NEW BLOG ADRESS

I HAVE FINALLY UPGRADED AND MOVED MY BLOG WITH MY OWN DOMAIN.

FROM NOW ON PLEASE GO TO

WWW.MARCOANDBELLA.COM

PLEASE SAVE THIS NEW ADDRESS...

Last Post in Blogger

This is bittersweet for me.. Blogger has been a great blogging tool for a long time but I have finally decided to go at it myself. I have purchased my own domain name (as well as others I will tell you about) and hope you will continue to follow Marco and Bellas's Adventures with us.

The new blog is www.marcoandbella.com

See you in the new Blog...

Goodbye Blogger..Thank you for everything....

Innocent Play

In these days of vacation, and the weather being not so hot, the kids have been stuck home having to make up games to stay entertained...As you can see from the picture above Isabella decided it would be fun to dress up Marco and their friend Pablo with all her princess accessories..They were willing participants and had a lot of fun, although, look at Marco's expression..hahahaha..


She then decided to put make up on herself.. Doesn't she look lovely????

Happy Easter 2008

We wish everyone a very Happy Easter 2008. Marco and Isabella received Huge chocolate eggs with gifts inside from the Easter Bunny. Isabella woke up at 7am as if it were Christmas Day and was very excited to see her gift from the Easter Bunny. She proceeded to eat the entire egg and around 10 am feel back asleep and didn't wake up until 1 pm. We thought she had gone into "chocolate schock"...we were scared there for a moment...Marco, only ate a little bit and enjoyed the rest of the day playing with his new toys...

photo flickr by j.terrell

First Day of Spring

Happy first day of Spring! I hope this new season brings warmth and love to all of you!!

photo flckr by Lord Ivan

Celine Dion workout video (NOT)

I love Celine Dion so when I saw this funny video of Laura Landauer , an actress and comedienne who imitates her, I just cracked up.

This is the funniest video, and she looks, acts and talks just like her.. Its incredible.. Enjoy

The wedding proposal

I have promised to change the names to protect the innocent and I shall do that...

On February 29th of this year, a leap year in which it is said that on this day a woman could propose to a man a friend of mine decided it would be a good time to propose to her long time boyfriend. She was not sure how she was going to do it and being a very busy career woman had no real time to prepare...

She decided at at the last minute that her best option was to send a plant to her boyfriend at work with a simple note saying "Marry me". She made the order by phone and crossed her fingers.. (before I go on I must tell you that she was in the process of moving in with him). After a couple of hours and no phone call from her boyfriend, she started to get worried.so she called him...and she said well?? and he answered "Nice Plant".

Up to now there has not been any more talk about the proposal, her boyfriends sisters are pressuring him and she doesn't know what to think. The other day while driving with him while moving in some of her things , his mom called him and she answered the phone, the mom asked her what are you guys doing? and she said I'm moving and the mom said "where are you moving to"? (I guess her boyfriend forgot to mention the fact they were moving in with each other..) She said I'm moving in with your son to which the mom answered "Without a ring on your finger" to which she replied " I SENT A PLANT"!!!!!!!!!!

I will keep you updated on the final outcome of this very interesting love affair..

photos flicker by librarianinstiches and marcgutierre

Happy Fathers Day (In Spain)

Today March 19th "San Jose" is Father's Day here in Spain. This celebration is not as comercial as it is in the states. Here, gifts are not often given although everyday that is changing and Spain is copying a lot of the American holidays such as Halloween.. As if they didn't have enough holidays here..
Father's Day here is celebrated with the family gathering and a nice big lunch or dinner, what else?? We celebrated with Matt this afternoon and the kids made him lovely paintings...

So, Happy Father's Day to all those fathers out there..from all of us here in Spain.

photo google

Report Card Time

Well, as of today at 3 pm its Spring Break, otherwise known here as "Semana Santa" or "Holy Week" or plainly said "Easter'. Holy week is a huge event in all of Spain, there are many processions and celebrations. Very different in every part, being the most famous in the south of Spain.

But for us what this all really means is that school is out for a couple of weeks and the kids get to rest and enjoy the beginning of the great weather to come.. and with Spring Break comes the end of the second trimester and report card time....

For Isabella its still a simple is she getting it or not...and yes, she is getting all of it and then some..Her teacher commented that she was the perfect student, very obedient, very studious and outgoing....(I think there is another Isabella in that classroom and the poor lady is confused).

Marco's grades are a little more serious because he is officially in the beginning of his school career.. the grading system here is a little different than in the states where the A,B,C,D or F method is used here it goes like this.. Sobresaliente (A), Notable (B), Muy bien (C), Suficiente (D) and Insuficiente (F).. Marco received one A ,guess in what subject??? hahaha yes in English..(Might be the only A we will see from him.. hahah) He got 3 B's (Math, Spanish and Gym) 2 C's (Valenciano and Science/Social Studies) and one (D) in art... (poor thing he inherited my lovely art skills!!)..

We are very proud of both of them and have taught them that its very important to study and get good grades but more importantly is to figure out what their individual gifts are and to develop those fully, consciously to be able to share them with the world...Overall, honesty, ethics, and love..

picture google

Bella and her singing

Bella loves to sing and spends her days making up songs, singing school songs, or imitating singers like Celine or Mariah.. She states she would like to either be a painter, singer or dancer when she grows up but says that in reality she knows she will be a princess.. hahaha

Click her to view her song repertoire..


