Into the Woods...

Last weekend, we went on a little Sunday afternoon "excursion." It was Jaime's sister Nuria and her family, Luis, Nicolas and Sofia, Jaime's brother Arturo and his family, Reyes and Samuel, Jaime's cousin Anna, and then the four of us. We drove up into the mountains for a walk and to have lunch.

It was just under 52 degrees in the mountains so we all got to dress warmly. The boys looked so cute in their pants, shoes and jackets! As soon as their feet hit the ground, they were ready to explore. Connor took off watching, following, and copying his older cousins.

Alex was a bit more apprehensive and took Uncle Arturo's hand until he assessed his surroundings. Of course the boys wanted to pick up and taste everything, so it was slow going at first.

Connor found a walking stick that was just his size and had loads of fun playing with it... until he saw the goats and sheep... when all his attention was focused on the animals, and the stick fell to the ground... which is when Alex took possession and made it his own.



After we let the boys explore on their own for awhile, we decided to put them in the carriers so we could actually move forward. We explored the textures of trees and plants, we passed a dog or two, and we stopped to watch horses giving some people riding lessons. The boys thought the horses were fascinating.

After awhile, we arrived at the restaurant which was in a small, rustic, family run "hotel." The restaurant was smaller than the average living room and contained two large tables and one small table. It only opened for the arrival of our family and another family.

We dined on rustic Canary Island/Spanish food: red wine, gofio (very Canarian), some sort of broth based soup, bread, and then the main dish was puchero which is sort of like a stew without the broth. It's cooked for several hours and is made of various veggies (green beans, carrots, potatoes, corn, squash, etc.) with garbanzo beans and pork meat. At first glance it looked like a pile of scraps or leftovers at the end of a meal, not like a main dish waiting to be eaten. It was very tasty though, and the boys liked all of the veggies.

For dessert we had quesillo which is similar to Flan and very tasty. Afterward, a few people had coffee and liquor while Connor went back to playing outside with Daddy and Alex took a nap in my arms. It was a lovely afternoon.

"The sky is the daily bread of the eyes."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson