Sunday, April 17, 2011

Sunday, April 17th, 2011: 89/365


Now we are back in Miami. Our cruise is over and we are heading back to Grenada. We had a fantastic lunch with Daniel before going to Miami International Airport for our direct flight back to Grenada. Then April and Dwaine will pick us up when we arrive. It has been a fantastic trip.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Saturday, April 16th, 2011: 88/365

Bam. Silhouette. I love my new camera. We had our second and final fun day at sea today. We lost $14 in the casino and $20 in bingo but we had lots of fun trying the penny slot machines for the first time. Dinner tonight was delicious. They made a special indian dinner for us because we are vegetarian and the main dinner was lobster and steak. We had a fabulous day relishing in each others attention, reading our Kindles and soaking up the sun. Its weird to think that I haven't had a cell phone or computer for a whole week but I kind of like being secluded for a while.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Friday, April 15th, 2011: 87/365

Today was our forth and final stop on the cruise. We spent the day laying on the beach in Cozumel, Mexico. This is one of my favorite pics from the day. I continue to experiment with depth of field, aperture, shutter speed and the various tricks of photography I'm learning in Understanding Exposure. Also, I was handed a free raffle ticket while sitting on the beach and ended up winning a free pair of earrings that I love! We are having a blast!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Thursday, April 14th, 2011: 86/365

We stopped in Belize today, or as some people know it, British Honduras. We toured the city of Belize City and went out to Altun-Ha to see the Mayan ruins there. It was un-belize-able, as they like to say. The ruins were so tall and we got to climb to the top and see the whole plaza. My camera battery died on our way so this is the only picture I have for now until we can get the pictures off of the point and shoot camera we borrowed from Allie. It was a great day though, we also picked up some souvenirs for our family and friends.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011: 85/365


We arrived in Roatan this morning. For those of you who haven't heard of it, its a small island off the cost of Honduras, and its gorgeous! We went zip lining! Palak is afraid of heights so this was quite the accomplishment to convince him to go. We went through 1100 feet of lines suspended more than 40 feet in the air. It was so much fun. Then as if the day could get any better, we got to go through Gumbalina Park and play with Capuchin monkeys! There were about 7 monkeys in the park that were friendly enough to handle. They climbed up on our shoulders and we could pet them all we wanted. It was so cool. 

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011: 84/365

Our first stop is at Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands. The water is blue and the sand is hot. We spent the day laying in the sun, frolicking in the clear blue sea and reading our Kindles. It was a very relaxing day.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Monday, April 11th, 2011: 83/365

Today is our first fun day at sea. We slept in in the morning, had a marvelous breakfast. Ate in the buffet for lunch and enjoyed a wonderful dinner in the dining room. We saw the show the performers were putting on and it was really entertaining. They sang songs from all the decades and hit every note. We are looking forward to seeing the Cayman Islands tomorrow!

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Sunday, April 10th, 2011: 82/365

YAY! We are on the boat. This gargantuan cruise ship holds 3500 people and 1500 crewmen. There are buffets and shows and a casino and basketball courts and everything! We already have a drink in hand and are loving having our Kindles to read out on deck. Best day ever!

Also, I got my camera!!!!!!! It is a Nikon D3100 and I LOVE IT! I have already read the owners manual and am having a blast shooting in manual mode!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Thursday, April 7th - Saturday, April 9th

I have been negligent in my picture taking. We are preparing for our cruise. We leave on April 9th and we come back on the 17th. I promise to upload pics from there when we get back. Also, I opened the digital camera we have and were planning to take on the cruise and it is broken. It won't open all the way :( I think it is kind of serendipitous though as I have been researching and trying to find a digital SLR camera that we can afford so I can continue to grow in the field of photography. Maybe I will end up getting a camera in Miami while we are there.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011: 81/365