We will be recording her other famous Celine version of songs coming soon.....

Isabella helps Marco with his homework

As you all know Marco although only in first grade already gets homework. He loves the math part and problem solving but when it comes to drawing of painting, he just can't stand it...I don't blame him because I can't draw myself..as much as I try.

Today he had to turn in his homework and last night he fell asleep before he could complete the coloring part..What do we do? No problem, we give it to Bella for her to finish it.. Yes, we are bad parents, Bella finished his homework perfectly. She was very happy to do it, she said she didn't want Marco to get in trouble.

I know, I know, we are not going to make this a habit and Marco needs to learn how to draw and color and also learn responsibility, don't worry we are on it!

My trip to Ikea in Murcia

One of my very good friends Marisela, has just bought a new apartment and is starting her new life after losing her husband last year to cancer. She wanted me to go with her today to Ikea in Murcia (about an hour south of Alicante) so she could do a little shopping. Since, I have a little free time now..hahahaa.. I signed up quickly.

We dropped off the kids in school and headed on our adventure. Once there we had breakfast for one euro..and where ready to shop. If you haven't been to an Ikea the experience is a little overwhelming. There is so much to see and everything is laid our systematically.. It was like following the yellow brick road.. We did that, and picked up little nick nacks along the way.

Two carts full and a couple of hours later we were on our way to the check out counter and then to the hardest part of the trip.. How the hell to stick all the things we purchased in to a little European car...We basically had to pull everything out of the boxes, put down some seats, squeeze all we could in to the trunk and hope we would fit in the car...

We had a great time and the trip was a success..We plan to do it again real soon.. But hey Marisela, next time lets skip the elevator part..hahaha..

Photo from flickr by rodelgo

Have you ever googled yourself?

I always google Matt to make sure that all his new projects are being reflected on his web and on the internet and that there is nothing out there that shouldn't be. So the other day I wondered what would happen if I googled myself...and to my surprise many interesting things from my past showed up....

For instance there was interview I did back when I worked for a swim wear store for the Lauderdale Daily News, a credit for a recording a did for Matt's friend Ken Hensley who just came out with his new album called Blood on the Highway, this blog comes up, and some other weirdo things that don't even relate to me..hahah. I also found there is another Nuria Pendas who lives in Mallorca and owns a restaurant, she emailed me a while back to let me know about all our similarites..

So, if you haven't googled yourself lately, go on try it see what comes up...

Photo Flickr by Retro-X

Top 50 blogs

Many of you who read my blog don't have a blog yourself or have never really ventured much into the IT world. Some of you have called me and asked for advise..hahaha.. from me..Well, my good friends who's blog infomadas is awesome (sorry you English speakers it is in Spanish) wrote a very interesting post about the 50 most powerful blogs on the net right now.

If you only read my blog I suggest you look into others and see what else is out there..There are many cool blogs that talk about anything and everything..I know, I know no time.. I have the same problem, but now and then a quick little fun read is good for everyone.

photo flckr by robin hamman

Our 11th Wedding Anniversary

Saturday March 8th we celebrated (well, with the kids, the colds, work etc...not really celebrated) our 11th wedding anniversary. We passed the 10 year mark now we have 9 more years to go to pass the 20 year mark.. Not sure about him as he would have to comment himself but the past 11 years have flown by.

We've had good times and bad times, health and sickness, children and problems, and through it all we are still here. Although marriage is something you need to work at, I'm very happy at the moment and hope that we can continue on this journey together...

We hope to be able to celebrate it later in the year with a mini vacation.. Just the two of us.. We will see..

Bella goes to the MARQ museum in Alicante

Bella went on her first field trip to a the MARQ museum (Archaeological Museum) right here in Alicante. She was thrilled to be able to go on the BIG bus without Mama and Papa. She felt very grown up!..

I tried to ask her what she saw and to please give me a brief description of the trip and this is all I got:

"We went on the BIG bus and I sat next to Marina, we met Llumiq (I think, from what I saw on their web page that llumiq is some sort of animated animal that gives them a tour of the museum). Llumiq was very nice, they gave us a ballon, and we made put two shells with clay together"

I asked her if she saw any prehistoric things, to which she replied:

"I told you, I went on the Big bus, they gave me a balloon and I met Llumiq, that is a lot, I'm very tired!"

So there you have it Bella's first field trip...

Not Spring yet in Alicante

Today we had the weirdest weather, if we were still living in Miami we would have had a hurricane warning and everyone would have been out buying materials to last for months, we would have been boarding up the house and listening to all the TV stations for news of what else we should do...But not here in Alicante..

The winds were well, not sure the actual speed, but I had to hold on tight!! I could hardly open our front door and when the wind was hitting me, I could hardly breath.. It was also very, very cold..

In a couple of weeks Holy Week arrives in Spain and that is generally when the good weather starts appearing and even some daring tourist take a dip in the pool or brave the ocean waves..Not sure what they will do if this weather continues...

photo weather report alicante

A rough week

It is only Wednesday, hump day but so far this week has been one of the hardest ever. I can't comment too much about it yet, but as soon as I can I will make many comments on this blog..

