luisaionoramaia

Guess who came to visit us last month?

NORA,...

...and MAIA,...

and the rest of the Jambrina-Vallejo family, this time complete with Luis, Saioa and Saioa's little brother Daniel!

They stayed for a week and we had a really great time. It was wonderful to see the little cousins interacting so happily together :)

This is probably the longest blog post I have EVER posted (and that's saying a lot) but considering I took over 600 photos on my digital camera while they were here, this is really just a selection of highlights:

Night 1: bathtime!

We thought that Nora might be a little apprehensive about climbing into the bath with her three boisterous cousins, but... just look at her... she was in her element!

And Maia placidly watched the whole time.

We've seen this view before, maybe even taken this same picture... but...

...now that's was more like it!

Brothers in Dublin :)

While the boys were at school and the little ones were dozing in the back seat of the van, we took Luis for a drive and some sightseeing around Killiney and Dalkey.

Bullock harbour

Poor Dani wasn't feeling too good for the first few days of their stay, so he stayed at home with Saoia and Maia while the others got to know the neighbourhood, starting at the local park:

Nora was pretty excited about all the new places she was seeing... and all the new swings and things.

Lorcan thought that getting a push from Uncle Luis was cool too.

Maia is the best baby! Eat, sleep, smile, poop: that's her daily routine!

Nora grabbed a biro and drew a tattoo on her own hand... so Tío Jaime got the body crayons out and completed the job!

Another blustery afternoon... but we put on our coats and visited the People's Park in Dun Laoghaire...

* * * * *

By Saturday, Dani had recovered so we reckoned it was time to put our hired van to use and take a day trip to Glendalough, County Wicklow:

Here we all are getting the show on the road!

Exploring with Uncle Luis...

Some of the boys...

Through the woods...

Along the lake trail...

Over the marshes...

Past some typical Irish scenery...

A stopoff beside the kiosk for lunch...

And, finally, at the lake!

Kite-flying!

Baby-carrying a la Saio...

Sun on the tombstones...

Liam thinking...

Nora daisy gathering...

Tree-climbing...

Making rudimentary music in the sensorial garden...

Heading home...

* * * * *

On Sunday we took the family for our usual trip to the farmers' market. As you can see, Dani was back in full form... eating a big juicy Italian sausage!

Saioa bought some tea...

And the kids had fun in the playground...

Then we headed to the seafront...




The tide was way out...

... perfect for exploring in the rock pools...

... and throwing stones...

Later on, back at the park, there was a band playing...

I think we all enjoyed our day.

* * * * *

Monday was a national holiday here so, when we decided to take a day trip to Powercourt Waterfall for a picnic, we weren't the only ones who had that idea!! The place was full of families picnicking and barbecuing...

First stop, the playground...

Next stop, the waterfall...

Then we had our picnic and went for a walk along the river...

Stopping under a big old tree for a rest...

And a little storytime courtesy of Saioa...

Luis got some candid moments on his 8mm...

And we made bubbles!

* * * * *

One thing that was kind of strange for Jaime and me was having a baby even littler than our "baby" around the house. We could cuddle her all day :D

Hanging out, playing in our playtents in the back garden is even more fun when your cousin is here!

* * * * *

And what did we do on their last day? We went to the theatre... to see "The Snail and the Whale" at the Helix! Both our boys and Nora know the book well, so seeing the stage adaptation was curious and thrilling for them all.

* * * * *

Thanks for coming guys. We really enjoyed it.

And now it's our turn to catch a plane and go see you... we'll be seeing you again soon guys!

* * * * *