This was the first full week of school for the girls. There have been some tears, but I would say they are doing exceptionally well considering all the changes. Haila leaves for school before the sun comes up. She took this picture of the sunrise on her walk to school on Wednesday.
She also had her first Spanish field trip this week. Her class traveled to Malaga via bus and visited three art museums. They were allowed to take photos, so I included one here. The women in the piece reminds her of her third grade teacher, Miss Emily, who she adores.
They had some free time for lunch, so she went down by the port and took a few pics there as well. Notice she's sporting a sparkly new fanny pack (thanks to Beth and Kevin).
Haila was invited to a birthday dinner by a friend from school. The dinner didn't start until 9:30 PM! I'm still not used to the dining schedule here, and I'm not sure I'll ever adjust. She went last night and had a good time. This was the latest we've ever let her stay out with friends from school EVER. There have to be some advantages to moving to a small town in Spain, right?
In contrast, Aliah is still trying to find things to do after school. On Monday, I decided to walk her past the municipal recreational area. This area includes soccer fields, a gymnasium, some sort of racquet courts, and a small playset all inside a large fence. The gate was open, so we decided to check out the playset. It was probably designed more for preschoolers, but we still stayed and played for 15-20 minutes. When we decided to leave, we discovered that we were locked inside the fence. Yes, that's right... we were once again locked inside an area with no way to get out. Unbelievable!
She and I were standing at the locked gate peering out when a man and woman walked by. They asked some questions in Spanish, and I asked Aliah what they were saying. She told me they asked if we were locked in. When she said yes, they told her they would go get someone to let us out. She thought they probably worked there.
Before long, a man comes back wearing a navy jacket. He looks official though he's clearly not a policeman. He asks some questions in Spanish, and Aliah tells me he's asking how we got inside and how long we've been there. I tell her to tell him that the gate was open so we went inside to play and then found the gate locked when we tried to leave. He looks at us suspiciously. Again, he asks how we got inside? I have a feeling the gate was not supposed to be open. He lets us out and watches us walk away. I'm laughing at the ridiculousness of being trapped twice in less than two weeks. Can you say goat rodeo? He continues watching us walk up the block. Maybe he finds my laughter curious? I should probably stop laughing. Be serious, lady. This is no laughing matter!
Needless to say, we haven't returned to the park. However... we have found the aforementioned goat rodeo. Not really, but stay with me. Aliah generally has homework and likes to get it done right away after school. After she checks that off her list, she and Shawn often go for a walk about town to stretch their legs. On Thursday, they ran into a goat herder and his herd of goats. I thought they might have been walking out on the edge of town, but they were actually just steps from the recreational area. Go figure!
Shawn and I went for a long walk on Thursday as well. It doesn't take long to get out of town and onto the country roads, and it's really very peaceful. He's considering taking up running again.
He might as well. You can't beat the scenery.
I spent most of my week getting prepared for our upcoming appointments at the police station in Malaga. A week from Tuesday, all four of us will travel there to get our residence cards. Our visas expire on April 14th, so we need these cards to stay in the country beyond that date. I filled out all the forms (all written in Spanish, of course), got copies made, paid our fees, and figured out how to get the passport photos we need for the appointment. This doesn't sound like a lot of work, but everything takes longer than you would expect.
While waiting for the shop owner to make my copies, I had quite a bit of time to browse. This tiny store carries lots of things, school supplies, hygiene products, jewelry, night lights, and lots of candy, including multi-colored Unicorn Balls. I had to look twice at that one. This tasty treat will fizz in your mouth and then surprise you with it's liquid filling. Might have to bring some home to share with the neighborhood next Halloween. If you find one in your kid's treat bag, you'll know it came from the crazy Conleys.
The weather was pretty nice this week with highs in the low 60s. We got a little bit of rain yesterday and then the wind picked up during the night. It's quite a bit colder today and still very windy. We had clothes drying on the line and they were whipping around. Shawn literally lost a pair of pants.
However, in the midst of it all, we got the pleasure of seeing a full rainbow. It was super vibrant.
I consider this a really good sign!
May there be fewer tears and more smiles this next week! Love to all!!!
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