Greetings dear friends and family,
How are you doing? I have had a very busy and tiring week and I must say that I am ready to go on an all inclusive to Dominican or Cuba ( I have been inspired by some of you travellers!) Now you might say that sounds pretty silly....after all aren't I living in the Caribbean? Isn't life just like one big all inclusive holiday etc etc....but the truth is no.....life is life, the same here as it was home....work, kids, studying, house to run, responsibilities etc.....the only difference is the absolutely beautiful weather....the responsibilities are still the same! so Joe is finsihing his first semester in 3 weeks time (can you believe it??) and i would love for nothing more than the 4 of us to go on a cruise or an all inclusive holiday.....so for a few days there Joe and I were looking up last minute deals etc.....and we could find some pretty impressive rates...BUT the problem is getting to them.....to fly from Saba to St Maarten and St Maarten to Florida for a cruise is about $600 per person....or to go from Saba to St Maarten to Dominican Republic is about $700! Air travel is so expensive...so the cost of the last minutes is amazing, but the getting there is the problem....anyway i would love a nice vacation, a reprieve from all the daily grind....so we will see....we may all go over to st maarten for a few days on Joe's 3 week break between semesters....
So I mentioned that I have had a busy week.......when really I have had a busy 3 months...I really never gave myself any downtime when I moved here.....I was working on the 6th day nearly full time (well 7:30-1 everyday feels like full time) and then after a few weeks negotiated Mondays off....anyway very busy .....so I made a decision this week to resign from my position at the school and to take some time off to just enjoy life and get some well deserved r&r.....moving to a new country is alot of work and takes alot of energy to get everyone adjusted! So I will look around and keep my ears open for opportunities but for now I am just going to have a few weeks/month of down time.....
We had some tragedy here this week....our guinea pig finally gave birth (after I was fairly certain that she was going to explode) and she had 2 lovely little babies....but sadly they both died....we aren't sure why (no guinea pig autopsy service available) and they looked so sweet and perfect....well the boys were devestated and there was much crying going on here....we had a "wake" which is a viewing of the bodies, putting them in caskets with flowers and showing everyone in teh neighborhood our dead babies....and then Saturday we had a funeral and burial service.....poor Christian was so sad, he had been going outside every morning to see if his pig had delivered so when he realized that the babies were gone, he was so disappointed.....anyway it was a sad event.....so in steps Monty....and this my dear friends is where I get todays title....when is sweet too sweet? Monty was very upset that his little bro was so sad (monty was very sad too) and so today he tells me that a neighbor will be stopping by at 5 with a delivery.....and I say "what do you mean"...he says "I can't tell you, it is a surprise for Christian" so I continue to ask what he has done and eventually he fesses up to his actions......he describes feeling terrible for his little brother about his sadness over the loss of our babies and so he took his lunch money that he has been squirreling away (again) and spoke to some people (Monty knows all the people) and he bought Christian a new baby guinea pig......I say you did WHAT??? He tells me again. I say where di dyou get the money and he replies that he has been saving the lunch money and oh yeah, he "borrowed" $5 off my dresser to help with the costs....but Mom (with those big blue eyes) Christian was just so sad and I knew this would make him feel better, so I just did it, don't be mad, I did it for Christian......(is this kid destined for politics or what?) Anyway I think Holy Hannah....what am I going to tell Joe? He is going to freak! oh and it does take an interesting twist here...he admits that actually there will be 2 pigs delivered...because he had promised one of our babies to Becka, a student who lives behind us and has lots of pets, and he didn't want to disappoint her so he talked the people into a second pig.....I am floored.....this is well, just so sweet but so not good....but so sweet....see my dilema? He is such a sweet and loving child and for all his faults he is about the most compassionate and caring little person I have ever met.....so how can you get mad? But we don't need more pigs....so I try my best to give my sternest parental lecture about what a wonderful gesture but he needs to ask permission...blah blah blah......he promises never to do it again......so now at 5 today, apparently I am about to get a shipment of pigs......so Monty leaves for a friends house and I start to think, just how am I going to explain this to Joe?? so i say to Joe....a funny thing happenend today, your son is so sweet, do you know what he did........well, joe is not smiling, and he doesnt think it is one bit funny.....so I say ok maybe funny isn't the right word to use? He says try disobedient, we said no more pets.....and I say but he meant well.....and Joe says yes and you know what they say about good intentions? So I agree, yes it wasn't a good choice......
So all in all life is interesting here...never a dull moment......we have had wonderful weather and sunshine.....and some great people around here so lots of good things going on......I can't wait to be unemployed for a while and just sit back and survey the lay of the land and figure out how I want to spend the rest of my time here.....3 months are gone already and Joe's first semester is 3 weeks from finishing.....if time goes this fast, we will be done of our 20 months and back in the canadian cold before we know it.....
So have a great week friends, God Bless and we will meet again soon,
Dawn
Monday, March 30, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Refreshed and Rejuvented
Hello friends,
How was the rest of your week and weekend...I guess that most of you are getting back into the swing of things after being on March Break.....our break isn't until Easter here so we will have from the Thursday before Good Friday until the following Monday off , so 11 days in total.....sounds good to me!! I am really looking forward to a chunk of time off as I haven't had that since I arrived in Saba (I started my job just 6 days after I got here!!)
It is 27, sunny and beautiful here this morning...I am sitting at my laptop, looking out my patio doors in our bedroom, feeling a gentle breeze blowing through my room, doves cooing, birds chirping, kids are gone to school (my monday off) and I can't think of a better, more soothing way to enter the week! I had a fantastic weekend and I hate for it to end.....I always enjoy the weekends so much......on Friday night we (the SOS, significant others of saba, basically spouses of med students) had a goodbye dinner for a spouse whose husband is finished here the end of April and she will be leaving.....(we have welcome dinners for new SOS members and goodbye dinners when they leave and a whole h ost of other interesting and fun events, like the easter egg hunt that we are doing for the island children) We had dinner at an amazing restaurant and just sat and socialized for a few hours....it was very nice and relaxing......on saturday I had an SOS meeting at the park and I have been voted as Co-president of the SOS group as the current president will be leaving end of August...so the next few months the duties will be transitioned over to myself and another spouse, Rachel.....Rachel is very interesting actually, her husband is a PhD who teaches here at the med school and he has decided to attend the med school so he starts next semester (in May) Isn't that neat? There are alot of people in that situation....Saba has what we call non-trads....older persons (over 30) who have had former careers, like chiropractors (there are 5-6 here) pharmacists, physician's assistants, paramedics, etc etc. It is a very interesting pool of students.....now there are your younger people too, but alot of these non-trads kicking around. There is even a 53 year old man here from NB who has been a government employee there for years and is going to retire from there soon...and his son just completed his 5 semesters here too.....this older gentleman is planning to become a phyician and then go do missionary work in his native home south america, which I think is awesome! (his wife is from PEI by the way.....small world!) I told him that I would love to join him andhis wife sometime in a few years when they are down there doing their work.....it is a dream of mine to do some missionary work at some point (gotta get Joe finished school someday first!) So back to Rachel, she is a really nice person, close to my age, with three 5 year olds that they adopted and a 14 year old son.....so she and I are going to take over the leadership of the SOS group, which should be exciting......so what was I telling you about? oh yeah, the weekend......on Saturday we had our SOS monthly meeting and we had praise team practice for church as well....Joe and are taking over the leadership of the music ministry at our church here (it is a student church) and it is so much fun....we are really enjoying ourselves....and again meeting and spending time with some neat people....Sam, the current leader who is from Toronto, but originally Hong Kong, I think.....The other Sam , who is from Winnipeg but originally Korea.....Shauna, from Ontario and Rapha who grew up a child of missionarys and has been all over the world (really cool person) There are some amazing characters in our church and it is so neat that we have come from all over the place and all kinds of different and unique backgrounds, yet because we come together for the common purpose of worshipping God together, we are like family....it is really neat.....we just automatically have so much in common and enjoy spending time together....So back to the weekend, Sunday evening we had a birthday party for one of the student's wife, Lisa.....we had a great time! The kids and I also spent the afternoon playing down at the tidal pools yesterday so that was lots of fun.....the waves were crashing over the man made rock wall and soaking us! So as you can see, weekends are wonderful and very enjoyable....why can't everyday be a weekend I ask????? Who made this work thing anyway?
