Spain!!

'Twas the week before Christmas

We just couldn't take the cold anymore!

So we packed our bags and headed for Spain,

The sun, the sea and the shore!

Our trip to Malaga, Spain was wonderful.  We left on Saturday, December 17th.  We really enjoyed seeing new things, being together as a family and loved every ray of sunshine!  We haven't seen the sun here in Germany for a while so it was fabulous to head down to Spain and get a little vitamin D before the long German winter:)

The SUNrise on our first morning in Spain, so beautiful

The resort we stayed in had a mini golf course right outside our hotel room.  Every day the boys went out and played all 9 holes!  They loved it!

We also enjoyed the hot tub and swimming pool.

And of course, we spent lots of time at the beach:)

On Monday, December 19, we made a short overnight trip to see some sights.  This is Townsend showing off his kung fu moves on a statue during our visit to the "Balcony of Europe" in Nerja.

We drove over to Granada to visit the Alhambra palace.  This was the final stronghold of the Moors during the Spanish reconquest of Spain.  The palace was beautiful.  The walls and ceilings were covered with calligraphy and there were colored tiles on floors and walls.

The boys in one of the many decorated doorways.

The boys loved running around the ruins of the old palace.

After our visit to the Alhmabra we drove up to Cordoba and stayed for the night.  The next morning we went and looked around the Mezquita Mosque/Cathedral.  In the 600's there was a Christian church on this site.  In 784, after the Islamic conquest, the church was destroyed and this Mosque was built in it's place.  After the Spanish once again controlled Spain they were going to tear down this Mosque and build a Cathedral but the King did not want to destroy such a work of art so there is a Catholic Cathedral built in the center of this Mosque.  It's hard to explain but AMAZING to see...

This is the mihrab.  The holy wall in which the Muslims would have faced to pray 5 times a day.  The ceiling was gorgeous, I'm so glad the Christians didn't tear this place down!

And here is the Catholic Cathedral, plopped into the middle of all the pillars inside the Mosque!

Each year Cordoba holds a contest for the best patio.  The patios are traditionally inside the house in a courtyard.  We were lucky enough to find a few open doors so we could sneak a peek at a few of the beautiful patios.

After we left Cordoba we stopped in Ronda, one of the many hillside towns in Andalusia that we drove through.  This is a picture of the New Bridge which spans the gorge that separates Ronda.  It's called "New Bridge" but was built in 1751:)  Looking over the bridge you can see straight down, 360 feet!

This is a photo of the boys in front of the first bullfighting ring in Spain.  Ronda was the birthplace of modern bullfighting.  We were very unlucky and the museum was closed for the day...I guess we'll just have to go back and visit another time:)

Our final stop for the day was the hill town of Zahara.  We got there just as the sun was beginning to go down.  We tried three different trails to make our way to the top of the castle on the hill before the sun went  down, unfortunately it was dark by the time we found our way to the hill top.  It was still a fun stop and a great hike.

Julian and I, hiking up to the castle.  I couldn't believe Julian hiked the whole way up the hill.  There were too many stairs for the stroller and I was worried I would have to carry him the whole way, what a trooper!

The boys peeking around the gate that led into the castle.  There were no lights in the castle and there was little sun left once we got there.  We had to carefully make our way up winding stairs to the top, but the view from up there was worth it!

After our two day excursion to the hills we were ready for some more time at the beach!

The boys working hard in the sand...

...Man, their sand sculpture skills are sure improving!

By Thursday, December 22, we were ready for another adventure.  We drove over to Gibralter to ride the cable car up to the top of the rock.  This is a shot of Julian and I in the cable car.

The view from the top.  You could see the coast of Spain as well as Morocco, a bit cloudy, on the other side of the Mediterranean.  We were super lucky to have a clear, sunny day.

Family photo op.  Yes, that is a sheer cliff just behind us, and yes, the boys were climbing all over the walls, and yes, I did nearly have a heart attack!

We did see the famous Gibralter apes.  They were everywhere, it was hard NOT to see them.  The boys were mostly interested and excited about their up close and personal interaction with the apes...until the thieving little beasts stole all our sandwiches!

Our last full day in Spain was Friday, December 23.  We had a relaxing day at the resort.  Some mini golf, some pool time, some playground time.  We decided to go and visit the aquarium in town.  This was my favorite exhibit, a Christmas tree, decorated with a starfish at the top, inside the shark tank.

A little more beach time before the sun went down on our last day in Spain.  This is Townsend with his sand drawing of a fox, I thought it looked pretty cool.

It was so hard to say goodbye to the sun.  We left Spain so early on Saturday morning that we didn't get to see the sun come up for one last, parting glance.  We really enjoyed our trip to Costa Del Sol, hopefully we'll see it again someday.

We flew home on Saturday, December 24, just in time to get ready for a Christmas Eve party we were hosting...but we'll save that for another post.

Thanksgiving, Twilight, Christmas Markets Etc...

My parents and I were in Savona, Italy on Thanksgiving Day and so Hyrum decided to save the celebration until Sunday (November 27), when we were all together again.

The master chef, busy in the kitchen.

The feast.  The stuffing was the BEST I have ever tasted!  Thank you Hyrum for such a fabulous meal, it was really wonderful to still enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner, even if we were a few days late:)

The 4th installment of the Twilight movie came out this past November.  I am not one of the "die hard" fans but I do think it's fun to go out and see a movie every once in a while.  A group of friends decided we should all go together to the 10:30 PM showing and we should have matching t-shirts.  Most people voted for the shirts to say, "Team Bella's Dads Mustache" but my shirt says, "Team Hyrum."  It's so great to get together with a group of friends for a fun and silly time.