If you want to personally email me I will be more than happy to tell you what is going on.. but lets just say that life throws you many surprises and some of them are very unfortunate and very disturbing..

I leave you with that and will continue blogging away with our Spain stories...

photo flickr

Men and housework,

No offense to any men out there who do housework and no offense to those who don't..I just need to talk about it..My girlfriends and I, in our husband comparison (yes, we do that! we compare everything..hahaha jk) find that there are several similarities that they all share when it comes to doing housework.

We first find that when a man does decide to help around the house they usually do it in a sort of half way..For instance if they do laundry this consist of putting clothes in the washer (a mixture of color and fabric) and hit the ON button, sometimes without even putting the detergent in and lets not even mention the clothes softener.. They then take the clothes out and place them in the dryer, again, not sorting or removing any items that should no go in the dryer and press the ON button.Yes, forget about the softner sheets..and voila the laundry is done!! This is the same with the dishes..Dirty dishes, they go in the dishwasher, no need to rinse them or organize them properly just in you go and hit the ON button..(again, we are not sure if there is dishwasher detergent added).How about making the bed? I don't think they even realize that they have to make a bed, I mean its just going to be un made again at night..why bother??

So..is it worth it for our husbands to help us with the housework or is it better to do it ourselves, knowing we will have to only do it once...Let me know..

photo flckr

The Tooth Fairy vs El Ratoncito Perez

Marco lost his second tooth last week and he wondered who would bring him his gift, the Tooth Fairy or El Ratoncito Perez..(poor Marco he's had a lot of concerns this week hahaha). You see here in Spain it is not the Tooth Fairy who brings you gifts when you leave your tooth under your pillow it is The Ratoncito Perez ( The Mouse Perez, Perez being his last name)..

I explained that because we live in Spain the Ratoncito Perez takes care of it here and if were were living in the United States the Tooth Fairy would take care of it there..He was still not quite convinced and asked if they knew each other and if they shared tooth stories..He was also very concerned that they may not understand each other because of course the Tooth Fairy speaks English and the Ratoncito Perez speaks Spanish.. I told him, they both spoke different languages and that they indeed share many stories.. He then asked who brought gifts to the kids in China, Italy, France?????

I told him I had to research it and get back to him..Research it I did, and actually found a website that explains everything. Toothfairy.net lets you know everything there is to know about the Tooth Fairy and more..

photo google images

How many days does February have?

Marco asked me today how many days February had. He was confused as to why it did not have 30 or 31.. I tried to explain that this year is Leap Year and that February has 29 days but that next year it will only have 28..He was very confused and concerned about the poor little boys and girls who were born on the 29th of February.. What do they do the years they don't have a birthday..

Good Fn.. question... How the hell do I know?? I had to explain that they could be celebrated on March 1st and that it didn't matter...Anyway, today when I picked him up from school , he had a birthday party invitation (what else is new, I have to make sure to get to the quota of freaking birthday parties this year!!!) and he said, look mom its Sofia's birthday and she was born on February 29th so this year she gets to celebrate her birthday so we have to go to the party because it is very special for her!!!

So, there you have it, in conclusion, I have a birthday party to attend to, Marco is excited that one little girl will be able to enjoy her special day and February still has 28 days...

Round Two! Bella's party at school

It's not enough nowadays to simple have a birthday party you also need to celebrated in school with all your friends.. Lucky for me I had to go and entertain 23 kids for one hour.. Yes, lots of fun.... I brought them snacks and candy and read them a story..

For the most part they paid attention but really, the rest of the time they spent yelling, screaming, crying, laughing, fighting with each other, asking me questions, telling me they had to go pipi or caca, singing, dancing, talking, climbing, painting, playing with toys, spilling things....ALL AT THE SAME TIME!! I definitely would not make it as a kindergarten teacher for more than 10 min...

Overall, the kids had a great time.. I guess.. and I have a huge headache. I'm glad the next birthday is not until December!! I think I will have time to recover...maybe...

To see the rest of the pics click HERE

Isabella's big birthday bash

You would think she was turning 21, the way Isabella and all her little friends celebrated this special day. Saturday afternoon we had the big birthday bash for Isabella who turned 4. She had been sick the day before but that didn't matter a bit when she woke up on Saturday and told us she was ready for her party.

She specifically asked for a princess cake and lots of balloons..We obliged on both accounts..She was quite pleased with the turn out and her gifts..She played with her friends and simply had a blast..The adults also seemed to have a great time..(there was lots of alcohol of course)..

Well, until next year I guess..

View all pictures HERE

Isabella turns 4

Its Bella's 4th birthday today. The picture above is the one she has chosen to represent her..Don't ask!!! Anyway, the poor thing is sick today and had to stay home from school. I hope she feels better tomorrow because that is when we are celebrating her b-day here at the urba..

I can't believe she is already 4!! How time flies.. She is very into the princesses, painting, singing and dancing..She forgets she is 4 sometimes and thinks she is 20..

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ISABELLA WE LOVE YOU!!!!!

Marco and his homework

Believe it or not, little Marco who is in first grade already gets loads of homework..and he doesn't like it one bit!! He is great at math and finishes that part fast but the writing ..that takes him a little longer..

