Day 3 Mijas

We were able to find a Spanish Branch in Malaga. It was fun for Justin to hear the gospel in Spanish again.

Afterwards we went to this beautiful little Spanish Town called Mijas. My friend Leah said it was a great little town. We didn't have any history, but we just enjoyed our Sunday afternoon.
I love the Spanish White Hill Towns they were so charming and fun. I love all the potted plants along the streets.

Adorable Girls, need I say more

I always laugh when we try to get a picture of the 3 girls.

Lyndi 14 months going on 2 years. She already wants to do everything herself, gets upset when you try to help her and says "NO" very clearly.

Keanna our 6 year old reader, rollerblader and amazing big sister with a big tender heart.

Ayla our little comedian who loves to help Mom cook and take care of her new baby doll Sage.

It's so funny to watch Lyndi walk

We were hanging out in a Plaza and this cute little girl Carmen came and befriended Ayla. Her brother Ricardo came and played with Keanna. They played hide and seek for a good 20 minutes. Justin loved talking to Ricardo he was such a funny little boy.

Later Keanna and Ricardo played a little futbol

2 lovely ladies from California took our one and only family picture for the trip

Mijas was such a kid friendly town. Not many cars, but they had many parks and open spaces for the children to run and play. Stress free for Mom and Dad.

A beautiful view from the city of Mijas

10 years together 9 married years together, 3 beautiful daughters, 7 years of school and nearly 3 years living overseas and we are still in love!

Saturday in Ronda

Ronda is know for the Gorge and "New Bridge" built from 1751- 1793. Legend tells that the architect fell to his death upon examination of the bridge. I felt uncomfortable at the top and urged my family to continue on to find the next ice cream shop. During the civil war many Spaniards on both sides were thrown off the bridge.

We always spend a lot of time in the Plaza's of a city. To tell you the truth the city center can make or break a city. You can see Lyndi and in the background the Santa Maria la Mayor Collegiate Churck, 15th century church.
We didn't see a bullfight, but Rick Steves
(Rick Steves Spain 2009) gave us a great rundown.

Act I
Wear the bulldown. The Matador will flash the red cape and the bull will charge. After doing this several times the matador's assistast on horseback will put a spear on a hump on the bulls neck. This weakens the bulls thrust and lowers it's head. Until 1927 horses did not wear padding and many died

ACt II
The matadors assisants continue to irritate and exhaust the pull.

Intermission

ACT III
The Matador continues to confuse the bull using his cape. After a few passes the matador throws a sword between the animals shoulder blades to kill it. Usually, it's not a quick kill and the matador has to continue thrusting his sword into the beast until there is a successful death. Mules drag the dead bull out of the ring and the meat of the bull is then sold in the local market.


Don't get me wrong I like meat and think we should eat it, but I do have a problem with the cruel manner in which they attain this meat. However, something inside of me kind of wanted to watch a bullfight a moral dilema if you will. It was the off season, so I didn't have to make that decision.

Bullfighting was introduced by Phillip II in the 16th century to help his knights train for war. In the 1700's Francisco Romero introduced the red cape and rod and helped introduce bullfighting as a spectator sport.

!Ole !

Ayla really enjoyed the bullring museum. She would ask what the pictures meant and enjoyed the drama of it. When we were all done she really wanted to see a real bull fight and was a little dissapointed when we told her we wouldn't. Throughout the remainder of the trip she kept asking us what the bulls were doing.

The

One of the things I loved about Spain is the beautiful tile work.

I really do adore my family

Outside the bullring was a pavillion. With incredible views, we didn't spend much time here because of the wind, but it was beautiful.

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Journey to Spain

We left at 1:30 in the morning and drove 3 hours to the inexpensive Ryan Air Terminal. We thought the girls would sleep. Keanna however did not. We boarded the plane around 6 am and arrived in Malaga Spain about 3 hours later. We rented a car and Justin experienced inner city driving in Spain (the worst Spain experienc). We found our apartment, unpacked and then we ALL took a Nap!!!

