I always write about how Isabella is so smart and so ahead for her age…well, with all that comes another side of Isabella that many of you who know her know what I’m talking about. This next story happened yesterday in a shoe store, where I attempted to buy her a pair of shoes…

Everything was good until we got to the store and I told her she needed to try the shoes on.. She said she had an “pupa” in the back of her right foot and refused to try them on.. she started to cry, then scream and yell NO, NO , NO, I explained to her that we would only try on the other foot..But she was not going to give in.. the more I tried to put the shoe on the louder she screamed.. The sales lady attempted to help by telling her she had a magical cream, but that just made her yell even louder saying“NO!! cream, NO zapatos…….” Everyone was staring at me and couldn’t wait for me to get the hell out of there.. Out of desperation I bought the pair of shoes and told her we were leaving.. But she refused to get up or put her shoes on… I told her I was leaving and prented to leave.. hiding outside..

I waited a few minutes and I could hear her yelling from the top of her lungs!! (I’m surprised you coudn’t hear her), I decided to peak in to see if she was coming when I saw shoes flying!! yes, she decided to get a hold of all the shoes she could and throw them up in the air…At this point I had two choices.. run away, or deal with it.. As the good mother I’m, I went in, apologized, put the shoes back, picked up Bella like a sack of potatoes, and walked out…it was the longest walk to my car I have ever experienced. As soon as she sat down in the car she stopped crying and screaming and said “my pupa doesn’t hurt anymore”.

Who wants her for a weekend? Any takers????

photo flickr by jenkin

On Sunday we went to a mini camping trip with Marco and Bella’s school. We met at the school grounds and took a bus to a city called Castalla and went to a mini camp ground called “campament de fonts”. As soon as we arrived there were monitors who took the kids organized them by age and started their activities. The adults were also taken aside and given choices of what we wanted to do..

Our choices were hiking and yoga, paddling a canoe and going over some net bridge to fall to our death, mountain climb and repel down...and other great ideas which you all know I’m not quite fond of. I wanted to hike and do yoga but Matt decided it would be fun to plunge to our death in the mountains and paddle our way in a canoe. And that is what we did…I don’t think I have laughed so hard in my life.. My one person kayak (canoe, whatever you want to call it) just wanted to go in circles for the life of me I couldn’t get it to go in a straight line.. it looked like water bumper cars more than anything, from there we were taken to bridge of death as I like to refer to it, where they hooked us up (not, me I refused!!) with a harness and a helmet (like the helmet is going to help you when you plunge to your death!!) and the willing participants like Matt walked across a net.. Anyway, from there were hiked a little then went tree climbing. I did dare to do this but didn’t make it quite to the top.. Matt did make it to the top!!

The kids had a ball, above you could see Bella rowing!! and no life vest, Matt took this picture I’m glad I didn’t see that.

Marco had a blast with all his friends, they saw caves, climbed, jumped…A little of everything.

Overall, we had a great time, ate a great Paella, drank beer, sang songs.. A really fun way to spend our Sunday, although today I’m sunburned and I’m not sure how I’m using my hands to type this because I’m very sore..

You can see all the pics here. 

Yes, that’s me.. hahaha. The other day one of Matt’s composer friends Luis Ivars (if you go to his website, please dont’ miss the intro it’s fabulous) called and asked him if I was willing to record some lines in English for the MARQ museum and he of course said, yes of course.. Not even consulting me! but of course I agreed and had to go yesterday to his home studio to read about two paragraphs of a archaeological finding report of some sort..

I must say I admire the people who do voice overs, it is not as easy as it looks although he said I had a knack for it and we did it in about 20 minutes which he said its at a pro rate.. I don’t know about that.. I was a little nervous at first and read everything too fast, the second time I was able to slow down a little bit, then he gave me direction as to how to pronounce certain tecnical words and showed me what intonation he wanted..

