Cancun -Em's 9th - Christmas Time!

Time is ticking along... 26 more sleeps and the stress, anxiety, joy, frustration, blissful memories from the biggest day of the year will be all over. I love it all!

We are still in November and our kids are almost finished school down here for summer break. I will drive them crazy from December 5- the beginning of March (I would have it no other way) What are our plans during this long break you ask... hopefully something or this Mom is going to go to the crazy house :- )

Blog details...What's New...

-We took a week to fly the coup and head up to Cancun Mexico.

-Emma celebrated her 9th Birthday (can you believe that)
-Jumped into the Christmas season in our shorts by putting up our annual funny tree.

(I forget sometimes that what we see on a daily bases has became so normal .... Things here happen very matter of fact, not alot of red tape to go through... If you need cables up, you put them up, it does not matter how.... just get them up.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE... It is easy to spot a veteran driver in the area because they are the ones who are dodging the man holes that have NO covers. I should take a picture next time I see someones tire stuck in a manhole because they didn't see it.

We ran into an old friend here on the weekend and her front end was all dented in... (she is Panamaniam) ... she was not paying attention and ran right into the back of a bus... The bus driver didn't care and continued driving like a crazy man down the street. The accidents here are a sight. When you get stopped by the police they only ask for a drivers license ... they never ask for insurance or registration (not everyone has the documentation) Why have proper information when it is cheaper to bride the cop :- )

(something else you don't see at home. This is the VIP section at the movies. You relax and recline in a love seat, you even have your own personal waiter to serve you through out the movie. You can order sushi, rice bowls, sandwiches, snack foods, coffee and deserts and more. The price to watch a new release movie is $4.00/person. All theaters should be like this!!!)

At this movie we were the only people in the whole theater (it was mid afternoon) and we went to see 007 Quantum Solace .. James Bond. It was fun because half of the movie was filmed here in Panama. A friend of ours was an extra that got a 2 second scene with 007. All the action that were said to be of Haiti was actually Panama, the night club scenes & hotels are Panama also. Fun to see, good movie for James Bond.



Cancun Mexico...

The kids were off school for the National Holidays and since this place was a ghost town we were on the move again. It is only a 2 hour flight to Cancun from Panama which seems very short compared to our usual 12 hour + travel days. This was our first time to the touristy Cancun ... last time we were in Mexico we were in Akumal when Emma was 3yrs. old.

Speaking of Emma we also celebrated her 9th birthday in Mexico...( what are we going to do when she is 13? She knows she has it good)

Cancun was great... Everyone said Cancun is touristy... yes it was! It is tourist prices, tourist shops, mega tours for tourists, even English was spoken most places, the whole shabang. To be honest though it was a welcomed way of life for a week since our travels normally are fending for ourselves to some degree trying to navigate and listening to the hairs on the back of our necks. There was even transportation from the airport to the hotel in a van that had no dents and had both front & back fenders... life is grand!

The Hotel.. Grand Parnassus: First off it is not that easy to find all-inclusives who will accommodate 3 kids & 2 adults in a room... Out all of the hundreds of resorts in Cancun I could only find 5 hotels who would allow this size of family. The set up was great, it had bunk beds with a trundle bed to keep the kids contained. Three kids is considered a large family... amazing how so many things are geared to a family of four.

The Parnassus was directly on the beach so the view from our room was magnificant, one of my favorite sounds in the world is the waves lapping onto the beach.


The Hotel REVIEW:

-room : better than I expected, again the kids had bunks and there was quite a bit of space. The beds were however quite hard. We had to have maintenace up a few times because we were creating a pool in our bathroom everytime the kids drained the bathtub... the water would come back up. The room was clean which is huge for us.

