Stir-fry

Latest from Travel

Eat Your Way Through Ljubljana, Slovenia

February 29, 2020

Ah, Ljubljana. The city that no one knows how to pronounce. (It's lyoo-BLYAH-nuh, by the way.) Ljubljana is the capital city of Slovenia, and it's our favorite small-big city. The first time we had an opportunity to choose a ... continue reading...

Perfect Day in Friuli-Venezia Giulia

August 10, 2019

Ok, let's talk about our favorite area of Italy, Friuli Venezia Giulia. Nestled at the very northeastern tip of Italy, Friuli Venezia Giulia doesn't end up on most people's itineraries when planning their trip to Italy. It's a ... continue reading...

Stari Podrum, Heaven on Earth

January 29, 2019

You know when you go somewhere, and it's wonderful, and you dream about returning and having the same experience, but when you go back....it doesn't live up to your dreamy memories? This is not one of those places. This ... continue reading...

9 Reasons Why We Love Slovenia

January 21, 2019

Why Slovenia? After clarifying that we did in fact go to Slovenia and not Slovakia, this is often the second question we get. My husband and I have been tacking on the country count over our last nine years of traveling, but ... continue reading...

Welcome!


I'm Jennifer, a foodie and wino that's learning to cook healthy(ier). Waiting with hope in God's timing for building our family, and supporting others who have to walk the same road of infertility. My husband and I can't stop/won't stop planning trips and traveling to new places. Thanks for joining me on my adventures! Read More…

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Latest on Instagram

Happy (almost) fall 🍁 Working on a video to s Happy (almost) fall 🍁 

Working on a video to share to show some of the amazing places we have gone to the last few months. We have loved Colorado summer and will be sad to see it go! But we are looking forward to the fall colors and all the things that the next season has to offer. 

#fallcolors #fallflowers #tjsflowers #traderjoesfinds #traderjoesflowers #coloradolife #coloradoliving
New glasses, new state, new school! Our Dayna girl New glasses, new state, new school! Our Dayna girl had her first day of full day Kindergarten and she is loving it. This girl is growing up! Although she's been in school since she was 2.5 I will never get over how small she looks getting on a school bus. In her usual Dayna way, she thought to comfort me as she was heading out the door: "It's ok mom, I'll be back at the end of the day." 🥹 You go Dayna, we are so very proud of you!
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#downsyndrome #upsyndrome #t21love #upgradedto47 #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #parenthood #lifeisbetterwithyou #motherhoodunplugged #specialneedsmom #momlife #momsofinstagram #toddlersofinstagram #toddlerfashion
Today is World Down Syndrome Day and the day we ce Today is World Down Syndrome Day and the day we celebrate our amazing Dayna and all of our friends with an extra chromie!

We hope you will celebrate with us by wearing your most colorful or mismatched socks today, blue and yellow, or both!

If only everyone could be as lucky as we are to have Dayna in their life. She is a shining joy and makes every day an adventure. We will continue to advocate and educate so that everyone can see the wonder that is an extra chromosome!

💙💛 Happy World Down Syndrome Day! 💙💛

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#worlddownsyndromeday #downsyndrome #upsyndrome #t21love #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #upgradedto47 #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #parenthood #lifeisbetterwithyou #ontthursdaysweadvocate #motherhoodunplugged #motherhoodrising #specialneedsmom #momlife #momandme #momanddaughter #momsofinstagram #reelgood #reels #instagramreels #reel #reelvideo
Here's what I have noticed 👇 If you haven't se Here's what I have noticed 👇

If you haven't seen my stories, we moved from VA to CO last month! In my very short time living in Colorado as an East Coast native, here are some differences and things I have noticed:

1. Almost no one speeds. If the speed limit is 35, you better believe no one is going above 33. In general people seem to be at a slightly slower pace of life. It's going to take a while for my tendency for DC-area-road-rage to settle down 😆

2. We have a pattern apparently - I went from living in LoCo (Loudoun County) to NoCo (Northern Colorado.)

3. Moms are totally fine with their kids running around in t-shirts and barefoot in 30 degree weather.

4. It seems weird that when people refer to "UNC" they are talking about University of Northern Colorado and not University of North Carolina.

