A Mish Mash of Things

As Mike's third semester is coming to a close we realize how busy we have been.  When we returned to the island after last christmas we knew we would not be back to Colorado for awhile but the time has been flying by and April does not seem so far away.........and what have we been doing to keep so busy?

HMMMM.............
- Hanging out on the beaches of course
- School work
- The boys got a new tutor (Whitney) - she is wonderful with the boys
- The boys fell in love with Whitney and Jared's new puppy Mocha
- In March the boys and I met family in Florida for a spring break
- Raising money for the Bolivia Medical Volunteer Trip
- Sharing the island with family and friends (Mikes parents came for the break in April and our friend Addie visited in June/July for 3 weeks)
- Dillon and Ronan started surf lessons
- Dillon had his first surf competition
- Experienced a major injury in a foreign country (Ronan broke his arm)
- The boys started up their knitting projects again
- We started a garden and continue to experiment and work on it
- Mike has studied hard and done well on his exams
- Read books
- Had good food and good times with my good friend Alexi (Sadly she is leaving me at the end of the semester)
- Said goodbye to friends who had finished their time on the island
- Met new people who have joined the AUC family
- Celebrated birthdays, Fathers Day, Mothers Day, Easter
- I received my first surf board - this meant the boys and I could go to Plum Bay and surf together when the conditions were right
- The boys made friends with a lad named Jake - he lives in Tradewinds part of the year and is from Ontario, Canada ( actually not far from where I grew up - such a small world)
- The boys and I got our first hair cuts on the island - curtesy of Alli - a spouse of a first semester student, her expertise were much needed and appreciated
- Spent time sharing mommy stories and struggles with my friend Karla
- A trip to Anguilla

The weekend before block exams we sold rice bowls to the students in order to raise money for the Bolivia Medical Trip.  Karla made black beans and rice and I made the lime chicken - they were a great success - Dillon and Karla had a good time at the school selling the bowls and I would hang out at home making popcorn for the other 4 boys.  We are not sure what the students will do next semester now that we have retired????

Dill and I out waiting for the perfect wave at Plum - it is a fair distance from shore as you can see - this was my first day on my new board 

we watched the ever changing colors of the sky and ocean from our balcony (yes that brown is the ocean - it was a very eery afternoon)

hung out with a whole lotta boys

Alli and Dill

sweet Mocha

thanks to a waterproof cast cover Ro was not slowed down by his broken arm

Plum Bay - Dillon and I are those 2 black spots heading out to the point

beach time with cutie pie Erik and his mama Karla

island playground

Alexi - our partner in crime for so many adventures (whether she wanted to participate or not)

my happy place - Cove Bay, Anguilla

although he does not have much time off we try to make sure Michael has lots 'o' fun when he does take a break - thank you for working so hard - we are proud of you - you are getting closer to the finish line every day

With third semester coming to an end in just over 2 weeks the boys and I are packed and ready to head to Canada for the month of August.  We will be hanging out with family, camping and enjoying a change of scenery and pace.  Mike will finish up fourth block exams and the following week his final exams of the semester and then make a trip of his own.  He is headed to Montero, Bolivia for a medical volunteer trip.  It will be a wonderful experience to see a new country and work in a clinic in a completely different environment than experienced in the United States.  We are hoping he will bring back some interesting photos.  Some exciting changes coming up but we will all return to the island for 4th semester - WOW - how time flies (I still remember the day we arrived on St. Maarten).