Here's to Being Italian

Boy, if some of these statements aren’t the truth when it comes to my childhood!! I’ll highlight the more appropriate ones as they relate to me!

Here’s to Being Italian
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1. You have at least one relative who wore a black dress every day for an
entire year after a funeral.
2. You spent your entire childhood thinking what you ate for lunch was pronounced "sangwich."
3. Your family dog understood Italian.
4. Every Sunday afternoon of your childhood was spent visiting your grandparents and extended family.
5. You've experienced the phenomena of 150 people fitting into 50 square feet of yard during a family cookout.
6. You were surprised to discover the FDA recommends you eat three meals a day, not seven.
7. You ate pasta for dinner at least three times a week, and every Sunday.
8. You grew up thinking no fruit or vegetable had a fixed price and that the price of everything was negotiable through haggling.
9. You were as tall as your grandmother by the age of seven. (Sorry nonna, but it’s true!)
10. You thought everyone's last name ended in a vowel.
11. You were surprised to find out that wine was actually sold in stores.
12. You ate your salad after the main course.
13. You were hit at least once with a wooden spoon.
14. You thought every meal had to be eaten with a hunk of bread in your left hand.
15. You learned to play bocce before you went to school.
16. You have at least one relative who came over on the boat.
17. You grew up calling the bathroom the baccausu. And you only had one.
18. You were surprised to learn most kitchen utensils had another name which didn't end in a vowel.
19. All of your uncles fought in a World War.
20. You have at least six male relatives named Tony, Nicky, Frankie, Joey or Louie.
21. You have relatives who aren't really your relatives.
22. You have relatives you don't speak to.
23. You drank wine before you were a teenager.
24. Your grandparent's furniture was as comfortable as sitting on plastic. Wait!!!! You were sitting on plastic.
25. You thought that talking loud was normal.
26. You thought cookie cakes and the Tarantella were common at all weddings.
27. You thought everyone got pinched on the cheeks and money stuffed in their pockets by their relatives.
28. Your mother is overly protective of the males in the family no matter what their age .
29. Every lunchmeat you ate ended in a vowel.
30. Boys didn't do house work because it was women's work.
31. You couldn't date a boy without getting approval from your father.
32. You know what lemon ice is.
33. Your Christmas tree was silver.
34. You have at least one irrational fear or phobia that can be attributed to your mother.

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Yea, I guess there are a lot of things on that list that relate to me…yikes! Actually, it’s a good thing!