Issue # 40 -Details of December

. December 2010 .


Gidday you guys!

There we have it. Another year gone. Is it just us or do they seem to be passing by faster and faster. Anyway, we have had a brilliant year. Lots of happenings and lots of travel, parties and fun times. We won't be doing a year in review as all you have to do is scroll through the months anyway. But we do want to wish you a very merry (belated) Christmas and all the best for 2011. Maybe we'll catch up soon!
We hope you had a nice break over Christmas and had a little fun as well.

Apologies for the delay in getting this one out to you. The Holiday celebrations continued a little longer than anticipated.
So, without further ado, enjoy the following read and keep smiling!

Busy day at the office....

MOvember
As mentioned in the last issue, MOvember Cayman didn't actually finish until the 4th of December this year, giving budding MO Growers an extra few days to 'bush up'. Michelle was especially pleased when she heard that news. Even on the 5th of December she could be heard begging and pleading for Dave to keep his new look going.
And how about that! The good looking one is Dave, and the other is Miss World Cayman 2010.

There were about 170 participants this year in Cayman, and they raised around $70,000 which was a pretty good effort. The had a big party at MOgaritaville and there where all sorts there. Here's a few pics and others can be seen by clicking on the Facebook link below.

Oh Dear.... Maybe Sherlock can help.

To see even more MOvember photos... click:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=245397&id=766998601&l=a4c859a414

Don't ask...

The Cayman marathon was also held in December. Michelle was part of a relay team of four who did about 10km each. The kids also took part in the Kids Marathon, which was roughly about 800m. But a heap of kids did it and it was pretty cool to see them all racing around the streets of George Town.


SUBMARINE
We decided to take the kids on a night dive, except this one would be without getting wet. Off we went one night and jumped on the Atlantis Submarine. It had actually taken about three weeks of cancellations due to rough seas before we were able to go. But we made it on and went out for a cruise down to about 110 feet. There were some big fish hanging about and also a relatively small Nurse Shark. The kids got to see 'The Wall' where the drop off goes to about 2,000 feet. Up until now, they'd only seen pictures that Mum and Dad had taken when out diving.



SCUBA SAM!
Speaking of Diving, for her birthday Sam got a Voucher to do a PADI resort dive. So she did that the other day (couldn't wait!!!). She started off with some introductory drills in a very cold swimming pool before venturing out for a boat dive.

Getting ready

Jake and Dave also went along, but only to snorkel. They watched from above as Sam completed her decent to 40 feet and then had fun looking at the fish and sea life down on the bottom. She was so pleased with herself and even the instructor said she was very relaxed and natural. She wants to do the full course now, so watch this space!

All Set

There was one tense moment for her when they came up for the safety stop and 15 feet and encountered a rather large Barracuda who was quite interested in the goings on. The Barracuda stood his ground while Sam and co, swam around the other side of the boat to make their exit.

Big step!

40 feet down

And back. A very happy wee diver.

More diving pics:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=250826&id=766998601&l=924ffa0bc8

CHRISTMAS HAPPENINGS

Merry Christmas to everybody! Love, Sam and Jake, xxxx

Christmas concert at school

Christmas Day for us this year started at a reasonable civilised 8am (the kids had had a late night... as had another couple of family members). The presents were opened... and so was the bubbly. Breakfast consisted of some hot freshly made croissants courtesy of our baker friend, Steve. They were huge! After that it was time to stock up the Chilly Bin and head around to a friends place for Bubbly and Nibbles by the pool. That went on until around 3 pm where we had to duck home to restock the chilly bin, uplift some other goodies and head around to another friends for Christmas Dinner. There were four families and the kids had the big table while the parents sat across the room a bit. Dave wanted a Xmas pudding, and got one. Only it was the size of an average muffin. It was shared by a couple of the menfolk, after it was set alight by Dave brandishing a cup of hot brandy and a box of matches.

Hmmmm... I'm sure Mum's are bigger than this!

