Uruguay

The Montevideo, Uruguay temple. Daniel used to play soccer where this temple is now.

This is my sister-in-law Monica and her kids Paula and Nico. We stayed with them while in Uruguay.

This is the beach at Piriapolis. This was my favorite of all the beaches. It was very laid back and not as touristy.

Sorry, I couldn't get it to turn the right way but this is La Plaza de Libertad (I think) in Montevideo. I loved the city and the architecture of the buildings. Very beautiful.

This is Punta del Este. The main tourist beach. I don't know the name of the sculpture but it is a giant hand that is emerging out of the sand. Jayla is sitting on the thumb. Pretty cool.

Obviously my thoughts are on Uruguay right now. Last year we all went as a family to visit and spent a whole month there. It was really long but it was such a great experience. I met most of Daniel's family for the first time and fell in love with them. They are so great. Daniel is a bit older than me and he's the youngest in his family so it's weird that his Mom could be my grandma, his oldest sister could be my mom, and my oldest nephew is only 2 years younger than me. Also, one of my nieces is pregnant so that means I'm going to be a great aunt. Aahhh! That sounds so old. I speak very little Spanish and they speak no English so it was difficult to communicate sometimes but I love them and they are wonderful people. Uruguay is a beautiful country and is a big tourist attraction for southern South America. We went when it was their summer so last year I missed a whole month of our winter. We had some interesting experiences. We only had a car for the first week we were there and the rest of the time we rode the bus or walked which is what the majority do over there. We must have been a site. We had two babies, each in their own stroller, and a huge diaper bag trying to catch a bus. The first attempt was really nerve racking but by the end of the month we had things down. Daniel had told me horror stories about the bus and how the drivers barely slow down for you to get on or off and people never give up their seats. So I was pretty freaked but everyone was so nice. People always gave up their seat to me because I was holding a baby and there were occasions when somebody would carry the stroller while I got off. Another crazy thing are the soccer games. Me and Daniel went to one where the two big rivals were playing. We didn't sit in the crazy section though. The crazy section was filled with people who never sat down and were constantly cheering, singing, or swearing. They were also lighting off fireworks right in the stands. There have been stabbings and shootings after a big game so Daniel said we had to leave before the game was over. He was in protective mode. We got to go to the beach a few times and it was fun but would have been better without little kids. Jayla was great but Blake hated almost every minute of it. I found my first Americans there and was so excited. They were from Conneticut there for some college thing. Overall the trip was great and we want to go again. We'll probably go when the kids are able to remember it better and have the memories. I'm proud that my kids are part Uruguayan and I want them to be proud of it also. So I hope that we will be able to take many trips so they can learn of their heritage.