January Ladies Wine Club

Last night we had the third Grand Bahamas Ladies wine club.  Megan, the are teacher at school hosted it and did a grand job.  It was a red wine theme and I still enjoyed it!  Everyone says eventually you graduate to red wine, not me I am a truly dedicated white wine drinker.   I think we all feel very grateful to be able to have a get together at all.   We know how lucky we are that Covoid has not been seen here in weeks but at the same time we know that so many businesses are suffering badly.  With no tourists coming in, no hotels (well possibly one) have reopened since last April and have no intention too.  As tourism accounts for 90 percent of all employment here, that is tough.  And who knows when it can change, I have been bragging about Barbados's successful strategy of opening back up but with strict testing and quarantines and now they are facing a two week lock down.  But who knows what to do, obviously health should come first but no employment is tough as well.   It definitely nice to have a night out where we all just pretended the world was normal.

And no post is really complete without some Sebastian pictures.  The sea was lovely yesterday.  It was c very windy, chilly day but so beautiful.

The Andesrsons

 They are my Lawson's from Phuket.  We loved hanging out with the Lawson family and their kiddies in Phuket and we have found that with the Anderson's.  Peter is away right now, so Sinead and the kids came over for a beach day and lunch on Sunday.  A beautiful day spent on the beach.

Sebastian loves popcorn.  He is not very good at sharing it and he loves to take yours if you have a bowl (even if his bowl is full) but who can say no to that face!

Lola loving the sunshine.

Sebastian loves hanging out with Emmy and Ewan.  I wish I had taken a few more shots of the day.  We even had running races, where I was beaten legitimately by a six-year-old and almost an 18-month-old.

  

18 Months

I cannot believe Sebastian is 18 months.  It seems like yesterday we were having his frog party in Thailand.  And then in some ways that seems like three lifetimes ago.  He had a brilliant day on a play date and then at the beach.  He is such a happy lovely boy.  We are so proud.

Loving his beach life.  He will soon be swimming all on his own.  Time flies.

Toddler Search

 I have mentioned once or twice that there are very few toddlers on the island.  Loads of families left after Hurricane Dorian and now Covoid.   There are no pre-schools open and I have only heard of a few private groups.  Everyone tells me this is not a big deal, especially until he is two.  But I disagree as I can see how happy he is with other children and how much he learns.  Also, in six months he will be two and I am not sure if all of a sudden kids will just appear.  Therefore, I have been taking matters into my own hands and basically stalking families with little ones.  

Friday I found a family with a 16-month-old and quickly exchanged details.  We went to a beach that someone had suggested there were a lot of families at.  Most kids were much older, but was so happy to find one toddler!

Saturday I arranged a playdate with a 3-year-old little girl.  A bit older, but Sebastian was in heaven.  I am now all about finding him friends :)

Mid-Week Treat

January just feels like the longest month ever.   After Christmas, we have been counting the pennies.  But this week we definitely need a mid-week treat.  So we went to the Stone Crab for a soup, a happy hour drink, and a walk on the beach.  It was fabulous to be out of the house even for a couple hours.

Sebastian and Lola ran up and down the beach.  It was a lovely much needed evening.

Sebastian's Garden

 It is rumoured that The Bahamas is one of the most expensive places in the world.  We can confirm that this is correct.  It has bee a huge shock from Asia especially when it comes to food.  We spend the majority of our salary in the supermarkets for sure.  Therefore, it was time for Sebastian to start earning his keep.  He is now in charge of peppers, tomatoes and aubergines, for a start.

I will keep you posted on his progress.  So far so good, he loves watering them.  He probably loves watering them a little too much so we will see!

Weekend Fun

On Friday night we got Luis's Mum and Bruce to team up and watch Sebastian for two hours while we went for a friends birthday drink.    We were very thankful to have a night out.  They did such a fantastic job, and were both pretty tired as Sebastian ran them ragged. 

 At this event I reconnected with a lady, Alison, who we met briefly at the beginning of the year.   Last night her and her daughter and daughter's boyfriend came to dinner last night.  We did our usual Mexican and had the best evening.  We loved the daughter and boyfriend, especially Sebastian who I could not get to bed until long after the left.  He was super excited.

He had the best night ever!
 

Axel and Sebastian

Every time we get together these two just get cuter and cuter.  They are actually sharing things now and even having hugs and hand holding.  We went over to Axel's on the weekend for a delicious vegan pancake breakfast and a play.  I just love watching these two together.

It is such an added bonus that we love the parents as well!