Wow, we took so many pictures!

Here are a few of my faves:

The ferry boat we rode from St. Thomas to St. John. We're on the top waving... look really close. =)

Dru meeting Sammy for the first time.

Aunt Susie with Carli and Eli--on the beach within five minutes of arriving.

Carli modeling the new sunglasses from Uncle Dru--just one item in the pile of presents that greeted Eli and Carli in their room in the villa. They will never forget the trip to "Uncle Dru's Island"!

Luella and Eli playing in the pool.

Ben and Luella sailing on the boat Dru works on, Breath.

Ben swimming at Maho Bay.

Carli and Eli swimming in the open ocean. Interestingly enough, before this trip neither one of them would set foot in a pool deeper than they could touch, but they had no problem once Uncle Dru gave them these floaties. Everything from Uncle Dru is magic! We are never going to be cool again with Uncle Dru as competition!

Ben helping me put on my snorkeling mask as I try not to hyperventilate thinking about all the things that are going to eat me if I don't get out of that water!

Ben and Luella sailing on Breath

Being silly with the camera--one of the two times I actually did my hair and applied makeup. It's so darn hot there, the makeup melts off after an hour and hair falls flat from the humidity, so why waste the time?

Carli and Eli toasting the fabulous meal of "gourmet" mac-n-cheese and grilled chicken made by Chef Ted.

Jane posing with Chef Ted.

Carli and Eli posing at the ruins of the Annaberg Sugar Mills.

Ben's parents, Bill and Jane. Too cute!

Ben, Luella and Sammy sailing aboard Breath.

Look at that pile of easy cheese! No one does crackers and easy cheese like Nana!

This is in my top ten favorite pictures from the trip. A perfect picture of Papa and Carli deep in conversation.

Sammy took to Uncle Dru right away. Every morning when Dru would arrive at the villa, Sammy would speed crawl to see him. He just wanted Dru to hold him all the time--it was very cute. I'm sure if Sammy could talk, he'd tell us he misses Uncle Dru.

Sammy wasn't thrilled about the beach... it's hot, it's dirty, and where's my bed?

Yeah, not lovin it. I do love the look on Bill's face though--priceless!

I loved watching Ben play with the kids in the water--Sammy didn't love the beach, but he loved being with Daddy.

This picture captures Dru's personality perfectly--I got the perfect shot!

If there ever was a doubt that these three are related, it's gone now. I asked the three to pose together for a picture and they all stood three feet apart like they didn't even know each other. I said, "You could touch each other you know." All three of them, at the exact same time--no joke--reached out and touched the others with one finger. Ha,ha. =)

We all could have packed up and left Carli at the beach by herself and she never would have known it. She played in the sand for hours!

Ben pulling Eli's loose tooth with a little pair of pliers. Considering how brave Eli was and that we were in the islands, the normal tooth fairy acquiesced to the "Pirate Fairy" who visited Eli in the night and traded his tooth for a real pirate coin!

Starlit Villa--where we stayed. It was beautiful--thanks to Dru who worked so hard to make it perfect for us--we loved every minute of it!

Dru giving Carli a flower from the Flamboyant Tree, which she proudly wore in her hair until Nana accidentally broke it putting sunscreen on her scalp. She'll probably remember it a month from now and ask me when Uncle Dru's gonna get her another flower for her hair!

More St. John

Getting settled back in to normal life always takes longer than you think it will. Things are finally settling down and we're pretty much back to normal. There is a lot more to report about our trip though, so here goes!

On Tuesday morning Ben, Eli, Carli and I went with Susie and Dru to Trunk Bay. Nana, Papa and Sammy stayed at the villa for some much needed R & R. Trunk Bay is beautiful! I think Dru said it's number seven on the Travel Channel's Top Ten Beaches. It was awesome. Carli and Eli played and played. Carli is a sand bug, she could have played in the sand all day long. Eli just wanted to float around with his tube, and I'm sure he could have stayed all day in the water as well.

The snorkeling path in Trunk Bay.

There is a snorkeling trail (is that what you call it? Sounds dumb to call it a trail underwater . . . I don't know, it was only my second time snorkeling) in the bay that Ben and I went on. There were little underwater markers leading you around this little island. We had to take off our sunglasses to get the masks on, and that started my eyes tearing up--I swear I have a sun allergy or something. I can't even go out to get the mail on a sunny day without tearing up! So, that wasn't the best snorkeling experience. I'm kind of freaked out by the ocean anyway, so that didn't help. Unfortunately, I just couldn't keep my eyes from tearing up and my mask was leaking. It was pretty miserable, but I was trying to hang in there so I wouldn't ruin it for Ben. I kept trying to just close my eyes, but that was REALLY freaky, so that didn't work. Eventually we just gave up, but Ben went back later with Susie and Dru so I didn't feel too bad.

