Sept.30 Wed

I know I haven't written in a while. Since the family went to DisneyWorld, I haven't really done much. Everyday, Nanny Jing has had to "babysit" me. We go out for lunch and then do a little shopping. It's been really hard on her. ;)

Today was kinda weird. You know how bad things happen in 3? When she picked me up we saw a dead chicken right by our front door. In all my trips to the Cayman Islands, I have never seen a dead chicken before......only wrapped up in the supermarket. I waited far away while Jing used 2 sticks to carry this smelly bird covered in magets far from the house. Then as we were driving there was another dead chicken on the road. That's bad thing #2. I was waiting for a third dead chicken, when our car came to a sudden stop. I don't know what happened but we were stuck in the sweltering heat on the side of the road. One bit of good luck was that we were only a couple blocks from their car repair shop. After several minutes of trying, the engine started to run again and we slowly made it to the repair shop. We got a ride home to the other car, and that was the end of our bad luck for the day.

We went to a small place for lunch. Jing is a little kookie and ordered a chicken salad - she didn't get enough dead chickens for one day? Then we made our way downtown to do a little shopping. She bought herself a Mac lipstick, then forced me to buy the same one too (Monette, I didn't want to spend your money, but Jing was very bossy!) Then we continued to look at the tshirts in the other gift shops. They were all about $15 to $20 each. Jing used to be roommates with a guy who works at the store that provides the gift shops with their products, so she took me there so we could buy stuff wholesale. Usually, if you buy wholesale you have to buy large quantities, but since Jing knew the guy, he let us just buy whatever amount we wanted. I bought a shirt that said "Got Rum?" just like the "Got Milk?" slogan and another shirt that says "Cayman Island Beach Bum". I paid less than half price for each shirt! I love a good deal!

After a nice long nap, Monette's coworker and friend Jennifer picked me up to watch a movie at 9:30. That's pretty late for this early riser, but what can I say? I'm a total party animal. We stopped for a frappucino - I needed the caffeine to keep me awake for the movie. We talked a lot about how bossy Monette is. Heehee! I'm only writing that because I know Monette is in DisneyWorld and has no way of checking this blog! Hopefully she won't check it when she gets home. Anyways, we watched "Fame". I know it doesn't come out until Friday in North American, but for some reason it's already playing here in Cayman. It was so good! But with all the young actors, it kinda made me feel old.

It's now past midnight and I'm still wide awake. Don't know if it's because of the frappe or because I loved the movie so much, or maybe it's because I'm scared I'm going to have nightmares about dead chickens!

I went to get ready for bed and was singing songs from the movie Fame. Since I'm home alone and surrounded by forests on all sides I figured I could sing loudly. I thought I sounded great..........that is, until I heard a rooster cockadoodle back! I think he thought I was a hen in heat or something! Maybe I'm not as good a singer as I thought?!

I'll try to go to bed now, but I kinda wish my mommy was here to scare away the boogie man....I mean the boogie chicken! Good night!

Sept. 27 Cayman

These are pictures of the Coco's first taste of solid food. She loved it. She's definitely part filipino - she loves her rice cereal! I'm not sure if this was the actual day she tried the rice for the first time, but close enough. Notice how messy her face is when I fed her? I do have a depth perception problem and didn't have the perfect aim into the mouth! Oh well!

Yesterday I tried to spend as much time as I could with my nieces. They all left early this morning for a 5 day trip to Disneyworld. In the late morning me, Monette, Rio and Coco went to watch Shay during the last half hour of her soccer class taught by Jason. During the first 10 minutes I met a lot of the other parents. I bragged to everyone about how this Canadian girl had totally gotten used to the hot temperatures and actually liked the heat. But by the end of the half hour, I was practically crying for some air conditioning. Guess this Canadian isn't as tough as she thought! By the way, I heard about the heat wave back in BC - it's the same temperature here as it is there! Krazy!


I have no idea what to do with myself. Does anyone have any suggestions? I already finished cleaning up the main part of the house and already washed all my handwashable clothes. I finished everything before 9am. Now what do I do? Luckily their nanny Jing will be able to drive me around to places whenever I want. But I have a feeling I'm going to mostly sleep for the next few days. After all the excitement of Cancun and playing with my nieces here, I am pretty tired. Plus I need to rest up for all my future travels. Or I could scratch that whole relaxing idea and find some cute scuba divers to play with!......Nah, I'll just stay home and watch Dancing with the Stars. I'm such an old lady!

ps -I just want everyone to say a quick prayer for all my family and friends in the Philippines who are dealing with the floods. God bless, Lana

Cayman - Sept.24

What a good day. Monette and Jason left for work. Shay went to school. Nanny Jing took Rio and Coco to gymnastics and to Monette's work for lunch. I had the entire house to myself. I got to watch some tv during the day, which is a rare occurence. If the kids see me out of my room, that's the signal that I'm done resting and ready to play.

