Well friends....Hello! It has been a while since I updated the blog and I was sitting here this evening thinking that it might be a good idea to let everyone know what is going on in our lives as there is plenty! So we have been on PEI since June 24th.....about 6 weeks now and we are having a wonderful time with family and friends.....the weather hasn't quite been "caribbean weather" but ahhh well, can't have it like that all the time! And soon, we will head south again and we will be basking in the sunshiny weather every day for the next year or so......we are missing Joe (he is still in Saba) but we are having lots of fun....we have spent lots of time with friends, on the beach, swimming, shopping, eating fast food (yum).....I have been to summer work parties, hung out with friends, visited with family and been to my 20th high school reunion....yup....that was such a blast from the past! I had the opportunity to catch up with people that I hadn't seen in well.....20 years.....it was a fantastic night and I didn't get home until quite late (errr...early) but I haven't had that much fun in a long time....my stomach muscles were so sore the next day from laughing so much.....many thanks to Melanie for hosting a superb pre and post party!! Personally, I think we should make it a yearly event! Any others interested?? LOL
So we have some interesting and exciting news......it will come as a surprise to some of you.....Joe and I have made a decision to move to another island for medical school.....Joe has applied and was accepted and is transferring to MUA (Medical University of the Americas) which is located in Nevis - St Kitts. There are many reasons why we decided to do this but bottom line is it is a great decision for our family. Monty was finding life on Saba pretty tough and so we feel that Nevis has alot more to offer for his age group, better schools, has alot more activities than Saba, way more in the lines of things to do, and beaches, beaches, beaches......we feel really good about this decision. Joe has been over to Nevis 2 times already and is very impressed by the staff at the medical school. He also really likes the island. He has rented us a stunning house (I think it belongs to Angelina and Brad...lol) and has a car purchased already for us (that Joe is such a go-getter!) It is all a little overwhelming really, but exciting and has the makings of another "excellent adventure"! The downside is that we are all going to miss the wonderful friends that we have made in our time in Saba.....The Koot family, Marylene and the boys, Amanda and Nathan, Lucia and little Harlow (and Jonathon too) Lisa and Billy, Rachel and Greg, Becky and Jaron, Heather and Ben, our church friends, Brother Reilly.....so many more .......wonderful wonderful people that have been a very important part of our lives in Saba....so saying good bye to all of them is going to be hard (you know how I love goodbyes...NOT) I am so grateful to have met and made so many wonderful friends in our short time there.....you have all been fantastic and I will miss you soooo much.....I am hoping that each and every one of you will come to visit us in our new home! We would welcome company any time!
So Joe will be arriving this weekend coming and we are all very excited and happy to have him back......7 weeks is too long to go without Joey! Someone please remind me of that next time I consider leaving him for such a long period of time! Actually we have done quite well, managed fine, but we certainly have noticed his absence from our lives....and we will be excited to have him with us for the rest of our vacation...which by the way , is hurtling by faster than the speed of light! I can't believe how quickly time is going and in about 2 and half weeks we will be flyiing back to Saba.....we will arrive on Saba the 29th for the evening and then finish our final packing (Joe has most of it done now) and then we will fly over to Nevis likely on the 31st.....(quite the jetsetters we have become!) We will have just 2 days to say our goodbyes and get the final business of life in Saba wrapped up! It will be a whirlwind of activity.....
Oh and for those of you who have been following along on our animal adventures....here are the updates:
the guinea pigs are multiplying...we think that someone has been throwing water on them or feeding them after midnight (gremlins) Anyway Joe went out to feed them one morning and lo and behold.....one of our girls had 5 babies overnight.....yes you read that right....5......so that made 10.....ok I am an animal lover (freak whatever) and even I think that 10 guinea pigs is a bit much! So our friend Marylene has agreed to take over our flock and find homes for them as we can't bring them with us to Nevis....they have very strict rules for importing animals so we are going to even have trouble bringing our dog there......anyway that is the story with the guinea pigs! As for birdie....the little pigeon that we hand raised....well she has flown the coop......literally....she finally decided that she was ready to be independent and away she went.....she started off by flying away for a few hours at a time and slowly progressed from there.....one of her last adventures she was gone for 3 days so Joe figured that was it....she was gone.....until our dear friend Joka came by with Birdie and a great and extremely funny story....Joka is one of our dear friends, and one of Joe's profs as well as one of the Island Physicians. She and her husband have been meeting with Dutch officials as Saba is revamping its Health Programs....anyway Joka is this tall, elegant, classy dutch lady and she was in a meeting with all these Dutch suits.....at a very fine out door restaurant....as she sat talking about serious issues (health care transformation in Saba) a funny thing happened.....a pigeon swooped in and landed in her hair! causing quite a fuss I might add.....so Joka reaches up and pulls at the bird in her hair.....and gets the bird out and looks at it and exclaims "oh my, thats Birdie, thats Joe and Dawn's bird!" True story I swear it.....anyway Joka brought Birdie home to Joe once the meeting ended......I laughed for about 2 days after I heard this.....and of course wondered what are the chances that Birdie would pick Joka out of a crowd?? Did she recognize her as a lift home?? a familiar face?? (Birdie would have met Joka a bunch of times) Anyway it was such a great story that I felt that it had to be shared here!! so since that time, Birdie has flown away again.....she hasn't come back this time, on her own accord, or with neighbors! It has been almost 2 weeks so we figure she is rehabilitated and free as a bird! Just the way it should be!!
Anyway friends , it is getting late, I better get to bed....just wanted to quickly update you on what is happening in our lives! So start saving your pennies people....we want visitors! And when are you going to have a free place to stay in Nevis?? This is your opportunity!!
Have a great night and God Bless.
