Play Day Thursday!

I love Thursdays! It's the day that we go out and play somewhere on the island. Today we walked to the beach by the university campus. I was happy when we locked the gate to the house by 10:08 (I had planned on leaving the house at 10) but a little disappointed when we reached the beach at 10:50. Wow, that took a long time. I guess we did stop off at the bathroom and 4 of us went potty. Anyway, we made it to the beach and some of our friends were already there. I put sunscreen on our faces when we left the house but needed to put some on our shoulders and backs at the beach. Unfortunately, Marissa was already in the water and I didn't do a very good job on Ben's back or mine so we are a little burnt. I did remember to bring my snorkel gear and the mask and snorkel that we have for the kids so I was able to take Emily, Benjamin, and Marissa out snorkeling to see the fish. It was so great! The water was clear and we got to see lots of fish! Two schools of fish swam with us! (They were small fish but lots and lots of fish.) I wish I could explain how great it was. I was nervous at first, seeing as how I haven't been snorkeling since Dec 2005 and before that I can't remember when - I was scuba certified before I got pregnant with Ben in 2001, so it's been a while. Once I got in and could see so many different things I was fine and really happy. Now, it's not all bright and colorful like you see in National Geographic videos, but some of the fish were bright and colorful. The ground was mostly rock and sand with a few plants. I would like to have a camera that can go in the water so that I can take pictures - but I guess they'll just be my memories. We really had fun in the sea, in the sand, and with our friends! Thanks gals!

Kemiah usually stays in the dry sand and stays away from the water. Today she over came her fears or dislike of the water and really enjoyed filling up the bucket with water and then taking it up the shore to dump it in the dry sand. She was just so happy. Xiomara also loved running back and forth from the water to the sand.

Emily did a great job snorkeling. We just did it for a little bit but I was so proud of her for putting her face in the water, and swimming along while holding my hand. She even kicked her feet really well.

This is our little friend Savannah. Her mom is Genoveva (the one who takes fantastic pictures) and we will miss them when they leave at the end of this semester to go to the Bahamas campus. But we have time left so we'll still have lots of fun! Savannah is waving "bye-bye" to me.

Just thought this was a neat view - with our friends, Natalynn and Chelsie, and Ben in the front and Cabrits and the boat in the background. My kids love these ladies!

Marissa climbed up on to the "dock" or pier, even though it is not in good condition. It was better before the hurricane hit at the end of last season. Anyway, because she did it Ben and Emily climbed up there too, and Xiomara tried but we decided it wasn't a good idea. By the time we left the restaurant that is right by the dock put a sign up that said, "Out of Order." And then it said something about using it at your own risk. I thought it was funny!

I probably would have taken more pictures but my battery died and I forgot to bring an extra one. I guess it was time to go snorkeling so that's what I did.