Vaca in the Algarve

We decided to take our summer vacation down in the Algarve, to follow Portuguese tradition and see what the hype was all about.  Ever since we have lived over here everyone has talked about the Algarve region and how beautiful it is.  They do it right over here as far as the holidays go and taking time off.  August is the holiday month, where most people will take at least two-to-three weeks off of vacation.  Keeping to the over-worked, American way we took a long weekend instead to enjoy our "holiday" and it was great.  The region is so beautiful and the beaches and water are much softer/bluer than up north where we live.  We opted to stay at a Hilton, knowing we would have English speaking staff, and it worked out perfectly.  The resort was so family friendly, had daily kid activities, special plastic serving ware at breakfast buffet and the staff was so kind.  I was in heaven being there because for the first time living in Portugal, I actually felt like I could have conversations with strangers.  There were so many British families staying at the resort and I could listen to and talk to them ALL day long.  Their accents are the best and they are such lovely people.  Annabelle had an absolute blast playing with kids all day long and actually got to communicate with some of them.  Thank goodness.

We were within walking distance from the marina, which was so neat.  It was much larger than we expected and lined with a variety of restaurants.  Our first night we opted for an Irish Pub, as they had chili cheese nachos on the menu…something I have never seen over here.  They were amazing…at the time :)   We spent one of our days with the Pintos and their family enjoying the beautiful beaches.  They knew of a great beach to go to about 20 minutes outside of the "main beach", so was so glad we got to see more of a locals spot.  We spent 4 great days there and wish we could have stayed for more.

Annabelle loving life!!

I love this picture so much because it captures the diversity of the families that were vacationing at the same time.  We had a little Spanish boy, Portuguese girl, British boy and AB all playing together, not knowing what the other was saying, but spent a good hour laughing and splashing around together.

First night at the marina.  We opted to take our picture in front of the smallest boats…(not really but funny looking at the picture in detail).

The beach that we went to on Saturday was lined with these dunes behind the beach.  They probably stretched for miles with beautiful white sand in front and the ocean further down.  Almost providing a private backdrop.

The architecture and some of the homes in the area were unreal.  I tried to take pictures as we were driving, but didn't get any to do it justice.  The region has exploded over the past 15 years and the street systems were not developed to handle the amount of traffic the region now sees.  We literally had to drive down all these dirt roads and one way rocky paths to get to our hotel, but found out that the entire place is the same due to the boom.

The marina and a glance of the restaurants and boats lined along the perimeter.

Family selfie on the way to the marina.

Last night.

The Starrs in Porto!

Some of our dearest friends and best old neighbors, the Starrs', made a trip over to see us and spend a long weekend here in Porto.  Kristi and Heath arrived early Thursday and kicked off 3 full days of sun, laughter, drinks and fun.  We had such a wonderful time showing them around Porto, experiencing some of the local cuisine and sitting down at the sea cocktailing and talking.

We all over served ourselves at one point or another during their stay and consumed more food in 3 days than we normally do in a full week.  Annabelle loved having them here, but was so confused why Knox was not with them and know she wished he was here too.  We had some great laughs as they experienced the culture and could not understand why no restaurants give you napkins, just a thin piece of tissue paper, why you don't tip, the slowness of being served, healthy pours of wine and obsession with eggs on everything.

Friday night on our way to a very authentic fish restaurant, we stumbled upon what would be best described as a Renaissance festival.  It was so bizarre, but so fun.  There were vendors lined along a street selling all sorts of random food, clothing items, jewelry, etc.  It was very random, but we had a blast tasting different sangria's, stewed pork (didn't bode well the next day for any of us), and even purchased some flower head attire late night.  We wrapped up their stay with a day downtown, drinking some vino and heading to Gaia to see the Port wine caves.

We had such a wonderful time with them here and are so thankful that they were able to make the trip over to see us!!  Thanks for the great memories!!

Love me some Kristi time…and red teeth :)

Andy was not fond of our photo session and refused to smile.  

Let's just say I might have lost my shoes at the restaurant and Heath might have "taken" the espresso cups…

Andy and Heath manning the grill.  Down in Matosinhos there is a famous street that is lined with the most authentic fish restaurants.  They literally prepare the fish out on their charcoal grills and serve it directly to your table.

