Big Smiles

It was a pretty happy day for Ben on the way to the orthodontist to get his braces off!

Look at this beautiful smile! I'm happy for all the orthodontic work to be finished at this house and I'm so grateful that the timing worked out so the boys could go to appointments together. They were so lucky to get their braces on and off during mask years so a lot of people probably never even saw them.

Moms share smiles for other reasons - like a grown up sleepover at the Ritz! Farrah graciously used some vouchers to get us all rooms for a good ole fashioned sleepover.

 

Brian stopped in to say hi while we were having dinner and was not sure what he'd gotten himself into! We had so many laughs and such a great time.

We also had a pretty awesome Mardi Gras themed pokeeno, courtesy of Kayla, who had just returned from Louisiana and even brought back a real king cake. The good times were rolling!

Bali Spring Break

It was a little tough to decide how to spend spring break this year because no one knew what was going to happen with Omicron, which was at its peak in Jakarta in February, and we didn't know how much travel was going to be affected.  After discussing several possibilities with our friends, we finally went with our old standby - Bali.

We wanted to stay in Canggu with the Richardsons and McCulloughs, and it turns out the most convenient place (with pretty amazing deals) was with our old friends in Villa Kedidi, this time including Villa Kakatua as well. We were really excited to rent out the entire complex and so happy to see the same lovely staff from last time.

Everyone was scattered out between the two villas and Matt and I decided to stay in Kakatua this time for a change of scenery.

The lovely moms!  I'm so thankful for these sweet friends and loved every minute we spent together all week.  They even know and respect quiet coffee time in the morning! Although I don't think any of us read nearly as much as we expected because we could never stop talking.

The whole gang together! We watched the sunset every night from the beach or a rooftop somewhere and were thrilled to see that the crowds were growing a little because Australians were finally returning to Bali. We were sad that Mark couldn't join us but he was too busy at work to get away. Such wonderful families and great kids that all got along so well.

There was a lot of surfing throughout the week and Ben and Macy even joined Matt at 6am several times.

Michael Jackson was a new addition to Batu Bolong beach!

We all did some individual pursuits throughout the week as well in different combinations.  Our family wanted to catch the Sunday brunch at the W hotel and it was a tasty afternoon with beautiful views.

The kids spent lots of time in the pool, clearly preferring the big pool at Kakatua and encouraging the adults to use the pool at Kedidi.

But the adults could not be moved!  Plus, all the snacks were in the fridge at Kakatua, so it was the natural place for everyone to hang out.

The staff rearranged the living area in Kakatua to allow for us to have big family meals all together.  It was noisy and wonderful!

Alex had the upstairs bedroom with the balcony and started performing unique poetry in the evenings for all of us.

We had a few dinners on the JI rooftop, which never disappoints. (Alex has perfected his look from the Rock)

Lots of time at the beach! It was shockingly clean for March and endless fun.

The quick walk to the beach made it perfect for everyone to come and go as they pleased.  Really the only way to make things happen with 12 people.

Traffic was only occasionally a problem out front.

We had a meetup with more friends at the Double 6 hotel and enjoyed the sunset on their rooftop bar.

The whole gang together!

Brian and Alice figured out how to use the elevator when you've forgotten your mask!

The Plantation Grill was delicious and we were one of two tables there that night.  It used to be a difficult restaurant to book into!

We even found Julie and Ryan on the beach and helped her celebrate her birthday!

Jenny stayed next door for two nights and we had to make time for Spring Spa together.

We discovered a fun British pub with shuffleboard but no fish and chips?! Habis!

Brian took all the kids rock climbing one afternoon and let the crazy monkeys burn off their endless energy.

Four of the adults even made time to go golf one morning (which really turned into a full day with lunch and traffic) and it was a great outing.

The moms took the kids to Waterbom on day and I think about half of the people there were from JIS.  I met the new middle school principal for the first time!

We also took them to do the toughest escape room and I'm proud to say that Alice and I helped everyone escape in near record time.

These kids had fun when we went out...

...and when we stayed home! We tried to keep screens to a minimum and think we had a nice balance of board games, interactive games online, and mindless youtube.

Thanks for another wonderful week, Bali! Sunshine and sand and friendship and laughter and a lot of wonderful memories made.

 

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Bad: For all the good times we have in Indonesia, there are always some tough times, too.  Alex came home from the Gilis pretty dang sick and we couldn't figure out what was wrong.  He'd already been run down for a week or so before we left, but when we returned he was miserable with fever and chills. Just waiting for bloodwork in the doctor's office, we watched his fever spike and come back down.  We never did figure out what was infecting him, but we did learn that he's already had dengue at some point here.  Good to know.

The Ugly: While I was busy trying to figure out what to do for Alex, Ben came home with this mysterious rash on his arm.  Turns out he slapped a rove beetle on his arm and they release a toxin that basically burns the skin.  It can be extremely painful but Ben said his wasn't too bad except for the part in his elbow.  At least it didn't need any extra attention, just a few weeks to heal up.

The Good: my friend Alice and I saw some interesting sights on one of our neighborhood walks.  I love these motorbikes that haul around huge chunks of ice and chip off bits at little street carts as they go. They must work quickly here!

This guy had his parrots out for a little morning shower on the street.

These guys walk around and sell little plants and the baskets they carry are beautiful.

Jenny made a fun discovery with Spin City bowling - it has a private VIP room with two lanes! If there is a regular way to play here, there is always a VIP option.

The best part? It had its own lounge with a karaoke machine!

I gave it an honest effort, but bowling and singing don't mix very well.

One pair of our lovebirds died recently, so we made a trip to my favorite place in Jakarta - pet street! We brought home a cute little baby lovebird and named him Pancho.

Pancho loves Ben and Ben can't get enough of the cute little guy. He'll ride around with him everywhere!