-food : The hotel had 7 resturants so the kids loved that. Each night we would try a new one. The buffet was decent, alot of (made to order) which was great. My favorite spot was the shake stand... yummy spinach shakes, the rest of my family thought they were not so great :- )

-grounds : The pool area was beautiful, it was a series of three infinity pools over looking the ocean. The adult pool was very secluded and quiet making the sunsets beautiful from here. Mini golf was lame but good for 25 min. Always an activity at night from professional shows in the theater to funny money casino even karoeoke for the whole family.

-beach : The sand was nice, the water was beautiful blue. The only problem was that there were big bolders in the water which made it a bit dangerous for the kids to body surf. When hurricane Wilma came through a few years back she really did a number on the beaches in Cancun we have been told. Our experience was good but someone who knows otherwise may be dissappointed.

-kids club : The selling feature. The kids club was fantastic, the staff was wonderful. Our kids did not want to leave there. I would take the kids to the club after breakfast and then go collect them at lunch time when they would beg me to go back after they were finished wolfing down their grub. Anyone with young kids I would highly suggest this hotel! The childcare staff who work there really like their jobs. Our kids had an advantage since they speak Spanish but other foreign kids made out pretty well. A young girl from BC was the director of the club, she was a treat to get to know.

-over all review : The hotel & food is not 5 star but the kids club made up for it. This was the easiest trip we have been on yet. I actually read a book and found myself not knowing what to do with myself at times. My kids are growing up to fast...ahhhh.

- weather : Great for my family... freezing for me... I never went into the pool or the ocean once. The heat was nice in Cancun but I am now climatized to the intense, humid, sticky heat of Panama. As I type I am sitting in my sweats and long shirt.

(our messy room... the kids are on the top bunk behind the partitioned wall. Trent was trying to hit them in the head with the football... what a great dad) :- )))))

(A view from the bed... we slept with the sliding doors open to listen to the magical sounds of the ocean)

(Everett trying to stay warm at the first of three infinity pools, it was 26 degrees out... he complains when it is 26 degrees out and complains when it is 35 degrees out... what to do with him?)

(Em taking a stroll on the beach... she is getting sooooo big)

(Easton has not changed a bit from since he was a baby. He has always loved sand, it used to run right through him he ate it so much... you crack us up Pal)

(Ev waiting for the water, he was having races with ... he is a born beach bum... spending hours just playing by himself with the water and the sand)






"OUTSIDE AT THE KIDS CLUB"

(the famous KIDS CLUB - these water slides were the playground for hours a day)

(these waterslides were smoken fast... at least that is what they told me. The water was to cold to go in (even Trent said it was cold)

(playing tag ... Everett was winning, no one could catch him)






"INSIDE THE KIDS CLUB"

(the huge open space was painted beautifully... it was a very alive, great place for kids to be creative)

(on this wall you can see Mowgli & Tarzan... it was a very fun place)

(I just like this picture of Everett he looks so sad in a way, but so darn cute)

(Nope not sad... here is the after shot of what happens when you put paint on the kids faces. They turn wild) they are so fun!

(everynight after dinner we went to the crepe house at the hotel for a donut or crepe with tea... the kids l-o-v-e-d this so did their daddy)





HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMMA!
It was just chance the Panama holidays fell around Em's birthday so she was estatic to go away. She asked if this could be a tradition every year for her birthday (you have to love her tenacity)

(a cake the kids club arranged... all the children played games and ate the yummy cake)

(Em felt so special... it was so nice of the ladies at the club to create a birthday party for her)





THE PIRATES ARE COMING...arrrr

My mom told us about this awesome tourist show aboard the Black Pearl with Captain Hook & Jack Sparrow. To celebrate Em's birthday we decided to surprise the kids of a night of loud music, dancing, comical pirates, surprisingly great food and real sword fighting. It was alot of fun. Like I mentioned before Cancun has the tourist events down to a science (unlike Panama)

We boarded the ship at 6:30pm and sailed around the islands docking back at 11:30pm. It was a long night but a very memorable one for all of us. Ev was a trooper but he was pretty tired until the sword fighting began.. he was all over that.