I am in the middle of some planning for myself......just trying to reorganize my life here to get a better balance.....there are some social work prospects on the horizon, not sure what they will be and not likely any full time work but some interesting prospects none the less....so I heading in that direction....I met with the social worker, Edith who flies over here once a month for 3 days from Curaco.....she is a really neat lady who has been coming here for 25 years now.....she comes again next month and I am going to shadow here around and see what she is up to! She is a jack of all trades and when i asked her what she does here on Saba, she said "everything" from housing issues to parenting to marital issues etc etc.....so I am interested in seeing what happens there.....Saba also brought a child psychiatrist over this month (and they do every 2-3 months) from Curaco as well and I went down to the hospital and met her.....very nice lady....we had a great chat and I pitched myself to her and how I could be of assistance to her when she comes here (meet with kids in between and write progress reports to her etc, do some counseling with the parents, coping strategies for the kids etc) She was very interested and thought that would be great if we could somehow find a way to work together......now to convince Saba?? I also had an email from a lady at an organization asking if I would be interested in putting on a parenting course for young adults.....so, things may get interesting here before long......like I said , this is the direction I am heading.......
Joe is in the middle of exams right now again, so he has been studying alot this week.....well he does every week......so much material to cover, I feel for him! Glad that it is him and not me.....I think that overall he is really happy to be in med school.....
So all in all, I am feeling lighter this week....the post visit/company blues have subsided and I am not feeling as homesick.....also the great weekend helped......to have friends to spend time with and hang out with......I still do miss all of you and once I find a way to use the phone cheaply, I will start making calls....but for now email will have to do.....anyway take care friends, have a wonderful week and God Bless.
How was the rest of your week and weekend...I guess that most of you are getting back into the swing of things after being on March Break.....our break isn't until Easter here so we will have from the Thursday before Good Friday until the following Monday off , so 11 days in total.....sounds good to me!! I am really looking forward to a chunk of time off as I haven't had that since I arrived in Saba (I started my job just 6 days after I got here!!)
It is 27, sunny and beautiful here this morning...I am sitting at my laptop, looking out my patio doors in our bedroom, feeling a gentle breeze blowing through my room, doves cooing, birds chirping, kids are gone to school (my monday off) and I can't think of a better, more soothing way to enter the week! I had a fantastic weekend and I hate for it to end.....I always enjoy the weekends so much......on Friday night we (the SOS, significant others of saba, basically spouses of med students) had a goodbye dinner for a spouse whose husband is finished here the end of April and she will be leaving.....(we have welcome dinners for new SOS members and goodbye dinners when they leave and a whole h ost of other interesting and fun events, like the easter egg hunt that we are doing for the island children) We had dinner at an amazing restaurant and just sat and socialized for a few hours....it was very nice and relaxing......on saturday I had an SOS meeting at the park and I have been voted as Co-president of the SOS group as the current president will be leaving end of August...so the next few months the duties will be transitioned over to myself and another spouse, Rachel.....Rachel is very interesting actually, her husband is a PhD who teaches here at the med school and he has decided to attend the med school so he starts next semester (in May) Isn't that neat? There are alot of people in that situation....Saba has what we call non-trads....older persons (over 30) who have had former careers, like chiropractors (there are 5-6 here) pharmacists, physician's assistants, paramedics, etc etc. It is a very interesting pool of students.....now there are your younger people too, but alot of these non-trads kicking around. There is even a 53 year old man here from NB who has been a government employee there for years and is going to retire from there soon...and his son just completed his 5 semesters here too.....this older gentleman is planning to become a phyician and then go do missionary work in his native home south america, which I think is awesome! (his wife is from PEI by the way.....small world!) I told him that I would love to join him andhis wife sometime in a few years when they are down there doing their work.....it is a dream of mine to do some missionary work at some point (gotta get Joe finished school someday first!) So back to Rachel, she is a really nice person, close to my age, with three 5 year olds that they adopted and a 14 year old son.....so she and I are going to take over the leadership of the SOS group, which should be exciting......so what was I telling you about? oh yeah, the weekend......on Saturday we had our SOS monthly meeting and we had praise team practice for church as well....Joe and are taking over the leadership of the music ministry at our church here (it is a student church) and it is so much fun....we are really enjoying ourselves....and again meeting and spending time with some neat people....Sam, the current leader who is from Toronto, but originally Hong Kong, I think.....The other Sam , who is from Winnipeg but originally Korea.....Shauna, from Ontario and Rapha who grew up a child of missionarys and has been all over the world (really cool person) There are some amazing characters in our church and it is so neat that we have come from all over the place and all kinds of different and unique backgrounds, yet because we come together for the common purpose of worshipping God together, we are like family....it is really neat.....we just automatically have so much in common and enjoy spending time together....So back to the weekend, Sunday evening we had a birthday party for one of the student's wife, Lisa.....we had a great time! The kids and I also spent the afternoon playing down at the tidal pools yesterday so that was lots of fun.....the waves were crashing over the man made rock wall and soaking us! So as you can see, weekends are wonderful and very enjoyable....why can't everyday be a weekend I ask????? Who made this work thing anyway?
I am in the middle of some planning for myself......just trying to reorganize my life here to get a better balance.....there are some social work prospects on the horizon, not sure what they will be and not likely any full time work but some interesting prospects none the less....so I heading in that direction....I met with the social worker, Edith who flies over here once a month for 3 days from Curaco.....she is a really neat lady who has been coming here for 25 years now.....she comes again next month and I am going to shadow here around and see what she is up to! She is a jack of all trades and when i asked her what she does here on Saba, she said "everything" from housing issues to parenting to marital issues etc etc.....so I am interested in seeing what happens there.....Saba also brought a child psychiatrist over this month (and they do every 2-3 months) from Curaco as well and I went down to the hospital and met her.....very nice lady....we had a great chat and I pitched myself to her and how I could be of assistance to her when she comes here (meet with kids in between and write progress reports to her etc, do some counseling with the parents, coping strategies for the kids etc) She was very interested and thought that would be great if we could somehow find a way to work together......now to convince Saba?? I also had an email from a lady at an organization asking if I would be interested in putting on a parenting course for young adults.....so, things may get interesting here before long......like I said , this is the direction I am heading.......
