Author: Christy

Today we woke up to beautiful sunny skies, warm temperatures, and a regular day in Belize. The pool is still a little chillier than normal, but we’re pretty spoiled in that department.

The boys have been doing their journals, but before today we hadn’t broken out the Getting Ready for Kindergarten and Second Grade workbooks. Today was the day. Finn worked on numbers; Ezra worked on coins.

Then we went to the pool. Ezra tried out a new way to snorkel.

Finn relaxed on a floaty.

Then he got a ride across the pool.

We spent some time looking for shapes in the clouds.

What do you see?

(Ezra saw a fat baby with no arms.)

Finn went through many moods today. Contemplative Finn.

Dancing Finn.

Mad Finn. (He wanted to go to the pool but we were at the beach.)

He eventually gave in and, of course, had a great time on the beach.

When we returned to the pool, Ezra did cannonballs.

It was a very active day; I’m hoping it translates into an early bedtime.

Today the sun made periodic appearances from behind the cloud cover, the pool warmed up a bit and we’re starting to feel a little normal. Sergio continued clean-up efforts — raking, pool vacuuming, removing the hurricane boards from the other villas, etc.

Some other guys came to fix the roof on Sally’s house. The burrito guy showed up so lunch was delicious. The wind continued to blow uncharacteristically, and the waves were still oversized.

The boys spent lots of time on the beach, looking for shells, finding shoes, and throwing sand into the ocean.

The view was beautiful from our lounge chairs.

Oh, and we discovered one of our tomatoes had frozen in the fridge. For some reason I found this utterly amusing.

Hurricane Ernesto moved enough north so that Mexico took the brunt, but we got very high winds and lots of rain overnight Tuesday. With everything boarded up (and the fact that it was pitch black outside) my pictures are few. But I did rush upstairs to take a couple through the cracks in the boards on Wednesday morning. This was about 8:00 a.m. — high winds, heavy rain, water jumping out of the pool.

Once Jamma and Finn were up, I went out her door (the only door boarded in a way that we could get out) to take this shot from the porch.

And here’s video.

When the rain died down a little bit, we dressed the kids in trash bags and got ready for an adventure outside.

To the dock!

Bruce told me to channel my inner Anderson Cooper, so I did.

We didn’t stay out very long; on the way back Finn had a good time checking out the waves in the pool.

The ocean waves were big (for our beach). It almost looked like we were at a beach in SoCal.

We experienced high winds (30-50 mph) all day. Toward the evening the sky started to clear a bit.

We made one trip out to the pool, but the water was much too cold for me. The boys jumped right in, of course, and snorkeled around — happy to have an outside activity.

We spent most of Tuesday checking websites for information on now-Hurricane Ernesto and running outside to take pictures of the weather changes. It was a beautiful, stormy day.

We had some periods of pretty heavy rain.

We went out on the dock several times to check on the waves. I had never before seen any waves on this side of the reef.

The sky was spectacular.

We were a little concerned that there was already some sand erosion.

In the afternoon we decided to take a swim to let the boys burn off some energy. Jamma decided it could be a nakey swim. For the boys. First we had to check out the situation on the dock.

One last photo before I headed out to join them.

We had a great time — sprinkles and all. Janice and I had to stay underwater though because it was actually kind of chilly, which is rare. We ran in and took warm showers, and I thought we were in for the evening. But Jamma had other plans. During a break in the rain she suggested she take the boys out to hunt for treasures. Pretty soon she came back to get me because I was missing out. The boys were having a blast.

We saw Genie’s boat safely tucked up on land. He was out on his balcony checking things out, too.

Then we went to the dock to see how high the water had gotten and see if any waves came over the edge. (None while I was there, but apparently they had before.)

The waves were crazy high at the reef. My pictures don’t do it justice.

The wind and rain picked up overnight, but the kids slept right through all of it. I woke up a few times to thumps outside, but looking around this morning I don’t see any damage here.

About an hour after I took the picture of all the boys in the pool, Janice came out to talk to Scott about the tropical storm (Ernesto) that was brewing and on a course to hit Ambergris Caye. It wasn’t that we were in danger, but that Scott and Dietmar needed to be home the next day and it was unlikely their Tuesday flight was going to go. So, sadly, we packed them up and sent them home a day early. The boys were very upset. Finn said, “Can we at least say goodbye???”