Overall, the experience was a lot of fun and would love to do something like that again..

photo flickr Dh2

Today Marco received the congratulation of his judo teacher for having the best Osotogari tecnique. He personally congratulated me and said Marco was getting better and better everyday, after 3 years in Judo Marco finally receives some praise.. The teacher was more excited than Marco.. His face showed a lot of emotion, as if to say FINALLY!!! hahahaha.. I guess he feels after all his hard work at last he sees some feedback.

Marco tried to show me what this judo move was but I had to look it up for myself. I found a video in youtube so you can all see what it is.. Congratulations Marco!!! 

It has been a while I talk about poor little Precious. Our little dog is 11 years old and going strong..Well, she has a couple of lumps that we are treating with medication, which is why the new haircut. They seem to bother her so she licks, scratches and bites them, with her long hair she was just making knots of herself and was not very comfortable.

She likes the haircut, but I think she feels a little bare and at night wants to cuddle with us because she is cold. Marco and Isabella like to put sweaters on her and make sure they play with her often to keep her warm. We know we probably only have her for a couple more years and we want to take advantage of her to the fullest… although with our busy schedule, we sometime forget all about her and …Ok, don’t laugh on occasion she has pushed her food bowl all the way to our bedroom (having to lift it up over a border) so she could let us know, it was feeding time!!

Don’t worry, all your animal activists out there, she is very much loved and taken care of..

Isabella was given a school project on Friday called “La maleta viajera’ (the travelling suitcase), each week one of the kids in her class has to take this traveling suitcase and fill it with anectodes of the weekend. This is the first time Bella received the suitcase and was very excited. She wanted me to detail everything she did. So this past weekend we documented a day in the life.. hahaha..

She posed for pictures and directed everything she wanted me to say.. She told me what pictures to use, and basically just ordered me around.. You can see the pictures in our photo album for the month of April. I will let you know what the teacher thought or our little weekend report.

Ok, after 3 years here in Spain driving (illegal) with my American license I think its about time I get a Spanish drivers permit. I had signed up to a driving school as I told you in an earlier post and started studying on my own. But between work, the kids, and life I just didn’t have any time to study so now that I have free time in the morning I have decided to actually go to the classes they offer daily.

Monday through Friday 11 am to 12 pm I will be in driving class. Today was my first class and it was pretty funny. We are about 6 losers!! All about my age or older and each from a different country (including the teacher). Half of them didn’t even speak Spanish very good and every 5 minutes would ask the teacher questions like, what’s a “carretera”? To which the teacher would  respond “the road”!!! By the end of the class, I wasn’t sure if I had signed up to a driving school or a Spanish class. But the funniest thing of all, was to watch all of us get out from the class and get in to our cars!!!!!

The teacher assured me in about a month I would have my drivers permit, I will keep you posted.

photo flckr by gethappy68

As a school project, Marco was asked to buy a small plant and take care of it. He was very excited and couldn’t wait to get it home when we bought it. He spent the entire day looking at it and giving it water and offering it cookies. I told him that some plants don’t need water everyday and that it’s not good to give them too much water or they will die. I also let him know that plants didn’t particularly like cookies, to which he responded “How about pizza?”. He also insisted in sleeping with the plant, to which I also had to explain that it was not a great idea!!

Anyway,  after a couple of days he still shows great interest in the plant, and can’t wait to show it off in school in a couple of days.. (the project was actually to take it to school and leave it there, but he didn’t want to leave it in school because he thought it would be too lonely on the weekends and at night, so he asked the teacher if he could take care of it at home).

I will let you know how the plant survives….

As I told you in an earlier post, Isabella is very domestic and likes to help out around the house. Since she wants to learn, I have decided to teach her little things here and there.. (Don’t worry ironing wont be one of them.. not yet…). I have figured out she likes to wash dishes and she does it very well.. So now, I don’t have to make breakfast of wash the dishes.. What do you think about that?

My cousin turns as she puts it 39 +1!! I like that!!! I will be using the same wording in October when I will also hit that beautiful number. She has many surprises coming to her tonight so I wont say much!! Just a very very Happy Happy birthday…

FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS LAURA!!!!! MUCHOS BESOS….