Lovin' Island Life

We're currently in Barbados and are off to St. Lucia for 5 days tomorrow. We're having an amazing time and are loving every second of our time together. We'll have many pictures and stories to share. Be looking forward to those posts.

The Vacation Before the Vacation

Kyle ended school last Thursday, the 19th. When he was done we went out to lunch with some friends and then soaked up some sun at the beach. It was a nice way to celebrate being done with year 1 of med school. Most of our friends were leaving either Friday or Saturday to go home and that's when Kyle and I started to wonder if we had made the right decision to stay here. We found ourselves staring at each other completely bored. Months ago, we had planned to lay in bed and watch movies for the few days before we left to go to the other islands, but since Kyle had been sick for over a week, we had already "been there, done that". We, quite frankly, had had enough lounging and were ready to go do things. Unfortunately, we also wanted to save every penny for our trip. We were in quite the pickle! So, what have we done you ask??? Well, we went down to Roseau by way of a crazy driver and both of us felt car sick, we've hit the pool nearly every day, and we've found ourselves watching more HGTV than any two people should be aloud. Now all we want to do is buy a house, do a remodel, and decorate. We've gotta get out of here!!! Well, today we will. Our bags are packed and we are more than ready to go. We'll be leaving a bit early to enjoy the food and view of Pagua Bay, a hotel/restaurant near the airport, and then we'll be on our way to Barbados. Don't worry, we'll have a pina colado, or two, for all of you.

Here are some random photos from the break...

Whoa! Kyle is actually doing the dishes. This is a first for Dominica, but I really appreciate it since we don't have a dishwasher (I don't know anyone here who does) and I feel like I am constantly washing dishes.

Here's Kyle, Kyle, Carlo, and Emmett after celebrating at the beach! I think they're thinking, "Holy Cow! I can't believe we just finished our first year of med school!"

Check out those lobster legs! Those thighs haven't seen the light of day in months. It may have been my idea to expose them to the sun while we were at the pool. Whoops...

Half Way Done!

Can you believe it? We're half way done with our time in Dominica! I say "we" as I've been the one studying my behind off, but I like to think I help him get through his days in some way. At times I feel like the days have flown by and other times it feels like we live in a never ending repeating dream. Almost like the movie Groundhog Day. I especially feel this way when we have day, after day, after day of either sweltering heat or torrential downpours. Anyway, those times are temporarily behind us and today our vacation begins. Today starts over 2 weeks of doing whatever we choose without a thought of cracking open a med school book. Today starts a short period for me to get my husband back and have him all to myself, as selfish as that sounds. Today starts what Kyle and I like to call "K and H time". We have been looking forward to this for over 3 months now and on Wednesday, we will be flying to Barbados for a few days and then to St. Lucia. Trust me, we will take plenty of pictures and I'm sure we'll have some stories to share about our vacation. If you know me, you know I'm never at a loss for words...just ask Kyle.

On the Menu...

Kyle decided a few days a ago that he wanted Mexican food for dinner. There's no Garcia's or Serrano's around these parts so this means I would have to make it. This actually excited me...it would be a great opportunity for me to use the tortilla press my mom sent down in a package of goodies. (As a side story: Kyle went to the customs office on campus to pickup the box. The customs officer always looks through the package and decides based on the goods in the box how much he should charge us. This tortilla press really threw him for a loop! Kyle had no idea what it was, which is shocking to me considering he has lived in AZ for most of his life, and the officer thought it was an antique from Texas. Anyway, we paid and I got my press.)

Unfortunately it doesn't press it as flat as I need for a tortilla. I still had to roll it out a bit more, but it does help a little.

See what I mean? Looks more like the start to Indian fry bread.

It all worked out and we had a very nice dinner: honey-lime shrimp tacos with chipotle sour cream and green beans. Despite not feeling well he put on a smile for the picture and managed to eat.

And for dessert? Mini lemon-cream pies. Don't worry...I made a few of these. I knew they were too small to handle his love of lemon pie, ill or not.