Joe is in the middle of exams right now again, so he has been studying alot this week.....well he does every week......so much material to cover, I feel for him! Glad that it is him and not me.....I think that overall he is really happy to be in med school.....
So all in all, I am feeling lighter this week....the post visit/company blues have subsided and I am not feeling as homesick.....also the great weekend helped......to have friends to spend time with and hang out with......I still do miss all of you and once I find a way to use the phone cheaply, I will start making calls....but for now email will have to do.....anyway take care friends, have a wonderful week and God Bless.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Life is a bowl of cherries (but remember you dont get cherries without the pitts)
Warning: This post is a change of tone from the usual frisky and care free....those of you who like to avoid real feelings should turn back now before it is too late!!!!!
A midweek post? yup...thought that I would throw you all off a little ...and I felt the need to express myself.....just in case you were wondering life isn't perfect.....well at least mine isn't! Don't get me wrong, it is pretty great alot of the time, but nothing is ever perfect. Take cherries for instance...these perfect little yummy fruits and you put them in your mouth and chew this perfect taste and then phooey....a big ol pit right in there and you have to spit it out....the cherry is yummy...the pitt sucks.....pittless cherries sound good....life without pitts sounds good too doesn't it? Can anyone relate to my ramblings??
So as you might guess I am having a little bit of an off week....a pitt week we will call it....last week was the cherry.....maybe it is because my mom and aunt have come and gone and I am unsure of when my next visitors will be (and that gives me something to really look forward to).....maybe it is because I miss my awesome awesome job and colleagues.....maybe it is because my two cousins both had little baby girls just weeks after I left and I didn't get to meet them, hold them or smell them (don't babies just smell so perfect?) and touch their perfect little feet....maybe it is because I haven't had a real shower in almost 3 months....maybe it is because I want to call a few people to touch base and say hello but it is so expensive that I must choose eating over my need for contact! Maybe it is because my home church, Cornerstone has finally finished their beautiful new church and I wasn't there for the first service (and I miss my choir....oh do I miss them) Or a combo of all of the above....I don't know, but whatever it is I am missing home this week...it probably doesn't help that Monty is too and he has been a little weepy and asking me if we can go home soon for a visit....or that his hockey team won the provincial championships (yeah team) and he wasn't there to celebrate the victory with them....anyway just so you all know.....I MISS YOU......more than you can imagine.....and it isn't Saba's fault.....I love the sunshine here, I am meeting some wonderful people and having some very neat experiences.....but I miss sitting in the office chatting with Stacey and Mary Lou about nothing and everything, I miss chatting with Cathy, Carol, Cheryl, Krista, Melissa, Bruce,Mike (yes Mike you too)Beth, etc etc......I miss being able to pick up the phone and call Tina or Elysa or Sandra and just talk for 3 hours.......I miss mom just popping over to bring the boys a treat or to have a cup of tea.....all the little things that make life special and interesting......I miss them.....ahhh it feels good just to acknowledge it......
So to all of my wonderful family and friends out there....thanks for being you and being a special part of my life and and making me the me I am......I feel so blessed to know you all.....even if you do drive me crazy sometimes.....I will be praying a special blessing over all of you for this coming week ....Take care dear friends.......
A midweek post? yup...thought that I would throw you all off a little ...and I felt the need to express myself.....just in case you were wondering life isn't perfect.....well at least mine isn't! Don't get me wrong, it is pretty great alot of the time, but nothing is ever perfect. Take cherries for instance...these perfect little yummy fruits and you put them in your mouth and chew this perfect taste and then phooey....a big ol pit right in there and you have to spit it out....the cherry is yummy...the pitt sucks.....pittless cherries sound good....life without pitts sounds good too doesn't it? Can anyone relate to my ramblings??
So as you might guess I am having a little bit of an off week....a pitt week we will call it....last week was the cherry.....maybe it is because my mom and aunt have come and gone and I am unsure of when my next visitors will be (and that gives me something to really look forward to).....maybe it is because I miss my awesome awesome job and colleagues.....maybe it is because my two cousins both had little baby girls just weeks after I left and I didn't get to meet them, hold them or smell them (don't babies just smell so perfect?) and touch their perfect little feet....maybe it is because I haven't had a real shower in almost 3 months....maybe it is because I want to call a few people to touch base and say hello but it is so expensive that I must choose eating over my need for contact! Maybe it is because my home church, Cornerstone has finally finished their beautiful new church and I wasn't there for the first service (and I miss my choir....oh do I miss them) Or a combo of all of the above....I don't know, but whatever it is I am missing home this week...it probably doesn't help that Monty is too and he has been a little weepy and asking me if we can go home soon for a visit....or that his hockey team won the provincial championships (yeah team) and he wasn't there to celebrate the victory with them....anyway just so you all know.....I MISS YOU......more than you can imagine.....and it isn't Saba's fault.....I love the sunshine here, I am meeting some wonderful people and having some very neat experiences.....but I miss sitting in the office chatting with Stacey and Mary Lou about nothing and everything, I miss chatting with Cathy, Carol, Cheryl, Krista, Melissa, Bruce,Mike (yes Mike you too)Beth, etc etc......I miss being able to pick up the phone and call Tina or Elysa or Sandra and just talk for 3 hours.......I miss mom just popping over to bring the boys a treat or to have a cup of tea.....all the little things that make life special and interesting......I miss them.....ahhh it feels good just to acknowledge it......
So to all of my wonderful family and friends out there....thanks for being you and being a special part of my life and and making me the me I am......I feel so blessed to know you all.....even if you do drive me crazy sometimes.....I will be praying a special blessing over all of you for this coming week ....Take care dear friends.......
Monday, March 16, 2009
It's all uphill from here......
Hello friends. It is pouring rain here this morning, and this is considered a very good thing on Saba as it fills the cisterns thus allowing us to continue showering, washing clothes and dishes etc. But it has been raining for the past few days, which is apparently unusual for this time of year.....and now that I am accustomed to sunshiny days everyday, I must admit that my threshold for tolerating ill weather has gotten much lower.....so I am sick of the rain....I hung my favorite shirt on the line 3 days ago and it has rained everyday so of course it is still wet....and being poured on as I write this....and i mean POURED! I have never seen such rain....it usually only rains for a few minutes each day and then "out comes the sun and dries up all the rain, so that Dawn and the kiddies can go outside again" (my version of the itsy bitsy spider) How will I ever go back to Canadian weather?? Enough complaining about weather...I am fairly certain that I am not getting any sympathy from any of you up there in the north pole....errr PEI!