A very large Dinner slowed everybody right down, but the faulty skyrockets soon had the heart rate up again! One rocket didn't leave the ground and exploded at ground level showering sparks and debris all over the onlooking kids and parents. No damage done... thankfully. Everyone went home with full bellies and slept well...

Sam's birthday was the next day (Boxing Day). She turned 10. There will be more on that in January's issue as the kids decided they wanted to combine their parties.

Here's some pictures from two of the more extravagant Christmas light displays around town. Both are private residences but the owners have traditionally put on these amazing displays every year much to the delight of the kids (big and small). For videos of both properties, have a look below and click on the video clips at the end of this months issue.

Dave and the kids went out on a friend's boat for a cruise on the afternoon of Christmas Eve. They went to Starfish Point and Stingray city and generally had a fun time, even if the temperature was a little cool. Unfortunately Michelle was stuck at work, but caught up later at the Santa party at another friends house. Luckily Santa had time to pop in for a visit, much to the delight of the kids... and the parents!

Coming back into Camana Bay on Christmas Eve

'course I been good Santa!

Some Christmas Cheer! Actually it was a mate's stag do...a couple of quiets out on a rather large boat! Or maybe it was some large ones on a rather quiet boat...

New Years Eve... more to follow!

More pics:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=250760&id=766998601&l=2b9ef47b16

Next Month:

New Year's happenings
Gaelic Football.
A visit by some Papua New Guineans.
Kids Birthday Party
and more.....

There are two video clips below, both of Christmas lights at two private properties in Cayman. Both go to a huge effort and the kids just love it, although both could be just a little over the top... Check it out.

Issue # 39 - November News

. Issue # 39 - November 2010 .

Hi there!

Welcome to the happenings in November for 2010. The months seem to be whizzing by. I guess that’s what happens when you do stuff! This month we have some more swimming, some more sailing, a wee bit more of partying, some pirating, a bit of Rugbying and travelling and beaching.

Read on….

Light Fingered Fiends

We were unfortunate enough to have someone relieve us of some of our belongings early in November. Somebody cheekily slipped in through the front door while Dave was in another room one night. They took the kid’s DS games as well as Dave’s Phone, an iPod, the Camera and a few other bits and pieces. Luckily, none of it was irreplaceable and the photo’s had all be downloaded from the Camera. The kids were pretty upset but came to terms with things pretty quickly, as kids do. Anyway, we are a little more security conscious now, but it is a shame when you have to think like that in your own home.

The Police asked Dave what he would do if he had caught them. He told them. They replied, “Well, you do have to look after what’s yours you know…” Any future intruders better look out (including an unexpected and unsuspecting wife - Michelle came home the other night earlier than expected and Dave came running out about to hit her - Welcome Home Darling!).

Charlotte

So, the day after the rip off, Dave headed off to Charlotte. Now it was going to be a shopping trip as well as a Rugby trip! Dave now appreciates on-line shopping, as all the boxes etc were waiting at his hotel on arrival so he didn’t have to do much in the way of shopping at all!

Anyway, back to the story. Two teams travelled from Cayman. They met at the Airport… yes, in the bar. Well, the bar is about 30 feet from the departure door/gate-thing. A couple of quiets later they were boarding the plane and heading to Charlotte… a distance of approximately 6 to 10 beers and three Bloody Mary’s (they ran out of beer).

Making friends with the locals...

After arriving at Charlotte they were picked up by a bus which took at least 147 left turns before they arrived at the Hotel. A quick check in, a gathering in the hotel bar and then off to Hooters for something to eat… and a beer maybe.

The following morning was Breakfast at IHOP (International House of Pancakes) as the hotel breakfast was pretty dismal. Then it was back on the bus and off to the Charlotte Rugby Club. As this would be Dave’s first game back after a lengthy injury spell, he played for the social team in the early game. They did alright and were all tied up at half-time 7 – 7. But the jet lag set in after the break (at least they think it was jet lag) and the Charlotte team came away winners 19 – 7. But a good game all the same.