Photography. We got our pictures back today from our photo shoot. I love them. These are two of my favs.  Also, I continue to play with a DSLR camera loaned by one of my friends. Ashley, the gifted photographer that took these pictures has been kind enough to sit with me today for an hour and share with me some of her knowledge. I am so excited by taking photographs and Ashley has offered to teach me whatever she can. Stay tuned to watch as I continue to learn and love taking pictures. :)

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Tuesday, April 5th, 2011: 80/365


I have made light. Ok. That's not really true. But I did take this photo in almost complete darkness. I have been continuing to explore photography and had a friend kind enough to lend me a digital SLR camera until I can get my hands on my own. This is my favorite picture from tonight. I wish you could see how dark it really is outside so you can understand how excited I am that I was able to get such depth and detail into this picture. PS. I didn't use the flash either. :)

Monday, April 4, 2011

Monday, April 4th, 2011: 79/365


Today was a particularly stressful day. Both my jobs had intense situations and Palak is super stressed with upcoming exams. I decided to take a little time out and go back to the rocks to practice some of the photography skillz I have been learning in Understanding Exposure (a book Ashley suggested about photography). This was my favorite one from today. I love how I was able to capture the exact moment the wave hit the rocks and each little sparkle of water. Seeing the water in this way reminds me that even though its just a little drop it is still significant. I can't get bogged down with the mundane details or the drudgery in life but I have to focus on the little things that are so important that are often lost in the bigger picture. I am safe, happy, healthy and loved. These are the little sparkles that get me through. I should try to let them sparkle through my life more often.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Sunday, April 3rd, 2011: 78/365


Made it to volleyball today. I have been missing this part of my life. Though Joe wasn't there and one of the players was frustrating Allie was there which made it a lot better. I could just look at her and giggle at the fact she knew EXACTLY what I was thinking when I was frustrated. I also like keeping up my volleyball skillz and remember all the things Coach Thelen said to me on my high school team. Never thought I would need that info again....

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Saturday, April 2, 2011: 77/365


I'm a sucker for a good panoramic. I went to the rocks today with April, Dwaine, Allie, Rachele and Ashley for Ashley to take photos of April and Dwaine (yes we often travel in herds). It is gorgeous there. I loved the contrast between the green grass, brown dirt and blue ocean, plus the clouds were pretty cool hanging barely above the land.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Friday, April 1st, 2011: 76/365


Shiloh turned 2 today! For those of you who don't know she is the dog of our future neighbors and friends April and Dwaine. They had a cookout to celebrate Shiloh's venture into the terrible 2's or the terrible teens depending on how you calculate the dogs age and to celebrate the end of the hell week full of exams. It was lots of fun!!

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Thursday, March 31, 2011: 75/365


Tonight was a great night! I went to the Talent Showcase presented by Ashley Willis (you may remember her from a previous blog as the one who took the stunning photographs of Palak and I together). She is an amazing photographer and she did a presentation today on HOW to photograph or more concretely the dynamics of photography. She explained exposure, ISO, aperture and shutter speed in a way that connected the dots between the pixilated photographs I have been taking. I immediately came home and was so inspired I went in the bathroom to try my hand a some of the tricks used. I took this photograph using a 4second shutter speed moving my illuminated cellphone around during the exposure time. Next, I read my entire camera manual and played around with more of the settings. Now, I am on a mission. In order to shoot in manual and be in control of the different aspects of photography I need a better camera...more info to come after research has been done.....

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Wednesday, March 30th, 2011: 74/365


I know. You are shocked. You can't believe it is true. But alas, it is. Daisy used the big girl potty.
Though she is not yet technically toilet trained as we have put a makeshift litter box inside the toilet seat, she is using the toilet and we remain confident she will at some point use the toilet without the help of a litter box. Yay!