We had a great week. As you know my mom and Bernie were here visiting and we had an awesome time. We spent the week relaxing and hanging in the sun, doing a little bit of touring and overall just enjoying each others company.....we cooked some fantastic meals together (ok, I watched and provided moral support....ham and scalloped potatoes the pei way...hmmmm) and some great BBQ's. and Mom brought me lots of gluten free products so I have had fresh bread and pizza this week (soooo good...thanks Vandunkerkin...I love you!) We had our friends Joka and Gys and Jim over for supper (well Gys didn't make it as he was delivering a baby) Joe and I got out twice by ourselves (we almost forgot what that feels like!) I did some grocery shopping without chasing those two wild men around the store...I forgot what it felt like to browse everything in the aisles...I am usually focused on getting in and out as fast as possible to get those two out of the store! We didn't do quite as much touring as we could have but my poor aunt Bernie was having a very difficult time with the uphill roads in Saba! It is something that cannot be described, it must be experienced to be believed (ask my mom and Bernie!) Everywhere we went we were on a hill....and Bernie is terrified of heights so she couldn't look out of the car windows or she would feel nauseated....Monty thought this was pretty funny and so inthe car he would say "look out now Bernie it looks so cool, you can see the water about 1000 feet down, it's not that scary Bernie, c'mon, have a look" And poor Bernie would have her eyes tightly squeezed shut and her head down, trying to stay calm! It was pretty funny.....Remember the old stories where people would say things like "in my day we walked to school in 5 feet of snow and it was uphill both ways" and you thought, how can something be uphill both ways?? Well I am here to tell you that in Saba it is uphill BOTH ways....literally....and some of those hills are bigass hills....if a person were to get out and walk some of these hills regularly they would have buns of steel and amazing legs....hmmmm.....wonder if that would be helpful for my goal #2 skinny? Probably....but enough crazy talk......back to the visit.......We went to a big BBQ dinner at Scouts Pub....we went out to the open mic session one evening....and Friday night we went to Sabaoke and it was so much fun...my mother sang "Did I shave my legs for this" by Deanna Carter! And I sang Angel by Sarah McLauglin.....we had a lot of fun! And then it was saturday morning and they had to get on the plane for their long journey home....it went waaaayyyy to fast....and I was really sad to see them go.....made me feel pretty homesick .....and still feeling the effects a little......Christian and Monty were pretty sad too....that is the crappy thing about having visitors...it is so wonderful while they are here but when they leave, the reality sets back in that you are far far away from home and that it could be a very long time before you can see those people again.....I didn't go to the airport to see them off....as most of you know, airports make me hysterical and I bawl like a baby for hours after I have been in one....so it is easier for me to shed a few tears and hug people good bye at home.....Anyway we had a wonderful time....thank you Mom and Bernie for coming down to see us.....we loved it!
Monty had a pretty good week....he joined boxing last week and he is very excited about it.....it is 3 times a week and it is FREE (as most everything is here....well activity wise anyway.....) and there are only about 5 other kids attending so they got alot of 1:1 instruction....he came home pretty pooped! and he has been taking guitar lessons for the past few weeks and really enjoying that....we are going to look at a guitar tonight for him that one of the students leaving the island is selling.....Monty is pumped! I think that despite his challenges settling into school here,he really does like it here in Saba...the lifestyle is very well suited to him, he loves the freedom, he has made a few friends now and he even has a girlfriend apparently.....not sure if i am supposed to tell that?? oops! Anyway he is having some great and fun experiences.....
Christian continues to love Saba and he and Jim are always together....it is a bit like Jim is our other son these days....and we just love him, what a sweet kid...montys friend Helke is a darling too....the other day when Mom and Bernie were here we all went down to the Tropics cafe for a drink and a swim and I took the 4 boys....there was a lady there from Texas and she was amazed that I had 4 boys! I told her that i only technically had 2 and the other 2 were extras! She was very impressed with how polite and well behaved they all were.....we had a blast playing in the pool, laying in the sun and hanging in the hot tub....it was a wonderful day.....
So other than our company, the big excitement of the week is waiting on the birth of our guinea pig babies....the boys are so excited and they check every hour to see if the babies have arrived....the mama pig is about as wide as she is long now so surely they are coming out soon.....the boys are beside themselves with excitement! I must admit that I can't wait to see the cute furry little things either! Now Joe on the other hand is still in denial....the boys keep telling him that we are keeping the girl babies and we will find homes for the boys.....Joe is adamant that we are not keeping anymore.....yeah, ok Joey....sure we won't get any more pets....wink wink nudge nudge......
Anyway I better run...I think that the rain has stopped...woo hoo....maybe it will be an outdoor day after all! I miss all of you.....have a wonderful day and take care......
May you have a week filled with blessings and goodness,
God Bless,
Dawn
We had a great week. As you know my mom and Bernie were here visiting and we had an awesome time. We spent the week relaxing and hanging in the sun, doing a little bit of touring and overall just enjoying each others company.....we cooked some fantastic meals together (ok, I watched and provided moral support....ham and scalloped potatoes the pei way...hmmmm) and some great BBQ's. and Mom brought me lots of gluten free products so I have had fresh bread and pizza this week (soooo good...thanks Vandunkerkin...I love you!) We had our friends Joka and Gys and Jim over for supper (well Gys didn't make it as he was delivering a baby) Joe and I got out twice by ourselves (we almost forgot what that feels like!) I did some grocery shopping without chasing those two wild men around the store...I forgot what it felt like to browse everything in the aisles...I am usually focused on getting in and out as fast as possible to get those two out of the store! We didn't do quite as much touring as we could have but my poor aunt Bernie was having a very difficult time with the uphill roads in Saba! It is something that cannot be described, it must be experienced to be believed (ask my mom and Bernie!) Everywhere we went we were on a hill....and Bernie is terrified of heights so she couldn't look out of the car windows or she would feel nauseated....Monty thought this was pretty funny and so inthe car he would say "look out now Bernie it looks so cool, you can see the water about 1000 feet down, it's not that scary Bernie, c'mon, have a look" And poor Bernie would have her eyes tightly squeezed shut and her head down, trying to stay calm! It was pretty funny.....Remember the old stories where people would say things like "in my day we walked to school in 5 feet of snow and it was uphill both ways" and you thought, how can something be uphill both ways?? Well I am here to tell you that in Saba it is uphill BOTH ways....literally....and some of those hills are bigass hills....if a person were to get out and walk some of these hills regularly they would have buns of steel and amazing legs....hmmmm.....wonder if that would be helpful for my goal #2 skinny? Probably....but enough crazy talk......back to the visit.......We went to a big BBQ dinner at Scouts Pub....we went out to the open mic session one evening....and Friday night we went to Sabaoke and it was so much fun...my mother sang "Did I shave my legs for this" by Deanna Carter! And I sang Angel by Sarah McLauglin.....we had a lot of fun! And then it was saturday morning and they had to get on the plane for their long journey home....it went waaaayyyy to fast....and I was really sad to see them go.....made me feel pretty homesick .....and still feeling the effects a little......Christian and Monty were pretty sad too....that is the crappy thing about having visitors...it is so wonderful while they are here but when they leave, the reality sets back in that you are far far away from home and that it could be a very long time before you can see those people again.....I didn't go to the airport to see them off....as most of you know, airports make me hysterical and I bawl like a baby for hours after I have been in one....so it is easier for me to shed a few tears and hug people good bye at home.....Anyway we had a wonderful time....thank you Mom and Bernie for coming down to see us.....we loved it!