The slightly more serious game was next and the Cayman side battled bravely but were convincingly beaten by Charlotte. So it was back into the club house to watch the Autumn internationals from the UK and thereabouts. That was followed by another night out in Charlotte bingo halls and then back to bed for an early night.

Sunday was a liquid breakfast in the bar before heading to Panther’s Stadium to watch an NFL game. Luckily we befriended a couple of Hillbillies outside the game who selflessly gave us all their beer. Dave is about to send them a couple of Cayman Rugby shirts in return for their generosity, although he can’t replace their chillybins/cooler boxes that came to an unfortunate end.

They found their way into the stadium and took the Space shuttle up to their seats about 4,000 feet above sea level where they could just see a tiny green rectangle below them that was the playing field. Luckily they had a stack of big screens so the game could actually be seen. After a few hours of this the boys got bored and started to look for a different form of entertainment. They found it in the Face painting booth and then a bar down the street. Several bars later and it was Monday morning! Time to get up and pack the bags and head back to Cayman.

A fairly quiet and uneventful trip back saw Dave arrive at school in time to take the kids to their swimming sessions and not removing his sunglasses. But, a good trip was had by all and the kids now have new DS’s, we have a new Camera and Dave has another phone…with the same number.

Marooned in Little Cayman

Little Cayman

The following weekend it was off to Little Cayman for Remembrance Weekend. Little Cayman is like BVI’s Anegada. Very nice and very quiet, but also it has everything you need. We arrived by plane in the mid afternoon on the friday and could easily enjoy a nice quiet drink while watching the sunset from the deck of our little unit beside the sea.

Saturday morning and Michelle was off diving with the local dive company. The seas on the other side of the island (where the best diving is) were quite rough and their boat had to turn back and settle for some diving closer to home. It was still pretty good diving though with Michelle spotting a shark and a few other creatures.

Dave took the kids exploring and snorkeling for the morning. In the afternoon we took the pushbikes and headed across the island for some fishing, which wasn’t all that spectacular. The seas were quite rough on that side. The kids did pull in a couple of small fish but they were thrown back in to bite another day.

Dinner was at the Hungry Iguana that night and we all rolled the 35 feet back to our unit.

Sunday morning was Dave’s turn to Dive. The seas on the other side of the island had eased so the boat headed there. Both dives were good. The first one had a few swim throughs and they spotted a baby Trunk Fish which was about the size of a pea, but black with yellow spots. They also dived the famous Bloody Bay wall which was teaming with life.

Michelle had picked up a rental car from Dodgy Brothers Rentals and went for a hoon around the island while Dave was diving. At one stage they turned up on a small beach about 100 yards from the dive boat. They were about to swim out to say hi when the boat headed off for the next dive site.

That afternoon we headed off to a tiny deserted island just about 300m off the beach. The Kayak was the main mode of transport, but Michelle swam over and back. Sam Kayaked over but swam back.

Dave and the kids made a little boat out of a coconut and some sticks. It looked good but the seas were a little rough for it. After some playing about there we heading back to the ‘mainland’ of Little Cayman and set the kids up fishing off one of the Jetties while we enjoyed a couple of beers in the sun, as it headed towards sunset. Both kids caught a few fish and we just kept the biggest one for the kids to have as their starter for dinner. They ate it up and both felt very much the great white hunter.

On Monday we headed to a beach called Point of Sand and bumped into Sam’s Netball Coach from school who was over on a boozy weekend. They moved on and we headed out for a snorkel. The first thing we saw was a Nurse shark having asleep. We’re pretty sure it was the same shark we saw when we were there last year at Easter. We saw a few other fish and Stingray. Following that the kids did some more fishing. They caught a few small ones but nothing worth keeping.

Jake doing the Te Waka Haka....welcoming the fish ashore

Our last act of the day was to snorkel over near where Dave was diving the day before. We headed out and were rewarded with a Nurse Shark, Two Turtles and a number of Grouper, amongst other things. We had to head back in as the sun was dropping again. Back to the accommodation for a few drinks in the sunset and then dinner.

