Our House

The kids room from the outside.
Our main living area.
The kids bedroom. All the bedrooms are set up the same.
Our really cool shower!

How our stuff got here, wrapped in plastic on a pallet.
Jay opening his only box!
Quinn playing paddle ball.
The view from our house.
The main living area in our house.

Our life on Iguana Road

We finally moved into our new house. Our new house is located on Iguana Road. For those of you who want to find it one the map Iguana Road is off of Chocolate Road East or some combo of those words. We overlook Hart Bay. Our house has a beautiful view of the ocean from all of the bedrooms and our the main living room. You can hear the waves crashing as you sleep. Here is the nitty gritty about our house. It is a 4 bedroom house. Each bedroom is its own separate room. If you look at the front of the house from the beach the main living area consisting of 1 giant room with the kitchen, dining room and family room are in the middle. To the right of the main room is the kids bedroom. Both kids are sharing a bedroom. They seem to like being together and we have not had any problems, yet. Below that bedroom is our bedroom. We have a cool shower that has plants in it and a screen above it so it is part indoor part outdoor. To the left of the main living room is out third bedroom. We are using that room as a school room/playroom/guest room. Above that room is where the owner of the house, Danny is living. The children have adopted Danny's dog Homer as their own. Homer and Roosie get along like old pals.

Night time ferry ride

We went to visit some friends yesterday on St. Thomas. We took our car and did some shopping while we were over there. We spent the afternoon on the beach with Scott and Crissie McCormack and then had dinner with them. When it was time to head out we had to leave our car in St.Thomas since we missed the last car ferry. We took the people ferry back to St. John. The kids were so exicted. Check one item of the list of things "they want to do". The ride home has been my most favorite moment so far here. When the ferry captain turned off his spot light, the moon lit up the night. The moon illuminated the mountains around us and the clouds. You could see the big dipper hanging on the edge of the ocean getting ready to spill out its contents. The clouds raced across the sky casting shadows on the ocean. All of this as we jet across the ocean to our lovely little island dotted with lights. Just beautiful!

Anything new?

We are moving into our new house next weekend. Be on the lookout for pictures. Our household goods should arrive tomorrow, clear customs next week and then we should get it next weekend. It was a pretty quiet week this week. The kids and I made some new friends on Wednesday. On Wednesdays we go over to Coral Bay and play on the local field. The field is about the size of 1 1/2 baseball fields and it is covered in goat poop. The goats come and mow the field and then poop on it. A bunch of moms get together in the afternoon on Wednesdays and the kids can run wild and play! We had been going on Wednesdays but most of the kids were younger. This Wed. there was a 6 year old boy and a 5 year old girl. You would have thought my kids had died and gone to heaven. They got along great with these two kids! Not to mention that I get along great with their mom. We went to the beach together on Thursday and Friday. My kids cannot wait to see them! That alone makes life that much easier. Oh and that our stuff will be here. I am getting tired of wearing the same 2 pairs of shorts.

Tahiti Open

Jay played in a golf tournament today. I know what you are thinking, there are not any golf courses on St. Thomas. Well they made do. It was "The Last Ever Tahiti Open at Pond Bay". The land for Pond Bay (the same Pond Bay that Jay is working for) has been cleared for about 15-20 years. Every few years or so they hold a fundraiser there for someone from the island that needs some help. (This one was for Jim's medical bills) They make up their own holes on what ever happens to be there. Over trees and rocks, off of water cisterns, down hills, you get the idea. They have pieces of carpet for tee boxes, pvc pipe for holes and flags stuck into the ground somewhere near the hole for flags sticks. Some of the holes are "groomed" meaning they have sand put down for the putting green. The 4th hole (picture above) was off of the water cistern. 100 yard away was the green which was some dirt with painted rocks outlining the green. Quinn went and played a few holes with Jay. On 18 he actually hit all the shots and got it in the hole. 18 was downhill through a shoot covered with sticks, rocks, and dirt. Oh, and he was using only his putter. They had water/bloodymary stations. Golf balls were sold since you ended up losing a ton of them. Trophies went out for best costume. You could sponsor a hole or just make donations. Every one who played got a lei and a koozie. People came to watch, wander around the course and cheer everyone on. It was very interesting to be a part of since most of these people are locals.