Monty had a pretty good week....he joined boxing last week and he is very excited about it.....it is 3 times a week and it is FREE (as most everything is here....well activity wise anyway.....) and there are only about 5 other kids attending so they got alot of 1:1 instruction....he came home pretty pooped! and he has been taking guitar lessons for the past few weeks and really enjoying that....we are going to look at a guitar tonight for him that one of the students leaving the island is selling.....Monty is pumped! I think that despite his challenges settling into school here,he really does like it here in Saba...the lifestyle is very well suited to him, he loves the freedom, he has made a few friends now and he even has a girlfriend apparently.....not sure if i am supposed to tell that?? oops! Anyway he is having some great and fun experiences.....
Christian continues to love Saba and he and Jim are always together....it is a bit like Jim is our other son these days....and we just love him, what a sweet kid...montys friend Helke is a darling too....the other day when Mom and Bernie were here we all went down to the Tropics cafe for a drink and a swim and I took the 4 boys....there was a lady there from Texas and she was amazed that I had 4 boys! I told her that i only technically had 2 and the other 2 were extras! She was very impressed with how polite and well behaved they all were.....we had a blast playing in the pool, laying in the sun and hanging in the hot tub....it was a wonderful day.....
So other than our company, the big excitement of the week is waiting on the birth of our guinea pig babies....the boys are so excited and they check every hour to see if the babies have arrived....the mama pig is about as wide as she is long now so surely they are coming out soon.....the boys are beside themselves with excitement! I must admit that I can't wait to see the cute furry little things either! Now Joe on the other hand is still in denial....the boys keep telling him that we are keeping the girl babies and we will find homes for the boys.....Joe is adamant that we are not keeping anymore.....yeah, ok Joey....sure we won't get any more pets....wink wink nudge nudge......
Anyway I better run...I think that the rain has stopped...woo hoo....maybe it will be an outdoor day after all! I miss all of you.....have a wonderful day and take care......
May you have a week filled with blessings and goodness,
God Bless,
Dawn
Sunday, March 8, 2009
It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...well without the snow....
Hello blog readers! How are you all doing? Another beautiful week in Saba...although it was a bit chilly a few days this week, down to 24 and some winds and a little rain too (trying to make you all feel a little better about your own crappy weather...tee hee) We had a pretty good week here on Saba, a busy week for sure.....we came here with the assumption that life would slow down considerably for us but it hasn't quite worked out that way....I have come to the conclusion that maybe we are just busy type of people and we make it that way because we like it? Anyway the boys had a decent week at school. Monty had to write an essay about a woman from Saba for national women's day and he chose our neighbor Lynn. He had great fun interviewing her for the essay and then writing it...it turned out pretty good....he is a smart cookie that one if you can get him to sit still long enough to do some academics!!
The boys both had sleepovers on Friday night...Monty had his friend Helke and Christian had Jim of course! We rented movies, got junk, the whole 9 yards and the kids had a great time. Jim outplayed, outlasted all of the others and was the last man standing (well laying but still giggling at the TV) at 10 PM....it was his first sleepover ever so he was pretty pumped (and perhaps my decision to allow them to have a ring pop during the movie wasn't very well thought out?) Finally he did sleep though and they all slept through the night....they all got up around 7 but I thought that wasn't too bad considering.....Saturday morning Monty and Helke had guitar lessons so we drove them down to windwardside....then I was over talking to Manuel in the community garden and bringing him some fresh cookies that Joe had baked and I wasn't watchiing the clock and all of a sudden it was 11 and i was late for the boys....so off I went to pick them up.....and then....as I am driving down the hill a truck passes me and in the truck is Monty and Helke and they wave and smile at me.....they had hitchhiked a ride back home.....now before you go freaking out, apparently hitchiking is a very popular mode of transportation with the locals and everyone knows everyone so it is perfectly safe....now I don't have any problems with people hitchhiking but Monty is not people....he is my 10 year old son....so I was thinking good heavens this is crazy....Monty of course thought it was great fun...and he was picked up by teacher Randall the grade 2 teacher who knows the boys and who knows me....anyway life is definitely different here! Helke hitches rides up to our house at least 2-3 times a week....like I said it is like public transit for the people here....but it still freaks me out a little.....so what do you think?Am I losing my noodle??
Saturday night we went to a BBQ with Jim's family and we had a fabulous time....they are such fun and lovely people and the food was amazing! (endive salad with a creamy homemade dressing, satays on the barby, steak and pork....a meal fit for a king! we felt very spoiled) So today was a great day because my mother and my aunt Bernie arrived for a visiit from PEI....well it didn't start out as great....Igot up and got ready and went to the airport to pick them up.....got there at 9 (flight due at 9:05) waited, and waited and waited some more...by 9:20 I was thinking the plane must be delayed and as I had been sitting outside the airport enjoying the morning sunshine and +26 temp (ah hah you knew I had to sneak that in somewhere didn't you!) I thought I will wander in and see when the flight is coming....so I enter and to my surprise there is not a person in sight....and I think,wierd , there are at least 10 cars in the parking lot and there is a flight over due...where are all the people? Have aliens come down and taken them away? Did the rapture happen and I am left behind? what is going on?? So I call Joe and ask him to call win air's office (since there is NO ONE in the airport at all) Joe calls back and says that head office in St Maarten says the flight is in the air and they should be there anytime...so I think ok, wierd but whatever...out I go in the sunshine again to wait and watch for the plane....10 more minutes pass and I think, ok the flight is 12 minutes long and 10 minutes ago it was in the air sooooo where is it exactly?? so I go in to the airport again and I finally see a man (security guard) and I say ummm sir where is the 9:05 flight from St Maarten? He says there is no flight at that time, the next flight is due at 11:20....so I say ah yes there is a flight and apparently it is in the air and my mother and aunt are on it....when will it be arriving? and he says sorry ma'am but the next flight is in at 11:20....so I call Joe and have him call again and call me back and I drive home....when I get home, Joe tells me that apparently the airline cancelled the flight and mom and Bernie are now on standby for the 10:20 flight...and I say 10:20? that is weird,,,,it is a 12 minute flight and the airport said that it wont be here until 11:20....Joe says yeah it gets better,,,,they are flyiing to St Eustatias first !!!!! I said WHAT! NO WAY!! Bernie is going to freak out! So I call over at 10:20 to win air and say please make sure they get on the flight for goodness sake and some fellow says I will see what I can do...he calls my mom up to the desk and I can hear her in the background explaining the situation .....so he comes back and says, I have your mom booked but not the other passenger Perry? I am going to have to check with my supervisor...call me back in 5.....click.....so 5 long minutes later I call back and say Kendell? He says they are on....good bye.....thats it....so down I go and get them.....they have arrived dragging many bags behind them....and so we sat outside by the airport for a few minutes and headed home.....so once we got home, we started opening the bags!!! I tell ya , you never saw people so excited for the strangest things....the boys were gaga over the candy (cream eggs, mini eggs, smarties adn nerds,,,thanks Jamie, Bernie and mom!) and my gluten free stuff (thank you thank you thank you!!) and Joe was doing a dance for his BSG DVD's (Thanks Bruce!) and I was so excited to get my hands on Greys Anatomy episodes (thanks Jamie!!!) We got crocs and socks and flea treatment and candy and erasers and pencils and hair accessories and chalk and home schooling material (I am going to be supplementiing) Anyway it was like Christmas, the whoopaing and squealing going on around here!