By the time the kids got home, I was well rested and ready to be a good auntie. While Rio napped, me and Shay got to spend some quality one on one time together. 2 hours of talking and giggling quietly together.

At night we did another treasure hunt. Among other little knick knacks I included a "magic" fairy face towel from the Disney store for each of them. They are about 2 inches square, but once you soak them in water they turn into a regular sized face towel with pictures of fairies.

After playing with their other new treasures they went to take a bath with their magic towels. They were in the bathtub for way over an hour - maybe even 2 hours! I sat watching them for the last little bit. Rio would soak the towel, and then squeeze the water into cups. Shay scrubbed the whole bath tub clean (I don't know how sanitary that is). They both wore the towels on their heads like hats. What they spent a lot of time doing was making me close my eyes while they wrapped their bath toys in the towels and made me guess what the gift was. I'd always guess wrong, which they loved.

Aah, another lovely day!

Sept.22 Tuesday

Today there was a torrential downpour. But it didn't keep us trapped home all day!

Me and their nanny Jing took Rio & Coco to the gymastics place that they open to toddlers twice a week. Boy, did I get a workout - I chased around after Rio while Jing took care of Coco. We bounced, rolled and sprinted for a full hour. Thank goodness Rio tired out after only an hour (she is just getting over being sick), or else we would have had to stay longer. Rio said she wanted pizza from Subway, so away we went. In the 10 seconds it took us to walk to the car we got totally drenched! I swear I saw Noah's ark float by!

After Subway we stopped off at Monette's work so Coco could have her lunch.
While I was sitting by myself one of Monette's co-workers came by and said "Oh, you're Monette's sister."
I politely said "Yes, have we met?"
He said "Only about 10 times! I see you whenever you come to town."
So I gave the answer I always give when I get in this situation: "Oh yes. Now I remember you! You're that really good looking guy!"
And he gave the answer I always get back: "Yes, that's me!"

Tonight was fun. Dancing with the Stars was on again. The girls danced along for the first hour. When they were getting bored, my wonderful brother-in-law Jason took them to the garage to play a monster game so me and Monette could watch the rest of the show.

Then I told the Rio and Shay their bedtime stories. Shay requested one of the same stories that I had told the night before. The stories are supposed to put them to sleep, but they end up giggling and jumping up and down! I said good night to them and sent them off to their parents.

Aaaahhhhh! Life is pretty much perfect here.

By the way, I think I figured out how to let people post comments (even if they're not a member). Give it a try, and we'll see if it works. Thanks, Lana

Monday, Sept.21 in Cayman

Monette, Jason and Shay were away at work and school today, so spent most of my time with Rio. She loves doing puzzles, because when she's done I always comment on how smart she is and she loves the praise.

When Shay came home I told them stories about when me and Monette were young and living in Sewell Inlet. Their favourite story was the one where Papa Tony took us out to climb a waterfall, and Monette split open her knee. I assured them that their mom was fine, but for that whole summer she walked slowly with a limp. As she walked slowly we would all sing slowly "Ba dum, bu dum. Ba dum, bu dum." This would drive Monette crazy!
So later that night they sang that tune to Monette to drive her crazy. Monette pretended to be really embarrassed, which thrilled the girls to no end. Monette, in turn, told an embarassing story about me to the girls, but since this is my blog, I don't have to repeat it! Heehee!

1st full day in Cayman

Since it was Sunday and raining outside, we spent the entire day at home.

Jason said he likes having me there because that meant there were 3 adults for 3 children. They weren't outnumbered anymore. Then how come I spent a lot of time in the computer/play room holding Coco, helping Rio roll out play-do and wtching Shay play a new computer game? Because it was Football Sunday, Sunday, Sunday and their parents were glued to the tv. I was, truthfully, in heaven. It's nice to be with kids who want to spend time with you. Who knows how long it will be before they are too cool to spend time with their Auntie Lana?!

We did a treasure hunt in the afternoon. They're so adorable as they walk hand in hand from one clue site to the next. When they find the clue Shay will read it out loud and then give it to Rio to hold. So cute! Their treasure this time contained yellow pom poms, 3 purpe balloons, and a purple fan (from Stacey's wedding).