(here is the Black Pearl setting sail)

(The kids thought Davey Jones was cool. I thought he was creepy)

(Jack Sparrow... he did Johnny Depp justice)

(the boys are ready to take on any pirate.... ARRRRRR)

(This was the kids favorite pirate... he was a little man they called TATOO... he was hilarious. We had the pleasure of being able to speak with him and he is originally from Cuba and loves his job)

(thanks for the fun mini pirates.... Happy Birthday Em!)

PARASAILING... ahhhhh

I would say I am a somewhat an adventurist and I love trying new things with the kids. Normally I would have no issues with expanding our thrill factor but this one made me a tiny bit nervous which was Everett's fondest memory.... he prays every night to go sailing again.

This was a new kind of parasailing for me... you sore like a bird in a love seat so to speak. Trent went up with the boys and I with Emma. We were up some 300feet high for about 15 min. It was peaceful & beautiful WAY up there.

(the kids relaxing while we are getting into position for our departure)

(Trent and the boys loving the freedom of the sky)

(Em & I enjoying our ride until the wind picked up a little bit, which tipped our seat forward, making me a weeee bit unnerved. No worries though, I would just not recommend this for my mom... haha)





KIDS NIGHT AT SENIOR FROGS

Our last night the ladies at the kids club convinced us that Kids Night at Senior Frogs was tons of fun. That it was... crazy fun, except missing our ride back to the hotel (sorry honey)

Senior frogs are pros at entertaining kids... they had non stop action happening, so much action that our off spring barely sat down to eat dinner. Everyone got a state of the art balloon helmet, clowns roaming, dance contests, find the object races, balloon stomping... just one thing after another. Let us not forget the famous Senior Frog drinks.

(our funny hats... We look so stiff but there was no room to move because of the crazy balloon lids)

(nice helmets chicos)

(Ev should wear this 24/7 to keep his noggin from further injuries)

(a NFL game was on and the boys were glued to it. We still have no TV at our house so for Trent to see a game is a big TREAT)

(notice the sign that reads "kid for sale" I had no bits on my biggest kid who chanced standing on a chair to cheer on our little munchkins on stage) Senior frog drinks... wink wink)







PRESS PLAY: Here is a quick video of the contest Everett & Trent went in. Everett was to paint Trent's face like a clown with ingredients unbenounced to Trent (ketchup, mustard & mayonnaise) It was disgusting... Our Canucks did us proud, they won the contest by audience vote... Trent won yet another Senior Frogs specials with Ev walking away with candy.

(the boys twisted their Dad's arm to get some body art. These tatoos lasted 3 weeks... they loved them and were excited they would fade away so they can get more again)

Princess of Cancun... ready to say good-bye. It was a fun trip maybe will be back someday.

Em's Birthday Party...

Since we were away for Emma's actually birthday we had a girls craft day the following weekend. Em invited Luiza (Brazilian), Alex (Panamaniam) & Dion (from Venezuela)

Funny story about Dion's Dad. We had never officially met him, I had seen him at school but never introduced myself. He brought Dion over one afternoon, walked into our house and sat down. He speaks NO english and Trent & I together can get by with our Spang-glish. It was an interesting conversation. Their family moved from Venezuala last year and it was very facinating hearing his perspective of the political situation there and the stories to go along with it. We have no concept of what it is like to live in a country where you are not free to speak, act or do as you please.

(Dion.. Emma... Luiza - to much Spanish was flying out of their mouths. I was having a hard time trying to keep up)

(we spent four hours making braclets, necklaces and jewlery boxes. It was fun but I was tired)

(Emma wanted a Hanna Montana cake so bad. We had to impervise. Emma was Hanna Montana for halloween so we decorated the cake with Emma Montana. Trent baked the cake (thanks honey) and I decorated. The joys of living down here, you don't get all the amenities like back home.

(Gotcha!!! ... Happy Birthday Sweets)

Christmas Time...