An update on Kyle: He's still not feeling great. It's been about 6 days now and although he seems to be getting better, it's taking a while. Hopefully this is all from stress and maybe a bug of some sort (we do live in a 3rd world country). His final exams start this week, he has one one Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Thankfully he's in a great position and doesn't have to worry about studying too much, but it still stresses him to know his studying has been limited. Keep him in your prayers.

Happy Birthday Kyle!

Today is Kyle's birthday and unfortunately he is not feeling well in addition to studying. Not a very fun way to celebrate turning the big 25. I thought for his special day I would write him a note, a thank you note. Strange it may seem, but another year for him is another "check" for our wish to grow old together and I cannot thank him enough for the joy he has brought me.

Dear Kyle,

Happy Birthday! It seems strange that you are now 25 considering we sat next to each other in 7th grade math when you were 13 and I was 12. You looked at me with googly eyes and I looked at you as a pestering boy (at least that's how I remember it). My how things have changed. I wanted to wish you happy birthday by saying thank you. First, thank you for loving me more than I ever thought possible. I never once have questioned your love for me and I know it's because you remind me constantly and I truly appreciate it. Second, thank you for bringing me to Dominica. This isn't the first place a girl would wish to live for her first years of marriage, but I wouldn't change a thing. This place has made our relationship stronger and taught me more about myself and what kind of person I am and want to be. Finally, I want to thank you for being such a strong and driven man. The hard work and time I see you put in day in and day out to achieve your dream of becoming a doctor is astonishing. I know very few people who are as diligent in their work as you.

I hope you have a great birthday. I love you and couldn't be more thankful to spend the rest of my life with you.

Love,

Heidi

A Dinner for a King (or a very exhausted med student)

Today, Kyle had Mini 3, his last regular exam for this semester. Next week, on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, he we will have 2 finals each day. I do not wish this stress upon anyone. Please keep us in your prayers. Although the finals are important to study for, I knew if Kyle didn't decide to take the rest of today off, I would have put my foot down and decided for him. He needs the break and I know it will do him good. Studying from 8am to 11pm for 4 months straight has got to make a man go crazy. I decided we'd save the money on a celebratory meal and cook in. While he was away taking his exam, I made homemade noodles for my Nana's (who got it from my great-grandma Glazebrook) famous beef and noodles. This is a family favorite and is usually cooked around Christmas and birthdays. It really is simple, but tastes so delicious. The noodles need to made ahead of time, in order to dry...fat chance in this humidity! The biggest treat about this meal is the beef. We haven't had beef in any form, other than the occasional ground beef, since we've been back from break in May. Thanks to the new store, Save-a-lot, we are able to get some variety in our meat selection, at a reasonable cost.

Our meal was so delicious and took us home for a brief moment. Today was spent with each other. We really did nothing too exciting, but just the simple fact that we were together was enough. Med school means we rarely see each other and when we do, we are both usually so exhausted. This day meant the world to both of us. It was a taste of what is to come during Kyle's break. He is done with the semester on August 19th...which cannot come fast enough. He did extremely well on today's exam and we pray the same for his finals.

Victoria Falls

In a land far, far away, there sits the island of Dominica. I am blessed to call this place home, for a short while, and I sometimes forget about the the beauty that sits right in my backyard. This past weekend, while Kyle studied his heart out, I went with some friends to Victoria Falls. It is located on the southeast side of the island is about a 2 hour drive away. Though the drive was windy and long it was well worth the trip. The 6 of us hiked for about an hour to get to the most beautiful waterfall, untouched by man, that I have ever seen. We climbed mossy boulders, crawled through flowing rivers, and snaked under large fallen trees. It was such a breathtaking sight. We even swam in the mist filled pool below the waterfall. I will definitely add this to one of my "Top 5 Dominica Moments" list.