Beach Bound

Swimming Iguana

So off we go today as a family to Maho Bay, our favorite beach. On the way there we see a few cows hanging out by the side of the road, their usual. We get to the beach and find a nice spot in the shade when SPLASH! What was that? It looks like a shark in the water. Would you believe it was an Iguana?! Well it was, you know the kind that are native to St. John, the swimming iguana. That iguana spent most of his day swimming around in the shallow end of the beach. At times he looked like a baby turtle, popping his head up here and there. The kids spent time underwater watching the iguana. The kids think he was snorkeling watching the fish. Once we got tired of that, we did some snorkeling. The kids and Jay saw a great barracuda, trumpet fish, sergeant major, four eye butterfly fish and many other fish, too many to name. Jay began to get antsy. He lasted 3 hours I could not really complain. We packed it up and headed home. On the way we passed two donkeys, about 30 goats, and a cow crossing the road. An average animal sighting day. Oh we also picked up a hitch hiker and took her to the "evil driveway" where she lived. She has lived here for 30 years but never on this side of the island and doesnt know the roads too well on this side, so she had trouble remembering exactly where she lived. Hitch hiking is very common here, you just point your index finger in the direction you want to go and if there is room some one might pick you up. It was our first pickup!

Cows in the yard

It is funny to pull into your driveway and see 8 cows standing in your yard. It is even funnier when they look at you like what are you doing here. There is a herd of 17 cows that wander around the island grazing. You never know when or where you will see them. They walk down the middle of the road. If they cross the street you must wait for them, they take their time and give you dirty looks. The kids love seeing them. You never know where they will be, its like I spy!

The Contract

It is offical, they finally signed the contract. Work can now begin on Pond Bay! Yea!!!

A bunch of lizzards

Yesterday we went on a hike. We hiked the Cinnamon Bay Self Guiding Trail. This trail takes you through the forest as well as through an old Sugar Plantation. There are signs throughout the hike describing plants and animals native to the area as well as what it was like during the 1800's when sugar was cultivated on the island. What did Quinn find through out the hike, lizzards! He has an eye for those fellas.

Today we went back to Maho bay, our favorite beach. The kid are gettting so good at snorkeling that they went out by themselves numerous times. By far the most exciting thing was seeing a Hawksbill Turtle swimming right in front of us! The kids, and their Mom, was so excited. The turtle was a juvenile. His mother was about 40 feet out past him. Both were feeding on the sea grass that is in shallow water close to shore. While I was out watching the mommy turtle, a White Spotted Eagle Ray swam by me, scared the crap out of me. The Ray was about 4 feet wide from tip to tip. The Ray didnt seem to mind me and swam right on by. Tomorrow we are off to Annanberg. Annanberg is an old sugar plantation. Walker has been so excited to go there. I kept wondering why until she asked me today if they make candy there. She thought the plantation was still active and that they used the sugar they harvested for candy. Oh the mind of a child!

What you need to husk a coconut

What do you need to husk a coconut? How about a hammer, screwdriver and a pair of scissors. Don't forget some determination and hard work! The kids found a coconut on the beach a few weeks ago. With Aunt Suz's help they removed the outer shell and inner shell. Once inside they drained the coconut milk (they even drank some) and tasted the inner meat of the coconut. Quinn was the helper of the year!

Snorkeling at Salt Pond Bay

What they say about snorkeling...QT "I like snorkeling, I saw lots of fish even some big ones. Me and mommy were almost out to sea, that's how big the fish was and how far out he was. He was blue and orange on top." WR "Snorkeling was really fun. I saw lots of fish and lots of reefs. I saw lots of colorful fish. One fish had a sword on its nose and I thought it was a baby swordfish. We had to hike to get to Salt Pond. It was a very long walk (5 minutes). There were shells and prickers at the beach. I like the beach a lot."

It was a memorable event snorkeling with the kids for the first time. Aunt Susie was with us and the kids "go to snorkeler"! The kids are actually pretty good. We made it out about 100-200 feet from the shore. We took turns with the kids. Once Quinn realized how to breathe through the tube he was fine. Everyone cannot wait to go again!

Peace Hill Hike

We went on a short hike, 15 minutes. We hiked "Peace Hill". At the end of the hike was a old windmill used for harvesting and grinding sugar cane. Walker's comment on the hike "I dont like this hike, there is nothing to see!" It was an easy hike and a nice way to start hiking the trails here on St. John.