Monday, March 28, 2011

Monday, March 28th, 2011: 72/365


Another Monday. Another day of teaching. We were sad to find out today that two of our five students in the Secondary School will be leaving during Easter break. I am feeling really thankful today that I still enjoy what I am doing on this island. It is a rarity for people to be able to work here and not only do I have the opportunity to work but I also love what I do. :)

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Sunday, March 27th, 2011: 71/365


Today was a lounging day. Though I did go play volleyball for a couple of hours (which really hurt my burnt fingers :/ ) We spent most of the day around the house not doing all too much. It was nice.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Saturday, March 26th, 2011: 70/365

What can I even say about the Carib Thank You Hash?! It was an amazing time! The has was fantastic, starting at Magazine beach and going by the airport. The after party was even better. Jimmy and I won a lunchbox and Carib cup in a drinking game and the 3/$10 beers kept right on coming. We ended the night with some nachos and spread sand EVERYWHERE we went. Becky's house and car got it the worst I think. Ahahahaha. What a fantastic adventure!

Friday, March 25, 2011

Friday, March 25, 2011: 69/365

Palak and I had professional photos taken today. It was so much fun and we are so excited to see how they turn out. This is a "preview" that she sent us and we should have the rest in less than 2 weeks. Ashley is an amazing photographer and we are so fortunate that she had the time to do a 2 hour photo shoot with us. :)

In other news, my streak of bad luck continues as I poured boiling water on my fingers today and came home to a leaking bathroom ceiling. Will it ever end?

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Thursday, March 24rd, 2011: 68/365

The ocean looked especially beautiful today. I thought I would stop and savor the moment. 

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Wednesday, March 23, 2011: 67/365

Today was Becky's last bingo. :(
She is leaving for WI next Thursday so she won't be able to come next week. Palak and I really enjoy spending time with her and her family so we are really sad to see Becky, Madyson and Macyn leave so early. We will see them again in August though so we just continue to look forward to that. We had lots of fun at bingo tonight. Palak won $50 (which paid for our beer?) and with the night ending with a bucket on someone's head, you have to know it was a good one. :)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011: 66/365


So, I don't use my blog to complain very often but I really have to today. I was driving up the hill to tutoring with the girls and I had to drive in the middle of the road to avoid some pedestrians. When BAM! I hit this pot hole. I kept going and didn't wipe out or anything but the scooter was clearly not driving correctly. I drove it the rest of the way up the hill and then back down all the way to FoodFaire. I stopped there because I was out of upper body strength from trying to drive in a straight line. I called Livingston and he told me to drive the scooter the rest of the way home. It turns out the steering column in the scooter was bent. :( One more negative adventure. I feel like my luck HAS to turn around soon. This is just getting ridiculous.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Monday, March 21st, 2011: 65/365


My two babies were cuddled up sleeping in my bed when I was getting ready this morning. 
They are so cute!!!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Sunday, March 20th 2011: 64/365

Kelsey came over to our apartment today to teach us how to make earrings out of the Grenadian coins. They are SUPER cute. :) I didn't use the drill all day in the hopes I wouldn't hurt myself today but alas, someone set the drill under my chair without removing the drill bit and I ended up with a puncture wound in my heal. Off to the clinic tomorrow to get a tetanus shot. :(

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Saturday, March 19th, 2011: 63/365


Palak and I had a nice relaxing day at home today. We decided to break out the Skip-Bo cards I got Palak for Valentine's Day and play a little bit. Daisy decided she wanted in on the fun. She is so cute. :)

Friday, March 18, 2011

Friday, March 18th, 2011: 62/365

Allie and I organized a trip for the SO's to go make pottery. It was a lot of fun and we had a really great turnout. We will go back next week and glaze/paint the pieces.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Thursday, March 17th, 2011: 61/365

TWO-FER!

Today, I had my first green beer!!! Happy St. Patty's Day!



