Meet the Risso's: Aussie Jo married Yank Pete and now they have Matilda, Emanual, Nerida & Samuel – all under 6yrs. Fate threw us together for the first time since we roamed the dirty streets and restaurants of Shenyang. What a joy to have my very own Rural American experience! Fully equipt with buying Amish pretzels at the markets, homegrown vegetables, red barns, quilting gatherings and kids growing up free of soda pop and TV! Nestled in the ripple of valleys is their village of Pitman with a population of about 25 houses. It is about 1hrs drive from Pennsylvania's capitol Harrisburg through miles and miles of cornfields, soy bean crops, gorgeous little wooden two story houses, red barns, dairy farms and Amish settlements. Yes, we saw little hand sewn-dressed Amish girls on their ponies going home from the markets and Jo – Amish spotter extraordinaire struck up a conversation with a girl at the Amish bakery. Gorgeous clean, neat, smiling girls in little white netted bonnets expertly making pretzels with the swift twist of hand.


Jo's seamstress business is called 'Matilda's Closet'. Look out for her website online by the end of the year.