After seeing them off at the dock, we headed back to the villa (and the pool) and spent the afternoon watching Sergio board up the windows in preparation for Ernesto.

The worst part was our new lack of view.

By late afternoon, the clouds were looking pretty great.

Later that evening, we made ribs and potato salad and had Sergio and Rachel over for dinner. Beforehand, Ezra made (and ate) a necklace out of Cheerios.

Finn had a more traditional appetizer.

It was a nice dinner. Neither Sergio nor Rachel seemed overly worried about the storm, which was helpful. They’ve been through this before many, many times.

On Sunday night, after a great day of snorkeling, a pool outing, and several rounds of Make Your Own Superhero on the iPad (Super Scott, Fantastic Finn and Energy Ezra), Finn was obsessed with Scott. He couldn’t wait until morning when he could go over to their villa and coerce them into the pool. (Foolishly, perhaps, Scott had promised to take the boys to the pool in the morning if I wasn’t ready to go. Sounds like free babysitting to me!) We agreed that he wouldn’t come over before 8:30. My first wake-up call from Finn was shortly after 5:00. No, Finn, it’s not 8:30. Go back to sleep.

Finally, at 9:00, I let him go over there. Before I knew it all the boys, big and small, were at the pool. When I went to the balcony to take some pictures, Finn looked up and yelled, “Mommy! I’m pushing this big heavy guy around!” Scott was on two floaties, getting a ride from Finn. Maybe he’s not so foolish after all.

Ezra was snorkeling and Dietmar was sunning.

This was definitely the calm before the storm.

When Janice asked me, the day after we arrived in Belize, if I thought I might want to take the boys snorkeling when Scott and Dietmar got here, I wasn’t all that keen on the idea. They’d only been in the pool a couple of times and were still very cautious. Of course, by Saturday, they were snorkeling in the deep end and diving for torpedo toys, so we decided to give real snorkeling a go on Sunday. We piled in Genie’s boat for a trip to Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley.

Here’s Genie. He lives a few lots south of us.

When we got to Hol Chan, there were some fish around and under the boat.

We put on our gear and headed into the water. Here’s Scott and Finn.

We took a few minutes in the very shallow part to get our bearings. I still wasn’t sure how the boys were going to do. Finn was a little apprehensive. Ezra took to it immediately.

Then we were off!

Genie planned for about a 40 minute swim but we cut that short to about 15 minutes. Finn wanted to go back and when I reached the boat with him, I realized that Scott and Dietmar were also ready to stop. But even in the short time we were out we saw tons of cool sea life, including a nurse shark chomping on a fish under a rock, lots of coral, and many different kinds of colorful fish. Ezra could have gone on for days.

Next we headed to Shark Ray Alley to swim with the sharks. When we first got there, there were lots of fish in the water, but no sharks.

Then they showed up.

It was incredible to watch a fearless Ezra snorkel around with those sharks. Of course, they are nurse sharks and don’t bite, but still! He loved when they swam right around his legs. We also saw a pretty big ray which was very cool.

After a little bit of time there, we got back on the boat and headed way north to Tranquility Bay for lunch. Of course, Finn dozed off.

The resort at Tranquility Bay is a collection of little bungalows — it’s super cute.

Here’s the restaurant.

The view north. The water was beautiful.

Lunch was good. The server took my leftovers to feed the fish which the kids (and heck, all of us) had fun watching.

They hang out under the dock but moved faster that imaginable when he hung that plate over the edge.

They also had a dog there — Foodie, who was appropriately named because he would eat anything. The kids fed him some of Finn’s quesadilla.

And then we headed home. Ezra found a new perch for the ride.

Great day!

In an effort to get the boys snorkeling for real (something they have wholeheartedly resisted in the past), Jamma bought them both snorkels and masks and yesterday’s evening swim was the first try-out. It was a rousing success.

Two of the big kids next door are swimmers, snorkelers and swim teachers, so they volunteered to help out with some tips. Here are Joseph and Jamma getting Ezra ready to start.

I was upstairs getting dinner ready, and by the time I came out, this is what I saw.

Here’s a video. Ezra has a very interesting way of swimming while he’s snorkeling.

