Water Park

Hollis and I purchased annual passes to the Madrid Parks.  We could visit the zoo, amusement park, aquarium, and several water parks throughout 2012.  We planned on going to the water park all summer because we were going to stay home and I knew that it would be unbearably hot.  Well, we are leaving next week so we decided to use them.

It cost us 2€ per person (because we went on a weekend).  And I couldn't go on any of the attractions because I'm pregnant.  However, I did enjoy the pool and loved taking pictures of Hollis.

They don't have the same restrictions in Spain as they do in the US.  They didn't seem to care how Hollis went down the slide.  He even spun some 360s!

I knew I had cut Hollis's hair into a mullet, but his hair doesn't seem that long because it is so curly.  But when Hollis came up out of the pool, I could see how long his hair truly was:

And this is me trying to get into the pool.

It went great until I had to get my belly in.  Then it was WAY too cold.

Hollis made me get in.  And it was nice that he did because it was nice to not feel so heavy.  But I also enjoyed sitting in the shade of the trees.  Especially after they made me take off my sunglasses (even though they were prescription and plastic and I couldn't go on any of the slides, they made me take them off so other people wouldn't want to wear sunglasses too).  I'm not bitter.  (Though I did cry.  I blame being pregnant.)

Saying goodbye

We've started packing for home, sort of.  You know, since we are leaving in four days.  This is how I pack:

 

I just throw everything in the other room.  And have it all spread out so that I can pack it more easily. And then adjust the weights of the bags.

We went out to lunch with the people that we've been having English conversations with all year.  They surprised us and paid for our lunch.  And gave us t-shirts.

(Steve, me, and Joey) 

I'm really going to miss all my co-workers, especially these guys.  We got to hang out a whole bunch and talk while we were waiting for our various classes.  This is the part I hate about moving.  *Sigh*

Chaperoning in Spain

Several students at the school got to go to the amusement park, and they needed chaperones.  I'm pregnant, so I can't go on any of the rides.  But I really wanted Hollis to come because we had amusement park passes, but I couldn't go with him since I've been pregnant.  So since Joey was also going to chaperone, I told Hollis to come too.

Heather, Joey, and Hollis had fun riding all the rides together.  Here they are on a roller coaster that the car spins as it goes around.  I really like it.

 

I hung out with these guys all day:

Yup.  My best friends right now are my water bottle, my spray bottle, and my fan.  They make life amazing.

Everyone is pregnant

Okay, not everyone.  But this is a photo of all the women in our ward who are due this year.  Rachel already had her niño.  Next is Fran, who is due already.  Melba is due at the beginning of August, Noemi is due the middle of August, I am due the beginning of September, Angel's wife (she was visiting, so I can't remember her name) is due a week after me, and Leti is due in December.

I just had to get a picture of all of us.  Fran, Melba, Noemi, Leti, and I are all expecting our first child.  So much fun being pregnant with so many other women.

Ward BBQ

Our ward in Alcalá has some pretty fun ward parties.  The thing that I found the most funny was that they were all very similar.  The women did the cooking, mostly outside, but passed some things through the window from the kitchen.

The men played soccer.

 

Hollis did such a good job playing.  I loved watching him play.

  

Had I not been pregnant, I might have joined in, but at our first social I didn't join in because I was too hot and no other girls were playing so I felt kind of awkward.

Construction

Ever since we moved here our bathroom has had smelly pipes.  We've placed a plug over the drain so I don't throw up when I walk past (because I'm more sensitive now that I'm pregnant).  Then one day I come home to this awesome destruction in our building entryway:

 I guess they decided to finally fix whatever the problem was.

Smoking and Spain

A lot more people smoke in Spain than in the US, at least in public.  But things are getting better.  They passed a "no smoking indoors" law last year that has made a huge difference.  But I really get a kick out of their warning labels:

Yup.  "Smoking kills" is all the warning they need.

Mullet

Well, I finally felt up to cutting his hair.  And as a joke I cut it into a Spanish mullet.  But then it actually looked good! (I mean, like a legitimate Spanish mullet.)  So we decided to keep it for now.

At church both he and I got several compliments on his hair.  One fellow said he wished his wife would let him have such a stylish haircut.

I promise, this is high fashion in Spain.