I let people sign my cast today and yesterday because WE ARE TAKING IT OFF TODAY!!!! YAY!!!!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Wednesday, March 16th 2011: 60/365

Wednesday night is BINGO time! I didn't win (again) but we had TONS of fun. Can't wait to go back next week! :)

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Tuesday, March 15th, 2011: 59/365



I didn't take this picture today but I wanted to post it anyway. We let Daisy out last night (Monday) and she didn't come back all day on Tuesday. We are starting to get worried about her. The manager of the apartment complex we live in has 2 dogs though. They chase her every time they see her so she has to find the perfect window of them not being around and us being home to come back in. I wish there was an easier way. Hopefully she will be home soon, we are really missing her. :(

Monday, March 14, 2011

Monday, March 14th, 2011: 58/365


I went to visit with the other SO's at the pool today. Allie was there all bandaged up too so it was the first time we have been able to get a pic together. When we travel around people stare at us like we are mutants. But most people are really nice except the one guy who came up to us and just repeated over and over "you need to be careful". We finally looked at him and said "why didn't you tell us that 3 weeks ago?" and he shut up and walked away. Ha!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Sunday, March 13, 2011: 57/365


Daisy is beginning to miss going outside. She kept us up until 5 o'clock this morning crying about it. And I mean crying. I have never heard such a loud noise from such a small animal before. We finally let her out so we could get some sleep. It was a nerve-wracking night but in the morning we opened the door and a few hours later she came waltzing in like she owned the place. Palak and I were so relieved to see her back in the apartment. We are going to try getting her on a schedule of going out in the day time and spending the nights at home with us. We'll see if it works. ALSO, TODAY IS GRAMMA'S 70TH BIRTHDAY!
Happy Birthday to the BEST GRAMMA IN THE WORLD!!! I'm so happy we got to 3-way video chat today with her and mom and Julie. Plus, Alan and Courtney were in FL so I got to see them too. :) Love it.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Saturday, March 12th, 2011: 56/365

Again, I am tired of the cast impeding in my lifestyle. Some friends were headed to the beach today so I decided to join them. There are pics of me in the ocean with my cast cover on. Once I get them from Kirsten I'll post one of those too because I'm not going to lie it was pretty hysterical. :)

Friday, March 11, 2011

Friday, March 11th, 2011: 55/365

We decided to name the kitten Daisy. After the main character in the Great Gatsby. It suits her and Harold and Daisy are both old names that sound pretty good together. She has really gotten to know and love her time with us. She cuddles and plays and sleeps to her heart's desire. This is not her stretching. This is her completely stretched out SLEEPING on our couch. She is just so adorable.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Thursday, March 10th 2011: 54/365

This is a picture of me and my cast at the pool. Yes I realize you can't SEE the pool but if you have been there before you would recognize the chairs and table legs. I am so tired of this cast slowing me down and I just can't wait to get back to life....

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Wednesday, March 9th, 2011: 53/365

BINGO, Line, Beer and Money!

Tonight the SOs gathered at Prickley Bay Marina for BINGO night.
It was so much fun.
Becky, Jimmy, Megan, Vanessa, Palak and I sat at one table together and there were lots of SO's (including Kelsey's mom) that sat at another one. We had a table FULL of winners! Jimmy won $50, Vanessa won twice totaling $175 and Palak won twice and brought home $160 and a 1/2 case of beer!!!
We had so many stories that night too including Jimmy opening beer bottles with my crutches and Becky asking 100 times which way is vertical. 
Can't wait to go back next week!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Tuesday, March 8th, 2011: 52/365


We have adopted a kitten! She is so cute and little and shy. She hid from us all day but I was able to get her to play a little bit before bed. We still haven't decided on a name yet though. I like Maude or Sally. Palak has been calling her Bella. She is so cute though....maybe one day we will get to pet her! LOL

Monday, March 7, 2011

Monday, March 7th, 2011: 51/365


Meet Allie. As week 2 of my cast wearing begins one major thing I am noticing is that my time with Allie is SEVERELY diminished. I suppose I always took it for granted that I could just scoot scoot up the hill and go spend time with her. She crashed her bicycle on Saturday and got pretty banged up as well. She has stitches on her forehead and her leg along with lots of bruises and some roadrash. People are joking that they don't want to come near us for fear they will get sucked into our clumsiness. I do miss my time with her though....hoping for a speedy recovery for us both.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Sunday March 6th, 2011: 50/365