Chanda and Tera being very silly.  They even had mustaches drawn on their fingers:)

The whole group of us in the theater after the show.  We are doing our best "werewolf" poses...like a said, pretty silly stuff.

The month of December is pure magic here in Germany.  I love all the Christmas markets that pop up in each small town.  I love all the lights that decorate the town squares.  I love all the yummy lebkuchen and stollen that all the bakeries make at Christmas.  I don't like to talk about it but it's my last Christmas here in Germany.  I am so sad our time in Europe is winding down.  The next few shots are our last trips to Christmas markets here in Europe...very, very sad.

We took the train to Nuremberg last Saturday (December 10th) to visit the Christmas market.  Julian LOVES all things "train" right now and he especially loves riding on trains.

Julian on the little train ride at the children's Christmas market in Nuremberg

Townsend dipping a candle in hot wax to add color to it.  They now have 3 candles from this market, one from each of the last 3 years.

On Sunday (December 11) we decided to hit one last market.  It was already dark by the time we got to Wildenreuth but walking around in the dark, with all the lights sparkling, is a big part of the Christmas market experience.

Townsend petting the donkey in the stables at Wildenreuth

Emerson trying his hand at archery.  He has a pretty good eye and almost got the target right on the bullseye!

Julian spent about 30 minutes in this shed that was set up with a model train.  He could have stayed there much longer but we finally told him his time was up.  Of course he was upset with us and as soon as we turned our backs for half a second he was gone.  We looked around and finally found him in the train shed, happily standing on a stool and watching the trains go by.

Hyrum and the boys warming up by one of the many fires.

We went to the Christmas tree farm right outside our town of Pressath to cut down our Christmas tree.  I love looking around for the perfect tree.  I love that we have a real tree every year.  I love the smell and I love the natural "imperfections" that make it perfect:)

The boys at the Christmas tree farm

Hyrum with our tree after cutting it down.  The sun was shining right on our little town in the background and I just had to get a shot.

Please don't ask why Townsend is not wearing a shirt.  As soon as we walk through the door, off come the shoes, socks and (most of the time) the shirt!  Maybe we need to turn the heat down in our house:)

Our beautiful tree

Last night (December 14) was the boys school Christmas concert.  I have very fond memories of my Elementary School concerts and I'm so glad my boys get to have that same experience.  They sang three songs and I have to say, Emerson was pretty silly for most of the songs.  Townsend was at least singing a little, but mostly they were both laughing and having a great time up on stage.

Townsend and Emerson with their best friends, twin boys, Aadi and Annadi (they're from Nepal.)  You can just tell by their faces how happy and excited they were to be at the concert.

Last photo, I promise.  It is now December 15th and we have only had one snowfall that actually stuck around, and it only lasted for a few hours.  Last year at this time we were wading around, knee deep in snow!  The boys were so happy when it did snow they ran out and built a snowman as soon as they got home from school.  It was mostly melted the next day:(

Townsend and Emerson with the first snowman of the season...they hope it won't be their last:)

A Visit From Grandma and Grandpa

My parents arrived in Ramstein on October 26th.  I dropped Julian off with Becky so I could make the 8 hour round trip to pick them up without little man Jules in the car.  Other than being tired they had a good trip over from the States and they slept most of the drive home.

It was so fun to have my Mom and Dad here.  They haven't been able to spend much time with my boys in the past, only visiting for a few days once in a while, but they really got a good chance to get to know their grandkids on this trip.  They were very helpful with the boys, always helping with homework or taking care of Julian so I could volunteer at the school.  They watched the boys for us so Hyrum and I could get away together to England, something that we appreciated ALOT.  It's always nice to leave the boys with people you trust and relax for a few days with just your hunny.  

I dropped them off at Ramstein this past Sunday, December 4th, but they didn't get a Space A flight out until today.  I guess they had fun hanging out at the hotel and reading their books.  If you're stuck on a military post, Ramstein is probably one of the better ones to be stranded at:)

We took a train ride to Bayreuth and walked around the Hof garden.  It was a beautiful day and the fall colors were very pretty.

Mom and Dad at the concentration camp in Flossenburg, Germany.

Julian helping Grandma make bread.

I took them to Nuremberg to visit the Zeppelin Field and the Toy Museum in downtown Nuremberg.

Grandma with Julian and baby Connor in Nuremberg.

Hyrum had the day off for Veterans Day so we drove out to visit some castle ruins.  Unfortunately they were closed for the season so we drove over to Weiden and enjoyed walking around there.

I took my Mom to the Christmas market in Nuremberg.  My Dad wasn't so interested in the market so we dropped him off at the Documentation Center museum and picked him up after we spent all his money:)

We went over to Prague to visit their Christmas market.  Grandma and Grandpa with Emerson in front of the Charles Bridge.

Here we are at the Prague market.  Can you tell it was crazy packed?  If you go, try not to go on a Saturday!

Julian saying goodbye to Grandpa

It's always sad when our guests leave.  I am so happy that my boys got to know their grandparents during this visit.  Family ties are so important to maintain.

This ones for you Paige!  I was in Ramstein so I just had to stop at Himalaya, even if it meant I didn't get home until 1:00 AM after dropping off Mom and Dad!