Eli, Ben and Carli swimming in Trunk Bay (actually, they were singing in this shot... I could hear "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" from my chair on the beach. Too cute.

We wrapped up the beach day around 1 pm and went back to the villa to shower and rest. That evening we returned to Trunk Bay and Dru's friend June took family pictures for us. It was so beautiful . . . no wonder so many people get married on beaches! I was continually surprised at the lack of people on the beach . . . nothing like a California beach. It was only 5 pm, still really nice weather and there wasn't a soul on the beach. I was wishing we had brought the beach stuff! We left the beach and went to a very nice restaurant in Mongoose Junction called Paradiso. As soon as we walked in I wondered if there had ever been kids in this restaurant, because it was really nice, but I heard another baby crying, so I figured it was okay. I think our kids were determined to put the staff to the test because within 15 minutes of arriving, they managed to spill an entire glass of water, and then dump over a glass of soda, breaking the glass. I was wondering at that point why in the heck we had decided to go to a restaurant . . . BUT, the evening turned out fine, we enjoyed the company and the food, and it was VERY nice to be in an air-conditioned building (the only air-conditioning we felt the entire week).

Dru's friend June, the photographer, also turned out to be a babysitter, so we scheduled her for Wednesday. Ben and I were definitely needing some time away from the kids. It was hard at times to look around at the scenery and not wonder what compelled us to bring kids along! It would have been nice to sit on the beach all day and not have to worry about a thing (maybe next time!), however, I wouldn't trade the time the kids got to spend with Uncle Dru and the rest of the family for anything. They had a wonderful time and I think the memories will be strong for quite a while.

Dinner with just the adults at Chateau Bordeaux--thank you babysitter June!

Anyway, June came over around 10 am on Wednesday and the adults enjoyed a day of shopping and lunch. It was fun to just wander around and browse in all the little shops.

Thursday wasn't the best day for me, I ended up with a little bit of the "island revenge" (diarrhea!) and spent a lot of time in the bathroom (sorry! Too much information!). I had to miss the facial I had scheduled with Dru's girlfriend, Colleen. She and a girlfriend own a salon there on St. John. Again, maybe next time! I did end up getting a nice nap, and Ben was able to swim with the kids in the pool (for four hours!), so it was a nice day anyway. It was kind of nice to just stay at the villa and rest up.

On Friday Dru and Bill arranged a sail on Calypso, a 30-ft catamaran, and it turned out to be a wonderful day for sailing. The captain said it may have been the best sailing day they'd had all summer. I don't know much about sailing, I just know that it was tons of fun. The boat was nice and big with lots of seating, snacks and drinks, and we all had a good time. We sailed around in between a couple of smaller islands (Congo and LeVongo) and had another opportunity to go snorkeling. This time it was awesome! We saw sooo many fish, it was amazing.

Dru, Ben, Luella, and Susie--after snorkeling--you can still see the outline of the masks on our faces.

At one time, we were swimming through several schools of fish and you could hardly see anything except millions and millions of little fish. Then, out of nowhere, a group of tarpon came by and about gave me a heart attack. I think I about jerked Ben's arm off when I first saw one--they were BIG! and when you're in the middle of a school of fish and one of those swims right by you, it's pretty freaky! All in all, the snorkeling was awesome, and it actually helped me with my fear of the ocean. It was kind of nice to look in the water and see that there wasn't anything scary at all.

Sammy and Nana enjoying the sailing on Calypso

More St. John

For more on our trip to St. John, see my other blog--http://luellamoore.blogspot.com.

St. John!!

We finally made it to St. John! We left our house at 4:30 Friday afternoon and we arrived in St. John at 5:30 pm on Saturday. We were delayed at the Omaha airport for almost three hours and when we finally arrived in Chicago, the prospect of waiting another hour for a shuttle to the hotel and then sleeping for three hours and having to come back to get through security was just too much to take. We ended up camping out behind one of the boarding gate desks and struggling through the night. Eli and Carli did really well--with jackets for pillows and Sammy's blankies for covers, they slept pretty well. Sammy was living the good life with the stroller reclined back. It took him a while to fall asleep, but he was smiling when we woke him up at 5 am. It looked like Ben got at least a couple hours of sleep, but I don't think I slept more than fifteen minutes. Even through the earplugs I wore, I could hear the stupid announcer every fifteen minutes "Attention airport passengers, it is illegal for drivers to solicit passengers from the upper level, blah, blah, blah..." followed immediately by, "For the safety of our passengers, the Chicago O'Hare airport is smoke-free. You may smoke in designated areas BLAH, BLAH, BLAH . . . " EVERY FIFTEEN MINUTES! I actually spent most of the night in short prayers, "Please let Sammy keep sleeping", "Please don't let anyone steal our bags when my eyes are closed," "Please help me not to hear that stupid announcement again." =)

We had egg mcmuffins at McDonalds and made it to our flight at 6:45 am to Charlotte, NC. The airport in Charlotte is really nice--there were white rocking chairs all throughout, even near the gates. They were really comfortable! The kids had a great time running around, and Ben had a crappy time haggling with the lady at the counter because they somehow didn't have a record of Sammy's ticket for the last leg to St. Thomas. We ended up paying $93 bucks for some stupid taxes or something, and everything was okay. The last flight was about four hours, and Sammy slept two of them, so that was awesome. Eli and Carli were awesome, only getting antsy in the last 30 minutes (thank you Crayola Color Wonder!).

