Who needs turkey?

Family was far, but the Fenton family came to our rescue. They invited us over for an amazing Thanksgiving feast along with a few other families. We were in charge of the candied yams and mashed potatoes-two things I'd never cooked before. Fortunately, we had Christian's mom to call for her yummy recipes.
Our friends Kevin and Rach were dining at a restaurant near the Fenton's house so we stopped by to say hello on our way home. We got to Cheri's Cafe just in time for the nightly drag queen dance show and Christian got an extra special treat from Myeisha.

Lesson 1: Take only pictures...leave only bubbles

My friend Jessie came to visit from LA and joined
us for a dive.

A couple quick lessons before exploring the bottom.
I broke lesson 1 on my last dive. The seas were incredibly rough and I may have left some nacho cheese Doritos for the fish. Nevertheless, I still passed and I'm now officially a certified open-water diver. Woo-hoo!

I could only understand about every eighth word Alfredo, our crazy Peruvian instructor, said. Fortunately, he wasn't really into classroom teaching and preferred to just go for it. For our last couple dives we told him we wanted to see sharks, so that's what we got. Not only did Alfredo guide us to a pack of bull sharks, but he tapped his tank with a rock to draw them in closer and then swam after them trying to hit their fins. This type of shark is more deadly than great whites...normal.

Island Fever

The whole crew

St. Maarten's Day=another paid day off (in addition to all the Jewish holidays our owners kindly gave us)! Since the store was closed we finally got to spend our day off with the other managers, Kevin and Rachel. Along with their friends, Tyler and Stacey, we left the island for the first time and took an all-day boat excursion to the sparsely populated islands Anguilla and Prickly Pear...the best snorkeling and most clear water I've seen since we've been here.

Finally!

We finally got all the digital negatives of our wedding from the photographer! Yay!

BOO!

Pickings were slim at the one store that sold costumes in town.

A little Del Sol celebration. We handed out candy to kids,
but I think I ate more than was handed out!

Kevin's impressive handmade creation...Want fries with that?

Shark Attack

We finally got these pictures developed from when we went shark diving on our honeymoon in Hawaii...every bit as scary as it looks!

Speared

Since Christian borrowed a spear gun from a member at church his early morning fishing trips have finally become fruitful. Now when he tells me "I'm bringing home dinner" I actually believe him. Lobster and red snapper are now regulars on our dinner menu!

Omar Strikes St. Maarten

Hurricane Omar picked up speed hours before hitting St. Maarten and quickly went from a category 1 to category 3 Hurricane...to put that in perspective, Katrina was also a Category 3. At 2AM, 115 MPH winds and torrential rain struck the island and devastated much in its path. Although I was absolutely terrified that our home would slide down the hill, we were completely safe. Once the government-mandated curfew was lifted around 4PM the next day we were able to leave our house and check out the damage.

The road at the bottom of the hill leading to our house

Our satellite dish...it's going to be awhile before we have TV

Note to self: Don't park under a tree before a hurricane hits

The pier in front of the store.

Electricity was out for 3 days. I helped the situation
by ensureing there was adequete supply of candle holders

Ghosts, Goblins, and Ghouls

Halloween is quickly approaching and since we are in a different country I'm thinking we could bust out some old costumes and no one will know! The only problem is picking which one!

I'd like to take credit for the clown, but that's definitely Christian!

Handmade from my mom's graduation gown

The Hawaiian theme is also a possibility!

Ridin' Rhinos

Rhinos in Africa: slow moving, grey, terrestrial animals.
Rhinos in St. Maarten: fast, white, aquatic boats.

I'm still not quite sure why they are called Rhino Safaris. Fun nonetheless!

Happy Birthday Rach

The fans kept blowing out the candles. After many failed attempts

we finally got one candle to stay lit.
A true Del Sol birthday. Taste tests may have effected the frosting supply.

Third Time is the Charm

The ocean got the best of Christian's 2nd wedding band. 6 months, 2 rings...possible new world record?? We have high hopes for ring #3.