Yesterday, I sat for hours with him trying to encourage him...but he is just not interested...Anyone have any tips how I could get him to like homework..hahhahaa

What documents Do you have???

Like I always ask don't laugh when you read this.. but in this case, you will not be able to help yourself!!

Lets see, how do I start.. I first need to remind everyone that my fathers friend gave us his old car as a gift. It is an older Citroen but runs great and for what we use it is perfect. Ok, now you also need to know that he gave it to us last November and the insurance ran out in December and we just haven't gotten around to getting new insurance because neither Matt nor I have a Spanish drivers license (remember this fact) so no Spanish insurance company will insure us and International insurance is very expensive so we were trying to figure out a way around it. The car also needed to have its yearly inspection, of which I wrote about our experience in an earlier post..Ok got all that so far..

Well, Matt decided to take the car to work yesterday and also decided he needed to make a phone call while driving .

I received a call from Matt yesterday afternoon letting me know he had been stopped by the police and that he had no clue what they were saying to him. The policeman got on the phone and asked me if I could tell Matt to please show him, the car registration, insurance, inspection paperwork and a drivers license. I acted dumb and said he should have all that in a case in the car....a few minutes later he gets on and tells me ok, I found the car registration now do you have the inspection paperwork? I told him about how we had failed the test and need to go back....he then asks me do you have insurance and I say...ummmm yes, no,, not sure..he tells me no problem I will check in the computer..he comes back on the phone and tells me...NO, you don't have any insurance now, could you please ask your husband to show me his drivers license...gets back on the phone and asks me..does your husband have a resident card..and I start to explain how he lives here and in the states and is an important music composer and travels a lot.....he then tells me..

Ok maam.. I stopped your husband because he was talking on the phone while driving, he has no valid drivers licence, no insurance and the car has not passed the inspection....and I say...umm..yes??? He then tells me that because he is a lover of music he is going to let him go!!!! he said he could have easily towed the car, giving us a ticket for everything and even have taken him to jail!!! He just asked that Matt drive the car to a nearby place park it and get insurance.. He said he would pass by Matt's recording studio in a couple of days to make sure we have insurance...He said I should be there so I could show my drivers license HAHAHAHAHAHA..

photo flckr by so cal metro

Fidel quits, maybe Marco was right

On our recent (very recent) trip to Miami, Marco became very interested in Cuba and Fidel Castro. He asked M.T and my dad a million questions and wanted to know all about Cuba and "el fidel malo" as he calls him. M.T and my dad were very patient and told him many stories, many true heartbreaking stories about their past, their escape, and the people left behind.

Marco was in awe an suddenly said "I want to go to Cuba", then he said "I think we are all going to go May 5th", he was very sure of himself..We laughed it off, but thought, what does he know that we don't.. so today with the news of the dictators resignation, I was reminded of that statement Marco made and thought.. could it be....

source aol

photo flickr by BABAK.MOZAFFARI

First day back to reality

I must admit it was hard getting up this morning, the jet lag got the best of all of us and we were beat.

Marco was welcomed in school like a king, all his friends were very excited to see him and as soon as he got out of school he already had a play date! Isabella's friends were also very excited to see her and one of her friends gave her a little gift..

My first day back to work was hectic but I was glad to be in the routine again and in away its like the starting of my vacation (NO KIDS!!), if my bosses are reading this, they are probably going to ask me if I should pay them if the job is a vacation spot..hahahaaaa....

It will probably take all week to catch up on sleep and adjust our schedules..and Friday is Isabella's birthday which we will celebrate in school that day and in our Urba on sat.. How much fun for me!!!!

pictured marco & I in the rainforest cafe in downtown Disney (I'm taking advantage and posting photos of our trip here are there), where Marco fell asleep while eating he was exhausted!!!

We are home

I can't believe it we are finally home! We are very jetlagged, tired and confused..hahahah..we had a great trip but now its back to reality.. I don't have much energy to write much today so I will leave you with the pictures of our trip..

You can click on the ONLINE PHOTO ALBUM and click on miami trip feb 08 or simply click HERE to view all the pictures.

Travel issues on our last day

I don´t want any laughter after you read this!!!! Here goes...

We were to leave Miami on Thursday February 14th Valentines Day..by the way happy love day to all.. our flight was scheduled for 5 30 pm on American Airlines..hahahahahahaa.. we got to the airport at 2 30 pm with plenty of time to spear.. we wait in line to check in for one hour an a half, when we got to the counter the guy if tells me that if I would have read my itenarary correctly I would have seen that the American flight was operated by Iberia and that I should hurry up and get there before its too late........

We run as fast as we possibly can, with 6 pieces of luggage, 4 hand luggage, coats, running people over and dragging the kids ..literally dragging them through the entire airport.. we get to Iberia and there is no line so I think , thank God...we get up to the counter and show my paperwork.. the lady looks at it and gives me a funny look.. she walks away and comes back to tell me.. maamm..your flight is for tomorrow..the flight today is booked but maybe you can run back to American and see if they could help you.....

We run as fast as we possibly can...(pretty much read the pragraph above but the other way) hahaha.. we get to the American counter and I go back to the same guy and tell him.. if you would have read my paperwork right it would have told you that our flight was for tomorrow.. but please, please.... please.. can you book us on todays flight...I begged and begged and explained that if I had to call my dad and tell him to come pick us up he would kill me....