Me and Monette went for an evening walk when there was a break in the rain. We were home by 7pm and Shay was already sleeping! I guess too much excitement that day. Happy Days!

To Cayman

Here's my first few days in Cayman visiting my sister Monette, her husband Jason and her three kids Shay (5), Rio (2) and Coco (6months).

I spent Sept.19 traveling from Cancun to Cayman via Miami. Something was wrong with the plane for my connecting flight and I ended up having a 2 hour delay at the airport. When I finally got to Cayman, Jason was waiting for me.

I assumed the kids would be sleeping when I got there, but I was greeted at by both Shay and Rio. They practically tackled me to the ground with hugs and kisses! I loved it! Even Coco stayed up passed her bedtime to welcome me home!

The kids wanted to keep playing, but seeing as I had traveled all day, I pretty much went to bed right away.

Cancun, Mexico

I just left Cancun yesterday. It was so beautiful - a perfect place for Stacey Yano and Dave Flood's destination wedding. (Sorry Stacey, this is the only picture I have of you and Dave together.)

Anyways, I arrived there the night of Sept.15. I couldn't reach Stacey in her room, but I figured she'd be somewhere close to the buffet and the bar. Sure enough, her and the guests that had arrived earlier were at a table on the beach directly between the outdoor buffet and one of the bars. I know Stacey so well!

After dinner, Stacey gave me a night tour of the resort. But it wasn't til the next morning that I could really appreciate the beauty of the place.......

Hands down, the best part of the whole resort were the dolphins. My room was on the 2nd floor with a balcony that looked down on these beautiful creatures. During the day they would swim around playing and every few hours they would be swimming with people who signed up to swim with them. I've already done it before, but it was thrilling to watch other people do it (Stacey, her mom Millie, mother in law Linda, and sister in law Heather all did it). The best part was at night when I would wake up giggling because I could hear the dolphins splashing and jumping around at night. I don't know when these creatures sleep!

The rest of the resort was beautiful. Right across the dolphins was a man-made lagoon that you could go into with little fishies living in it. And there were several pools all around. I never went swimming in any of them, because I stuck to the ocean. It was just like being in Cayman - actually we were really close to Cayman. I bet I could have borrowed one of the kayaks and battled myself to Monette's place in Cayman pretty quick.




Since all of Stacey and my friends couldn't make it to this destination wedding I had already made alternate plans......at the wedding shower I arranged for Dave's mom Linda to temporarily adopt me while we were there. I shared a room with her daughter Heather who is the same age as me. Heather was a great roommate. She was fun and laid back and most importantly she didn't snore! (I had brought ear plugs just in case).





There were 25 people in total who came down for the wedding. Most were friends and family of Dave, but Stacey had her parents, her godmother and other family friends there as well.

Oh I forgot to mention the free food and free drinks. I lived on virgin strawberry margaritas and pina coladas the whole time I was there. There was a buffet that served every food you could imagine. Not to mention the 4 or 5 restaurants specializing in everything from steak to seafood to Japanese cuisine.
And I can't forget to mention all the little deli/bakery/coffee shops on every corner.

And free room service too!
I don't know if all this free food really goes well with being in a bikini all day. ; )
















Let me talk about the spa for a while. If anyone knows of a way that I can make a living testing out spas, could you let me know. We had to wait for out appointment in their waiting room. It was so beautiful. We laid in this room where all the lounges faced a tall tiled wall with plants along the floor. There was a constant stream of water that fell down along the wall. Luckily, since Stacey and her mom were both getting hour long manicures and I was only getting a half hour pedicure, I got to spend an extra half hour in this room. A guy even came in and gave me a heated cinammom scented neck pillow. I could have stayed there all day.

The pedicure itself was so relaxing too. I soaked the bottom part of my legs for a long time and she massaged my feet for quite a long time. She actually went over the half hour, which I really appreciated. My nails were done a dark purple to match my maid of honour dress.









That night we had a rehearsal dinner at a neighbouring Mexican restaurant. Yum, Yum! I ate way too much, but my maid of honour dress had an empire waste, so I knew I would fit in it no matter what!







I






















The wedding was on Friday and it was the perfect day. I was woken up at 7:30 am by the people who wanted to know about my shuttle the next day. Since I couldn't go back to sleep I decided to go for an early dip in the ocean. It was great - I had the whole beach to myself. Then I hunkered down on a lounge chair and chilled for about an hour just soaking up the morning sun and reading a magazine. A great way to start the day.

