Spain {part 2, Ronda}

We planned another day trip that went much better than Gibraltar.  The town of Ronda was only 45 miles away, but it took us an hour-and-a-half of driving through gorgeous mountain roads to get there.  Besides being the birthplace of modern bull-fighting, Ronda has breath-taking panoramic views as the town straddles a gorge.  There are two bridges that connect the older and newer parts of the city.  We spent the day eating, walking, and taking in the amazing scenery.        

Thank you, Rick Steves, for the suggestion to stop in at this cafe and bar.  The tapas were delicious! 

 My dad relaxing and patiently waiting until we were all ready to move on.  

The view from the bars I am sitting on look over into this gorge!

We didn't tour the bull ring, but walked around it and explained bull-fighting to the kids.  They later pretended to be bulls in the center of the main plaza!  

We watched the sun set as we drove back.  The magnificent colors and beauty compelled us to pull over.  These pictures don't do it justice.  We stood in awe of our incredible Creator.

Spain {part 1}

At the beginning of the month, we were blessed to take a week-long holiday in Southern Spain!  We all had our reasons for looking forward to the vacation: 

Bridgette got to be outside more (something she enjoys) and had extra people around for cuddles, 

Gretchen was made for the beach and got to wear dresses without tights or a shirt underneath (also a bonus for Ryan and I since we didn't have to have that conversation with her every morning), 

Rooke has been asking to fly on a plane for several months and was thrilled to finally take-off, 

Ryan didn't have to work or even think about work for an entire week,

I got a break from all things related to domestic responsibility and needed a dose of sunshine.  

We enjoyed some quality family time, seeing a few sights, and had a few days with my parents who were already in the country and drove down to stay with us.  The weather wasn't entirely cooperative, but just being away together was special.  

The first two days were sunny!  We enjoyed our patio space, the beautiful view, and the beach . . .

The third day, we planned a trip to Gibraltar.  It was raining when we left, but we left anyway, hoping the rain would either let up or not follow us down the coast.  It rained hard ALL DAY.  This was our view of the rock from the random mall parking lot where we ate our picnic lunch before stretching our legs some and then heading back to the condo.  Not the best day of the week, but the Indian food we ordered for dinner later that night helped it end on a better note!

Things got even better when Kaye K and Big Daddy arrived the next day!  My mom is so good at making things fun for the kids!  Playing in puddles and a nature walk in the drizzle . . . 

Big Brother is Funny!

Bridgette has always smiled very easily, but we've had to work harder to get her to laugh.  Until recently!  She thinks her big brother and big sister are pretty funny - even when she has the hiccups!

The End of October

To top off our month of visits with friends, we were thrilled to spend a fun 24-hours with Callie, a dear friend to both Ryan and I from college days.  She was traveling with friends but extended her trip to spend a day with us - thank you, Callie!  We loved getting to catch up and were excited to get the details on her recent engagement!

Callie and I got to spend the morning at Westminster Abbey.  Beautiful!

And finally, introducing Super Rooke and Super Gretch!  We decided a bit last minute to take the kids trick-or-treating on base.  But they were pretty excited about their thrown together "super costumes" and even more excited when they realized how much candy they could rake in!  It was their first time to trick-or-treat and everyone had fun.  

One of our superheroes was more bothered than the other by how cold it was.  Good thing she has a superhero for a daddy!

Ties to Seattle

We were blessed with another special visit from Seattle last month!  We were in the same community group with Lauren and Nathan - a group of people who became close friends over our three years of sharing life together on a weekly basis.  Anyone who will still be your friend after knowing you only during your years of law school is the real deal!  We miss gathering with them on Tuesday nights for delicious dinner and challenging discussion and were glad to have the Cavanaughs visit, especially since we got to meet their precious son, Roan, who is the best little traveler I've ever seen!

Nathan took us on a couple different geocaching treasure hunts.  Rooke was intrigued and loves referring to the "treasure" that we found and how Nathan included his name on the slip of paper.  

Bridgette and Roan just chillin' together.  Roan is four months younger, but what he lacks in age he makes up for in size and could probably take Bridgette if he wanted to!

We visited Wimpole Hall Estate and toured the manor while it was raining then enjoyed walking through the gardens before the sun set.  I think three kids looks good on them, don't you?!

We also did a little eating and sight-seeing in Cambridge before the Cavs flew back to Seattle.  Thank you for coming, Nathan and Lauren!  It was great to have you here! 

Double the Fun

October was a full month for us.  We had several friends visit, starting with the Heavilands!  The hardest thing for me about moving from Seattle was leaving some very special friends.  Jessie was no exception.  I am deeply blessed by her friendship, even on the other side of the world, and did a happy dance when she called to say they bought their plane tickets to come visit!  With a total of six kids, all under the age of five (until James had his birthday on their last day with us!), we opted to do a lot of hanging out, playing, talking, eating and a little bit of sight-seeing!  

Bridgette and Harper - five weeks apart

Gretchen and Saisha - 3 months apart

Rooke and James - 3 months apart

We celebrated Jessie's birthday with a day exploring Cambridge.

We spent Ryan's birthday at the gymnastics gym in the morning, then cooking hot dogs over the fire, watching the OU game and enjoying the fall weather with some carrot cake

When we first became friends, Rooke and James were just under one year old.  We've been busy!

And just like that, I blinked and the visit was over and I had to take them to the airport to continue their tour of the UK in Ireland.  I couldn't have asked for a more perfect visit with my very dear friend and her wonderful family.  Thank you, Mark and Jessie, for making the trip happen.