Summertime in the south of Spain

This summer Jose and I will be staying here in the south of Spain. It's the first time in many years that I will not be back in pure Michigan to spend time with family and friends during my vacation. I am pretty bummed out but by sticking around here for the summer we are hoping to finally be able to grow our family (cryptic enough for you) so I am trying to keep that in mind so as to not get too depressed about having to brave the sweltering sun during the next few months. 

 In any case, we have to be pretty close to Seville during the month of July and somehow I managed to talk my younger sister (now Dr. Krieg) and mom into coming for a visit. They arrive toward the end of the month and though it will be hot, we plan on lots of time at our pool and visits to places early in the morning and later in the evening. I love hosting visitors and having at least some of my family here will make this summer much more tolerable. Besides seeing Seville and since they arrive to and leave from Madrid, Jose and I are also planning on spending the day there with them before their return flight which should be a fun escape for a bit. They don't know it but we also have a surprise for them while they are here. Shhhhh.

 Knowing that we would be here for the duration of the summer I have been scouring Groupon for hotel deals to give us at least a taste of vacation and travel this summer. We found one for a themed hotel (think Arabian nights) close to the beach in Malaga where we will be headed for a weekend getaway in mid August. We also found an inexpensive apartment in the south of Portugal where we will be spending another weekend in August.

 Our big "trip" this year is going to be heading to my in-laws' apartment right across the border in Portugal for the first week of August. They usually rent it out to other people but have graciously penciled us in for a stay as well this summer. This is one of our favorite places to visit and spend time. We have been almost every weekend since the beginning of May because it is close to the beach and in a quiet village where we can relax. Plus we can take Cooper which is always a bonus. I am dreaming of how laidback this week away will be.

 Besides what we already have planned, Jose and I have decided to make a list of other things we would like to accomplish this summer while here in Spain. Here is what we came up with and I will keep updating the blog as we cross things off.

 1. Get a library card for our local library
2. Try out new restaurants in our town since we always seem to go to the same places
3. Go to the Bolonia beach in Cadiz and visit the Roman ruins that are nearby
4. Try to read as much as possible in our down time
5. Movie marathon
6. Catch up on TV series we have neglected
7. Escape to the mountains and go hiking

 Tomorrow starts our official summer vacation since Jose is finished at school. Yay!! I can't wait to relax and try to stay cool over the next couple of months. Check back!

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