Then I went back to the room to shower and then went for a buffet breakfast. After walking around the resort and meeting up with my adoptive family on the beach I went back to the room for a nap. The people came to clean the room, so I was forced to have lunch again at the buffet - I was actually supposed to wait til 2pm to have room service lunch with Stacey (she was spending the morning at the spa getting a massage and her hair and make up done). I did have fun getting ready for the wedding in Stacey's room. No picture though of Stacey in her wedding dress. Her new sister-in-law joined us at the end so we could all get ready together. We walked to the side of the hotel to make our big entrance.....




















Sorry, I got no pictures of the actual wedding, I was busy being the maid of honour. The wedding was in a gazebo on a small hill that looked out onto the ocean. No rain! The ceremony was beautiful - Stacey looked breathtaking in her gown! I'm a little mad at Dave though - I pride myself on the fact that I am not one of those sappy people that cry at weddings. But when Dave started saying his vows he started crying, which made his sister beside me cry, and then I couldn't help it and started weeping too!

After the ceremony the bridal party went to the other side of the hotel to take pictures by a lighthouse. Now I wasn't expecting to be hiking in my gown, but I made it there without falling on the rocks and wrecking my dress!

After those pics were taken, Stacey and Dave still had their pictures to take, so the rest of the bridal party went to join the other guests for a little party on the beach. There was a Mexican mariachi band playing and lots of little hors douevers (did I spell any of these words right?).









When Stacey and Dave arrived we went to a covered-in-area attached to a larger room that was part of the hotel. We had a beautiful dinner and lots of speeches. I was forced to make one as well. I told a few funny anecdotes about growing up with Stacey - including the one with both of us ending up in a hotel bathtub with 2 other people. The guests really wanted to know more, but I just said sorry "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!"





After we finished the wedding cake, it started raining so we moved the party indoors and just sat around talking for a while.
After that we had originally made plans to go dancing at the club next door, but we ended up just sitting around the lounge near the front of the hotel.

Have you noticed the number of times I used the word "lounge" in this story? That one word describes the whole trip. Aaaahhhhhh! What a great trip!

Travelling back to Vancouver

Well, I'm back to Vancouver. I thought I'd tell everyone about my last day of the trip. The reason this last note in my blog is so long is because I'm writing it on paper during my 5 hour wait at the terminal, the 1 hour delay on the tarmac and the 4 hour plane ride home. I'm just typing it up now that I'm home.

So my day started early. Me and Monette both woke up at 6am. Monette was excited to see her family and I was excited to pack. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love to organize and pack my bags.

Then I went back to sleep. I woke up at around 8am and we got ready to hit the spa/pool area. Monette, Coco and I tried the big pool. After a couple dunks in I was freezing. We made our way to the hot tub which was wonderful. Monette dunked her feet in and help Coco in her lap. I could have stayed there all day.

Monette and Coco went upstairs to clean up, but I stayed to enjoy all the perks of the hotel. I was excited to go there because they have a sauna and a steam room inside. I wanted to go in both to replenish my dry eye. It said not to spend more than 15 minutes in there at a time. No problem for me - after 5 minutes in each I was dying of heat. So much for my good idea!

Then I went to take a nice long shower. The hotel provides everything you need to get ready: slippers, robes, shampoo, conditioner, blow dryer, brushes, hair spray, cotton, Qtips, lotion - anything you can imagine. They even have a machine that instantly dries your wet swimsuit!
After I was all dressed I went to the adjoining room where they provided complimentary drinks, fruit and newspapers. I feel so spoiled here.

When I got back to our room Monette left me with Coco so she could quickly make a last purchase at the adjoining mall.

I can read Coco pretty well now. When she looks like she was done playing with her toys I let her sit up and watch Dora the Explorer. When she started not paying attention to the tv, I knew it was time for a nap. Monette says Coco doesn't usually nap, but during this vacation she did. I picked her up and "helay, helayed" her (walked around bouncing her up and down) until she fell asleep. Then I lay down with her on top of me. This made her kind of wake up but I patted her on the back til we both fell asleep.

We taxi'd to the airport. I was 2 terminals apart from Monette's terminal, but since I had 5 hours to waste Monette had me help her check in first. While she was checking in, I took Coco out of her buggy...her clothes were wet! WARNING: this story is not for the faint hearted! Monette sent me to the washroom to change her pampers and her clothes. Although her pamper was full of dirty smelly stuff her clothes were only a tiny bit wet! Auntie Lana picked her up at the perfect time - her buggy never even got wet! Now that I survived that I feel like I can survive anything!