God Bless America

Being abroad on the Fourth of July was harder than we thought it was going to be.  Something about not being in the USA felt off.  We tried to make the most of it, but it just wasn't the same.  Fortunately with the holiday falling on a Friday, Andy was able to work from home and spend the day with us.  We wanted to make it as "American" as possible, so we set out to play some mini golf, drink Budweiser and dine at our local Pizza Hut. In true Portuguese fashion the Pizza Hut did not open until 8:00, so had to tailgate outside for 30 minutes in anticipation of the buffet!!  Fat Americans :)

Overall we made the most of the day but it was another reminder of how much we love our country and the things it has to offer.  God Bless America…and to getting back there soon!

 She loved mini golf for about the first 5 holes and then decided it was more fun to lay on the concrete pads instead.  Their courses are made of concrete, not AstroTurf, so you are putting on concrete through concrete shapes and designs.  Unique...

 Just passing time before dinner!

USA vs. Portugal Futbol Madness

Not only have we been able to experience the World Cup in Europe this year, we ironically were placed in the same group with Portugal.  As the game approached Andy and Bob did a lot of smack talking…as much as you can when you can't understand much what the other is saying.  We were super excited for the game and to cheer on the USA.  Unfortunately the game time was 11 p.m. in Porto Sunday night, which made for a very late night, but was well worth it!!

We were the ONLY Americans at the watch party and did ourselves no good cheering when the USA scored.  The Ostrega's, a couple from Andy's work, happened to be in town and were staying with us that week, so joined us in the madness and futbol fun.  Wish we could have pulled off the win, but had a blast watching and experiencing the game over here.  Nothing like standing in a crowd of over 1,000 people sticking out like a sore thumb.  Go Red, White & Blue!

I made a friend…she kept throwing her Portugal scarf over me and hugging us when Portugal scored.

The girls representing!!  Red, white and blue.

AB loves her futbol games!  Don't mind the mid-drift in the background…it's the cool thing to wear over here.

It's 2 a.m. - please take me home!

Back to America

I cannot express how amazing it was to walk off the airplane in America!  We had been anticipating and talking about our trip back home for what seemed like eternity and it was finally here.  Unfortunately Annabelle and I had to travel alone, as Andy's travels arrangements had to be altered and could not get on our flights, but we made it back safely and in one piece!

Stepping off the plane in Newark was the most euphoric feeling I think I have ever had.  It was such a sense of relief, happiness, excitement, so many emotions all bottled up inside me.  Annabelle did such a wonderful job traveling AGAIN.  Many people commented on how good she was and of course how cute she is too!

Being home was such a whirlwind, with our days jammed packed.  I felt like we went from one thing to the next the full 3 weeks.  There were still so many friends that I didn't get to see and things that we wanted to do, but think that is part of coming home for a limited amount of time.

Fortunately we were able to spend a full week in Destin, Florida with my family, which allowed us to unwind.  I can't say staying in a house with 4 kiddos was relaxing, everyone up at 6 am, but it didn't matter because we were with the family!  Annabelle had probably the best week of her life running around chasing her cousins, playing on the beach and getting extra love and attention from the fam.  Being with my sisters was so amazing and to watch them as moms was so heart warming.  I love that we are all on the journey of raising our kids close together and can help each other out.  The boys decided over the holidays that they were going to drive down, so created many memories over their 14 hour trips, some weird chants, chest bumps and boys club private group. Thanks to Honey and B, the kids were able to have a night out on the town and leave the littles back at home.  We all over served ourselves, danced our hearts out and crammed into taxis to take us to Destin's hottest night club.  The week was filled with so much enjoyment and gratification…of which we needed so badly!

As the time came to an end, I was dreading coming back, but knew it was part of the deal and would be back later this fall.  We are so thankful for the time, while limited, that we got to spend with our family and friends and for those that made their schedules work to be with us.  We feel so blessed to have such an amazing support system and cannot wait until we are home for good and can embrace the small things with family and friends.  Until next time…

And back we go :(