July flies by...

Can anyone tell me where the time goes? I can't believe that it's practically August!

Excuse my blogging absence. I've been away for the past two weeks. Angelines's mom rented a flat at the beach for all of us to share and so I've been here in La Roda for a total of three days in the past two weeks; it's been great.

The little flat was right on the beach with a large terraza and a view of the Mediterranean... (are you envious yet??). It wasn't hard to get used to the routine: breakfast, sunscreen, beach, lunch, beach, evening run, shower, dinner, bed. Almost all of us got the chance to spend at least a few days there. Only Angelines's eldest sister was unable to make it.

Everyone enjoyed the break from daily routine and the chance to relax by the sea, but most importantly, my mother-in-law had a blast. The minute we set down our suitcases inside and she'd had a chance to look around the place she said, "I could stay here all summer! If we could just win the lottery!..." :) She's been reluctant to do much of anything in terms of "fun" since her husband died a year and a half ago, so this was a big deal for her and she enjoyed herself immensely.

It is amazing, however, how much work goes into a vacation like this one. I felt very much like an adult as I was helping my mother and sister-in-law cook and clean. Making daily shopping lists, thinking about the menu for the day/week, and cleaning up after every meal are just some of the things I think most of us are oblivious to when we're kids on vacation. When I was little I had to keep my stuff relatively organized and clear my plate after each meal at the most... Such days are long gone, and I feel so much older!

Our nephews.

This was the daily set-up...not bad, eh?

The view from our terraza.

In these two weeks of beach bumming, my blog isn't the only thing that's been neglected--I have only been able to water my struggling tomatoes on the weekends! There are little green tomatoes on the vine and I know that now is when they need more water than ever, especially with the heat, but somehow they've managed to survive. Now that I'm home for a while I'm hoping that daily watering will get them back on track for some homegrown gazpacho in August. :) Next week I'm planning to dig up my potatoes. We'll see if this year I have bite-sized taters again or if all my spring excavation made the difference to get some real potatoes.

Aside from a nice tan, my time away from home without internet access has got me reading again. I'm afraid I've been through quite a dry spell for the past few years, only reading one or two books a year. So far since my visit to the States I've finished three and am 300 pages into a fourth. :) It feels good to have a book!

My summer reading list so far:

Granda de Leyenda, Manuel Laurino

Dancing at the Rascal Fair, Ivan Doig

The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger

Currently I'm reading El Medico (The Physician), by Noah Gordon.

The Time Traveler's Wife is one that I especially recommend. It's wonderfully crafted and tells a beautiful, thought provoking story about time, life and love. I've spent quite a lot of time thinking about this one since I finished it; you'll probably hear more about it in another post. It's a book I would like to read again.

Hugs and kisses from a sunny (HOT) Spain.