Once we got to St. Thomas, we packed into a van with a bunch of other tourists and headed to the ferry boat. The van went all over the island dropping people off so we got quite the tour. In the Virgin Islands, they have American cars but they drive on the right side of the road like in England. Really weird! (And dangerous!) Most people have the passenger side mirrors folded in in case they clip another car. The roads are super narrow and windy and turning corners is tricky when you're used to driving on the other side of the road! There have been several sharp intakes of breath!

So the taxi van took about 45 minutes (and $50!) and then we waited another 20 or so for the ferry to take off. The ferry ride was fun, but to be honest, by that time I was so exhausted I could hardly keep my eyes open! There were a couple of birds flying along beside the boat and they put on a diving show for us. Eli and Carli loved that. It was great to finally pull up to the dock and see Ben's brother Dru and his parents and sister Susie waiting for us. Dru and his girlfriend Colleen live here in St. John, and Susie, Bill and Jane had arrived before us.

Amazingly enough, Eli and Carli were still in good spirits and excited about everything. They were such troopers! They made it through that hard traveling day like world travelers.

We visited a bit, had sandwiches to eat, took a dip in the pool and went to bed. The villa where we're staying is really beautiful, and never has a bed been so comfortable!

Today we went to the beach and it was amazing! I can't believe the color and temperature of the water. It's absolutely beautiful. Sammy wasn't too impressed, and he ended up taking a great nap with Ben in the hammock.

Eli and Carli loved it! Carli couldn't get enough of playing in the sand and I think Eli spent the whole time in the water floating around. It was really fun to look down and see little fish swimming around in the water. It looks and feels like a swimming pool, so it's really weird to taste the salt. I kept having to remind myself that we were actually in the ocean!

So, it has been a great first day, and we're looking forward to a few more. Tomorrow Dru is taking us sailing on the boat he charters--the kids are very excited--and so are we. I've been boating lots of times, but never sailing. Here's hoping for good weather!

A Fly on the Wall

I often wish I was a fly on the wall when it comes to our kids. I'll hear them singing in the bathtub or having a conversation while they're playing in the basement and I wish that I could capture it without disturbing the moment with my presence.

I happened to look out the window one day while Eli and Carli were having a swim party/picnic and I got one of those moments on video. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I don't think it needs words!

The Cutest Video Ever

This video is from our trip to Utah in July... I finally got Ben to make it smaller for me so it doesn't take hours to upload. Sammy just loved Grandpa (my dad)! I love how he looks up at Grandpa every time as if to say, "Do it again!" Just precious.

Carli-Pants

There have been lots of posts about Sammy and Eli lately--I feel like Carli's being overlooked! Ben and I were just commenting today that we hope Carli keeps her fun personality as she grows up.

She is a total crack up--there's nothing I like better than watching her play! She does so many really funny things. She absolutely loves to organize and stack things. She often asks to play with the spices (I have them organized into a basket of large bottles, and a basket of small bottles) so she can stack them into a tower and then line them up around the counter. She also loves to play with the "craft box"--not so she can color or do any sort of craft, but so she can take everything out of it and arrange it on the floor in some kind of shape.

She can play for hours in a box or a laundry basket. She will get her blankies and pillows and make herself a bed... I have found her more than once asleep in a laundry basket!




Several funny things have happened in the past few weeks. One time I was doing some cleaning when Carli came upstairs with yogurt all over her face. Our conversation:

Me: "Carli, what's all over your face?"

Carli: (totally innocent) "Nothing."

Me: "What have you been eating?"

Carli: (even more innocent) "Nothing."

Me: "Hmm. Come here, let's look in the mirror." (She goes along with this completely, no resistance whatsoever... she's still very confident.)

Me: (at the mirror now) "Carli, what's all over your face?"

Carli: (VERY loud wail) " Aaaahhh! I want daddy!" (She starts to sob.)

Me: "What did you eat?"

Carli: "A yogurt."

Me: "Where is it?"

Carli: "Downstairs under the couch."

Me: "Where is the spoon?"

Carli: "I didn't have a spoon, I was eating it with my fingers."

That's Carli for you! I love her so much, she brightens my life every day and keeps me laughing.