5. People are more friendly and are more likely to stop and talk to you, compliment you, or make a positive comment about your kids.

6. We knew this before we moved, but - there really is absolutely no drinkable local wine here whatsoever. 😩 We miss the Virginia winery scene a lot! But it does give us another excuse to go visit our friends on the other side of CO near Palisade (the wine is really good over in the Grand Valley!)

7. The sun really is as nice as they say! ☀️

Stay tuned for Pt. 2!

#colorado #northerncolorado #coloradolife #eastcoasttowest #reelgood #reels #livingoutdoors
Grape stomping: not as messy as you would think 😄

The kids had so much fun for this year's Crushed It at Star in the Valley last month! I was worried that we would all have purple legs for family photos the next day, but even the kids went surprisingly unscathed. Just another reason we love venturing out for day trips a few times a year to this absolute gem of a winery in Strasburg, VA.

Here's to another year of great wine from @starinthevalley !

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#starinthevalley #shenandoah #shenandoahvalley #shenandoahvalleywinetrail #strasburgva #wineharvest #stompinggrapes #crushedit #virginiawinecountry #virginiavine #youcansipwithus #womenwhodrinkwine #wino #vino #winegeek #winelove #wineenthusiast #instawine #winelovers #adventuresinwine #winesofvirginia #vawine #virginiawine #toddlersofinstagram #thehappynow #instagood #instagramreels #reels #reelvideo #reelgood
Hopping on here to say Happy Down Syndrome Awarene Hopping on here to say Happy Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

And happy hump day 🙃 Even when she's annoyed with me, she's still ridiculously cute!
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#downsyndrome #downsyndromeawarenessmonth #upsyndrome #t21love #upgradedto47 #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #instagood #parenthood #parenthoodafterinfertility #lifeisbetterwithyou #motherhoodunplugged #motherhoodrising #motherhoodthroughinstagram #specialneedsmom #momlife #momsofinstagram #toddlersofinstagram
Chateauneuf du Pape on a Thursday 🍷 Continued Chateauneuf du Pape on a Thursday 🍷

Continued the hubby birthday celebrations by decanting one of our prized wines we brought back from our trip to the Rhone Valley in 2016. Went perfectly with the Azerbaijan chicken with prunes and walnuts made by @weitzandbites 😋

📷 @roger.sabon 2014 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve

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#rogersabon #chateauneufdupape #rhonevalley #rhonevalleywines #travelforwine #grenache #frenchwine #youcansipwithus #womenwhodrinkwine #wines #wino #vino #winegeek #wineaddict #winelove #winetime #sippingwine #wineenthusiast #instawine #winelovers #adventuresinwine #thehappynow #instagood #winereel #instagramreels #reels #reelvideo #reelgood
Over here dancing for food, don't mind me 😆 We Over here dancing for food, don't mind me 😆

We spent a few days in Venice and Murano last week and found some amazing places! Here's a run down of where we ate and drank to help you choose a memorable spot:

🍴Hostaria Sant'Aponal @hostariasantaponal - probably my overall favorite meal while in Venice! Every dish was delicious and the service was super friendly. Oh and the reviews will not lead you astray, the duck ragu is to die for!!!

🍷Ostaria Vecia Giudeca - had a very serviceable Pinot Grigio and Aperol Spritz with an impeccable view looking across to Venice and right across from the water taxi dock on the island of Giudeca.

🍴Spicy Puppa - go here for the giant seafood platter. One of the best things I have ever consumed. (Which by the way is just listed as the "fish" appetizer 😆)

🍦Gelato di Natura - everyone goes to Suzo. To be fair, we didn't go. But I'd say, skip the line, go a few blocks up and go here instead and have a knockout gelato 🙃

🍷Dolceamaro wine bar - a gem of an establishment in Venice. The lady who runs this place is an angel on earth. Come in to peruse, buy local chocolate and coffee beans, but most of all come for the wine list. The wine available by the glass and bottle is perfectly curated by the owner. Try the Kerner!

🍕Trattoria Dai Fioi - an absolutely perfect pizza restaurant with a leafy courtyard in the Biennale district (which was our favorite part of Venice!)