The next day (Tuesday) we had the 9am flight out and headed straight from the airport to School/work etc. It was a very pleasant commute for us all!

Michelle’s Birthday

It was Michelle’s Birthday during November. She celebrated on the Friday night with a girls night out. She was rewarded the next day with an early start to take the kids to a swim meet as Dave was Coaching kid’s Rugby.

In the afternoon, Michelle took the kids to watch the Pirate’s week cardboard boat race… only to completely miss it! Would you believe it - they started it early! They at least saw some of the boats. Saturday night we all dressed as Pirates and went down to the Pirate’s Week Fireworks display.

Sunday, after the swimming, we packed up a car full of supplies and headed for Governor’s Beach and set up shop there. A friend brought along a portable generator. Dave had packed the blender and several bottles of Kahlua, Bailey’s and Vodka. Another guy brought the ice. Mudslide time! Nothing like making your own cocktails on the beach! After a few hours of that it was time for the annual (ish) Girls v Boys softball game. The last one got a bit heated with some of the Girly team doing some very good John McEnroe impressions.

This game was an evenly fought encounter with the game ending in a tie in bad light. In fact it was dark. But another good day at the beach and Michelle got a special “Birthday Mudslide” that the kids organized and supervised.

"Down, down, down, down!!!"

So, we packed up and headed off. Dave was cooking dinner...Indian takeaways on the way home!

Swimming

Pirates week was upon us in November. Pirates from all over the world come down and run about waving their cutlasses at unsuspecting folk and drinking rum. But we are actually here to talk about the Pirate’s week swim meet at the present point in time.

It covered Friday night, Saturday morning and Sunday morning.

Both kids did well. Both continue to improve their Personal Best (PB) times so that’s good. Jake came away with the High Points award for his age group. He’ll get some real competition in the meets after Christmas as he’ll be Eight in January and will go up a level.

Sam continues to chip away at her times too and is doing really well against some strong opposition.

Sailing

Sam was selected for the school team in the interschools regatta that was held last week. They were the reigning champions so high expectations were upon them. They started the first race poorly and were third after the first round. But a tongue lashing from their coach got them going and by lunchtime they were sitting in 1^st position. Much better!

After lunch things went a little awry with some capsizes and at one point a yacht being stuck on the marker! Coach wasn’t happy. They ended the day with a sail off and just managed to secure 1^st equal. Their coach wasn’t that happy but at least they retained the Trophy. The Coach did say that Sam and her partner Skyler sailed very well throughout and it was the more experienced members of the squad that let the side down.

Triathlon

Michelle has been training hard for the triathlon which was held on the weekend. She did the Sprint triathlon which was 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run. Always strong in the swim, she was 3rd individual out of the water - she doesn't take this lightly as she knows that people will pass her in the bike and run so has worked hard training for that part. Michelle was very thankful for the loan of a decent road bike - it's a lot easier and faster than the old mountain bike and made a huge difference to her race. Then it was just a matter of holding on in the run - which is easier said than done for her!

The training must have paid off because when Dave and the kids went up the road to watch her bike past, she’d already gone through! They had to chase her down in the car to get a photo. Then they raced back to the transition area to see her start the run, only to miss that as well! But they were there at the finish to see her come in a very credible position of 3^rd female (10th overall)!

Next year she might have to do the Olympic race, which is twice the distance, although her immediate thought after the race was "OMG, I could never do the Olympic - I am knackered"! But after quite a few Gatorades and biscuits she was seriously considering it! Watch this space!

Next Month:

MOvember Party – in true Cayman style, MOvember finished on 3 December. Watch this space!

Cayman Marathon

Christmas parties

A short Xmas School Holiday

Some Rugby?

Don't forget to check out www.caymanrugbyTV.com

You can watch footage of games as well as the latest sensation in Rugby Chat Shows - Back Chat (as filmed and misdirected by Dave).