To make a long story short.. we are in Madrid..we had a great flight.. we are very tired but we made it. Matt will pick us up tomorrow and we should be in Alicante by Sunday...

picture flckr

Our last day of Vacation

We are very sad, it has gone by so fast..We have done so much, yet it seems like so little..We will miss all our friends and family. I would like to thank all the following people for their kindness and gifts to the kids..

My dad and M.T. who took us to Disney !! bought the kids gifts and let them destroy their beautiful beach apartment..we love you and we will miss you..

To my brother and Cristina for their hospitality, their beautiful son and the honor they have giving me by making me a Godmother.. we will miss you guys and hope that you will visit us soon...

To Margie and Chris, Minna, as she is called by the kids went to Disney with us and showered the kids with gifts and love, the poor thing had to sleep with Bella and had the patience not to kill her..Chris took Marco and Bella to Chuckey Cheese, an event Marco will never forget..we will miss you very much..

To Alex and Cindy for their gifts and love to the kids.. Alex we can´t wait to see you guys in Madrid very soon..Cindy, keep the Skype on girl, and we will chat..

To Alberto and Patricia for the wonderful lunch and company. We will see you in Madrid very soon..

To aunt AnaMarie, Marco is reading up a storm his Harry Potter collection and Isabella will not take the princess dress off.. thanks for the dinner and getaway, that I really needed.. love you and hope to see you in Spain soon.

To Mark and Maruchi and little Mark for the fun times.. Marco and Bella said.. we liked that boy he was very nice..hahaha... take care and keep in touch..

To Alex and Cucu and the kids.. Marco and Isabella wanted to stay in your house and live forever..you have a beautiful family and we wish you the best..

Tom and Wanda, it was great seeing you, You have a beautiful daughter, love to you and with luck with the new business venture..

If I forgot someone, I´m sure you will let me know..

Again, thank you to all.. We will miss you but we will stay in touch through this blog..

Tristan´s Baptism

On Sunday February 10th, I became the proud Godmother of my nephew Tristan. The ceremony was celebrated in the same church that my brother and sister in law were married. It was beautiful and Tristan was a very good boy. He did not cry when the holy water covered him and smiled happily for all the pictures.

The entire family was there and we celebrated the reception at my brothers house with lots of Cuban food and drinks. I was able to see all my stepbrothers and sisters and their kids as well as old friends. My dad took lots of pictures that I will post on our online photo album as soon as I get back.

Everyone looked great! We had a lot of fun, we ate and talked about old times. I´m blessed with so many friends, family members and now a new Godson..

Pictured are Tristan, Arianna, Isabella and Anissa!

Caca Verde

For those of you who don´t know what the tittle means, I will tell you ¨green shit¨ , yes you read right, green shit.. It seems that Marco and Bella ate something that has turned their caca verde and Marco in particular is very upset.. He has asked me not to tell anyone, and of course like a bad mother I´m, I write a post about it...hahaha.

Not sure what the hell they ate but they make me look at their caca and are fascinated by the different colors!! I´m very grossed out and hope that the shit returns to normal soon...

I guess American food is not settling too well with them, although they are enjoying eating everything they see and more...

picture google

Disney trip

My dad and M.T invited us to Disney for two days. We drove up on Wednesday (an almost 4 hour car ride) to Orlando, where we stayed in an awesome apartment very close to the Disney parks. We woke up early on Friday morning and headed to Disney World. They said it was going to thunder storm but we had a wonderful sunny day.

The kids were in awe! They didn´t know where to look first.. Isabella got to see all the princesses up close, we even saw Cinderella's stepmother and ugly stepsisters!! Bella was a little afraid of them and decided not to take a picture with them. Marco loved the pirate ride, and the haunted house! We also got to see Minnie's house and waited over 20 minutes to take a picture with her because Bella insisted and when it was our turn, Isabella decided she was scared of Minnie and guess who took a picture with her.....

The second day we went to MGM where we saw all the playhouse characters, we saw little mermaid on stage singing, and we even went to an animation drawing class, where they teach you how to draw and when the teacher came around to see our drawings, he couldn't tell which one was mine and which one was Isabellas, I was quite embarrassed that she already draws better than me..

Overall, we had an amazing time and we all thank my dad and M.T !! As soon as I get back home I will post all the pictures in our photo album..

Weekend in Madrid

We had a great time in Madrid, it was very cold and rainy but the kids had a ball in the Retiro Park with their dad while I went shopping with my mom and aunt..We also went to see Beauty and the Beast, the musical on Friday night.. It was awesome.. the show started at 10 pm so lets just say that the kids were a little tired from the car ride from Alicante (after the early wake up call to go get the passports) but once at the theater they were awake and ready for the show.

Isabella loved to see the princess and Marco thought it was all too romantic but enjoyed the special effects, I loved it!! The sets were just incredible and the actors and singers were magnificent, I highly recommended for everyone.. if you like that sort of stuff.

The kids also got to visit their cousins Rocio, Paula and Macarena at their house where they played all night long..

then we were off to Miami....

