Beach Combing

As we've gotten to know our little island we've discovered that different  beaches offer different treasures.We love to look around at the beach and see what we can find. It seems there is always something interesting.

A short hike down the cliff is our favorite beach (so far) for shells. This beach is called Survivor Beach! I think it is because you are thankful you survived the hike down the cliff. Of course, there is always the hike back up! We have found some amazing shells here. On one trip Sammy, Bethany and I were playing in a tide pool and  there were so many shells. What was even more amazing was that they were all perfect. It was like someone came and just dropped them all  there for us to find. We were quickly filling our bags and within minutes we started becoming a little more particular about what we actually put in our bag. As we were searching we were talking about how shocked the others would be when they saw all we had found.




Our treasures


While we were beach combing, Steve went snorkeling with Stevie and Bobby.  They weren't sure how long they would stay in the water because it was a bit rough. I don't think it had been 15 minutes when Bobby came running towards us yelling. I thought for sure someone was hurt and started heading in his direction. Then I saw he had something in his hand...a big something. I also noticed the big grin on his face.  He had found a conch shell which put our perfect shells to shame.



Bobby's find

We have made numerous trips to Survivor and seem to always find something interesting. On another trip my husband found a broken oar and this too  found  its way to our house. It wasn't long before it was transformed into something new.

The beauty of this piece is that we all found something glued to the oar. I just wish Steve had warned me that he was gluing on the crab. The piece had to spend some time in the garage to make sure the smell was gone before it entered our house.

When I look at all the shells and how they are all so unique I'm amazed. It shows me God's creativity. How He cares even about the smallest details of nature. If He cares so much for these things you know His love for us is far greater.

So, now the kids and I have a new project this summer. We want to look for driftwood or bamboo and see what new things we can create with all our shells and sea glass. Oh, I forgot to mention sea glass....I'll have to save that for another time.

The Power and Beauty of the Ocean

Yesterday I took the kids to the beach for the first time without my husband. I didn't go completely alone as a friend went with us and several more met us there. This may seem insignificant to many of you. Most mothers gather up their kids and friends and head off to the beach. For me, this was one of those baby steps to get over my new found fear of the ocean.

I have always had a deep respect for water. However, one Sunday in March my respect turned to fear. We were at Sea Glass Beach with some friends collecting sea glass while the kids played in the water. I'm really big on counting heads and making sure I know that everyone is safe. At one point I heard some commotion and saw a group of people pulling a man and boy out of a current. I looked again and saw there were other children in the current. That's when I started getting everyone out of the water to make sure we didn't add any more victims.

Then my heart stopped. I saw my husband in the current with one of the boys and a friend of ours. The men were working together to get the boy to safety. Time literally stopped. I felt like I was in a movie and everyone and everything started moving in slow motion. People were yelling but you couldn't hear what they were saying. I remember thinking, Steve will drown before he lets that kid. I can still close my eyes and see the three of them in the water.

At  that point I went to get surfboards and my oldest son helped me to get them to the water.  When we got back a group of people were lined up perfectly to shoot the boards quickly to those in the current (You would have thought we practiced all this if you were just a spectator.) Probably within a minute or two after receiving the boards,  they were on shore.

As I looked at the event all the participants in the rescue were either Coast Guard, CG dependants or other Department of Defense employees and their families. A lady who lives in Puerto Rico came up to me and said had our group not been there that day they probably all would have been lost. While everyone "played" the part they were suppose to the real heroes were Steve (my husband) and Chris (our friend) as they risked their lives by jumping in to save that child.

Before we left and after everyone calmed down, we had the kids get into the water with us just so we wouldn't leave afraid. I remember thinking that it was about this time last year that my aunt drowned. When I got home and checked, it was a year to the day that she died.  I had goose bumps and felt nauseous.

Then the dreams started. You know when you experience something how your mind plays tricks on you. The fear of the water increased and we didn't go back to the beach for a long time.