Issue # 38 - Hoctober's Haunt

. Issue # 38 .

Hello there!

Welcome to our October summary. Yet again we find ourselves having another busy month. No wonder the year is passing by so quickly. This month we have some swimming, some sailing, a wee bit of partying, some running around, a bit of Halloweening and just generally messing about.

Read on….

Swimming

The kids had a swim meet during the month. They both entered in all of the strokes. Jake came home with a stack of medals, mostly gold. He was pretty happy about that. He also won the points award for the day.

Sam also swam very well. She came away with a few less medals than Jake, but she had some pretty stiff competition and did well to beat a few of them. She had Personal Best Times in every one of her races, so the training and coaching (and 6 am session each Wednesday) seems to be paying off.

Sam also did a 800m sea swim the other week without hardly raising a sweat. The weather has been a bit rough of late so several of the sea swims have had to be postponed or canceled.

Michelle and Jake had planned to swim one last weekend but Jake ended up getting called in to sail in the National Youth Regatta instead (more on that below) and despite their best efforts in racing from the Sailing club to Seven Mile beach they just missed out on taking part as the registration desk had closed five minutes earlier. So they went for a swim anyway – in the opposite direction.

Sailing

Sam has been going to sailing sessions every Friday after school at the Sailing Club with a view to trialing for the School Sailing Team in the National School’s Regatta in about a month’s time. She is really enjoying it and Dave doesn’t mind popping out there on a Friday for a beer while the kids sail about in their Picos.

Last weekend was the National Youth Regatta. Sam and a friend formed a crew and entered. At the time, Jake was too young to enter, however, due to a late withdrawal (one of the kids hurt himself in the second race of the day) and the fact that he happened to be standing around at the sailing club at the time, he was ‘drafted’ onto a boat for the rest of Saturday’s races. In fact the same thing happened on the Sunday where he was asked to sail with another girl who’s partner had failed to show.

So they both sailed and enjoyed the actual racing side of things. They both won a few races as well. Sam and her partner came in 3^rd overall which was a pretty good effort. Jake and his partner on the second day came in in a very credible 5^th place.

They both consider themselves as expert sailors now and walk around talking in sailing speak while Michelle and Dave just nod knowlingly…

More sailing Pics!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=236831&id=766998601&l=ede92bde36

Girls Weekend

Michelle and a bunch of other girls arranged for a weekend getaway to Rum Point a week or so ago. They had rented a place for the weekend which was right on the water, had its own pool etc and was a really nice place.

They arrived by boat and by car on the Friday night, unpacked their supplies (a lot of which appeared to be in liquid form) and proceeded to party.

No time was wasted - it was straight into the cocktails and nibbles, as everyone arrived. Later one of the girls cooked up some gourmet pizzas then it was time for SingStar (or Karaoke) once Michelle got the system working, albeit in black and white (where are the guys when you need them?!). A great night was had by all - many lost their voices and everyone was very "happy"!

The next day two of the girls got up for a run and two went for a long cycle so Michelle thought she had better do something as well and went for a run - well a plod and was thankful she went on her own so she could sneak in some walks - it was very hard going in the heat (well that's her excuse anyway!). Back home to a nice cooked breakfast with bubbly, then relaxing by the pool for the rest of the day - there were a few zzzz's floating by from time to time. Later that day, more cocktails, nibbles and some lasagne, a few games, Singstar, dancing (some Irish dancing as well from the two Irish girls) but the girls couldn't hack two big nights in a row and all were in bed before midnight! More strange girls getting up for exercise on Sunday morning (what happened to being on holiday?), another cooked breakfast with bubbles, then settling down in peace to await the boy's and kid's arrival for lunch and another afternoon by the pool.