The trouble with passports

Don´t know where to even begin with this one.. It all started last Thursday the day before we were to leave for Madrid, I realized that Marco´s American passport was expired and freaked out but thought ok, no problem I will renew well not really re new but get the new digital Spanish passport needed to travel..We all had to get up extra early to go to the passport office to renew and when our turn comes around (after a couple of hours waiting) I´m told I need his original birth certificate from Spain, I explain I have the American original since that is where he was born!! I did have a photo copy of a literal paper from Madrid stating he was a legal Spanish citizen but they said that was not valid!! After arguing for a while the very nice man let it slide!! Thank God right...




WRONG... when we get to the airport on Monday morning (I will write another post about the Madrid weekend) We were right on time, everything was going soo smoothly that for a second I thought.. everything is going way to smooth, something will happen.. and as we are being interrogated by the little robots of American Airlines, I´m told that Marco and Isabella need to fly with their American Passports because they are American..When I explain Marco´s passport is expired.. they are not to happy and call the American Embassy, which tells them to tell me that I must renew before flying!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, so Im, having a heart attack and thinking this can´t be happening to me..but there was nothing they could do, they kindly booked us on the flight for the next day and said I should go to the American Embassy right away... I decided I should call them to find out what I needed.. Thank God I had brought Marco´s original birth certificate, because I was planning to re new his passport in the states.. they tell me all I needed was the old passport, the original birth certificate, 2 pictures and my husband!! ok, wait a minute my husband is in Alicante.. hahahahaa.. well, they said his choice is to either get to Madrid or to Valencia before 2 pm.. Lets just say Matt was not very happy when I woke him up and told him to get his ass out of bed and drive all the way to Valencia to sign some sort of authorization paper..

At the American embassy, entering is entering the freaking white house, they take all electronics away from you and literally search every part of you.. I didn´t have a phone to contact Matt, so I filled out all the necessary paperwork and had to just sit there looking at the clock and hope that Matt would make it before 2 pm... at 1 50 I was given the passport!!!

WE are in Miami right now.. safe and sound.. we are leaving for Disney in a little while so I will write more when we get back..


A mis amigos de habla española, nos vamos a disney en unos minutos y no me da tiempo de traducir.. podeis usar un traductor online come ESTE para que os ayude.. os prometo que cuando tenga mas tiempo escribire en español..

fotos flickr

We are off.....

Ok, this is the last post from Spain. We are leaving tomorrow morning to Madrid then on Monday off to Miami!! packing almost done..check...tickets in hand..check..passports...check...kids medicine to knock them out in the plane...check!!!!!

Once in the U.S I will write a couple of blogs in Spanish for my Spain friends we leave behind and want to hear all about our trip..

Nothing left to say here..

pick thanks to Djo's in flckr

Two days away from travel and nothing packed

I don't even really have time to write this post and it will be short at that. I'm freaking out, I have sooooooo much to do and no time to do it in.. I need to finish the laundry, figure out what to pack for Madrid (freezing cold) and Miami (probably nice and warmer).

The kids are so excited they don't even know what to do...Isabella tried to help me pack and took all her clothes and put them in the suitcase!!! I'M NO KIDDING!! ALL HER CLOTHES!! (SHOES INCLUDED), guess I don't need to pack for her now...

Ok, I will try to post tomorrow if not i will when we get to Miami..

picture thanks to flckr

In Miami one week from today

I truly almost forgot the date and when my mom called me this weekend to ask me how the packing was going, I said to her, "From Paris? I was only there for a day Mom" and she said, "Not Paris, you idiot for Miami" and that is when it hit me that in about a weeks time I would be off to visit my friends and family..

I have so much to do, and I really have until Friday because we are leaving right after work to spend the weekend in Madrid, since we leave from there on Monday. We are going to take advantage and see the Beauty and the Beast musical while we are there..The kids are very excited.. well , I think I'm more excited than they are.

I hope I will be able to see all of you there. Margie, are you ready for Disney?, Ana Marie, I don't have your phone number I know you have given it to me on numerous occasions, please do so again, Tom and Wanda, you lost souls I hope you re appear, Alberto and Patricia, I know you will make time to come see us, Ana can't wait to see the little new one, Leonor we will need to catch up.

Here are the details we get there Monday February the 4th, we will probalby be exhausted. I think the next day we will go up to WPB to visit Tony and family and also Evelyn will there from LA, Wed afternoon we leave for Disney and will be back on Sat, Sun the 10th is Tristan's Baptism after that we are pretty much free, so please call me to book some time. I will not have a car and will not be able to get around, so I hope you can all pass by my dads house at the beach.

Can't wait to see everyone there..

photo thanks to bridgepix

My day in Paris with Passionata

I'm still trying to recover from my very mini trip to Paris last Thursday. After years of dreaming with Paris, all of a sudden I found myself there. Although it was only for one day it was an experience I will never forget.
My bosses very nice people!!! allowed me to go to an event for the lingerie line called Passionata. I had to wake up at 4:30 am to catch a 6:30 flight that would take me to Madrid then run around the Madrid airport for more that half an hour, trying to figure out where the hell I was going to finally catch the Paris flight. I was very calm, and I'm still not sure why.

Once in Paris I was picked up in a Mercedes and taken to a very chic restaurant which happened to be in walking distance to the Eifel Tower.. I met other bloggers in my field and I was sat in a table with the Italian bloggers because there was no room in the Spanish blogger table.. We had a great lunch and wonderful conversation..hahhahaa.. ok, they had a great conversation among themselves as I just sat there nodding at everything they said.. I still think they thought I understood what they were saying..but I just kept thinking.I'm in Paris, I'm in Paris..

