Daniela Ruah may have faced a tough goodbye recently with the ending of her show NCIS: Los Angeles, but now that her schedule has been freed up, she is using her extra time right: by spending it with family.
The actress said goodbye to her character Kensi Blye back in May, after starring in the role opposite brother-in-law Eric Christian Olsen for the entirety of the hit CBS procedural’s 14 years on the air.
Despite the bittersweet ending, it couldn’t have come at a better time, as it coincided with her kids summer vacation, for which she whisked them off along with her husband David Paul Olsen (yes, her co-star’s brother) to her home country of Portugal.
The Portuguese-American actress took to Instagram over the weekend to share an adorable glimpse into her family’s time away abroad, which was jam-packed with plenty of fun activities for her kids, son River Isaac, ten, and daughter Sierra Esther, six.
In a video montage from the vacation, Daniela revealed the family-of-four got to enjoy Portugal’s beautiful beaches, plenty of walks up and down the hilly, cobblestone streets, soccer practice, and they even took a cooking class where the kids learned to prepare one of Portugal’s most classic desserts, Pastéis de Nata (custard tarts).
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In her caption, the mom-of-two wrote: “Summer we see you and we’re here for it. We left Portugal with full hearts.”
© InstagramShe added: “So much family time, friends, beach and amazing experiences,” and made sure to credit all of the places and companies that ensured her family’s trip would be as fun and smooth sailing as possible.
“Portugal we miss you already,” Daniela aptly concluded, and the comments section under her post was quickly filled with Portuguese natives and fans of hers alike raving about her vacation recap.
© Instagram“Looks like an amazing trip. One day we will go with you guys,” actor and Dancing with the Stars host Alfonso Ribeiro wrote, as others added: “I love to see you happy and fulfilled, especially with your family in Portugal,” and: “Thanks for sharing your precious family vacation pics and moments with us,” as well as: “That looks like pure life, ‘joie de vivre’ and happiness. Amazing that they were able to experience this,” plus another fan added: “Awww it seems like you had an amazing time.”
© InstagramDaniela and her husband David actually got married in Portugal, on June 19, 2014, shortly after welcoming their first son together, River.
© InstagramShe met David back in 2011, of course after her co-star Eric decided they would make a great match. He previously said on The Queen Latifah Show in 2014: “When they got together, because he came on to do stunts, I would say something nice about her to him and then say something to him about her.”
He added: “That was enough to kinda get them started in conversation and it became this wonderful relationship.”