Meanwhile, back in town, Dave and the kids where hanging out. They had a few quiets on the Friday night and then headed down to the rugby club early Saturday morning with another two orphans that Dave had volunteered to look after for the morning. They pretty much spent the whole day at the rugby club running about while Dave was Coaching kids in the morning, filming “Back Chat” at lunchtime and then up on the roof for the filming of the games in the afternoon. Dave had a pretty good view of where they were and what they where up to and they seemed to be having fun.

After the rugby, five of the Dad’s gathered at one of their houses for a sleep over. So there was about 10 or so kids staying as well. Once the kids were fed and locked in their cells, the Dads got onto to the serious issue of a little poker and watching some fights on the TV.

The next morning (Sunday), bleary-eyed, they restocked the chilly Bins/Cooler Boxes etc and all headed for Rum Point to spend the day with the Mums.

The kids all went fishing of the jetty, and caught a few fish as well. Sam caught three. They kept the bigger ones which were cooked on the BBQ and then devoured with gusto by the little great white hunters.

The bigger kids all sat around or in the pool for most of the day and enjoyed a great feast of ribs, steak, chicken, fish and a whole bunch of other stuff, including the occasional liquid refreshment. It may come as no surprise but everybody slept well that night. What a fantastic weekend!



















More Girly Weekend Pics!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=235188&id=766998601&l=2de5f4852d

Rugby

Rugby at the club continues. The Summer sevens were played in all five weekends of October. Dave hasn’t played for quite a while now, but is thinking of having a run out soon to determine whether he is up for another AA Cup season, which starts in the new year.

Jake is playing with the Under 10s and seems to be improving in confidence and is starting to get the hang of the game. He is one of the smaller kids in the group but is doing well. Dave is now one of the Coaches for this group as well.

In breaking news, after a lengthy election campaign and a number of political rallies, Dave has been elected the Vice President of Operations on the Cayman Rugby Unions Executive Committee. He’s not sure what he’s got himself into, but it won’t be boring! He also continues his involvement in the CRFU’s free-to-air Live (and recorded) Rugby TV channel www.caymanrugbytv.com

Triathlon

Michelle has been training hard for a triathlon in late November. There have been a couple of mini/training events and Michelle has taken part in those. The first was a bit demoralizing as she was on a mountain bike and most of the others were on racing bikes and sped past her with regular monotony. Michelle got her hands on a ‘real’ bike’ and used that on the weekend just gone with a much improved result. She still hates the running part of the race but will be fine as long as she keeps up the training.

Halloween

As in most countries this side of the world, Halloween is big in Cayman. Dave and the kids carved out their first ever Halloween Pumpkin, which wasn’t a bad effort really.

On the Friday night Dave was off out on a Sunset Cruise with a few of the Rugby boys which was a fundraiser for their upcoming Charlotte Trip. It wasn't a total success as numbers on the boat were down. But those that were there kept the bar staff busy and made the night more than worthwhile.

Sam and Jake went to a Halloween Party at Camana Bay on Saturday night. Then on Sunday night they went Trick or Treating with a swarm of other kids and came back with buckets full of goodies.

Michelle and Dave went to the Rugby Club’s Annual Halloween Party on Saturday night just gone. There were Hundreds of people there and most had put a lot of effort into their costumes. See the pics for a few of them!

More pics from the Halloween Party Weekend!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=236835&id=766998601&l=62e00fb6af

Weather

We've certainly been having a lot of weather in October. The Hurricane season is the busiest in years. Thankfully we've only had a few licks from the tail end of a few. As you read this, we are looking to the South where Hurricane Tomas is slowly building. It has already caused plenty of devastation down in St Lucia and St Vincent and there abouts with 14 deaths and a heap of flooding and lost roofing. It is predicted that it will turn off it's path before it reaches Cayman and head across Haiti or Jamaica. It appears to be very random in its path so we will wait and see what happens there.

Some other Pics from October!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=231370&id=766998601&l=190573b457

Next Month

Rugby Trip to Charlotte (weather dependent)

Family trip to Little Cayman

Something called MOvember is apparently growing....

Michelle's Triathlon

Maybe some diving if the weather sorts its act out