Bali Weekend

Matt and I finally got to use the weekend we won at a silent auction a year ago.  We were really excited for a few days away in Seminyak without the kids and they were pretty happy to let us go! Just being back at the beach immediately makes me happier.

We stayed at the Alila this time, which was lovely.

Our room "wasn't ready" for an early check-in, even though the hotel was 95% empty, so we went to Ku De Ta for lunch first. It never disappoints.

Our room had a beautiful view but it was a crummy first afternoon.  Matt had some calls to make for work and I spent time on the porch reading a good book.

We were still rewarded with a brilliant sunset.

Saturday was much better!  I walked the beach, Matt surfed, and we lounged and relaxed by the beach.

A little Mexican food always helps, too!  Sadly, not our favorite Don Juan's but a decent second.

And a sunset dinner at the Legian.

Sunday was brilliant and perfect! We stayed and enjoyed until the very last minute when we had to pack up and head home, happy and relaxed.

Meanwhile, the kids had a wonderful time at home with Tina and at the McCullough's house for entertainment.

They also enjoyed their freedom to go eat at the American club without us.  It was a fun time for them to have some independence and skip the covid tests!

 

Pictures

When school started back on January 12th, the kids still had a pretty short commute.  We had been really hopeful that school would resume in person but a rise in cases shut down those hopes pretty quickly.

They knew the drill and they were good sports about online learning.  again.

One thing that didn't change was our golf lessons and weekend games.  We played as a family most every weekend and were joined by a monitor lizard at Pangkalan Jati one Saturday.

Other Covid-approved activities included some competitive board games.  Alex chose sides at the end of this monopoly game and then he and Ben took out both parents at Risk the next weekend.

Alex got drama as an elective this semester and I was actually kind of disappointed.  The teacher is wonderful but how good can it be on zoom?  Turns out, it can be pretty great!  The productions the kids have created are really impressive and he's having a ton of fun performing, even if it's just for the webcam.

Our very active lovebirds have laid several eggs but then abandon them.  You can see that she loves the bell inside the coconut just as much as the egg.

Just for kicks, Matt put two of the eggs in the cockatiel cage and Joey sat on them every day!  (but not overnight...oops!) A few times, if she left the coconut, one of the parakeets would take her place.  Turns out they were either unfertilized or never grew, so thankfully we don't have a growing flock.

Our lovebirds do enjoy hanging out together and there has even been some swapping among the couples.  Apparently they don't all mate for life.

We have occasionally been out with friends.  Chao Chao is a gorgeous rooftop patio and a great place to meet our Swedish friends, Jenny and Erik.

Alex took a mental health day and he and I played a short round at Pondok Indah golf. We had so much fun playing together and he beat me by a lot.  Humbling for me but exciting that he's improved so much!

On a difficult par 3 over a lake, he landed on the green and finished the hole with a par...amazing!  After 3 balls in the water, I gave up!