Sunday we got up and went to the market around 10:30 am. I bought a swim cover up, the kids each got an item of clothing, and we bought a roasted chicken for dinner. We also had churros and stopped for a cold drink at a cafe.
The rest of the day was spent in the pool. Around 5 pm, Auntie Sheila and Uncle Chris showed up for a late afternoon beverage and some snacky bits! They brought their dogs which thrilled the kids to death. Before Chris and Sheila left a man came by and told us the water would need to go off as there was a leak somewhere up the road. This presented a problem as we wouldn’t have water until the following morning. Fortunately, I had already had a shower. You know, you must look out for number one after all. Hope had a shower as well, but no one else had. Oops!
We had dinner outside and then Millie started to get punchy. She hasn’t been to bed at her normal bed time for the entire holiday, so she has usually gotten a bit out of sorts in the evenings.
I attempted to put her to bed. Since Hope was also sleeping in the same room, Millie usually didn’t want to go to bed until Hope did. And Sunday night was especially difficult because we lost power. When the power went out, the back bedrooms didn’t lose power. Millie woke up in spite of that fact. Jack jumped out of bed and then Millie felt she should be able to get up as well. Ugh! There was a storm. It was raining. And instead of enjoying the rainy weather, I was laying down with Millie. Truth be told, that was sweet as well. Millie finally settled around 10 pm and the light issue was resolved.
Monday we got up and stayed at the house. The water went out for the entire town for a few hours. There was another leak in the pipes at the house so Stuart fixed it.
We swam for about three hours in the afternoon. Before we swam, Stuart and I went up to the shops to get some snacks. After swimming we showered and went down to Espiranza’s bar. We had some time down there and then came back for chicken pie. Millie fussed again at bedtime, which was fun.
The adults sat up for a bit longer, looking at the starry sky. Because my in laws live in the middle of relatively undeveloped land, the sky is unbelievable. We were able to see Jupiter, Venus, and Mars, as well as numerous constellations. Of course, the planets were simply brighter spots in the sky, but it was clear they were not stars. Since my husband is a closet nerd, he has a constellation app that he pulled out and was able to tell us which planets we were seeing. It was quite beautiful.
Tuesday morning I didn’t wake up until after 9 am. It’s amazing how much I actually sleep when I’m not at my own house, having jobs looming over me. I love not having to bow to an alarm. Sadly, those days will be over soon and we will all have to get back to a routine.
Josephina, the cleaner, showed up at 10 am to do some cleaning. The kids were in the garden, writing in their journals, and listening to music, each on their separate phones. It was a bit maddening. We finally convinced them to sit apart from one another so the music wasn’t so muddled.
We left for Abox around 11 am. The plan was to go to the Lidl, then on to Mercadana in another town, the Chinese shop, and then to have tapas at our favorite tapas bar in Spain. Strangely, I found a wooly hat at the Chinese shop. Since they were going out of business it was the equivalent of $3. My plan is to go with Gina to Switzerland in December, and since I only have one wooly hat, I saw the need to buy another one. Millie bought some temporary tattoos and I bought Jack a little finger basketball game. It was useless tat we did not need.
After the Chinese shop we went to Terra Cafe and had a drink, stalling until 1:30 pm when they would start serving tapas. Hope and Jack had burgers, while Millie had calamari. Don’t ask! I can figure out a kid who eats calamari, yet won’t eat spaghetti bolognese.
Karen, Stuart and I shared some tapas of pork, chicken, chips, and salad. It was delicious. We also had Tinto Verano, which is similar to Sangria. This cafe makes the best Tinto Verano in southern Spain, if you ask me.
After we were stuffed and the kids had their ice cream, we went to Mercadana to finish our food shop for the fiesta at Sheila and Chris’s on Wednesday.
We got home just after 4 pm. While Stuart, Karen and I unloaded the car, put things away, and hung the latest load of laundry, the kids got their swimmers on and went upstairs to see what Grandpa had been up to while we were away. He was on his second day of his last three days of work until he retired for good.
Around 5:15 pm the kids came down to the pool to play for a while. They have learned to play games and entertain themselves quite well in the pool. They swam for a couple of hours and then were in for showers. We served them dinner and then let them chill for a bit before going to bed. The adults ate a bit later than the kids as we were having leftovers. The evening was spent on the patio again, which was lovely, as usual.
Wednesday morning we started to watch The Greatest Showman. The kids played cards and other games. Just after lunch, the kids swam for a couple of hours. We then insisted they all lay on their beds for a couple of hours. Our hope was they would sleep for a bit so they could have fun at Auntie Sheila and Uncle Chris’s fiesta. Fortunately for us, all three of the kids slept.
We ventured down to Sheila and Chris’s about 7 pm. Stuart took the ingredients for paella and made it down at their house. We ate around 8 pm and then danced and sang kareoke until nearly midnight.
