So close yet......

We'll after almost 18 months on the island our residency papers were finally ready to be picked up! There is only one day to pick them up which was today, so we got up early got everyone all ready and headed over to Phillipsburg Police Station to pick them up. We get all the way over there and are told that the paper and picture the school told us to bring is not right and we have to go have another passport picture taken. When we get over to the passport picture place it was going to cost $12 for each picture and could take close to 2 hours to develop (the window for picking up papers was only 4 hours, and the line was out the door)! Well us and another couple decided this was was to much money and time to even bother with and once again AUC did not prepare us the way that would have actually made this run smoothly! So I guess we are legal b/c we have papers but sort of illegal b/c we'll never actually get those papers! But if we've made it this long what's another 6 months!

On another note, Carter had a dentist appointment this week and Dave and I were so worried he was going to freak out big time. He actually did really great and loved sitting in the "robot" chair. Unfortuantly one tooth had a cavity in it that we have been keeping an eye on since we moved here and he needs to get it filled. So this Monday he goes back and something tells me this time isn't going to go as well as last time! Send us some good vibes we may need them!

And it was that time again....Welcome Breakfast time! It was great hanging out with all the new and old spouses and I'm excited for the next one when I get to announce that it is our last semester and everyone claps and cheers...it has been a long haul to get there!

Time to catch up.....

We have internet! Yipppeeee after one month, 1000 trips to the internet company, and a lot of withdrawal we have internet again! Man, what a headache! Here is an update of all the fun we've been having...we have been very busy!

We had a crazy, busy break. It started off with Jean and Glen coming to visit. We went to the Butterfly farm, the beach, pool and shopping in Merigot. Jean and Glen were also nice enough to send Dave and I on a special day trip to Saba (a neighboring island) for our birthdays and they watched the kids. Dave and I had a great time and it was something we definitely couldn't have done with the kids. We did a trail that was 1,037 stairs! It was really interesting and we saw all kinds of different environments and rain forest plants. When its time to come down the mountain you come down the same way you went up, so down 1,037 stairs! Our legs were like jello and we kept slipping and falling on the slippery stairs that were covered in moss. Our legs hurt for days! But it was great to get out and see another island that is completely different from St. Maarten, and it was great to have a day alone with Dave. The Butterfly farm was a lot of fun, the kids (minus Carter) loved to have the butterflies land on their fingers. Jean and Glen stayed at the Sonesta so we got to use their awesome swimming pool, and the kids (minus the momma's boy Gavin) stayed every night with Grandma and Grandpa at the hotel. It was a short visit, they were only here 4 days, but it was great to see them.

Once they left we had a few days as a family before my friends arrived. We took advantage and did some really fun stuff. We went to the St. Maarten Zoo, which is really small but has some pretty interesting animals. Dave made great friends with the monkeys and they would stick their tails out to him so he would hand them sticks or rocks. They would also pick up rocks and peanut shells and throw them at us and then catch them when we threw them back! We also took the kids mini golfing because Jean and Glen had wanted to take the kids but we ran out of time. They had a great time doing that and didn't want to do the last hole where the ball gets taken away! We also took a trip to a different island called Anguilla. We went to one of their famous beaches, Shoal Bay. It was really fun because they are a British island so we had to drive on the other side of the road and with the steering wheel on the wrong side! So I really wasn't very good at it so Dave decided he would take over for me.....well needless to say we had to get a whole new rental car because he totally ruined the first one! We were rear ended (and the picture does not to it justice) the whole back end was ruined and the trunk wouldn't close anymore! So they got us a new rental car and it didn't cost us anything because the man who hit us had to fit the bill since it was his fault. After the accident and lunch we took the kids to a little water park at one of the local hotels. The kids (even Carter!) had a ball! They went down the water slide 1000 times, we definitely got our moneys worth!

As if break hadn't been crazy busy already then it was time for my gal pals Maria, Julie and Shelley to come visit! They also stayed at the Sonesta and I packed my bags and moved on in with them for 4 night of pure non-mom fun! We had so much fun doing a lot of the night life that I never get a chance to do! We also did the Friday Farewell boat tour which was a great way for them to see the whole island from the outside! We also did some casino time, lots of eating, and lots of dancing! It was awesome to see them and we all relished the time to just be the girls and not have to worry about the kids and husbands. We have all agreed to make it a yearly thing, so every May we are going to do a little trip! Heck we need it for all we do the rest of the year!

So that was our break! Dave just started his 4th semester last week. Now that we are on the down hill slide, the classes aren't as ridiculously time consuming as they had been previously so he is finally home a lot more than he had been. And we all feel rested and relaxed after our fun filled break! Can't wait to see what we do in August for our last break on the island!

Hope everyone is doing well, and remember to call or e-mail since we are finally up and running again!