Hide'n'panic

Nothing like a little hide'n'seek at the neighbours "cabana" to get the parents a little excited. Don't worry Mommy, even if you couldn't see me, I could see you.

Where's Julien?

Emily's little brother was missing in action. Could he actually be down there? False alarm, phew! But Darius was on his tip toes just to make sure.

No Steps

I know the steps looked more convenient but it was much more fun and safe to roll down the hill rather than the steps.

Groundskeeper

I wasn't completely impressed by the grounds of this resort so I
took it upon myself to do a bit of gardening. Don't worry,
I didn't charge anybody.

Carlos the Crab

We had an unexpected guest outside our "cabana". Carlos the crab obviously heard about the all-inclusive food and drink and decided to camp out with us in Varadero.

Got toys?

Never mind the buffet. Let's see if we have any toys in that pink of yours, Emily. The buffet will always be there.

Buffet!

Enough of this checking-in business, I'm ready to explore this joint. Let's hit the buffet.

Different Worlds

Darius is happy just looking out the window and pointing. Soren, on the other hand, is quite distracted by his female friend, Emily. It's amazing how they can have such different priorities.

Resting up

The boys are with their good friend, Emily preparing for a busy Thanksgiving weekend up in Varadero. Better to rest now, because soon enough, we'll all be in the pool or the ocean.

Disgruntled Chef

I have really taken to cooking and baking in the kitchen. My specialties include kool-aid, chocolate chip cookies, among other things. My only problem, according to my parents, is that I spend too much time cooking and not enough time eating. But then, isn't that important for would be chefs?

Bye, Bye Bernie

We will certainly miss our Bernie. While we will, of course, see her again, it may not be in Cuba. Bernie was great to us and loved to read us stories and swim with us in her pool. We had to put on our fancy shirts for our last visit with her.

Off to the Races!

In full sprint, trying to reach Daddy in record time. I just have to be very careful of the cracks, holes and dents in the Cuban sidewalks.

Thomas Tracks

What do you think of our beauty Thomas the train track? Pretty elaborate, don't ya think? I think it took Mommy hours to put it together than it took us to take apart.

Not quite there

Here I come, first in a crawl, then up on 2 feet, just a second, here I go. Oh! Is that a camera? Let me just pose instead. I've got lots of time yet to start walking.

4 to 2

These were the final days of my crawling. You can see that I was being coaxed to start becoming a biped and walk like my big brother, Soren.

Afterthought

Of course, after comptemplation, a cold beer while sitting in the warm rooftop pool was always difficult to refuse.

Contemplation

It was always nice to get philosophical while sitting on the edge of Bernie's pool. A great place to relax and unwind.

El Chocolate

Stop with the photos! You're taking away my cake eating time.

Family Celebration

The entire family posed for this one with Mommy's special birthday cake for Darius. Even Marley showed up for this photo. Of course, whenever Darius is in his high chair, Marley is not far away as he has come to love little Darius and his generous eating habits.

The Sampler

Hey Soren! Who's birthday cake is this? Oh, I forgot, it's your own tradition to stick your finger in everybody's birthday cake. That's alright, as long as I get the first piece.

Birthday Balloon

What is a party without balloons? I've got the matching one to my bright, blue eyes.

Preparty meal

The guests were starting to arrive, but I was hungry as usual so I had to get some food into me. This happened to be my 2nd birthday party for my 1st birthday, this time in Cuba.

Osito Cake

Didn't Mommy do a great job decorating my birthday cake? It's just like the real Osito, only tastier. It was almost too well done to eat. But we sure ate it!

Sit Marley Sit

It's not that I was going to give Marley any of my ice cream cone, but I wanted to make sure he still knew his tricks.

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No Hands!

Look Mommy, no hands! Look Mommy, Daddy looks completely exhausted. Should I finally give him a break? Not a chance. I've got to keep him young, just he did to Opa.

Daredevil

Here I am, Daring Darius with a few tricks of my own. Of course, I need a trusty assistant who, in most cases, is my Daddy.

4 in a bed...

...and the little one said - Don't roll over, because that would really hurt falling on marble floors.

Hey Mabel!

Off the table! I don't think so mommy. I've just learned how to climb onto this table and you want me to get off of it. I think I'll just stay up here for awhile.

We're back

After a great holiday in Canada which included a wedding and Darius' birthday celebration, we are finally back home in Cuba. With about 8 hockey bags and suitcases of supplies to keep us going for one more year in Havana. Of course, a few toys were picked up too.

Thanks one and all!

It was a great first birthday, one that I'll remember my entire life, I'm sure. Thanks for the gifts, the cake and most importantly the memories. See you in Cuba!!!

Birthday Bath

Phew! After that cake, I really needed a good bath and Glamma is the best for that. A little more time to visit with my guests before bedtime.

A piece of cake!

Finally, I got to eat a piece of cake in peace! But, look what happens when you don't give me a fork? I hope my mommy doesn't care too much about my birthday outfit.

Abby's turn

Guess who's coming to make sure the cake's alright for her cousin, Darius? Little Abigail!

Please Darius, can you spare some cake?

Have a taste!

First me, then Mommy gets to have a sample of this chocolate cake. Delicious! And the icing is edible!

Birthday Cake!

With a curious older brother looking on, a very happy Opa cheering in the background, Mommy presented me with the sweetest gift around - Chocolate cake!

Hand it Over

While Daddy appeared to be helping me, I wanted to make sure he didn't have his eyes on my prize. Hand that prezzy over to me, Mister!

Prezzy Time

Of course my big brother Soren was eager to help me with my prezzies. My cousins Abby and Sam were too busy climbing tables and eating fishies to care about my new prize.

Happy Birthday Darius!

Darius' parents just could not believe that one year had passed already. We were fortunate to be able to celebrate the big day with friends and family in Canada before heading back to Cuba. This party was at Grandma & Opa's house in Beaverbrook. Darius is all set for the gifts in his 1 year old birthday hat.