Who said BOO!

We're so excited for Halloween! Too bad they don't celebrate it in Spain! Oh'well. Nothing

is going to stop us. Here are a few pictures of what we've been up to.

Saturday we carved a few pumpkins and roasted the seeds.
For FHE we made caramel apples. This is before.
During.
And after. So Yummy. At least I thought so. My kids aren't caramel fans. I thought kids loved anything coated in sugar!
Some more of Isaac's photography. How do you take a picture upside down?

Isn't it ironic...don't ya think

So I had a dentist's appointment today. These are probably my least favorite appointments. For some reason I have a huge fear of "the dentist". I tend to faint just about every time I go. And today was no different. I had an appointment and thought it was just for a checkup so I wasn't worried at all. Checkup are easy! After I sat in the chair the dentist came over and looked in my mouth and all of the sudden my mouth starts to go numb. That's when I realized it wasn't just a check up and they were really planning on doing work. But the hard part was over, I thought. I'd already been numbed and this is usually the scary part but I didn't feel a thing. No pain! Then I passed out. Why? I was ok. I wasn't worried. Why do I always pass out? The doctor remembered that last time the same thing happened but then I had a good excuse... I was pregnant. This time he looked at me a little confused and asked if I was pregnant again. No, I certainly hope not. He checked my blood pressure and told me what I already knew, that I have really low blood pressure. Then "the dentist" told me to eat a candybar before my next appointment. Don't I have the best dentist in the world. He tells me to eat candy! I love him. I just thought it was kind of ironic that I can go through labor easier than I can make it through a dentist appointment.

Super Saturday

We had a great Saturday. Everything is always so much more fun with Daddy! We woke up early and Dad took Stella out to ride her bike while he ran stairs and Isaac helped me with Joaquin. After breakfast we decided to go to the Zoo. The Zoo's in Spain are great. They have great aquariums, dolphins, parks and a lot of animals. Drew's favorite are the bears. They're really close up and people are constantly throwing food at them and they catch it with there mouths wide open. It's pretty funny to see. Stella's favorite was the bird show. They had all kinds of parrots flying around. She was really entertained. Isaac liked the bears and the monkeys. Why? I have no clue. He didn't pay much attention to the bears and he thought the monkeys stink! I liked the sea turtles. After we had lunch at Burger King. Normally this isn't that great but they had ScoobyDoo toys. Isaac is really into Scooby Doo right now. We had an easy afternoon and that evening we had some friends come over and play Wii. It's so nice to have friends!!

BTW- We all wore our BYU shirts. Go Cougars! This is a failed attempt to get a picture of all 5 of us. Maybe one day.

The second day!

Saturday we got lucky and Dad was able to hang out with us! We took the double decker bus tour around. It worked out great for us since we had little time but still wanted to see everything. In front of Big Ben.
Westmintster Abbey
The Tower of London
Tower of London

A few things I really loved about London...

*Everybody can understand me.

*They have Dr. Pepper.

*Fast food is so easy to find.

*Shopping - even though I didn't have time for this.

*Spending time with my family on a mini vacation.

The first day!

London was so much fun. Here are a few of our favorites...

Isaac & Stella really loved the Natural History Museum. They had a lot of fun learning about dinosaurs and how they lived.

Who said flying with three kids is hard? I don't know how it happened but these guys love to fly and are little angels on the plane for me.
The Natural History Museum.
Scaling the walls. A favorite pastime!
I know Stella is 2 and she still has her binky in her mouth for all of these pictures but she was really sick and it made my life a lot easier. How do you get rid of the binky? Any suggestions?
I love these guys.

Joaquin wasn't as impressed with the dinosaurs.

Isaac's photography skills!

Isaac's hand compared to a couple of dinosaur teeth.

London

I love Europe. Before moving to Spain I had never wanted to travel to Europe. This sounds weird but I thought if I'm going on a vacation I want to be on the beach soaking in the sun not going to Europe. What do you do there anyways?

Now I definitely feel different about Europe. I love it and would be more than happy to come back for vacations. Especially to go shopping in London!

We've had a really fun couple of days. Thursday we flew in and just chilled and enjoyed a pizza and english tv in our hotel. It was so yummy and relaxing. Flying with three kids all by myself was really easy. I've got the best little travelers ever. I love them!

Friday we had a yummy McDonald's breakfast with Daddy before he headed off to work. We rode the "Tube" for the first time down to South Kensington to visit a couple museums. The first was The Natural History Museum. We loved it! It was huge and great for kids and adults. After a few hours we needed some food to recharge. We found a cute little deli that had really good soup, sandwiches and hot chocolate. After that we went to The Science Museum. This was fun but not as cool as the dinosaur museum. We still had a lot of fun with all the interactive science experiments. That night we chilled at home with Dad.