Based on this success, Scott and Dietmar took the boys out to the end of the dock this morning to see if they would try snorkeling in the ocean. Both boys went in, but neither wanted to stay — I think they were a little freaked out. Here’s Scott bringing Ezra into the water. He tried swimming but I think he was worried that he couldn’t quite touch the bottom, so he got right out.

Finn went in with Dietmar.

And he was OK for a minute or so while Scott held him.

They were much happier when we went back to the pool, and pretty soon Ezra was snorkeling all the way to the deep end. And don’t they look cute in their snorkel gear?

Late yesterday Jamma’s friends Scott and Dietmar arrived for a short vacation. The boys and I went out to the dock to await their boat; Ezra found a coconut along the way.

As a side note, this is the first time they’ve donned any clothing except swimming clothes and underwear. They were very excited that I only asked them to put on shorts and not shirts (“like the big boys,” Finn said).

They wanted to test the water, so both climbed down the little ladder.

Then a very ferocious dog showed up and Finn cowered.

Here’s the dog.

Finally, the boat arrived …

… and the weary travelers briefly took in the beautiful surroundings and headed for the swimming pool.

There was a full moon last night so we walked out to the end of the dock to check it out and also look for sea creatures. It was beautiful — the pictures don’t do it justice.

I also liked the way my flash lit up the water.

I took some swimming photos yesterday during the boys’ afternoon swim-shirt-free swim time. They were really enjoying themselves — diving for the torpedoes, playing swim tag, and jumping in the pool. It’s amazing to me how much more confident (although still pretty cautious) they are in the pool this year, and how it’s now no big deal to dunk their heads under. It’s a pleasure to watch them.

And here’s Finn diving for the torpedo. He’s moved from retrieving it from the steps only to now getting it from the bottom of the pool.

Our first full day in Belize was packed with our regular activities: lots of swimming, a trip to the beach for sandcastle building, rest time in the middle of the day, and then more swimming/building in the afternoon.

There are two well-placed chairs for Jamma and me during the boys’ beach time.

Ezra waded pretty far out into the very shallow water this time. Apparently, he likes the way the sand and turtle grass feel on his feet.

Later we made more God’s Eyes and some paper airplanes.

I’ve been surprised at Ezra’s swimming since we’ve been here. He swam everyday at summer camp and he’s much more comfortable in the water. The little torpedo toys I bought are a hit with both boys and I took a video of Ezra diving in the pool to get them.

He also likes to play a penguin game and I took a video of that as well.

I was struck again by the tropical loveliness here so I took a few pictures of the grounds to share.

From the pool.

On the balcony.

From the balcony.

Yesterday the boys and I traveled to Belize — the first time on our own without Jamma as our guide since she was already there. No worries though, it went off without a hitch. The mad dash in Dallas from gate C-29 to D-16 made things a little exciting.

We started off very early — woke up at 3:00 to leave the house at 4:00. Finn got up at about 3:15 and promptly dressed himself and brushed his teeth. Excited, anyone? Ezra was a little slower and grudgingly got up, but once he remembered what the day held he perked up quite a bit. We got through the hassles at LAX quickly (thank goodness for curbside check-in and a very nice person working the gate counter who got our seats moved together) and went foraging for breakfast. Then we waited for boarding.

The flights were pretty uneventful. The boys stayed busy with puzzle books, the Sky Mall magazine, the iPad, and, of course, the safety cards. Finn, in particular, is a very safe passenger.

They also had a few snacks. (Finn didn’t want to have his picture taken.)

Finn was very proud that he stayed awake the whole first flight and made a point to say that he was still wide awake when we got on the plane in Dallas. Then he promptly fell asleep on take-off.

Pretty soon we were over Belize City.

Jamma met us there (yay!) and John drove us all to Municipal Airport, where we caught the little plane to the island.

I took some photos out the window, which I’ve done every year but I never tire of the view.

And soon we were over San Pedro Town.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sign at the airport in San Pedro. Things are a little lax here on Ambergris Caye.

Then we took a minivan taxi to the water taxi dock and loaded up the boat for the ride to the house. The boys, Ezra in particular, was in his zen place.

And after about a half-hour of unpacking time, we gave in to the begging and Finn got to his happy place.

This morning, we woke to a beautiful Belizean day and we’re enjoying this view from the balcony, getting ready to head out to the pool.