We had a great first day, the weather was great, the company was great, lots of fun swapping travel stories and other stuff.....we can't wait to get out and enjoy the next 6 days...I hope that they don't go too fast!!
So take care friends and we will meet again....I will tell you all about our visit next time! God Bless you in the coming week!
The boys both had sleepovers on Friday night...Monty had his friend Helke and Christian had Jim of course! We rented movies, got junk, the whole 9 yards and the kids had a great time. Jim outplayed, outlasted all of the others and was the last man standing (well laying but still giggling at the TV) at 10 PM....it was his first sleepover ever so he was pretty pumped (and perhaps my decision to allow them to have a ring pop during the movie wasn't very well thought out?) Finally he did sleep though and they all slept through the night....they all got up around 7 but I thought that wasn't too bad considering.....Saturday morning Monty and Helke had guitar lessons so we drove them down to windwardside....then I was over talking to Manuel in the community garden and bringing him some fresh cookies that Joe had baked and I wasn't watchiing the clock and all of a sudden it was 11 and i was late for the boys....so off I went to pick them up.....and then....as I am driving down the hill a truck passes me and in the truck is Monty and Helke and they wave and smile at me.....they had hitchhiked a ride back home.....now before you go freaking out, apparently hitchiking is a very popular mode of transportation with the locals and everyone knows everyone so it is perfectly safe....now I don't have any problems with people hitchhiking but Monty is not people....he is my 10 year old son....so I was thinking good heavens this is crazy....Monty of course thought it was great fun...and he was picked up by teacher Randall the grade 2 teacher who knows the boys and who knows me....anyway life is definitely different here! Helke hitches rides up to our house at least 2-3 times a week....like I said it is like public transit for the people here....but it still freaks me out a little.....so what do you think?Am I losing my noodle??
Saturday night we went to a BBQ with Jim's family and we had a fabulous time....they are such fun and lovely people and the food was amazing! (endive salad with a creamy homemade dressing, satays on the barby, steak and pork....a meal fit for a king! we felt very spoiled) So today was a great day because my mother and my aunt Bernie arrived for a visiit from PEI....well it didn't start out as great....Igot up and got ready and went to the airport to pick them up.....got there at 9 (flight due at 9:05) waited, and waited and waited some more...by 9:20 I was thinking the plane must be delayed and as I had been sitting outside the airport enjoying the morning sunshine and +26 temp (ah hah you knew I had to sneak that in somewhere didn't you!) I thought I will wander in and see when the flight is coming....so I enter and to my surprise there is not a person in sight....and I think,wierd , there are at least 10 cars in the parking lot and there is a flight over due...where are all the people? Have aliens come down and taken them away? Did the rapture happen and I am left behind? what is going on?? So I call Joe and ask him to call win air's office (since there is NO ONE in the airport at all) Joe calls back and says that head office in St Maarten says the flight is in the air and they should be there anytime...so I think ok, wierd but whatever...out I go in the sunshine again to wait and watch for the plane....10 more minutes pass and I think, ok the flight is 12 minutes long and 10 minutes ago it was in the air sooooo where is it exactly?? so I go in to the airport again and I finally see a man (security guard) and I say ummm sir where is the 9:05 flight from St Maarten? He says there is no flight at that time, the next flight is due at 11:20....so I say ah yes there is a flight and apparently it is in the air and my mother and aunt are on it....when will it be arriving? and he says sorry ma'am but the next flight is in at 11:20....so I call Joe and have him call again and call me back and I drive home....when I get home, Joe tells me that apparently the airline cancelled the flight and mom and Bernie are now on standby for the 10:20 flight...and I say 10:20? that is weird,,,,it is a 12 minute flight and the airport said that it wont be here until 11:20....Joe says yeah it gets better,,,,they are flyiing to St Eustatias first !!!!! I said WHAT! NO WAY!! Bernie is going to freak out! So I call over at 10:20 to win air and say please make sure they get on the flight for goodness sake and some fellow says I will see what I can do...he calls my mom up to the desk and I can hear her in the background explaining the situation .....so he comes back and says, I have your mom booked but not the other passenger Perry? I am going to have to check with my supervisor...call me back in 5.....click.....so 5 long minutes later I call back and say Kendell? He says they are on....good bye.....thats it....so down I go and get them.....they have arrived dragging many bags behind them....and so we sat outside by the airport for a few minutes and headed home.....so once we got home, we started opening the bags!!! I tell ya , you never saw people so excited for the strangest things....the boys were gaga over the candy (cream eggs, mini eggs, smarties adn nerds,,,thanks Jamie, Bernie and mom!) and my gluten free stuff (thank you thank you thank you!!) and Joe was doing a dance for his BSG DVD's (Thanks Bruce!) and I was so excited to get my hands on Greys Anatomy episodes (thanks Jamie!!!) We got crocs and socks and flea treatment and candy and erasers and pencils and hair accessories and chalk and home schooling material (I am going to be supplementiing) Anyway it was like Christmas, the whoopaing and squealing going on around here!
We had a great first day, the weather was great, the company was great, lots of fun swapping travel stories and other stuff.....we can't wait to get out and enjoy the next 6 days...I hope that they don't go too fast!!
So take care friends and we will meet again....I will tell you all about our visit next time! God Bless you in the coming week!
Monday, March 2, 2009
Sock monsters exist all over the world.....
Hello! How are you all doing? I hear that the weather is cold and icky back home....perhaps you should pack your things and come to visit us in Saba!!! It is never below 24 here and the sun shines basically every day.....I really love the weather and I don't know how I will ever adjust back to the Canadian climate!
