Day 16: Sunday, 6/5

Sunday = Great Day!

I didn't think anything besides hearing we were on the next plane home could top finding the grocery store fully stocked... but I was wrong. We spent the day on Enemone (sp?) - an island owned by the Cramer family. It was the most home-like thing we've experienced while here and the best thing is, we've been invited back every Sunday until we leave. We are SO in!

The Wilsons arrived at our hotel at 11:30 sharp (gotta love the American punctuality) and we and the rest of the Simmons clan joined the two-car carivan to the Cramer place. Our directions were vague - “Just go to the Payless in Long Island and ask them where Jerry lives.” Okay, so we head out, stop at the Payless in Long Island – which, by the way, is not another island but a neighborhood down the road – and Jeff runs in to ask for directions. He comes out with a tour guide who hopps in the car to show us where he lives. I was suddenly thinking it must be kinda far but about three houses down the road on the other side, we pull in. Either they didn't trust the goofy Americans to get 50 yards down the road or else didn't feel their English was good enough to explain. I'm thinking a mix of both.

We were there by 11:45 which was early. We'd been told to be there by Noon because they leave promptly at 12:30. We didn't see a way to get to the back yard so we knocked on the door... no answer. We were starting to think we'd been told the wrong time and that they'd left without us but we realized the large car gate wasn't locked so we headed to the dock out back. No boat. Hm... I walked out onto the dock (more of a tiny peninsula of land and concrete steps) and saw a boat out a little ways. When they saw me they fired up the engines and headed in to tie off right where we were. Whew... we did make it in time!

The man driving the boat helped us load up all of our stuff and after a wait – which did go past 12:30... just sayin' – a few others showed up and we were off to the island. Kenneth, who we were told was Jerry's brother but is actually his son, welcomed us on board and we sat down for the ride. The water was beautiful and the breezes we were feeling and occasional water spray made it a really comfortable and we were all enjoying the break from the heat and humidity.

We confirmed during the ride that little Oliver has absolutely made it to the right family. Dad Simmons is a lobsterman in Maine and has his own, rather large lobster boat. I'm telling you Greg, Oliver will live on that boat if you let him! He was so excited and jumping around – smiling huge! I have a little on video but it's backlit so kinda hard to see. Grace, of course, took the opportunity to nap ;)

We made it to Enemone where others were already hanging out, cooking, and playing in the water. We were directed to a big covered area and piled out stuff on one of the tables. The only thing we were asked to do is bring our own lunch so we'd packed a couple coolers between the three families. Due to the store being stocked, I was pretty happy to have bologna for sandwiches... it's the small things, right?

We spent a lot of time just sitting near our stuff and people watching. We didn't know at the time that Jerry owns this island and that it's not like a public park. We didn't really mix with the others much at first but Wyatt is a friendly sort of guy and ended up sitting with the men for a bit talking politics. They'd decided that Jeff needed to come hang with the guys so they sent Wyatt over to bring Jeff back... all Jeff had to hear was, “they have rum” and he nearly popped out of his chair to join the boys. That was pretty much the last time I hung out with him all day – they have this floating cooler thing that they took out in the shallow water so they could drink and stay cool. I've got pictures... it's pretty funny. Jeff will have to tell you all about the conversation with the guys as it seems everyone was somebody – government officials and shipping moguls. He was rubbing elbows with RMI elite :)

Heather was off hunting shells with Collin who preferred the larges coral rocks you could find to anything shell-like and pretty. Stacy and I and the babies stayed near our stuff for a while and then decided to walk to the other side of the island to check out the surf. I'd been finding these tubular purple things on the beach that I couldn't identify but think would be great beads for jewelry but when we walked over to the other side, there were 100 times the number! My pockets bulging and Grace fussing (because of the strong breeze and the occasional squish from me bending over), we headed back to the main group. I'm glad we'll be going back – next time I'm bring a container and leaving Grace with Jeff for a bit so I can grab up a bunch of the purple stuff! I'm posting a picture of it so if anyone can identify it for me, I'd be grateful.

So, did I mention the pigs and chickens? Yes, there were pigs and chickens all over the island and after the majority of folks were done eating, they got pretty brave and wandered into the covered area. Apparently their job is to remove any scraps of dropped food and, oh yeah, scratch on every post they walk by. I'm guessing fleas. The sows and their piglets were awfully cute but we kept our distance just in case. One particular sow decided that the tree directly behind Stacy was her preferred scratching post and I had to shoo her off a few times. We had a little stare down as she assessed whether or not she should challenge me but I won and she wandered off for good with her piglets following. I was bluffing - if she'd charged me, I probably would have jumped on the nearest table... maybe I should take up poker?

The day passed too quickly but we were all pretty tired by the time we packed up to head back to Majuro. Again, with assurances that we were welcome back every Sunday, we piled into the two cars and headed home. Stacy decided to stay in with Oliver and get some rest but we arranged to meet the Wilsons at their hotel restaurant, the Tide Table, for a late dinner.

The Wilsons, hopefully, will be heading home on Friday. Their paperwork is 2 weeks ahead of ours so our hope is both for them but also for us in that we might be better able to gauge our timeline by when their visa arrives. If it doesn't arrive by Friday, Wyatt and Collin will be heading home regardless and, I think, Heather is going to need a few stiff drinks. I hope, for their sake, that the visa arrives this week. I will miss them when they're gone but they are very ready to be home.

I have a few items to get done this week and now that we have a car, I will put it to good use. I still need to get Grace's immunization record from Dr. Pinano and have been advised to also request her full medical records from the hospital. I'm also heading out to find more Similac and pick up some diapers on Monday. We plan to visit the Diabetes Wellness Center at some point for either breakfast or dinner – they serve healthy alternatives to the folks in Majuro and have come highly recommended. We are thinking about a trip to Eneko (another island) at some point during the week and, of course, we're hoping for a visit to Emi's family's house as well. All good things to look forward to and I hope the week goes by fast.

Here's a little (and I mean little) message from Grace: