Dinghys, Birds and Birthdays

Kellie's Comments-

Sorry about the lack of posts. We have a friend at home trying to help us post and fix the problems. Technology is great but has it's glitches. Don't worry about us, and keep checking, we're working on it.

Tenacatita is turning out to be much of what we dreamed cruising would entail. It's warm, social and we're swimming right off the boat. The kids have other boat kids to play with too. At least once a day they paddle their boogie boards over to another boat or two and socialize. I have been rowing the hard dinghy around to give myself a little independence and we're enjoying the speed of the inflatable. We used it to take a several mile long trip up the river and it's great for towing kids on boogie board. "Dinghy surfing" is quite the sport here. Those with surf boards and large outboards zoom through the anchorage towing kids and grown ups alike. Being able to stand on their boards is the advantage of the surfers.

Our trip up the river was fun. There is a mangrove lagoon several miles from here with a fresh water outlet that comes in to the beach where we are anchored. Four dinghies took the trip together. We stopped to enjoy the wildlife along the way and took our time exploring. Tree crabs live all along in the branches. Ellie counted 101. The varieties of birds are great too. My favorite are the Great Egrets. They are white with yellow feet, and look much like the blue herons from home. At the other end of the trip, we enjoyed a wonderful beach with snorkeling and restaurants. We had a terrific seafood lunch and then spent the rest of the afternoon snorkeling in the "aquarium." Ellie is really improving her water skills. She is now snorkeling with very little support out in the deep water. Carter is practicing in the shallow water with his gear, and will venture out deep if he has his boogie board or noodle. Apparently there is another snorkeling area nearby where most people have seen turtles. We'll definitely have to check that out.

There are three birthdays here this week. Iain on Loon is turning 44 today (Tuesday), Marilyn on Icarian is turning 55 and Olivia on Sunflower will be six tomorrow. Our day today will be school this morning and birthday celebrations in the afternoon. Parties on cruising boats are funny. No one has enough supplies to host a party, so we turn everything into a potluck. Bringing your own drinks, plates and forks is the rule of the game. Imagine asking your friends over for a birthday party and requesting that they bring their own lemonade and a glass to drink it out of. Tomorrow we'll go to Icarian for another cake eating party. Brian was able to order a fancy cake from the nearby village. It will not be the exact cake that he always got from home though. Apparently the humidity down here makes baking difficult. Then tomorrow evening, there will be a potluck on the beach to celebrate with Olivia and enjoy the full moon. The whole anchorage is invited to that one. I think there are about 30 boats here, so we should have lots of food. Hope I remember the plates.

Today it's overcast, so the humidity is extremely high. Even the cushions inside the boat are damp. It's nice not to be so roasting hot, though. I think I'll do some baking this morning. Usually it's just too hot to use the oven.

All for now,

Kellie