We'll be Home for Christmas (please sing to the tune)

We had booked our flights back in March to come home for Kyle's break in December, which is 3 weeks long instead of the normal 2. Woo hoo!!! Kyle, however, just got his schedule for next semester and his final is on the 15th and we don't leave here until the 20th. If you ask me, sitting around for 5 days, dreaming about anything and everything having to do with Christmas in Arizona is just unbearable. The department store decorations, the sound of Christmas music on the radio, the feeling of a sweater against your skin (remember it's summer year round in Dominica), and the taste of a warm peppermint mocha from Starbucks...my heart aches just thinking about it all! For the past few weeks I, along with my part travel agent mom, have been checking multiple times a day for American Airline fares. The problem was, in addition to paying $150 per person to change our flights, we would have to pay the increase in fare. This made a grand total of $620, on top of the $2300we already paid, for 5 more days. Worth it? Not sure. Long story short...we finally found a decent fare and changed our flights and here is our schedule:

I will be home on December 11th and Kyle will be home on December 17th. We both leave January 8th for our last 4 months in Dominica. We hope to see all of you since it will have been a while since our last visit. The cost for us to fly home was still a lot of money and remember we live off loans and tutoring and pretending to be a sick patient don't exactly rake in the big bucks. We were thinking our "presence" would be your "presents" this holiday season, but I think we might be able to scrape together some funds for some thrift store crap. (Just kidding)

An Evening at the Spa

Wednesday evening, while the boys were off studying, a few of us girls got together and had an evening at the spa...Dominica style! This means homemade scrubs, lotions, and masks. Take a look at our creative work.

This is a brown sugar foot scrub.

Aaaahhhh! Does that feel good Taylor?

Sugary banana face scrub. This smelled almost good enough to eat!

Shannon and Taylor scrubbing away.

Avocado-banana face mask.

It looks like a baby spit up on our faces!

Relaxing! Cooling cucumbers on our eyes, a sticky mask on our face, and tootsies as smooth as can be. What a great night.

Updates

I haven't posted anything in a while and I guess it's because nothing too exciting is going on around here. The students are busier than ever studying and the wives are just trying to stay busy so the countdown until break goes by as fast as possible. Anyway, here's a few updates:

• It has been POURING rain here! It seems like everyday we get some sort of intense rain for quite a while. It's hurricane season and we've been lucky enough to just get the wind and rain one drops off as it passes by us to the north or south. Praying for no hurricanes!
• Kyle has 3 practical exams this week, Mini Exam 3 next week, and 3 finals the week after that. He is officially done on August 19th, after he takes his 3rd final. Wooo Hoooo!!!
• I have been busy getting stuff ready for next semester with the Ross Spouses Organization (RSO) as Activity Coordinator. I want to have the calender setup so when the new spouses come in, they are ready to go on some of the trips we offer to go around the island.
• Kyle was interested in running for a position for SGA in the hopes of getting more involved in school government. Not to mention, it looks good on your resume for residency. He signed up to be on the Honor Council when he saw he would be the only one running. What could be easier than an election with only 1 candidate? Before he knew it there were 8 people running against him. Despite my attempt to campaign for him by making signs and baking cookies, he WON!!! I am so proud of him, once again.
• I am saying lots of goodbyes these days as many of my friends have left or are getting ready to leave the island within the next few weeks. We become so close with people on the island and share a special bond. It's sad to see them go, not to mention there's a little jealousy that they get to go back to America and do all those things we all dream about, but at the same time we're going to miss them. The spouses will definitely feel a void at gatherings without these ladies. I pray for nothing but happiness as they continue their med school journey, wherever they may go, and for the thought that our paths might cross again.
• I have continued to tutor at the day school through the summer, which has been a little bit of extra money, and will continue to do so after the break once school resumes in September. I love my time with those kids.

I think that's all that's going on here. Please say a prayer for Kyle and I as we enter what is known as "the Hell Weeks". Pray for success in his exams and that he may stay relaxed as much as possible and that I can be there for him as he needs me during this very stressful time.

Time until Barbados and St. Lucia...3 weeks and 1 day...but who's counting???