Thanks to the power of prayer and some amazing friends that have prayed for me I can now go and relax at the ocean. That was one of my first baby steps...just going and enjoying the ocean.

The next baby step was taking the kids without my husband. We live on this beautiful tropical island and we can see the water daily. It seems terrible not to enjoy it more often. So yesterday we went. The day was perfect! The first thing my oldest said was, "I'm off to check out the aquarium." His brothers quickly followed.  Snorkel masks and flippers on they set out on their adventure.  You know what,  I felt peace! I still counted heads but I wasn't  fighting that fear of "what if."  When they came back they all had such joy on their faces and they had a few pretty good "fish tales" as well.

Then Bethany and Stevie sat on the shore while I went off to explore with the younger boys and our friend.  What we saw was amazing.  I wish I could tell you the types of fish we saw but I'm not really sure. I do know that they were created by an amazing God who loves us enough to share his beauty with us.

Once again  we all learned something new on our island school. I learned that fears are real and can be conquered one small step at a time.  The kids learned to play with fish in their own personal aquarium.  We all learned a little more about our great God that day! We are all so truly blessed, let us focus on those gifts from God.

Picture taken by my youngest son Sammy (10).

So much to learn

Our family has been blessed in so many ways that when things go wrong we tend to forget how fortunate we are. I think that is why I decided to start this blog. You see we have lived in Puerto Rico, a tropical island, for 9 months.  Yes, 9 months, the same amount as a pregnancy. Now ladies, those of you have been pregnant no how looooong a pregnancy can be when you are miserible.  Yet, we really aren't (for the most part) miserible for the entire 9 months. It just seems we tend to focus on the negative. That is what I've been doing on this beautiful tropical island....focusing on the negatives.  That changes today!

We are a Christian, homeschooling, military family with 4 kids (3boys, 1 girl), 2 dogs, and a whole lot of craziness. Because we keep our kids at home for their education we tend to be a little different than the average family. For us, education isn't just 8am to 3pm, 5 days a week, 9 months of the year but a lifelong journey.  We are also going on a "field trip" or an adventure.  Overall, our family really enjoys learning (because we make it fun) and being together.

I'm learning myself. I'm learning to focus on the positive because we have had some incredible experiences in those 9 months. I'm learning to get over my fears.  Fear of flying, fear of the ocean (I developed that fear after we got here), fear of blogging,  fear of letting my children run free in the neighborhood, and fear of driving. I have all those fears but I don't let them stop me. I do fly, I do enjoy the ocean, I'm attempting to write a blog, and my kids run wild around base. Driving? Well, I'm working on that one...one mile at a time.

One of our fun experiences in PR involved tree trimmers. Before hurricane season the base hires a local company to remove the coconuts to prevent damages if we experience a tropical storm or hurricane. The company works in stages. The first crew comes around and trims the fronds and the coconuts and they move rather quickly. The second crew separates the fronds and coconuts. Apparently, the coconuts are then sold to a local for Coco Frios.  This group moves a little more slowly...and we had no idea they were coming.

So, when my kids saw the treasures that lay before them they didn't hesitate. They quickly pulled out coconuts and all the various stages of coconuts. Man are coconuts bunched together heavy!  What fun they had! They broke open coconuts and saved the liquid in 2 liter bottles.  They took apart pods and found "baby" coconuts and then lined them up, in order to show the various stages.  Then I  heard another truck coming and I got the "look." The workers arrived and weren't happy with us...apparently we had enjoyed some of their profits. Since our Spanish is limited we just smiled and waved and kept playing with our pile.  I'm sure they thought I was crazy as I was having as much fun as the kids!

The experience was amazing. We had a great time outside just being together. We all learned something new about coconuts and even showed the neighbors.  Even the trimmers learned something new because I'm sure next year when they trim the trees they will know to move faster in front of the house with the crazy homeschoolers.



Bethany found this and called them baby coconuts.



Coconut Stages



Collecting the "juice."



We still have much to learn on this island. I hope you continue with us on our journey. I'll try to make it fun and honest! God Bless!