Halloween Party

The island of St. Kitts doesn't celebrate Halloween. Some stores sell a very small selection of basic costumes, but kids don't dress up, and they don't go trick-or-treating. So, the students at Ross tend to have their own Halloween parties, and one of those was at our house.

Some people were thinking ahead when they moved down here and brought nice costumes from home. Others, like Cory and I, put them together in about 5 minutes using whatever we could find around the house. But they did the job, and a good time was had by all.


Cory was a mummy



And I was a martini



Christina was Alice in Wonderland, Bernie was a ref, and Leigh was a cat



I loved Leigh's Ross collar



Melissa was a pregnant Britney Spears, while Jon was Kevin Federline



Me and Brooke



And the best costumes of the night, Renee as Smurfette and Kevin as Papa Smurf



The whole group



And then there was the piñata that would not die.......

Brooke bought a piñata for the party, since it was not only Halloween, but Renee's birthday as well.



First Renee got a few good swings



Then Bernie hit it pretty hard a few times and caused a dent



Then Leigh dented it again, didn't break



Christina hit it, more dents, still no candy



Justin swung as hard as he could, and the force didn't break the piñata, it broke our makeshift bat instead!!!



Since this thing seemed impossible to break open, they let Cory swing at it without a blindfold so he could swing as hard as he could....AND IT STILL DIDN'T BREAK!



Finally, we pulled out the biggest kitchen knife we had to stab it to death and get the candy out



Can you even guess what happened next?........the evil piñata BROKE THE KNIFE!! You can see the blade of the knife broken off and sticking out of the haunted piñata!



Finally, after Brooke had to physically saw open the piñata with the broken knife, everyone got their candy




We hope everyone had a fun Halloween back in the US! Can't wait to see some pictures!

Happy Halloween From The Pets

Here are Cory's parents' dogs Kelme and Max in costume last year



And here is Catalina, the kitten that I rescued from Catalina Island and gave to my parents for their anniversary last year



HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Cory's Debut As A Major League Pitcher

Right before we came down here to St. Kitts, we spent some time with Cory's parents in Wisconsin. While we were there, Cory's dad Marlin arranged for us to not only attend a Brewers game in nearby Milwaukee, but he also managed to make Cory the person throwing the opening pitch! I went on the field with Cory and took video of the whole thing, but he also had some old friends come along as well, so we had them take pictures.



Here are his college buddies who came along and were nice enough to take pictures for me while I videotaped (from left to right: John, Chris, me, Cory and Joe)



Cory and I on the field, waiting for his cue to run out to the mound



I'm getting the video camera ready as Cory gets briefed by the Brewers staff



Here is the jumbo-tron announcing Cory's name as he runs out to throw the pitch



Just a few days ago, Marlin got an email from someone who works with the Brewers. They wanted to pass onto Cory a picture that someone on their staff had taken of his opening pitch. So Marlin forwarded the photo to us, and it was exciting to see such a cool view, from right behind the catcher. Here is the new photo that we just received from the Brewers.


And of course, Cory threw a strike!

Sunday Is For Soccer

In addition to the volleyball league that we play in on Friday afternoons, Cory is also in the soccer league that plays every Sunday. I played every sport except soccer, so I am content to cheer them on from the sidelines, which means I also get to hang out with Joleigh as she cheers on her parents. Cory's team has been doing pretty well, and besides dodging the fire ants that also live on the field, it is fun to watch them play. Here are some pictures I took from the last game:


Here is Cory going after the ball (check out those sweet soccer shorts Judi)



Brad kicking the ball into play (Cory's lab partner)



Dan in action (Dan is the very first student we met, we sat next to him and his family in Puerto Rico waiting for our flight, then sat next to them on the plane to St. Kitts)



Brian getting ready to kick the ball in (Brian is Joleigh's dad)



And Holly actually kicking the ball in (Holly is Joleigh's mom)



And one more shot of Cory



Here is everyone watching and cheering from the sidelines



Even Joleigh likes to cheer them on





Since this weekend is the mid-semester break (meaning they get Monday off), there is no soccer game today. A lot of students use this long weekend to travel to other islands, so most people would not be able to make it for the game. But play resumes next Sunday.

Some Random Photos

Here are some random pictures I have taken lately that haven't had a chance to make it onto the blog yet.


Here is the Disney cruise ship that pulled into Basseterre awhile ago. We had another one here yesterday, probably around the same size as this Disney ship. They never stay very long, usually only for the day.






A few weeks ago our neighbors, who are also Ross students, were caring for a baby goat that was almost totally blind. I'm not sure if we ever learned exactly where it came from, but they were housing it in their yard and feeding it since it had trouble eating on its own. He was soooo cute, you could hear his little cry when he got up in the morning, and when you went over to visit him, he loved being close you.



He stayed in this crate in the yard. If you went into his yard and ran around, he would hear your movements and get all excited, and he would jump up and down and run around too. It was adorable.



He finally found some students who wanted to keep him as a pet, and even take him back to the US with them when they return, so he is no longer staying with our neighbors. But we really enjoyed having him as a neighbor, even if for a short time.



And yes, another sunset picture. I know I post alot of these, but I can't help taking pictures when the sky looks like this!





And to change things up a bit, I'll add a sunrise shot too



There are 2 dogs that live nearby our apartment complex, and during the day, their owners let them out and they wander the neighborhood. And apparently, our apartment complex has become a favorite hangout spot. But this is fine by us, these dogs are super friendly, and it is nice when we arrive home and they are there to greet us at the car door with tails wagging. They also enjoy checking out Abban and Lladra when they are out on our balcony/roof.





The lighter of the two, the brown dog, is named Einstein. I'm not sure of the other dog's name. But Einstein has even met Abban and Lladra face to face when we took them outside on their leashes for a walk. Einstein loves cats, and just wanted to play with them. The cats weren't scared of him, but definitely didn't want to play. Here is Einstein hanging out in front of our apartment while Lladra looks on from the roof.



And finally, more island animal pictures. First, a whole herd of goats that we passed the other day in the road on the way to Joleigh's birthday party. The picture was kind of taken far away, but you can still see all of the goats in the road.



Next, a giant pig we encountered one night last week. No, not Wilbert. There are alot of wild pigs just wandering around parts of the island. And I think this was a definite first for all of us....as we were leaving a bar, we noticed something large rooting through the trash nearby in the parking lot. As we got closer, we realized it was a giant pig! Only in St. Kitts can you come across a pig munching down on old food scraps in the parking lot of a bar!



And finally, more monkeys!!! We also encountered these guys on the way to Joleigh's birthday party. Definitely more fun to take pictures of monkeys in the wild rather than in enclosures at the San Diego Zoo!