Jenny Marrs Describes ‘Terrifying’ Close Call on Family’s Italy Trip

Dave and Jenny Marrs

Heavy/HGTV/YouTube Dave and Jenny Marrs

HGTV star Jenny Marrs had a close call. For weeks, Jenny and her husband/“Fixer to Fabulous” co-host Dave Marrs have been sharing updates from their European vacation with their five children — twins Ben and Nathan, daughters Sylvie and Charlotte, and youngest son Luke. While the Marrses have been enjoying the beauty all around them with stops in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, the trip hasn’t been without its bumps in the road.

Jenny described one such bump in a July 29 Instagram story, while the whole family went swimming in the town of Riva del Garda, in Northern Italy.

“There was a scary rip current in this spot. Charlotte got stuck in it and thankfully Ben was there to grab her. Then, Dave jumped in to bring her to shore. (I was swimming with Luke and had no idea). As we packed up to leave, a family got stuck in the current and several of us saw and ran into help,” Jenny wrote in her story over a scenic photo of the view across Lake Garda.


The Marrs Family Wasn’t Planning on Visiting Riva del Garda

Jenny continued her tale in her Instagram post, adding, “As we pulled each of them out, another little girl went in without knowing the danger. Her sister then her mom tried to swim out to her and both got stuck. It was as terrifying as the mom panicked and almost brought the young man trying to save her under. I grabbed the two girls and pulled them to shore as several others helped. Meanwhile, Dave grabbed all of our kids and got them to safety. Such a stark reminder that the world after is always more powerful and you have to be alert.”

While the Marrses had a close call in Lake Garda, their visit to the town of Riva del Garda wasn’t on their original travel plan. As Jenny confirmed in an earlier Instagram story slide that they stumbled upon the town after some time navigating narrow roadways. She wrote, “Our very loose plans for the day included: drive north and try to rent bikes. We ended up stopping in a new town where we could find parking. It’s adorable.”

Although they were in the town by chance, Jenny couldn’t help but admire the beauty of the architecture and scenery, adding in another Story slide, “Well this place is adorable. I grew up in Orlando and always say places as picture perfect as this feel like I’m in a fake town in Disney World 😆.”


Jenny Marrs is Grateful to Share Italy With Her Children

Jenny wrote about how emotional it was for her to get to share Tuscany with her five children in a July 25 Instagram post.

“Often over the past couple of weeks, I have marveled as my children walk carefree through the very streets where my tears once seeped into the stones. Back then, I poured every ounce of my sorrow into planning a trip to Italy for Dave and I. I listened to Italian language cd’s in the car and spent late nights studying the rich history of this land. I poured over travel books in doctor’s waiting rooms and fought against despair with the anticipation of the adventure to come,” Jenny shared in her post’s caption.

Jenny has previously opened up about how she struggled with infertility early in her and Dave’s marriage, even looking into adoption prior to becoming pregnant with Nathan and Ben in 2009. While the pair still ended up adopting their daughter Sylvie, she was able to give birth to four children along the way as well.

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