We have had a pretty good week down here in Saba....on Friday night we were invited to a beach party/bonfire with our new friends, Marylynn and Meno.....they are the parents of Monty's new friend, Helke, they are a dutch family. Anyway they have 4 boys ! Helke is the youngest and the rest are mid to late teenagers, very nice fellows.....so we got invited to a Christmas tree burning bonfire....it was a blast...our other friends, Joke and Gys (another Dutch family) came as well and they brought their son Jim, who is Christian's best friend. So we had an amazing time....it really felt like home going to a social gathering with other families...we definitely need to do that more! The beach wasn't there yet but it was still very fun.....the beach here is called a wandering beach because it comes and goes....the locals say that it usually comes back around midmarch sometime....so right now the shore is all rocks and there is no sand, the waves are quite big as well....but apparently soon, there will be a sandy (black volcanic sand....can't wait to see it) beach again and the waves will settle and it will be nice and calm and a great place to swim/snorkel.....in the meantime we have been swimming down at the harbour. And in the pool when we get invited by our friends! We may buy a membership once the weather gets hotter...there is a beautiful hotel on a cliff not far from here (you could google it, it is called Willards of Saba) and they sell pool and tennis memberships to students...the combined membership is pretty pricey but the pool membership is $200 a semester....so probably equivalent to the Cari complex in town....right now it is winter here and so there is always a fairly cool breeze blowing through. So Joe and I thought that once "summer" arrives and the weather is much hotter (apparently it can get very very warm!) then it would be nice to have access to a pool anytime we want to go.....you can go to alot of the hotel pools if you go and buy a snack or you can go to willards for $10/day per person so we figure that the membership will be the most economical way to go! Now I know you are thinking why don't you just go the beach when it is hot out?? Well the main reason for that is that the beach is a wandering beach and isn't always there....but also it is down down down a very steep road which I am a little afraid of at this point so I am not sure that I would want to drive all the way down there every time we want to go for a quick dip....Willards is about 3 minutes away (although it's driveway is straight up in the air!! so that will be a little crazy too) You really have to see the roads here to truly appreciate what I am saying....you know those very steep roads in downtown halifax? well they are like a flat section here! in some places you are sure that your car is going to tip over because it is so steep....luckily I am adjusting and most of the roads don't seem as scary to me anymore!
So the weekend was great. Monty had Helke over for most of it. Christian went to Jim's birthday party at the park and then swimming with his family on Sunday....so lots of great things going on....Oh and Monty started guitar lessons on Saturday morning and really enjoyed it...I am looking into signing them up for boxing as well...havent decided for sure as dont want to have too many activities going on.
Monty has been suffering from bouts of homesickness.....it is hitting him mostly at bedtime....so he is missing his family and friends and his hockey team.....adjustments and change are not Monty's strengths so this has been tough on him....sometimes I feel so bad for him, but I know that this is also a good learning experience for him...what is it about us parents that we don't want our kids to be hurting? Hurt is a normal part of life and a growing opportunity (as we know) and so we should be ok with it, but when he is sobbing heartfelt, real sobs about missing his family and wanting to go and see them, my heart just aches for him....and I want to run out and buy him a ticket home to see everyone...but I don't....I just listen, and offer comfort and an opportunity to talk about those he misses.....
Christian on the other hand, says that he is staying in Saba forever....he loves it here....he was homesick initially but he has fit in so well that he feels very at home.....
Joe is still enjoying med school....has block exams again this week (they have them every 3 weeks or so.....quite a pace here!) he doesn't have time to miss anyone or anything so he just keeps his nose to the grindstone!
I am a little lonesome for home at certain times....for example, our church Cornerstone just opened their new sanctuary and I felt so sad that we couldn't be there for the first service on sunday.....now you have to understand...this moment was 4 years in the making and we were all so excited to have a new church...so when my friends all were going on Sunday so excited, it made me sad to realize how far away I am from home.....also I miss being able to just pick up the phone and have 2 hour conversations with beloved friends....like Tina or Jackie, Sheri or Elisa, Julie,Lisa or Karen etc.....2 hour conversations in the caribbean mean that we don't have groceries that month!!!! so i really try to limit my phone calls and talk more through email....but I miss the voices, the laughing so hard my belly hurts conversations.....I am going to look into vonage again so that I may be able to make those long calls...they just may be essential to my ongoing happiness!!!! I am meeting some very nice people here, at our church and in our community.....but it does take a while to build those deep friendships that you just can't replace....
So my exciting news is that my mom and my aunt Bee are coming down this weekend to Saba for a week long visit. we are all really excited to see them! We love having visitors (hint hint) We are really looking forward to showing them around our home and community.....my one wish is that we all had the week off to spend with them....but it is probably ok.....mom and Bee are probably looking forward to sleeping in and quiet mornings having tea outside in the sun....so they may be thankful that we take off for the morning! we will have afternoons and evenings to explore away !! So I have asked my mom to bring down some things that we are missing down here....some are kind of small and may seem pidly but are things that we cant get here (unless we take another day trip to st maarten!) So mom is bringing flea medicine for the dog (I think he has fleas! ick) and nice hair accessories for me (as the pony tail is my new everyday style so need some variety) Also Joe needs pics and a capo for his guitar, we wanted some sidewalk chalk for the boys (we have a huge driveway which begs to be drawn on!), and some homeschooling curriculum for Monty (want to make sure that he is keeping up with canadian system) and most importantly socks! SOCKS! Do you know how hard it is to buy socks here and if you do happen to find them how expensive they are???? I had to buy some not to long ago because apparently there is a sock monster in Saba as well (you know the monster that only eats one sock and leaves you without a match??) So monty has about 7 socks with no mates?? Why can't the monster eat them in pairs I ask? would that be too much trouble? Sock monster? are you listening?? Anyway I bought Christian 6 pairs and Monty a 5 pair pack and it came to about $28 US!!!!! And they weren't fancy brand name socks by the way....just good old fashioned white socks (yes white....it was all they had so they won't be white for long!) Anyway the sock monster has been relentless around here so we had no choice in the matter....so I have asked my mother to please stock up on the socks and bring them with her so that the sock monster can continue to feast......
So I told you about our guinea pigs right? Well they are still cute as ever......the boys just love them.....but one of them keeps getting fatter and fatter and fatter....now I like to think it is all the grass and fresh veggies that we keep piling in the cage (please let it be the veggies!) but I have come to the conclusion that we bought a pregnant pig....so now we are thinking what are we going to do???? we are hoping that there are more people like us out there who may want a guinea pig for a pet.....speaking of pets....Monty's friend Helke has the sweetest baby tortoises....they are about the size of a tennis ball or smaller.....he is trying to give 2 to monty and he wants them.....so Monty has been working on Joe all week....the familyhas offered to take them back when we leave.....they are very tiny right now so have to be kept indoors for the first year or so and then they can go outside when they are less vulnerable.....personally I think it is a great idea....Joe is not so sure.....he thinks we have enough pets! Enough pets??? never.....(the boys and I love pets so we would have a whole petting zoo....luckily Joe puts his foot down once in a while.....) So I am thinking that before long we may have 2 more family members , oh and + however many babies a guinea pig has! (please let it be 1!!)
Anyway friends,I better get back to my Monday off!!!! Lots of sunshine to be enjoyed and maybe a little laundry and house work to do before the kids get home! Oh and people have mentioned that they haven't been able to comment on the blog without signing up....I didn't realize that ....so if you don't want to sign up maybe you could send me an email from time to time letting me know that you are reading?? Have a wonderful week all of you!!! God Bless!