Okay - I promise - this is my last note til the end of my Cancun trip. I go to Cancun on Sept 15. Since I doubt I'll have computer access in Cancun I'll write in my book everyday and post it to my blog when I get to Cayman on Sept.20. Bye for now, Lana

Last full day in Chicago

Well, I guess this is my last note from Chicago. We're leaving tomorrow morning.

This morning I had to watch baby Coco for about 2 hours while Monette was at her final meeting. After playing with her for a bit she was getting kind of restless, so I put her in her chair and put on the tv. Thank goodness for Dora the Explorer. After a bit she was getting even more fidgety - I knew that meant she was tired, which was perfect for me! I picked her up, "hellay, hellayed" her (that's not the write spelling, but in filipino it means to bounce them up and down in your arms). Then we both fell asleep til Monette came back.

We went to the mall and had lunch at California Pizza, where we shared a BBQ chicken pizza. I know, I know - I said the whole reason for coming to Chicago was to eat their deep dish pizza, but we never got around to having it. Well, I guess I have a reason to come back again!

After lunch we went shopping. I got paid for my babysitting skills by getting some nice jeans at the Gap. Those who know me, know I prefer to be paid in clothing and food! Monette bought a ton of stuff for her family.

By then, it was about 3pm - time for Coco's nap and my nap. We went to the hotel and napped while Monette did more shopping. For dinner we got take out Thai food from a restaurant in the mall attached to our hotel. Marites, you would have been jealous - we got pad thai noodles and green curry chicken with rice - yummy!

At around 7pm we took a quick cab to one of our favourite stores - Target. Monette bought toys and stuff for the kids. I managed to sneak some sport socks for me into her buggy when she wasn't looking!ssshh...don't tell Monette.

We just got home now at 10pm and I came directly down to the business centre to type this note before I went to bed and forgot what I did today. Good night.

I survived!

Sorry I didn't write yesterday. I was way too tired to type! Yesterday me and dad had Coco the whole day. Monette only stopped by to feed the baby at lunch, at dinner, and then came home late. Coco decided to go on a hunger strike to show Monette that her mother should not leave her with people like me and my dad. Later on Monette claimed it was because the fridge they gave us to use in the hotel had half frozen the milk!
Except for not eating her milk, she was pretty good during the day. Me and Coco went shopping together, and again people had to stop and tell me what a cutie she was. Poor Papa Tony was in charge of putting her to sleep - we didn't know that she usually doesn't take naps since she sleeps through the night. She was not her usual happy self.
The problem with me writing this in the morning is that I can't really remember what happened yesterday.

This morning Papa Tony had already left for Cayman. I'm really glad that he could come and help with the baby. I don't know if I wrote this already, but I've been having a real tough time with my eyes here. But as soon as Papa Tony left we turned the air conditioning off in our room and my eye is back to normal. I'm in a much better mood now!
Monette was gone for a couple of hours this morning. After playing for a bit with Coco, I let her watch Dora the Explorer on tv - what a good babysitter Dora is!
Then after a while she started getting antsy. I can read her well. I turned off the tv, shut off the lights, and carried her in my arms. She soon fell fast asleep. We lay on the bed and both took a nap for almost an hour. I woke her up accidently - I noticed that the whole time she was sucking the sleeve of my shirt. I pulled it away and she woke up screaming! Luckily, Monette came back from her last meeting.
Now Monette, Coco and I have the rest of the day to eat out and shop! Yahoo!

I did it! I did it! I survived babysitting the munchkin! This was kind of the practice test for when I babysit her on my own in New York in October. Wish me luck!

Coco the Cutie

Monette and Coco arrived last night. Monette said it was exhausting walking thru the airports with Coco - not because she's a cranky baby, but because she is the most charming baby ever! Literally hundreds of people had to stop Monette to tell her what a beautiful baby she had. Poor Coco, going thru life with so much charm has been kind of tricky for me......okay, stop gagging!

They arrived here late last night and we stayed up really late just playing with Coco. This morning we had full intentions of leaving early in the morning, but we ended up sleeping until lunch time. Me and dad took a city tour in one of those double decker buses which was nice. After a nap, me and Monette did some shopping. Then we all had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory right by our hotel. Sorry, that's all I can write now....I ate way too much and am going into a food coma. I'll write more tomorrow. Good night!