And this is how I found Claire.. so busy in the kitchen while I ran to put clothes away!  No wonder why she was so quiet!

Summer is FINALLY here!  We took the kiddos to the beach the other day and they loved it!  We didn't exactly plan on getting wet, as you can tell by their attire!

Seabee Ball

This past weekend was the Seabee Ball.  This year it was out in town here in Puerto at a local

winery. It was a perfect evening and we couldn't have asked for better weather.  As you can tell from this picture the sun was a little hard to work with!!

It was so cute.. when I put on my dress to go to the ball Drew went running to his room and took his toy piano out and said, "Mom, mom, dance, spin around"!  It was so cute!! 

The gal pals

Olsen Family Visit!

A week ago Andy's parents, uncle, and friend all arrived here for a two week visit here in Spain!  We kicked off their trip with a four day voyage around Spain hitting Grazalama, Ronda, and Granada.  The kid's are in heaven having family here and a non stop playmate!

This was one of our fist stops the historic town of Ronda

Ronda is known for it's gorgeous 16th century bridge

Grandma and Drew getting ready to catch the bus to tour the Alhambra.  The Alhambra is in Granada and is a Moorish castle.

Drew loved walking around listening to the hand held tour guide!

Al, Andy's dad then took a turn with the hand held tour guide.. the only problem with this was by the time he was fnished listening to the guide and we asked him about the room we had just toured he would say, "I forget"!!  (Everyone had to wear their back packs in the front of them so one would't hit anything)

Ole!! (Olay)

So back in the states we remember the fun bars with the volleyball pits that you could partake in after dinner and drinks.. here in Spain at this resturant they have a bull ring where one could fight a bull!!!

Every month we have what's called a "Hail and Farewell"  This is where the new people to the command are recognized and where we say goodbye to the one's that are leaving. Every month they're held at a new venue and sometimes on base and sometimes off.  This month was held off base at  Bar Jamon http://www.barjamon.com/   The evening started with tapas and drinks for an hour and a half and then they annouced that it was time to fight a bull! 

We were informed that it was a baby bull, so how bad could this be. When we walked out from the resturant to the bull ring the first thing we saw was an ambulance parked out side the ring, JUST in case we needed assistance.  The next thing that we saw was a wagon that began to shake and a bull came charging out of it. This "baby" bull weighed about 300 lbs and looked like it ate the "baby" bull!  We were informed that there would be training on fighting a bull. Turns out the training consisted of us watching the Spanish fight a bull and we were to observe and learn!  Then one was certified and ready to go!

Andy of course jumped right in!  Andy did great and I would have to say I was impressed as my heart raced from the side.  The only thing that I wasn't impressed with was when he was holding the madadors cape after the bull charged it.. the cape dropped and the bull stood on it. So picture this, the cape (which side tracks the bull) and now it's the bull and Andy standing in the ring... ALONE. So Andy then BENDS OVER to pick the cape up!!  As the crowd gasps for air the spanish traners jump in and Andy's turn is over....

It was a great experiece and hopefully Andy has checked this box!

Andy and Justin preparing themselves...and going through the intense training.. oh wait there was no training....

The focussed bull fighter

Ole!!!

First Step!

Ok so it's not a picture of Claire taking her first step as the camera was no where near, but it's a new picture of her...

So today I was talking to my sister on the phone and telling her how Claire is close to taking a step and with in a few hours (Claire was waiting for dad to come home..) she stood up and took a step to Andy!!!  Then she froze and laughed!!!  She stood up a few more times and took one step so we'll see what tomorrow brings! The little Claire Bear turned nine months yesterday as well!!!  Drew was large and in charge walking at 10 months so we may be in for it!!

 Drew also witnessed Claire taking a step and he wasn't as amused.... his favorite stage of Claire is when she would sit in a swing... not doing anything...and he had all of the attention and didn't have to protect all of his toys:)

Canary Islands

This past long weekend we took a vacation to the Canary Islands. We went to the island of Tenerife about a two hour plane ride from here.  It was such a relaxing vacation and the kiddos loved being able to play in the warm weather in the water!

We lucked out with a sweet hotel room.  Off of the living area were two seperate bedrooms, and seperate baths.  The kids loved taking a bath in the big tub! 

Loro Parque

On one of the mornings we went to Loro Parque.  It was a beautiful park designed a lot like Sea World.  It was so cute to see the excitement in the kids eyes looking at the animals!  Claire was ready for another sunny day!

The park had an awesome kids area where Drew and Claire could go wild.  Luckly the spanish sleep till 11am, so we had the park pretty much to ourselves as we were there right when they opened.  (We're still working on the kids sleeping till 11am...)

After time spent playing a snack was much needed...

Drew taking a closer look at the dolphins

Claire Bear enjoyed crowd wathcing!!

"Where now dada!!"

Drew having a pep talk with Claire about being careful in the water!

"Ugh... my days are so tough!"

Warming Claire up after time in the pool

Drew taking a break

I love this picture... This explains Calire all day long...looking to see what Drew is going to do next!

Thanks aunt Ali for my cute V-Day pajamas!! AND for the awesome shaving kit for Drew.  Mommy had to hide it as Drew was shaving his face several times a day!!!

Our last day of vacation and everyone was beat!! 

Drew and the woman of his life (besides his mother) his neighbor freind Liv hanging out!

8 Months!

 

Claire is now eight months old and the time is going by way too fast!!  She is such a happy baby and I swear she wakes up laughing and goes to bed with a smile on her face. Claire is all over the place and crawls all around the house, pulls herself up on anything and will go from one object to the next.  We have a feeling that we will have a walking girl on our hands soon. 

With Drew we really didn't have to baby proof anything.  He would be content with toys on the floor and really didn't go exploring around the house.  We now have payback with Claire...  One of her favorite rooms is the bathroom! 

Music Class

listening to directions closely

On Thursdays I started taking the kiddos to music class on base. It's really nice as I get one on one time with both Drew and Claire.  Claire really enjoyed music class and all the other little friends in the class!

Sevilla

Today we took advantage of the nice weather and went to Sevilla, a town a little over an hour from where we live.  It was a gorgeous day.

A Moorish Fort in the town center

This is the third largest church in the world, and Christopher Columbus tomb is barried here!

Drew trying to catch the birds!  He would get really close to one and then they would fly off and he would yell "Oh , I just missed"!

Planted Spring Flowers!

On Friday we went to the plant store out in town and bought Drew and Claire each their own pot and flowers to plant and watch grow this spring.  Drew helped Claire out with planting her's... and will probably be in charge of watering them for her!  We'll keep you posted on how they grow!!

Tub Tub Time

Tub Tub Time became 100% easier at our house a little over a month ago when we started to put Claire and Drew in the tub together!  Claire is very entertained with Drew's crazy.. fearless.. swimming skills during tub time!

Claire enjoying the swing outside our house!  (Thanks Laura)!!

Toy Story 2

So.. Drew watched Toy Story 2 for the first time a little over a month ago and LOVED it!   If he could he would put this movie on repeat and watch it ALL DAY!  I found the doll Woody from Toy Story 2 and thought this would be the perfect motivation for Drew to be 100% potty trained and  it worked! This past weekend Drew mastered the toilet and can officially say no more diapers at our house.  After having Woody on the fridge for a month we were able to take him out of the box and celebrate Drew's accomplishment.  The first thing that Drew said when we took him out of the box was "PAINT HIS EYES... PAINT HIS EYES AND BOOTS"!!!  For those of you that havn't seen the movie they have to fix woody in the movie by doing this and Drew thought that he needed to do that right away as well!!!  It cracked us up and he was VERY focussed during this!!