We have had a pretty good week down here in Saba....on Friday night we were invited to a beach party/bonfire with our new friends, Marylynn and Meno.....they are the parents of Monty's new friend, Helke, they are a dutch family. Anyway they have 4 boys ! Helke is the youngest and the rest are mid to late teenagers, very nice fellows.....so we got invited to a Christmas tree burning bonfire....it was a blast...our other friends, Joke and Gys (another Dutch family) came as well and they brought their son Jim, who is Christian's best friend. So we had an amazing time....it really felt like home going to a social gathering with other families...we definitely need to do that more! The beach wasn't there yet but it was still very fun.....the beach here is called a wandering beach because it comes and goes....the locals say that it usually comes back around midmarch sometime....so right now the shore is all rocks and there is no sand, the waves are quite big as well....but apparently soon, there will be a sandy (black volcanic sand....can't wait to see it) beach again and the waves will settle and it will be nice and calm and a great place to swim/snorkel.....in the meantime we have been swimming down at the harbour. And in the pool when we get invited by our friends! We may buy a membership once the weather gets hotter...there is a beautiful hotel on a cliff not far from here (you could google it, it is called Willards of Saba) and they sell pool and tennis memberships to students...the combined membership is pretty pricey but the pool membership is $200 a semester....so probably equivalent to the Cari complex in town....right now it is winter here and so there is always a fairly cool breeze blowing through. So Joe and I thought that once "summer" arrives and the weather is much hotter (apparently it can get very very warm!) then it would be nice to have access to a pool anytime we want to go.....you can go to alot of the hotel pools if you go and buy a snack or you can go to willards for $10/day per person so we figure that the membership will be the most economical way to go! Now I know you are thinking why don't you just go the beach when it is hot out?? Well the main reason for that is that the beach is a wandering beach and isn't always there....but also it is down down down a very steep road which I am a little afraid of at this point so I am not sure that I would want to drive all the way down there every time we want to go for a quick dip....Willards is about 3 minutes away (although it's driveway is straight up in the air!! so that will be a little crazy too) You really have to see the roads here to truly appreciate what I am saying....you know those very steep roads in downtown halifax? well they are like a flat section here! in some places you are sure that your car is going to tip over because it is so steep....luckily I am adjusting and most of the roads don't seem as scary to me anymore!
So the weekend was great. Monty had Helke over for most of it. Christian went to Jim's birthday party at the park and then swimming with his family on Sunday....so lots of great things going on....Oh and Monty started guitar lessons on Saturday morning and really enjoyed it...I am looking into signing them up for boxing as well...havent decided for sure as dont want to have too many activities going on.
Monty has been suffering from bouts of homesickness.....it is hitting him mostly at bedtime....so he is missing his family and friends and his hockey team.....adjustments and change are not Monty's strengths so this has been tough on him....sometimes I feel so bad for him, but I know that this is also a good learning experience for him...what is it about us parents that we don't want our kids to be hurting? Hurt is a normal part of life and a growing opportunity (as we know) and so we should be ok with it, but when he is sobbing heartfelt, real sobs about missing his family and wanting to go and see them, my heart just aches for him....and I want to run out and buy him a ticket home to see everyone...but I don't....I just listen, and offer comfort and an opportunity to talk about those he misses.....
Christian on the other hand, says that he is staying in Saba forever....he loves it here....he was homesick initially but he has fit in so well that he feels very at home.....
Joe is still enjoying med school....has block exams again this week (they have them every 3 weeks or so.....quite a pace here!) he doesn't have time to miss anyone or anything so he just keeps his nose to the grindstone!
I am a little lonesome for home at certain times....for example, our church Cornerstone just opened their new sanctuary and I felt so sad that we couldn't be there for the first service on sunday.....now you have to understand...this moment was 4 years in the making and we were all so excited to have a new church...so when my friends all were going on Sunday so excited, it made me sad to realize how far away I am from home.....also I miss being able to just pick up the phone and have 2 hour conversations with beloved friends....like Tina or Jackie, Sheri or Elisa, Julie,Lisa or Karen etc.....2 hour conversations in the caribbean mean that we don't have groceries that month!!!! so i really try to limit my phone calls and talk more through email....but I miss the voices, the laughing so hard my belly hurts conversations.....I am going to look into vonage again so that I may be able to make those long calls...they just may be essential to my ongoing happiness!!!! I am meeting some very nice people here, at our church and in our community.....but it does take a while to build those deep friendships that you just can't replace....
So my exciting news is that my mom and my aunt Bee are coming down this weekend to Saba for a week long visit. we are all really excited to see them! We love having visitors (hint hint) We are really looking forward to showing them around our home and community.....my one wish is that we all had the week off to spend with them....but it is probably ok.....mom and Bee are probably looking forward to sleeping in and quiet mornings having tea outside in the sun....so they may be thankful that we take off for the morning! we will have afternoons and evenings to explore away !! So I have asked my mom to bring down some things that we are missing down here....some are kind of small and may seem pidly but are things that we cant get here (unless we take another day trip to st maarten!) So mom is bringing flea medicine for the dog (I think he has fleas! ick) and nice hair accessories for me (as the pony tail is my new everyday style so need some variety) Also Joe needs pics and a capo for his guitar, we wanted some sidewalk chalk for the boys (we have a huge driveway which begs to be drawn on!), and some homeschooling curriculum for Monty (want to make sure that he is keeping up with canadian system) and most importantly socks! SOCKS! Do you know how hard it is to buy socks here and if you do happen to find them how expensive they are???? I had to buy some not to long ago because apparently there is a sock monster in Saba as well (you know the monster that only eats one sock and leaves you without a match??) So monty has about 7 socks with no mates?? Why can't the monster eat them in pairs I ask? would that be too much trouble? Sock monster? are you listening?? Anyway I bought Christian 6 pairs and Monty a 5 pair pack and it came to about $28 US!!!!! And they weren't fancy brand name socks by the way....just good old fashioned white socks (yes white....it was all they had so they won't be white for long!) Anyway the sock monster has been relentless around here so we had no choice in the matter....so I have asked my mother to please stock up on the socks and bring them with her so that the sock monster can continue to feast......
So I told you about our guinea pigs right? Well they are still cute as ever......the boys just love them.....but one of them keeps getting fatter and fatter and fatter....now I like to think it is all the grass and fresh veggies that we keep piling in the cage (please let it be the veggies!) but I have come to the conclusion that we bought a pregnant pig....so now we are thinking what are we going to do???? we are hoping that there are more people like us out there who may want a guinea pig for a pet.....speaking of pets....Monty's friend Helke has the sweetest baby tortoises....they are about the size of a tennis ball or smaller.....he is trying to give 2 to monty and he wants them.....so Monty has been working on Joe all week....the familyhas offered to take them back when we leave.....they are very tiny right now so have to be kept indoors for the first year or so and then they can go outside when they are less vulnerable.....personally I think it is a great idea....Joe is not so sure.....he thinks we have enough pets! Enough pets??? never.....(the boys and I love pets so we would have a whole petting zoo....luckily Joe puts his foot down once in a while.....) So I am thinking that before long we may have 2 more family members , oh and + however many babies a guinea pig has! (please let it be 1!!)
Anyway friends,I better get back to my Monday off!!!! Lots of sunshine to be enjoyed and maybe a little laundry and house work to do before the kids get home! Oh and people have mentioned that they haven't been able to comment on the blog without signing up....I didn't realize that ....so if you don't want to sign up maybe you could send me an email from time to time letting me know that you are reading?? Have a wonderful week all of you!!! God Bless!
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