I have mentioned that the decorations in the stores here are beautiful. Even my mom was in awe when I took her to the store in October. The rows are arranged by colors. I took a few pictures to try to show you but I was caught and told NO PICTURES by the lady who was hot on my tail. This is just a small climps that I could capture, not the greatest illustration but you will get the point.

(a quick snapshot before I was caught taking pictures of the blue & green isle)

(the copper & gold isle... our tree got a little bit of every color. There are rows of purple, silver (my favorite) lime green, dark green, red (another favorite) multicolor... so many decorations to choose from)




PRESS PLAY: A quick video to show an isle of ordaments... it is only 21 seconds, I got caught so I could not video anymore.





TREE TIME...

Like every year the kids get to roam the isles and pick 5 decorations each to make our tree. Last year we left Panama bound for Canada mid December so we gave Elia (our maid) our tree & decorations. This year we started from scratch again.

The kids LOVE going to the store and picking out a mish mosh of ordaments.

(hello my little elves it is time to get busy)

(Em's big decoration this year was the ribbon, she was insistant on picking it and putting it on the tree by herself... looks beautiful cuttie)

(our finished amazingly, festive tree for 2008. The kids are so proud of their tree. Trent picked and arranged the lights (good job) After the lights the kids got into action, they decorated the tree all by themselves... this is their masterpiece)

Baby News....

We are so happy for my cousin George and his girlfriend Mel who are expecting a baby in the new year .. It is going to be a GIRL! Very exciting... My cousin Lori says she is going to be a HOT Auntie... love you Lor xooxox

Wedding news...

Congratulations to my second cousin Dave Sandusky (my Dad's cousin) & his future wife Heather. They will be tying the knot in February of 2009. Beautiful picture... congrats!!!

Well I think this blog is long enough.... Thanks for following our story. This site helps family and friends whom we can't see every week see the kids growing like weeds.

It is also fun to share some funny tib bits... We found egg nog the other day (that was exciting) you never know what you get when you walk into the grocery store. Zucchini has been scarce and vanilla yogurt sometimes is impossible to find. Small funny things.

Merry Christmas.
Enjoy the holiday season and celebrate every day you have with your loved ones.

all our love from down south.

Trent. Jody* Emma * Easton * Everett
xoxoxo

Went to Colombia & made it back!

Only 42 more sleeps until the Big Red Guy comes to town. Christmas decorations are already lining all the store shelves and the Christmas vibe is here.... exciting, but I am not even close to being ready!

Hello from deep in the Central American jungle.

Hello, happy reading and looking at lots of pictures. You can always click on a picture to enlarge to see it better. One day I will figure out how to be more whizzy but for the time being I will work with what I know.

It is time for an update on our non NORMAL life (as my friend Jennifer) told me. She made it very clear that if I thought for a moment we were normal then I better think again... because we are NOT. Thank you for the clarification..haha..

The kids were just off school for a week here in Panama and a few other holidays to celebrate in November. The city was deserted as everyone left for the interior for the extended weekend.
We took advantage of the days off school and packed our suit cases and left this ghost town for some family time away.

SOME MANY HOLIDAYS! - the kids like it

November 3rd - Separation from Colombia
November 4th - Flag Day
November 5th - Colon Day
November 10th - First Call for Independence
November 28th - Anniversary of Independence from Spain
December 8th - Mothers Day (lucky for me I get to celebrate twice... for being a bit Panamaian and a whole lot Canadian in May...haha...

What have we been up to??? - Always an interesting question.

Trent finally convinced me to leave the comfort of my computer to leave it far behind to drive over an hour out of the city to Arenosa to go fishing for the day.

Firstly, I am not a huge fisherman. I do not understand how one likes to put a hook on the end of fishing line and then tease the fish to come take the bait.... just so you can then pierce the sharp end into their mouth ... all for the fun of it :-(

I agreed to this so called adventure for the kids and my nagging husband.