The kids slept in on Thursday morning. Jack slept until nearly 10 am, which he never does, no matter how late he’s been up the previous night. Everything was a bit delayed all day long. Lunch was served around 2 pm.
The weather wasn’t great all day. It wasn’t raining, but the thunder and lightning prevented the kids from swimming. So instead, they had a crafting afternoon. Grandma always has a crafting afternoon for the kids.
After some craft time, we pulled out the Mexican Train dominoes. We played several rounds and in the end everyone joined in. Dinner was spaghetti bolognese and everyone enjoyed it. We decided the kids needed an earlier evening. We had planned to go to the lake on Friday, however the weather still wasn’t going to be brilliant. Instead, we decided to go to Fort Bravo, one of the movie sets where they filmed some of the Spaghetti Westerns as well as some famous films, such as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Once we were up and breakfast was finished, we headed to Tabernas and Fort Bravo. It reminded me a bit of Tombstone and Goldfield Ghost Town. We went to the saloon and saw a Can Can show. Then we decided we needed a western photo that was WAY too expensive. But you only live once.
We decided to have some lunch, which wasn’t terribly nice, but also not terribly surprising. We then went out to wait for the horse and gun shoot out in the middle of town. Did I mention that both of the shows were in Spanish? We tried our best to follow the action. We didn’t get the jokes, though. We enjoyed our time there in spite of not being able to understand the language. I would catch a word here and there, but not enough, unfortunately.
We headed back to the house and arrived around 5:15 pm. The hope was that the kids could jump in the pool for an hour or so before dinner. Unfortunately, there was a downpour the minute we returned to the house. It was crazy rain and caused us to have to close all the windows in the house. The kids foolishly went out to collect the washing from the line. Oops! Lightning and thunder abound during the rain, causing the electricity and, more importantly, the internet to go out. I thought the kids were going to die.
After the rain, everyone came indoors and the kids showered before dinner. We had fish cakes, which we told Millie were round fish fingers, and it was a chilly evening on the porch eating dinner. Millie fell for the fish cake trick and actually liked her dinner. It’s always a crap shoot with food and Millie. We have tried everything to get her to try new foods. And even some foods she likes one day, she won’t like the next day. It’s maddening!
After the kids went to bed, we sat outside while Stuart played theme music to different television shows and movies. We tried to guess the shows associated with the songs. We then decided to retire around 11 pm. Another absolutely horrible evening in Spain.
I didn’t wake up until after 9 am on Saturday morning. The weather was a bit nippy and there was total cloud covering. The plan was to go to the village fiesta in the evening, but it was looking very unlikely. We all agreed that if the weather didn’t improve, an evening in the village wasn’t something we wanted to do.
Stuart made breakfast of scrambled eggs and ham. The kids had their fill, and then Stuart said if they wanted to get their swimmers on he would sit out by the pool with them. He had asked Jack to skim the pool with the net. Jack complied, but didn’t put the net down when Stuart asked him to do so. Therefore, he hit Millie with the net. Stuart then told him he had to get out of the pool and get dressed. Jack couldn’t quite understand why he had to get out. When I spoke with him, I asked him how he could have avoided having to get out of the pool. He said if he would have listened the first time to Dad he wouldn’t have had to get out. This is a lesson we have been trying to teach Jack for a long time. Maybe the fact that he had to watch his sisters swim while he was out of the pool will give him the reminder that he has to listen the first time for his and other’s safety.
After their swim, the kids finished their craft with Grandma. Then they made a cake with Stuart. Little did Millie know, Grandma had planned a late birthday celebration while Hope was with us.
Once lunch was eaten, the kids went back into the pool. Jack was able to go back in the pool, which pleases him. I got my suit on and sat on the top step for a bit. It’s just too cold for my liking. The pool adventure was over, kids had a snack, Jack and Millie took a shower and then went for a siesta. It seems the weather would cooperate and we would attend the fiesta after all. Hope went for a siesta after Grandma attempted to take her gel nail polish off.
While the kids slept, I sat on the patio, Grandma cut vegetables, and Stuart helped with dinner meal prep. Grandpa took a nap as well. I also hung out a couple of loads of laundry. I do love that job, truly.
The kids woke up to eat dinner. Millie needed to just taste the cottage pie Grandma made but instead she threw a bit of a tantrum. She’s so picky about food. However, I can understand a bit. As a child, if I didn’t like the way something looked, I would be ill at the thought of eating it. She doesn’t like things that are mixed together. At any rate, she finally ate a bite. Thank goodness, because dessert was made especially for her so it would have been a shame had she not been able to have any. It was another birthday cake.
In the end we decided just to go down to the bar on Saturday evening. The fiesta seemed as if it was going to be overtaken by rain again. So instead of risking it, we walked down the road to Espiranza’s bar. Auntie Sheila and Uncle Chris met us down there. We chatted for several hours and the kids played on their devices and were perfectly happy. We didn’t get home until after midnight. It was bedtime for all of us. One more week of holiday and then it is back to reality.
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