Trattoria Valmarana - so good, we went by three times! A wonderful restaurant on Murano, from desserts, to pastas, to little mortadella sandwiches. If you're lucky enough to snag one their outside terrace next to the water is decorated with beautiful Murano glass.

More in the comments! Hope you try out some of these recommendations on your next trip to Venice. Where are your favorite local spots?

Travel / Italy / Food recommendations / Venice
Very happy to be back in Venice ✨ On a very sho Very happy to be back in Venice ✨

On a very short trip with @weitzandbites , thanks to his CC points skills!

Travel / Italy / Venice / San Giorgio
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#venice #veniceitaly #italytravels #sangiorgiomaggiore #viewofvenice #stmarkssquare #europetravel #shorttrip #travel #travelvideo #travelphotography #lifewelltraveled #traveladdict #travelmoments #travelmemories #traveler #instagood #discoverunder5k #momentsofmine #thehappynow #wanderlust #keepexploring #keeptraveling #travelhacking #beautifulplaces #beautifulview #beautifuldestinations #reelgood #reels #instagramreels
Day 6 of family vaca: full day in San Floriano del Day 6 of family vaca: full day in San Floriano del Collio!

Catching up on the "daily" reels I had meant to post during our trip in late May! It was a gorgeous weather day in Friuli Venezia Giulia, but unfortunately this was the day where things started to go downhill health-wise. Dayna hadn't felt great the day before and woke up feeling sick with no appetite and struggled to enjoy the day. Of course this was the day our friends were arriving. 🤦 I attempted to make pancakes with the very minimal ingredients I had on hand (they were baby approved) and then made the short drive in to Cormons to try some wine and let Eric get some exercise in the piazza. We then had lunch of beef tips and pancetta pasta inside Gostilna Korsic. That afternoon our friends arrived, and after impressing them with the incredible view from our Airbnb, we made our way just a short walk down the road to the tasting room for Humar. Dayna had a small second wind long enough to enjoy playing with the farm cat while we tasted some wonderful local wines. We were all tired so when our initial restaurant choice was closed we got more food for takeout from Korsic! It was just as good the second time! 😂

Italy travel / Italian food / family travel / Friuli Venezia Giulia / travel memories
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#italy #italytravels #italianfood #italianwine #undiscovereditaly #familytravel #travelmoments #travelmemories #familyvacation #travelingwithkids #dailytravelfeed #travelforfood #travelforwine #wheretogonext #keeptraveling #friuliwine #friuli #friuliveneziagiulia #sanflorianodelcollio #cormons #reels #reelvideo #reelgood #beautifuldestinations #beautifulplaces #beautifulview #humarwine #italianwinery #adventuresinwine

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My Life in Pictures

Happy (almost) fall 🍁 Working on a video to s Happy (almost) fall 🍁 

Working on a video to share to show some of the amazing places we have gone to the last few months. We have loved Colorado summer and will be sad to see it go! But we are looking forward to the fall colors and all the things that the next season has to offer. 

#fallcolors #fallflowers #tjsflowers #traderjoesfinds #traderjoesflowers #coloradolife #coloradoliving
New glasses, new state, new school! Our Dayna girl New glasses, new state, new school! Our Dayna girl had her first day of full day Kindergarten and she is loving it. This girl is growing up! Although she's been in school since she was 2.5 I will never get over how small she looks getting on a school bus. In her usual Dayna way, she thought to comfort me as she was heading out the door: "It's ok mom, I'll be back at the end of the day." 🥹 You go Dayna, we are so very proud of you!
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#downsyndrome #upsyndrome #t21love #upgradedto47 #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #parenthood #lifeisbetterwithyou #motherhoodunplugged #specialneedsmom #momlife #momsofinstagram #toddlersofinstagram #toddlerfashion
Today is World Down Syndrome Day and the day we ce Today is World Down Syndrome Day and the day we celebrate our amazing Dayna and all of our friends with an extra chromie!

We hope you will celebrate with us by wearing your most colorful or mismatched socks today, blue and yellow, or both!

