Allie in the South of Spain

Today is not only Valentine's Day but also marks one year exactly since Jose and I spent the first night in our new apartment. There are a lot of days that it feels much longer, probably because of all the work we have put in to making this place a home but it really only has been 365 days. That first night we had a quiet dinner at home (a tradition we will continue tonight) and we slept on a mattress on the floor since we didn't have a bed yet. Check out the post from the very beginning: Our first few nights in the new place It is times like these that I am so thankful that I have documented most big events in our lives on this blog because I am able to look back and see what has changed, how things have come together, our struggles, impressions, excitements, disappointments.  Here are some before and after posts specifically about our apartment from the last year: Bathrooms Kitchen Living room Small bedroom Today I would also like to add a few more after pict...

Paradise on Earth Recently Jose and I bought our flights back to Michigan for the summer. Ka-ching! They are always very expensive but we happened to find a few that were less than normal. We jumped on them. This, combined with the crappy weather we have been experiencing (certainly nothing compared to what has been happening this winter back in the U.S.) here in the south of Spain and I find myself dreaming about summertime.  Last year Jose and I created a summer bucket list which we may continue the closer we get to flying out. Right now I am just getting excited for all the big events we have this year. Besides going to our weekly free-popcorn movie at the theater and laying out on the raft at the lake, we have quite a few things in the works for this summer. Mostly these events include a couple of short trips planned to do some domestic travelling. Can't wait! Cousins! 1. PUFO: This is short for the Perelli-Ugolini family outing and it is a weekend that we spend u...

Welcome to my third 30 before 30 list update. I am still slowly but surely crossing things off as I accomplish them and think I am on track to complete the majority before my 30th birthday (which is still a few years away yet). I am also excited because Jose and I have plans to be able to tackle a few more before we head back to Michigan this summer, such as number 7 (we would like to walk part of the Camino de Santiago in July) or number 23 (my sister and possibly my parents might visit us this spring). But onto the things I have been able to complete since my last update: 1. Go on another cruise. 2. Learn to cook Indian food. I have been playing around with recipes and finally found a super simple way to make chicken tikka masala (which I wrote about here ). It is my favorite Indian food and I am happy to say that I have also discovered an Indian restaurant here in Seville that I am excited to try out! Now we don't have to head to Portugal for our fix. The finished product...

My dog is needy. Like if I am sitting down in my apartment he needs to be on my lap needy. Like if I am standing doing something around the apartment he tries to jump into my arms to be carried around needy. Lately though I find that if I am distracted with something when I am home in the mornings before work, when I realize it, he has disappeared. This is not like him but now I am on to his game. When I am not paying attention he jumps into the bed where he knows he shouldn't be. I will find him cuddled under the blankets. I have started to take photos as evidence. As you can see from this last picture, he sometimes has the decency to try to look surprised that he has been caught even though he knows he isn't supposed to be there. Cooper usually sleeps in his crate with his blankie that he is loves. He is really comfortable and often will go in by himself at night without any prodding on our part. Would he prefer to sleep in the bed? Certainly as is evidenced ...

Last weekend I mentioned that Jose and I were headed to the state-mandated sales to try to find some work clothes that desperately needed replacing. We live pretty close to an outlet mall so we figured we would be able to take advantage of some great prices. Unfortunately this was not the case. We were quite disappointed in both the selection of clothing being offered as well as the discounts. Needless to say, we didn't end up leaving with much (I bought a pair of pants and a skirt for a whopping total of 12 euro). It was a bust. View of the outdoor market Since Jose still needed some new work wear we decided to try our luck at one of Seville's big outdoor markets that are set up on the weekends. I wrote about one trip we took there to do some Christmas shopping  here . These markets are not for the faint of heart. They are loud, crowded, sometimes smelly (mostly thanks to people smoking). This particular market is located on a big open parking lot. Vendors arrive early ...

I don't normally share recipes here on my blog but I recently learned to make my favorite Indian food (and it was super simple!). Admittedly it is a bit different from a traditional recipe but I used what I had and could find easily. First I made my spice mix, using about a teaspoon of each: For those of you who don't read Spanish those spices are: cinnamon, ground cumin, curry spice, ground ginger, cloves and paprika. These were easy to find in my local grocery store. Other spices that might be used in tikka masala (coriander for example) I wasn't able to locate. Side note: I used whole cloves because I already had them which means you have to be careful while eating and pick them out. The resulting mixture that I set aside: Next I cooked up my chicken. I used 2 big boneless, skinless chicken breasts. To this I added a few chopped garlic cloves and half a large onion. The first time I made this recipe I also used a few chopped tomatoes. (Today I didn...

Today Jose and I visited the Gran Hipodromo de Andalucia, a horse racetrack that we can actually see from our apartment's balcony. Each Sunday during January and February they offer free races and we have been talking about going for a while (we could basically walk there). Today we finally did and it was worth the visit. Though we can see the stands from our home, I didn't realize how large the actual track was. It's huge! The weather cooperated and we bought a few beers while waiting for the races to begin. They have one every half hour or so. Though we didn't partake in any betting (because we are pretty clueless) it seemed as if a lot of people did. There were lots of families there, enjoying a Sunday outside in the sun with (free) entertainment. When the race actually began, the majority of the people moved to the barrier to watch the horses as they galloped past. It was pretty exciting to watch them run by, but I had a hard time getting a good photo as you ca...