We boarded the boat which the kids have done many few times before so they were very comfortable with everything, BUT we must remember this was my first time out with Trent and the kids. I was not so comfortable with my little kids having rods & hooks in their hands casting off in all directions.

It was kinda gross the boys playing with the bucket of minos, squishing them and then loosing them on the deck. After minutes of mino playing they would come over to me for hugs and kisses (nothing can make me refuse those though)

I was especially challenged with Everett being so close to the edge of the boat standing up having no guard rail preventing him from falling into the cold water that crocodiles live in. Hello am I the only one who thinks this is crazy TRENT?

So it is safe to say that Trent says I never have to go fishing again and I am thankful for that. I could not imagine a better way to waste my time. They say fishing is relaxing... I did not find a single minute to do that... fishing is just not for me.

I did like taking pictures though of my kids who love to fish, they have been hypnotized by their Pappa. Everett prays everynight to go fishing again... they are like their daddy that is for sure.

(Easton with his hands in the bucket of minos... hundreds of minos)

(I found it peaceful to see the smiles on their faces, but that was it)

(here is my family with our fishing guide... look closely and you can see Emma right at the edge of the boat... ahhh the anxiety... )

p.s. Trent loves having a fishing guide... he does all the gross stuff

(Everett playing with the poor minos again... boys will be boys... can't live without them)

(great bonding time for them. It was worth the boredom to witness these moments)

(Emma was the winner of the biggest fish caught that day... she loves fishing)

(the three captains ready to head back to base to eat... they had a great day)

My Mom Came to Visit...

On Oct 18th my mom made a surprise visit to Panama to see the kids. I found out about the plans (Trent is not very sneaky) but the kids went crazy when they saw her at the airport. They were completely surprised.

Before we left for the airport we told the kids we had to pick up a friend of Trent's. When we were waiting for my mom to come through the security doors out walked a guy we know down here in Panama, the kids were ready to escort him to our truck, even wrestle & tackle him. It was pretty funny and what are the chances of seeing him right then and there. Minutes later my mom walked through the doors and it took a few moments for the kids to register that is was their MAMMA.

It was great having her down here and the kids are excited for you to come back Mom. To my surprise my Mom was even brave enough to take the kids to the mall to go mini golfing and she drove all by herself. Emma & my mom also ordered pizza something Trent & I don't even attempt and it actually showed up. Our babysitter who is Panamaniam has ordered pizza before and nothing came. Very proud of you mom, you did way more than I thought you would do. Life is not that hard here... well maybe but manageable..lol

While my mom was down here we took advantage to venture off for a few days. Trent originally wanted to go to his favorite city LAS VEGAS BABY but even though it was only a $400.00 flight from Panama to Vegas it was also a 7.5 hour flight. To far for a short time. Sooo with some convincing and twisting of Trent's arm we headed to Cartagena COLOMBIA instead.

Funny story... we said good-bye to the kids, told them to have fun with Mamma for a few days and they even got to miss school to hang out with her. Trent & I were excited for the adventure and felt good with leaving the kids as all our plans had panned out smoothly.

We arrived at the airport, checking in at the counter the lady says to us "I'm sorry sir your tickets have been issued for tomorrow the 22nd not today the 21st." Between our travel agent and Trent the dates got mixed up... (i guess that is what happens when two men plan things... they miss details) haha... except for Jeff Simpson :- )

The very nice girl at the Copa counter managed to get us on the flight to Cartagena with a small fee of course.

Our plane was delayed so we arrived at night. It is always interesting arriving in a new place at night because your senses are heightened as things look so different at night than in the day light. Going through security Trent even made the comment about "how mean the police looked" They were some very intimidating dudes. All went perfect, no issues, no drugs smuggled in our bags and we arrived at our hotel without being kidnapped :- )

I am soooo glad we went. It was AMAZING.

It is funny how everyones reaction that is in North America was the same... Silence when you tell them your going to Colombia, and then the question "is it safe?"

