Nathan's Memories From 2015

I'm sure 2015 is a year that my family would like to forget.  But Nathan's teacher asked the whole class to reflect on their year and this is what he came up with:

Zachary's Self-Assessment 6th Grade

Heart Attacks for Valentine's Day

Last night for FHE, the four of us wrote out little messages about the things we love and appreciate about one another.  Of course we included Eric, Erin, Buzz, and Sophie too.

Passing Time Until We Could Leave Spain

We had to stay in Spain about 10 days after Erin's passing.  Those 10 days felt more like 3 months.  We were so anxious to leave the place that we were so excited to move to just 2 months before.  Everything about Madrid started to irritate Mario and I, especially the traffic and very slow government.  Some things became a nightmare, like waiting for a judge to sign off on the release of Erin's body to the US government.  I was determined to pass the time as best I could.  Mario and I forced ourselves to get out of the apartment even though we would have preferred to crawl up into a ball and cry.  We needed to get out and live for our three boys.

The first place Nate and Zach chose was the castle in Segovia again.  They were anxious to show Eric since he wasn't in Spain yet when we went the first time.   So just 3 days after her passing, we made our way to the castle.  It was a tough day, but we made it through.

The US Ambassador to Spain came to our home and offered his condolences.  He was very kind and gave our family a very nice apartment to stay in downtown while we waited to fly out.  From our window, we could see the Real Madrid soccer stadium.  Again, the kids and I forced ourselves out of the apartment and took a very expensive tour of the stadium while Mario took care of work stuff.  The boys got to see Ronaldo's locker and got to sit in the players seats down on the field.  It was pretty cool to walk out on the field.  It was a little disturbing to us how much the people there worship their soccer players.  It seems that everything in Madrid revolves around their soccer.

Frank Torano and his wife (who Mario was replacing in Spain) were the most amazing angels to us in Spain.  They took care of everything so we wouldn't have to.  I mean everything!  We were so blessed to have them with us.  The boys really liked Frank.  He was so much fun and often came with gifts. One night, he showed up at our apartment with his hair clippers and asked the boys if they would cut his hair.  There was some huge smiles on their faces.  It provided a needed distraction for our family.

The day finally came that we felt comfortable that Erin was in good hands and that we could finally fly back to the United States.  It was hard to leave Spain without her and I remember coming close to tears several times on the flight back.  But we were anxious to be reunited with our extended family so it was good to be going home.

Castle in Segovia

Erin, Nate, and I took a bus one day to Segovia to explore a very popular castle. It was about an hour bus ride from Madrid.  I impressed myself with my adventurous spirit while in Spain.  I didn't let the language slow me down.  I am so happy that I had the courage to do the things that I did with the kids even when Mario couldn't join us, especially since we lived in Madrid less than 2 months.  I think even Eric and and Erin were impressed with how adventurous I had become.  They both know Spanish much better than I do, but neither helped me order food at restaurants.  They would just sit back and watch me stumble and then make fun of me.  We enjoyed walking around the streets of this very old city and seeing a beautiful cathedral, castle, shopping, and enjoying the very yummy pastries that were much cheaper in Segovia than in Madrid.  I still miss all those delicious pastries.