We then ventured out to the beach and when I pulled out my camera guess what!!! I forgot my SD Card. Drats!

Happy Birthday Ayla!

HapPy BiRthDAy AYLa!

We celbrated this wonderful little girls a couple days before her actual birthday to not cause too much stress in cordinace with our vacation to Spain. Ayla wanted a cake and a doll. That's it! She is such a happy little girl.
Ayla loves to be funny! She thinks of things to say and do to make us laugh. I think she is a good antidote for Justin and I's seriousness.

She always pulls the cutest little faces and says the funniest things. Last night she came into my room at 3 in the morning and she said "Mom, I don't think I brushed my teeth weally well last night." I assumed that she didn't enjoy the morning breath taste in her mouth and assumed it was because she didn't brush her teeth well enough. I got her some water and then we both went back to bed. She is so darn cute.

She is great at sharing. At church she received a laughy taffy for being the Super Star. One of the boys asked for the candy and Ayla willingly gave it to him. There was another tender hearted girl who insisted that he give it back to Ayla.

Ayla is a sweety, but she still has an opinion and asserts her individual ideas to both her older sister and her parents.

We love you Ayla and are so happy that you are part of our family. Happy Birthday beautiful "big" 4 year old girl!

Paris Day 3

We started out the morning by going to Sainte-Chapelle. I couldn't get a good picture from the outside, but the inside was incredible. This gothic church was built 1242 to 1248 for Louis IV. The downstairs was nothing spectacular, but you walk up the stairs and the stain glass windows were amazing. The entire room was stain glass windows from top to bottom. Each window had a different scene from the Bible. Starting from the bottom to the top you could see a story in the scriptures, there are more than 1,100 scenes. These windows were how they could learn the different scriptural stories.It was incredible.

The next stop was Notre Dame over 700 years old. A funny story... On this building there are 28 statues known as the King of Judah. During the French Revolution they were all beheaded because the citizens thought they represented the French Kings. The heads have since all been replaced.

Below I am on a certain circle. The "circle of luck" if you will. Rumor has it, if you turn around on this circlular thing then you will most certainly return to Paris. I had to give it a try!

Notre Dame took over 200 years to build

Everyone but Leah's lovely shoes on that circular thing. Poor Leah was feeling sick and spent the day in bed.

In 1860 they reconstructed this building which created an opportunity to hike up the 300 feet and take some fun pictures of gargoyles

The Eiffel Tower from Notre Dame

We then strolled through a couple shopping areas before reaching the Louvre.

I realize that I didn't give the Louvre justice, but I stopped on saw the biggies! Maybe, someday I could go back with my sister and Mom and really enjoy the Louvre.

The Winged Victory of Samothrace is thought to be from 220 and 190 BC. I thought it was stunning. Placed at the top of the staircase with natural light surrounding it. Beautiful

The Mona Lisa. What is so famous about this painting?? It's her eyes. Wherever you go in the room she stares at you!

The marble Venus de Milo, the Greek goddess of Love and Beauty

After the Louvre we walked through this park to the Orangerie Museum. Claude Monet loved Paris so much that he painted these amazing water lillies for the city. This was my favorite place on the entire trip. The paintings were housed in 2 oval rooms 4 paintings in each room. It was amazing and I seriously had goose bumps on my arms.

I am now a fan of Impressionist Painting.

We then took a walk over the Seine River

There were hundreds of locks on the bridge

Next,, we went to the Orsay Museum which was housed in an old Train Station. It was an amazing building, but sadly they did not allow photography. I LOVED Edgar Degas's paintings. Especially the ballerina's in blue tutu's. For some reason they reminded me of my sister.

For dinner that night we ate at the Hard Rock Cafe. This was my first Hard Rock experience.

Well that's it, we had a spectacular trip. A big thanks to my amazing husband who watched the girls for me so I could enjoy a wonderful girls trip!