Palak has been rockin my socks with his cooking lately. These are some enchiladas with homemade pico de gallo. YUMMY!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Saturday, March 5th, 2011: 49/365


We have heard wonderful things about Ricks so we decided to go. The pizza is REALLY great. The service leaves something to be desired but Palak, Allie, Rachele, Dwaine, April and I enjoyed kicking back with a beer and having pizza like we did in the US.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Friday, March 4rd, 2011: 48/365



Ok I admit it. I didn't take a picture today. I forgot. However, Allie and I teamed up with Ashley (another SO on the board) and had a fundraiser for the SO organization. We had 16 people show up and made $75ec. Not too bad for a pretty easy fundraiser. Plus, now I own this movie.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011: 47/365


I know you can't really see it in this picture but my worst fear happened today: crutches + rain.
I didn't have to be out in it hardly at all though because I stayed safely under the cover of school until I HAD to leave and by then it was almost dry...

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011: 46/365


A beautiful Grenadian sunset.
I am so blessed to be able to be in the beautiful place with the one I love. 

Monday, February 28, 2011

Monday, February 28th, 2011: 45/365


This is the road I have to go down (on crutches) to get to the bus stop. It was quite a feat today.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Sunday, February 27th, 2011: 44/365


A trashbag, a lawnchair and a bag of cookies. This is the care package I received today from my neighbors up the hill. The trashbag and lawnchair are so I can bathe and the cookies were for moral support (they know me so well). It really made my day to have people so willing to help me and make life easier for me. Tomorrow starts the hardest part when I have to commute back and forth to my two jobs....keep your fingers crossed I don't injure myself further... ;)

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Saturday, February 26th, 2011: 43/365


As you recall, last Tuesday my scooter and I had a little disagreement....the scooter won. I ended up with my ankle stuck under the scooter. It was bothering me throughout the week but I decided to try and walk it off. It wasn't better by Friday night so I visited a trusty chiropractor friend that used some little tool to see if it might be broken. Because the tool made me feel so much pain, he suggested I go get x-rays. So this morning I woke up and traveled on my scooter, in the rain (seems like the start of a horror flick) to get x-rays at one of the more recommended hospitals close by.

The x-ray technician (who was wearing flippy-floppies and a t-shirt) informed me that I had fractured my tibia and that I would need to wait for the bone doctor to confirm and possibly put a cast on my leg. The bone doctor came about 20 minutes later, saw 5 patients before me (thank goodness for my Kindle) and then delivered the bad news. Fractured tibia. :( Then he examined my ankle which was unbelievably painful and determined that I damaged my tendon as well. 20 minutes and $600ec later, I had a cast and crutches and was ready to go.....except I had driven my scooter there and was alone.

As luck would have it, a fellow kickball player was arriving to the hospital at about the same time I was leaving to have some blood work done. She informed me that it would be about 15 minutes until she was ready to go and she could take me home. A fellow teacher from the Montessori school was there as well and she kept me company for awhile. Then I made a quick call to the guy I rent my scooter from and he offered to come get it for me and drive it home (though he apparently didn't mean MY home because he never brought it here).

All in all, I am very fortunate to have great friends (including some that came to bring Palak and I dinner and great company that night) a smidgen of luck and some extra $ to get me through. 3 weeks from now, I will get the cast removed and will hopefully be as good as new.......

Friday, February 25, 2011

Friday, February 25th, 2011: 42/365


Girls Day!!! Kirsten, Susanne and I packed a picnic for the day (which may or may not have included 3 bottles of wine) and headed out to La Sagesse beach. You would probably think I would attach an actual picture of the beach but the truth is it rained a lot. I did take this pretty cool one of the tree though and we had TONS of fun chatting and moving our chairs in the sun and under the trees and back in the sun.....repeat as needed. ;)