There is not doubt that Colombia has gotten alot of bad press in years past for good reasons. Everything from the Drug Cartels, to the random kidnappings, to the Farc Guerillas. However the present President Álvaro Uribe has done wonders for the country as it stands today. He has cracked down on the FARC rebels and has somewhat restored peace in the country that is very rich in natural resources and wonderfully happy people.

Both Trent and I were taken back at how friendly the people were (except the police), how helpful everyone was, we felt very welcomed in their country.

(here is our hotel.. Hotel Charleston... our place of luxury and comfort for a few days. The hotel was originally a Monastery... it was converted beautifully and it was amazing to walk the halls taking in the history. It is a breathtaking sight at night. )

(the entrance of the hotel. The flower arrangement was amazing and was reconfigured every second day with new flowers)






(a view down the hall from our room, pure serenity)

(I am sitting at our table at breakfast. There was no roof in the court yard, it was beautiful to hear the birds signing above.. it was very relaxing)







(up at the pool, which looked over the Colonial City. You can see behind the beautiful cathedral, the oldest one in Cartagena)

(standing at the pool over looking the Colonial City in the other direction. If I turned more to my left I would be looking at the ocean. Cartagena is on the Caribbean coast but we never ventured to the beach, instead we opted for Colombian history and the pool)

Cartagena has great history and I could go on and on about it, (but I will make it short) What is amazing about Cartagena is that the Colombians have done an amazing job at preserving their history and are very proud of it. The old colonial walled city (that is where we stayed) is amazing, many Forts are still standing and well maintained, all with the reminder of the sacrifice their ancestors gave up for their freedom now.

Cartagena was in a strategic location for Spain to control, to ship gold and silver to Europe in the 1600 -1700's. African slavery was a huge industry as well as Colombia has many natural resources that needed tending to. From this trip I have learned so much and it is great to report that Trent even loved it. He said he would go back!

Views from with-in the walls

(the Colonial Wall City was full of beautiful old charm. All through out the narrow streets at night you can take a candle lit horse and buggy for a romantic stroll to see the deep history.... what we came for. This was our horse and buggy we went out on and enjoyed the evening air. As we rode through the streets we heard stories of famous families, stories about Counts way back in the day and some of the rich & famous names that have walked the streets like us)

(this was my favorite town square. I loved the musical vibe, the outdoor restaurants and all the street vendors with the beautiful architecture in the background. It was just a cool place to hangout to have a drink)

(Again at my favorite square was the stature of the FAT LADY. The people where so proud of this statue. The Fat Lady was a gift from an artist who liked his woman vulumpsious ... Street hustlers walked around with small versions of her to sell. She goes against what I thought Colombian woman looked like but I like this look better :- )

(Trent walked right past these guys thinking they were statues. They were really authentic. If you have not seen these kind of performers then their gig is so sit PERFECTLY still which is amazing and when you give them a tip them move ever so slightly. I like to watch them as intently as I did when I was in England and stared at the Royal Guards. It is amazing how they are motionless)

(here we encountered another artist. His ever so slight movement was to give knuckles)

(One of my favorite streets with-in the wall. I love the old balconies, the narrow street and the small fruit stand to the side. I should be living in Europe, I love the old architecture)

(Now this is my favorite house with the most charming balcony. As we strolled the streets we were fortunate enough to peak inside behind the grand doors. From the outside these cement walls do not look inviting but behind them they are magnificent with wonderful courtyards and stunning decor)

(Trent is standing to show the scale of the grand doors. We were told that the little door is high off the ground because back in the day when the carriage would pull up the people (who where smaller then) would step through the door. The large grand doors where opened to release the horses when it was time for the Counts or Nobleman if you like, were to leave)

(the oldest Cathedral in Cartagena)

(This was the slave market in the sixteenth century. Here is where African slaves where bought and sold to work for many families in Cartagena. I was very taken back my how many African decent people there were in Cartagena, I did not expect that at all. Hearing and reading about the history it makes complete sense. Here in Panama it is a huge melting pot and I would say more Asian/Chinese because of the history of the canal)

(Just by chance we were walking by the Town Hall where slaves where sold and this woman walked by with a beautiful smile. I look at her and wonder.... what is your life story?)