If only everyone could be as lucky as we are to have Dayna in their life. She is a shining joy and makes every day an adventure. We will continue to advocate and educate so that everyone can see the wonder that is an extra chromosome!

💙💛 Happy World Down Syndrome Day! 💙💛

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#worlddownsyndromeday #downsyndrome #upsyndrome #t21love #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #upgradedto47 #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #parenthood #lifeisbetterwithyou #ontthursdaysweadvocate #motherhoodunplugged #motherhoodrising #specialneedsmom #momlife #momandme #momanddaughter #momsofinstagram #reelgood #reels #instagramreels #reel #reelvideo
Here's what I have noticed 👇 If you haven't se Here's what I have noticed 👇

If you haven't seen my stories, we moved from VA to CO last month! In my very short time living in Colorado as an East Coast native, here are some differences and things I have noticed:

1. Almost no one speeds. If the speed limit is 35, you better believe no one is going above 33. In general people seem to be at a slightly slower pace of life. It's going to take a while for my tendency for DC-area-road-rage to settle down 😆

2. We have a pattern apparently - I went from living in LoCo (Loudoun County) to NoCo (Northern Colorado.)

3. Moms are totally fine with their kids running around in t-shirts and barefoot in 30 degree weather.

4. It seems weird that when people refer to "UNC" they are talking about University of Northern Colorado and not University of North Carolina.

5. People are more friendly and are more likely to stop and talk to you, compliment you, or make a positive comment about your kids.

6. We knew this before we moved, but - there really is absolutely no drinkable local wine here whatsoever. 😩 We miss the Virginia winery scene a lot! But it does give us another excuse to go visit our friends on the other side of CO near Palisade (the wine is really good over in the Grand Valley!)

7. The sun really is as nice as they say! ☀️

Stay tuned for Pt. 2!

#colorado #northerncolorado #coloradolife #eastcoasttowest #reelgood #reels #livingoutdoors
Grape stomping: not as messy as you would think 😄

The kids had so much fun for this year's Crushed It at Star in the Valley last month! I was worried that we would all have purple legs for family photos the next day, but even the kids went surprisingly unscathed. Just another reason we love venturing out for day trips a few times a year to this absolute gem of a winery in Strasburg, VA.

Here's to another year of great wine from @starinthevalley !

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#starinthevalley #shenandoah #shenandoahvalley #shenandoahvalleywinetrail #strasburgva #wineharvest #stompinggrapes #crushedit #virginiawinecountry #virginiavine #youcansipwithus #womenwhodrinkwine #wino #vino #winegeek #winelove #wineenthusiast #instawine #winelovers #adventuresinwine #winesofvirginia #vawine #virginiawine #toddlersofinstagram #thehappynow #instagood #instagramreels #reels #reelvideo #reelgood
Hopping on here to say Happy Down Syndrome Awarene Hopping on here to say Happy Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

And happy hump day 🙃 Even when she's annoyed with me, she's still ridiculously cute!
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#downsyndrome #downsyndromeawarenessmonth #upsyndrome #t21love #upgradedto47 #shouttheirworth #dontbesorry #iamable #theluckyfew #extrachromosomeextracute #homiewithanextrachromie #nothingdownaboutit 
#downsyndromeawareness #morealikethandifferent #wouldntchangeathing #instagood #parenthood #parenthoodafterinfertility #lifeisbetterwithyou #motherhoodunplugged #motherhoodrising #motherhoodthroughinstagram #specialneedsmom #momlife #momsofinstagram #toddlersofinstagram
Chateauneuf du Pape on a Thursday 🍷 Continued Chateauneuf du Pape on a Thursday 🍷

Continued the hubby birthday celebrations by decanting one of our prized wines we brought back from our trip to the Rhone Valley in 2016. Went perfectly with the Azerbaijan chicken with prunes and walnuts made by @weitzandbites 😋

📷 @roger.sabon 2014 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve

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#rogersabon #chateauneufdupape #rhonevalley #rhonevalleywines #travelforwine #grenache #frenchwine #youcansipwithus #womenwhodrinkwine #wines #wino #vino #winegeek #wineaddict #winelove #winetime #sippingwine #wineenthusiast #instawine #winelovers #adventuresinwine #thehappynow #instagood #winereel #instagramreels #reels #reelvideo #reelgood
Over here dancing for food, don't mind me 😆 We Over here dancing for food, don't mind me 😆

We spent a few days in Venice and Murano last week and found some amazing places! Here's a run down of where we ate and drank to help you choose a memorable spot:

🍴Hostaria Sant'Aponal @hostariasantaponal - probably my overall favorite meal while in Venice! Every dish was delicious and the service was super friendly. Oh and the reviews will not lead you astray, the duck ragu is to die for!!!

