Our "ghost"

Okay so there have been a few nights when Cody and I have woken up to something tapping on our door. Since the door is made of metal, the sound carried easily. So at 3 a.m. the other night we hear this creepy noise once again. I must admit that in the past we were a little chicken and just waited for it to go away. Well this time I sent Cody out to investigate (I waited safely in the bed just to make sure it was okay). Here's a picture of our ghost.


We aren't really sure how he got down to where our door is considering the entire house is fenced off, but this not so little guy was sure enough on our front steps. It took a little while to get him in the pan, but Cody was persistent. (I stayed a safe distance away) He was interesting to watch for a minute until he figured out how to climb out of the pan. Fun stuff here on the island!

Merry Christmas!

Okay, so with all the Christmas time activities going on around the island I'm really missing home. My mom come to visit us last month and we had a blast, but it sure is hard doing this without her. I hope she knows how important she is to me.

Anyway, that being said I hope every one is having a very merry Christmas back home. I hope you eat lots of yummy treats, that Santa brings you everything you wished for, and that your time spent with family is cherished. Happy Holidays!

Other funness

Cody passed all of his classes with flying colors! We have been celebrating all week. First we bought ourselves a Christmas present. We hunted Front Street for hours looking for the best price on a Nintendo Wii. I figured we should go ahead and entertain ourselves while we can before Cody has to get back to studying. The Wii has got to be the neatest innovation as far as video games go. It is so entertaining to watch each other play tennis, or practice our bowling technique in our living room.

We also got the privilege of having dinner with two of our new friends on the island (Chuck and Geneva). We went out to dinner at a place called Soprano's. Cody and I split the Prime Rib. We had heard that this thing was big, but sheesh! For $29 we probably shared a 30 oz steak. It was really delightful to get more than you expected for a decent price on this island. Needless to say we will be going back there again soon. Afterwards, we all headed to the local movie theatre to see Enchanted. It was the cutest!!! I made Cody take me to see it again the next night. Haha. Poor guy.

UMMM... Perhaps it's time for an update....

Okay, so it's been forever since I last posted anything and I thought maybe our fans would like to know a little about what has been going on around the island. We have survived what I feel has been our "initiation" to island life. It started with power outages followed quickly by a massive water outtage. As it turns out the old water plant was shut down before the new one was up and running! Sounds like great planning, right? Eventually the Dutch side of the island bought water from the French side which resulted in a somewhat sporatic supply of water. Things seem to be working better in that area anyway.

So what could be worse than water and power outtages you ask. How about earthquakes...

Yep, that's correct. I happened to be talking on the phone to a friend of mine at the time. I think my initial reaction was "Hang on. I think I am either seriously hallucinating, or I'm in an earthquake." They thought I was kidding. So yeah, fun stuff. I'm just glad Cody wasn't injured by any sharp medical instruments considering he was in anatomy lab with loads of other first semester students.

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The following is a release by the United States Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center...this earthquake may have caused damage due to its location and size.

... TSUNAMI INFORMATION STATEMENT ...
AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS ORIGIN TIME - 1900Z 29 NOV 2007 COORDINATES - 15.0 NORTH 61.3 WEST DEPTH - 142 KM LOCATION - LEEWARD ISLANDS MAGNITUDE - 7.3

A strong earthquake has occurred, but a tsunami IS NOT expected along the coasts of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico states, and Eastern Canadian provinces. NO tsunami warning or watch is in effect for these areas.Based on the depth of the earthquake within the earth, a widespread damaging tsunami IS NOT expected along the Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, U.S. Atlantic, Eastern Canadian and Gulf of Mexico coasts. At coastal locations which have experienced strong ground shaking, local tsunamis are possible due to underwater landslides.

Volleyball Tournament at Mullet Bay

Yesterday was a holiday here on the island, and the students were ready for a much needed reprieve from school. A big group of them decided to hold a beach volleyball tournament over at Mullet Bay. Cody is a great athlete, but I on the otherhand was happy to hold the camera and weigh down the beach towel. Another plus is that I had lots of company from the other spouses and girlfriends! We had so much fun. I can't wait to do it again!

Brown doves?

Yes indeed. You are looking at one of the BROWN doves that inhabit the island. I mean, is it natural that they are brown? They make the same pretty cooing sound, so I guess they are okay.

Can I go too?

Apparently Louie wants to go to the beach too. You can see his eyes if you look real closely. He climbed into our beach bag today and hid there for quite some time. I think he's trying to be a stowaway.

Our Trip to Plum Bay

We went to Plum Bay last week. It's a beautiful and small beach. This video features a very short scene with Cody in it. He is pretending that I'm not there.

Louie Loves Butterflies 2

Louie had been so fascinated by the butterfiles and there were soooo many of them that I thought you guys just had to see. The end of this shows Louie getting a little too excited and falling off of his perch.

Louie Loves Butterflies

Today, Louie was standing on the washing maching looking out the window where tons of butterflies were keeping him entertained.

Hello and Welcome

Hey everyone! I'm excited that you found our page. We are loving it here in St. Maarten (most of the time anyway). It's been an interesting experience to say the least. Please stay tuned for all the fun details, pictures, and videos from our life here on the island.