(more beautiful architecture all around the old city)

(another city square with a very popular restaurant and hundreds of birds, very colonial)

(these are typical Colombian hats... Panama has ones also but "they" (whoever they is) took the design from Colombia)

(the girl look about 9-10yrs. old and was a captivating dancer. I could have watched her all night) - I tried to upload a video of her dancing but it just is not working.. not sure why... sorry.

(other beautiful flowers, Trent buys me flowers like this for $2- $4, they grow easily here. I could have a large flower garden, but I do not have a green thumb like my sister. I like to look at them and have them in my house)

Views outside the Walls

The one afternoon we had a private guide take us around Cartagena to see some of the touristy things. Cartagena is like any other city, less desirable sections for the poor and high end for the powerful & wealthy.

Our guide named Jacinto Jimenez Taborda aka. JJ was fantastic! We learned so much about the history of Cartagena... Colombia... and the heart of the people, the many diverse groups of people.

JJ also had some amazing stories about the Drug Cartel and how it works in Columbia. His stories talked about how local people love certain drug lords because the Cartel have given back to the poor communities by building roads, giving them houses and supplimenting food. The government has not done this for them so you can see why the poor people strive to protect the hand that feeds them. It is pretty interesting stuff. Up until a few years ago there would of been a high probablity of Trent & I being kidnapped for ransom if we would of came to Colombia. Like I mentioned the new president has worked very hard to turn things around.

(here is a view from the highest point in Cartagena from a very old convent... sorry I don't have the name of it.)

(we are standing beside the main court yard in the convent. It is still a working convent, the nuns were upstairs when we were there)

(here Trent is holding a new friend.. Pepper the sloth. Trent said the little guy was giving him a nice big squeeze. The creature was pretty cute.... so was Pepper..haha..)

Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas building began in 1639. It was completed in 1789, creating the largest fort to guard Cartagena against pirates, who besieged the city five times between during the sixteeenth century. Most famous pirate to attach was Morgan Drake, they now say is at the bottom of the ocean floor by Panama. We were fascinated by the building construction that was created so long ago.

It is amazing how engineers thought out and planned strategic offense & defense plans in the fort. For EXAMPLE: the under ground tunnels where dug to have escape routes to the street Trent is standing on, but the get to the escape route you had to know your way around the mazes down below. They built the tunnel system to gradually get smaller because the Latin people were shorter and the Europeans were taller giving the Europeans a great disadvantage. Many significant angles were the main building strategies of the fort to ward off attacks. Fascinating is all I can say.

(here is a shot of the narrow tunnels. We walked in these and it was HOT & Stuffy as well as claustrophobic)

(standing in front of the Colombian Flag... I hope to go back again)

When we left the airport in Cartagena they do search your bags pretty good for drugs. We had three security check points and a stamp in our passport that stated the date & time we left the country. Trent was padded down by security before we went into the waiting room to board the plane - no drugs :- )

BACK IN PANAMA

Always an event here!

On Sunday October 26th the kids had an annual festival at school. It was to celebrate their class and the great kids they are (i think). I am sure I have said it before but Latin people are just natural born partiers. Each class with their parents paraded around the school with a marching band in tow to show case each child. Then, like true form to the Panamanians the kids get up on stage and show off some moves.

It was a lot of fun... extremely noisy... and awesome to see the kids with their classmates having big smiles on their faces.