🍷Ostaria Vecia Giudeca - had a very serviceable Pinot Grigio and Aperol Spritz with an impeccable view looking across to Venice and right across from the water taxi dock on the island of Giudeca.

🍴Spicy Puppa - go here for the giant seafood platter. One of the best things I have ever consumed. (Which by the way is just listed as the "fish" appetizer 😆)

🍦Gelato di Natura - everyone goes to Suzo. To be fair, we didn't go. But I'd say, skip the line, go a few blocks up and go here instead and have a knockout gelato 🙃

🍷Dolceamaro wine bar - a gem of an establishment in Venice. The lady who runs this place is an angel on earth. Come in to peruse, buy local chocolate and coffee beans, but most of all come for the wine list. The wine available by the glass and bottle is perfectly curated by the owner. Try the Kerner!

🍕Trattoria Dai Fioi - an absolutely perfect pizza restaurant with a leafy courtyard in the Biennale district (which was our favorite part of Venice!)

Trattoria Valmarana - so good, we went by three times! A wonderful restaurant on Murano, from desserts, to pastas, to little mortadella sandwiches. If you're lucky enough to snag one their outside terrace next to the water is decorated with beautiful Murano glass.

More in the comments! Hope you try out some of these recommendations on your next trip to Venice. Where are your favorite local spots?

Travel / Italy / Food recommendations / Venice
Very happy to be back in Venice ✨ On a very sho Very happy to be back in Venice ✨

On a very short trip with @weitzandbites , thanks to his CC points skills!

Travel / Italy / Venice / San Giorgio
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#venice #veniceitaly #italytravels #sangiorgiomaggiore #viewofvenice #stmarkssquare #europetravel #shorttrip #travel #travelvideo #travelphotography #lifewelltraveled #traveladdict #travelmoments #travelmemories #traveler #instagood #discoverunder5k #momentsofmine #thehappynow #wanderlust #keepexploring #keeptraveling #travelhacking #beautifulplaces #beautifulview #beautifuldestinations #reelgood #reels #instagramreels
Day 6 of family vaca: full day in San Floriano del Day 6 of family vaca: full day in San Floriano del Collio!

Catching up on the "daily" reels I had meant to post during our trip in late May! It was a gorgeous weather day in Friuli Venezia Giulia, but unfortunately this was the day where things started to go downhill health-wise. Dayna hadn't felt great the day before and woke up feeling sick with no appetite and struggled to enjoy the day. Of course this was the day our friends were arriving. 🤦 I attempted to make pancakes with the very minimal ingredients I had on hand (they were baby approved) and then made the short drive in to Cormons to try some wine and let Eric get some exercise in the piazza. We then had lunch of beef tips and pancetta pasta inside Gostilna Korsic. That afternoon our friends arrived, and after impressing them with the incredible view from our Airbnb, we made our way just a short walk down the road to the tasting room for Humar. Dayna had a small second wind long enough to enjoy playing with the farm cat while we tasted some wonderful local wines. We were all tired so when our initial restaurant choice was closed we got more food for takeout from Korsic! It was just as good the second time! 😂

Italy travel / Italian food / family travel / Friuli Venezia Giulia / travel memories
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#italy #italytravels #italianfood #italianwine #undiscovereditaly #familytravel #travelmoments #travelmemories #familyvacation #travelingwithkids #dailytravelfeed #travelforfood #travelforwine #wheretogonext #keeptraveling #friuliwine #friuli #friuliveneziagiulia #sanflorianodelcollio #cormons #reels #reelvideo #reelgood #beautifuldestinations #beautifulplaces #beautifulview #humarwine #italianwinery #adventuresinwine

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