We then walked over to the crazy horse a sort of burlesque type cabaret bar, a famous landmark in Paris. There we sat down to watch the show..I sat very close to the stage and I'm still not sure if this was good or bad. We were all expecting to see the top models of Paris strutting their stuff, showing us all the different types of lingerie Passionata had to offer. But instead we were offered an erotic, sensual show that took my breath away.. I actually saw more than I wanted to see but they sure got the point across. IF you wold like to see part of the show just go to passionata show and register they will send you a login and password and you will see what I'm talking about.

Once the show ended we were free to venture around the streets of Paris for an hour.. I didn't see much but just walking around the streets, was awesome.On the way back home my flight was late and I didn't get home until 1 am.. tired, excited and wanting more..

Full moon today Tuesday January 22nd 2008

I love full moons and tonight we could really appreciate the beauty of it. We were able to view it beautifully from our house, it was huge and crystal clear, it was stunning. The full moon is in Leo today which signifies the total surrender of ones personal vision through self actualization by the use of creativity. I know a lot of mumble jumble.. But it also happens to be the 22nd a very spiritual number so be aware tonight.

Full moons bring your deep emotions to the surface, so if you are feeling a bit off or emotional today, not to worry the moon will soon give way to a new phase. If you want to know how the full moon in Leo will affect you depending on your astrological sign read more HERE

The picture you are seeing was taken today by hasily a flckr user and its impressive..

Fama a bailar! I'm hooked

I hardly have time to watch televison but when I happen to see something that interests me I'm hooked. I'm currently hooked on "Grey's Anatomy", "Desperate Housewives" and now a new TV program from Spain called FAMA. It is a type of American Idol but for dancers.

There were auditions all over the country and 10 girls and 10 guys were chosen to enter a dance school called FAMA (yes, fame), they compete daily with new choreographies in classical, hip hop, funky and other styles. It is on daily from 3:30 to 5:00 pm so when I get home from work, I now have my lunch in front of the TV..I try to get other things done but lately I have just been glued to the tv set..

I hope to outgrow this obsession soon because I have a lot of things to get done..hahaha...

Weekend Birthday Parties

I guess Marco and Isabella are at that age where birthday parties are part of our daily routines. But you don't realize that parties not only take time away from you they also take money away for you. Last year I realized that I had to incorporate in our financial budget a birthday budget.

Yes, I know it sounds a little ridiculous but think about it, we have 2 kids, there are about 20 kids per class, about 10 friends in the urbanization and unfortunately or well many would think fortunate, our kids are very popular and invited to every single freaking birthday party in town.

Now, let's do the math. 2 kids times 20 classmates each = 40 kids + 10 urba friends = 50 kids. Ok, now each gift cost an average of 15 euros so 50x15=750 euros a year in birthday gifts and average of 62.5 a month. so, there you have it.. Aside from the mortgage, gas bill, electric bill, phone bill, food, car insurance and so on we now need to add a birthday party fund.. and lets not even talk about their actual birthdays, where an average party costs about 200 bucks x by 2 and now your total birthday deal is almost a grand a year...

Those of you who don't have kids yet, this gets you thinking huh?? its not just diapers and formula, with each stage there are new costs..

This month so far we have gone to 2 birthday parties and Marco had one today and Bella has one tomorrow so we are right at the 4 average that I budgeted..so if anyone else invites them this month we will have to pass...

Passing the ITV emissions test in Spain

I don't know if to laugh or cry but here goes. The story begins last year, when a very good friend of my dad's who lives in Madrid but has a place here in Alicante gave us his used car as a gift! A very generous gift which we appreciate. The car is a Citroen (to tell you the truth, I have no clue what model or year, but it is a least 10 years old). The car runs great and Matt uses it to get around when I'm using the other car...

Ok, so today we had to take it for its yearly emissions test otherwise called the ITV (inspecion tecnica de vehiculos). We start out by not knowing where the hell this place was, we weren't sure what documentation we needed, not sure of the cost, or what they would put our little old car through. After driving around for half an hour lost (half way to Madrid, hahah) we finally found the place, we stood in line in our car only to find out we had to go in the office first, present documents then stand in line in your car.. Ok, all that goes well..

The test starts, and we felt like we were taking the driving test again... put your blinker on, the lights, the break lights, windshield wipers, emergency lights, open the trunk, do the seat belts work...then you go to level two the emissions part, press the accelerator as hard as you can and see how much shit comes out of the back.. then a noise pollution test, again rev up the engine to 40 and see how loud it gets, then drive your car up over a hole where a guy is waiting beneath and speaks to you through a speaker which you can't really hear or understand what he wants you to do, he then preceeds to shake your car down like he was making some sort of junk cocktail..

At the end we failed!! yes, we failed, and I thouht we had performed so well.. it seems, our windshield wiper needs a new blade, one of our headlights flickers and our emergency break is lets just say not ready for an emergency...so, there you have it.. after paying 40 euros we must return within a month pay another 40 euros and hope that our little old thing could withstand all the probing again. Needless to say we must take the car to the shop for repairs..