(a very short video... turn up your speakers... it was deafening noise at the time)

(here is Everett's class dressed in green. Above you can see his specially designed t-shirt with all the kids in his classes names. His non Latin name is third from the bottom left)

(Emma and her friend Alex... not sure her whole name so I just call her Alex :- )

(I could not be a more proud Mom... it is so fun watching you)

(I did not think I was hot..haha... The school is an open concept so no air conditioning in the large hall, however each class room has air in them. It was really hot on this Sunday and I have my shirt to prove it. This picture was taken in the gym, again an open court to take in all the fresh air)

(this is the main area in the school. All the classrooms are on the perimeter of this large area. Also it is a view of all the people who knew kids in Everett's class - green)

"STUDENT OF THE WEEK"

(Everett was Student of the WEEK. Which means he makes a poster of himself to tell his class about his favorite things. He is the teachers assistant and most importantly he gets to be in the front of the line :- ) To celebrate Trent, the kids & I came in to play BINGO with the class and share some yummy treats. Bingo went great but believe it or not, 90% of the kids in his class had never played before. On his poster he had pictures of him playing in the snow... his classmates thought that was pretty cool!)

(Ev's pre-kinder class of 2008... school is almost out for the year here. December 15th is his last day and he will officially graduate to Kindergarten... Ahhhh)

(the kids love the rain... even more than rain they love the mud the rain makes)

(Em wanted to show off her puppet she made... it was a fun activity after their mud baths)

Halloween is always fun. Here in Panama it is not as commercialized as much as it is in North America, people have fun with it though. I waited to long to go searching for a pumpkin and sadly I could not find one. We did not see very many on the candy circuit so I have no idea who bought them.

(we had no pumpkins but the kids had their decorated squash - these are Easton's fabulous creations)

(The kids were all dolled up. Emma wanted to be none other than Hanna Montana with a flare of Emma in the costume. East chose to me Woody the cowboy again with his own flare of Woody. Ev was a pirate ready to yell as loud as he could for treats. Trent & I wore our pirate hats for good fun. We ventured out with the Cortese family to a gringo neighborhood and sweated our butts off, it was really humid this night but had some rain sprinkle down to cool us off)

(the Cortese family. Felicity (the mom) grew up here in Panama but is British decent... Vito her husband is from Oregon is Trent's buddy who goes and watches football with him Monday nights at the pub (vito knows nothing about football :- ) They have three little ones. Juan Carlo -4yrs. Charlotte - 2yrs. & Mackenzie - 6months. Our kids play with Mackenzie all the time and constantly ask for another baby, especially the boys they want another brother... Trent says NEVER!

(Ev likes having another little boy who speaks english around to play with... He still feels better with english than spanish)

(East says.... Yes mom I want more candy - the kids just like the event of it all because it is two weeks past halloween and they maybe ate 3 pieces of candy)

(the kids pooped out from walking so much and are all full of sweat. Trent went to go find our truck to collect us all. Fun times)

(we have not had a picture of Everett sleeping lately. We are at one of our favorite restaurants call the "Market" and Everett walked over to another table, put his head down and drifted away. CUTIE)

We are celebrating Emma's birthday this weekend with her girlfriends. Her birthday was on November 6th but we were away so next blog I will will have pictures of that fun event of giggling girls.

I have no other news to report... no baby new, no wedding news but a few birthday wishes.

** It would have been my Gramma Edmundson's birthday Nov 5th.
** Happy belated Birthday Lori - my little cousin
** Mark Ladoucer - our birthday thoughts were with you, I am sure you had a fantastic day.
** Hillary Pearce turns 3 tomorrow - have fun cutie.
** Tia Olynyk will be 9 next week - WOW the girls are growing fast
** Brayden Snyder another year older.. have fun.

On November 20th will be the 9th anniversary of my Dad's passing... He is missed so much and Easton is a constant reminder of my dad is so many ways... which we love.

Thank you for taking the time to see what is new down here, it is always fun to hear from you. Give your love ones a hug and cherish each day.

Take care, all our love.
Trent, Jody, Emma, Easton & Everett
xoxoxo