Saturday we got up early and headed out for our last day of London. We decided to take the double decker bus tour. It was a really good way to see a lot of London and get a little history all while keeping the kids happy. We even tried fish and chips. Isaac liked it!

Now we're off to the airport back to Madrid. It was a really fast trip but a lot of fun! I'm so glad we've travelled so much. The kids are quite the little world travelers. Even Joaquin. He has multiple countries stamped in his passport and he's not even 2 months old yet.

I'll post pictures and more later.

London!!!

We're off to London on Thursday and need some help. What is your favorite thing to do in London? I've never been and still haven't made it to the bookstore to buy a guide book. So far I'm thinking we should do the double decker bus tour. This should be an easy way to see all the major sites. But I'm really looking for the unknown favorites. (i.e. where to eat? cool parks for kids? anything you can think of...) We won't be there for long and the first 2 days I'm the activity director for myself and the youngsters. Saturday, our last day, we get Daddy - hopefully. Please please please give me your best ideas.

On a happier note here are a few pictures of the kids!!
Joaquin at 6 weeks old.
Happy Birthday Daddy! We brought cupcakes to his work.

Why can I not get a single picture with all 3 looking at me and happy. They really are very happy 99% of the time.

Joaquin is getting so BIG!

Think Pink...

I first have to say thank you to everyone for your prayers and faith. Especially Drew, Isaac, Stella & Joaquin. I love you all so much!



The last few days have probably been my scariest and most worried filled days ever. Sunday night I was nursing Joaquin and found a lump in my right breast. It was 4am so I didn't think much of it but when I woke up at 7am I remembered what I'd felt. I suddenly panicked and told Drew. He confirmed what I'd felt and looked worried. Normally, Drew is really good at masking any kind of emotion that can worry me but this time he didn't hide it so well.



I didn't have any pain or redness so I didn't think it was due to breastfeeding but I hoped it was. After taking Isaac to school I called my doctor and scheduled an appointment for the same day. Then I went home and started googling everything I could think of. I'm obsessed with google. I love that it can find whatever I'm looking for in a matter of seconds. I read about everything from mastitis to cysts to swollen glands and of course my worst fear breast cancer. I tried to look at everything before the cancer subject. But once I started reading about it I couldn't stop.



I read so many stories of young women that had the unfortunate luck to have this awful disease change their lives forever. The one thing that kept sticking out in almost all the stories was the fact that they all needed to have second and third opinions before the were finally diagnosed. They also stressed how important it was to have everything checked as soon as possible. So I was really glad I had an appointment in just a few hours.



After what seemed like forever it was finally time for my appointment. I went and saw Drew before my appointment and totally lost it. I'd had an emotional day anyways but after seeing Drew I just couldn't keep anything in. I was scared to death. I'd thought about what I thought would be the absolute worst outcome and didn't want to know if it was going to come true or not.



At my appointment the doctor checked me and then casually said it was no big deal. Yes, I did have a lump but he didn't think it was anything to worry about. I left feeling confused. I didn't want to worry about it but I didn't want to not worry about it and then later find out it was something I needed to worry about. I called Drew and he said I should go and talk to our bishops wife and if she didn't have a doctor that spoke english I would go to the States to see a doctor. This helped me feel better but still worried.



That night I tried everything it suggested online for relieving swollen glands. Hot showers, massaging, nursing a lot but nothing was changing. We also called Tim, my brother in law that's a nurse and asked his advice.



The first thing the next morning Drew gave me a blessing. It was really comforting. I'm so glad that anytime I need a blessing I can ask Drew and he's able to do it. It's such a blessing.


After I dropped Isaac off at school and went to see the Bishop's wife. She scheduled an appointment for me later that day. I was so glad she had a doctor that spoke english. My spanish is getting better but not quite to the point where I can have a comfortable conversation with a doctor.

At my second doctor's appointment he checked me and wanted to have a sonogram done. So i went and had that done and it came back normal. I do have a lump but they think it's due to nursing. The doctor gave me an antibiotic shot and said in 2 weeks I need to have another sonogram done. Hopefully it will go away. I feel really good and comfortable with this doctor.

So even though I've stressed myself and husband out this week I think everything is going to be ok. I've learned so much about breast cancer. Did you know October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Here are a few really easy things that can help prevent breast cancer.

*Decrease your daily fat intake - especially saturated or hydrogenated fats.
*Increase fiber in your diet.
*Eat fresh fruits and vegetables.
*Limit alcohol.
*Stay active.
*Don't smoke.

I've learned a lot this week. Mainly, even if your worst nightmares come true Heavenly Father will always be there for you. My family is amazing. Drew is the best husband ever. I have a strong testimony of the power of prayer. Life is great! Enjoy ever minute that you can.