Oh, the joy of adulthood..the kids don't know how good they have it..I will keep you updated on our progress.

pic flicker by Wendy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM

Today is my moms birthday so I have to dedicate this post for her. She is 71 years old and looks great (I do hope that beauty is in the genes so I could look this good at her age). She is enjoying her time and has a wonderful social life. So Happy Birthday MOM may you have many, many more..

Do you know why I like to eat my buggers?

Since, I always seem to write about how wonderful and great my kids are, I thought a post into reality now and then is always good. Today driving back from school Isabella said to me in Spanish of course..."Do you know why I like to eat my buggers?" and I said "No!!! why do you like to eat your buggers"? and she said "porque me gustan" in other words "Because they taste good" to which I had no reply!!

You just have to love kids and their sincerity, I'm sure if she ever looks back at this blog when she is older she is not going to be very happy with my sincerity.. but I thought you might all need a good laugh today..

The fish survived

I forgot to mention that over the holidays we had a little visitor we had to take care of. His name was (and is, thank God still IS) Flappy! Our upstairs neighbors went away for the holidays and left us with their daughter's little pet fish. Marco and Isabella were thrilled to have him!! as for me.. Well, this poor little guy lived in a round crystal jail and had to be cleaned daily!! Not much fun for me.. As if I didn't have enough with 3 kids (Matt is considered a child now and then), one dog and now a little wet fish.

Flappy survived Bella just as nemo survived "Darla", although she tried to "play" the straw game...(that was the game that killed our own poor little flappy.. Our little fish all of a sudden developed a little round hole which I thought was a tumor..hahahaha but later found out was a little hole from the poking with a straw!

Marco fed Flappy a little too much but at least did not play the straw game with him. The day before yesterday he was picked up by his loving family and I'm sure was glad to go..You may ask why I took a picture of him, well, for two reasons 1. in case something did happed I could take the picture to the pet store and replace him ( I know very mean, it wasn't my idea it was another neighbors ides) and 2. I thought it would make a nice post.

Kids are back in School!!

I know, it sounds mean.. I love my kids, and I love to spend time with them. I have really enjoyed the holiday vacation but Marco and Isabella are two young children with a lot of energy, way too much for me..They were actually looking forward to starting school again. Isabella said "I can't wait to start school, you people here are no fun", Marco said "I want to see my friends again but I have gym class today and I don't really want to go".. hahahaa...

I told my bosses today that my actual vacation started today.. My boss stated if that was so I should pay him instead of him paying me..hahaha.. Ok, so its not actually vacation but I do love going to work, being able to be productive and have converstation with adults..

I hope your beginning of the work week has been eventful..Talk to you all soon..

HAPPY THREE KINGS DAY

What the hell is that you are asking? Well, let me tell you, here in Spain the holidays are not over until we celebrate "Los Reyes Magos" (the three kings day), this holiday is one of the biggest of the year, it is as big as Christmas day, most children in Spain receive their holiday gifts today and not Christmas day. It has a more religious meaning than Santa Claus and therefore is considered a very special day.

One of my favorite traditions of this day is the "Roscon de Reyes" (pictured above) a special round cake that is consumed with hot thick chocolate.. Last night we went to a parade, where the Three Kings arrived and threw candy and toys at the kids, and after this we went to a neighbors house to have the traditional cake!

We have to compromise and the gift giving and it is done half and half so there are no issues. The kids get to receive presents twice (doesn't mean they get more, just in two separate days). Today Marco and Bella woke up to gifts from the Reyes and were very excited. Today is their last day of vacation, so they made sure they enjoyed it to the fullest.

I'm sad the holidays are over they went way to fast but in another way I do want to get back to the routine. How were your holidays? Are you ready for 2008? You can view our first January 2008 photos here.

Marco playing basketball with "Snap" Hunter

Our friends Crystal and Jimmy came over the other day for a visit and Marco took the opportunity to show "Snap" his moves. Snap is an American basketball player who is playing this year for the Murcia team. We met him and his wife last year and just love them.

Marco is in that stage of his life where he finds everything fasinating and is starting to find out what he really likes and dislikes.. so far we know he loves soccer, he likes judo but I think could do without it, he is starting to really love guitar and piano is still a joy, but lately he has been very interested in basketball. For his birthday he asked for a basketball, that is all he said.

Well, as you can see from the video he has a long way to go.. you can view more pics in the December album.

Starting the New Year

It is only the second day of the New Year and there already many new exciting things happening. The first very exciting thing is Matt's upcoming concert on Friday January 4th where he will be on stage with his new muse Estefania Gralla for a Christmas concert. I will report on that this weekend.

The second very exciting thing is our upcoming trip to Miami on February 4th, we will be there until February15th. Our nephew Tristan's baptism will be February 10th and I'm the proud Godmother. In this trip we will be taking the kids to Disney compliments of my papa!!! They are so excited, everyday they ask me when we are going to Miami to see Yayo and Abi.

The other very exciting thing for me is an upcoming trip to Paris January 25th to see a fashion show, it is a one day trip for work but my dream of being in Paris and to attend a fashion show combined is way too much for me.. Thanks to my bosses Fernando and Julia for this wonderful gift.

Ok, not too bad for the beginning of the year..