Slick Diners

We might have gone a little bit fancy on this occasion. But what's more special than dining to the sun setting over the Caribbean sea.

More or Less

We went to a cliffside restaurant overlooking the sea, but were more mesmerized by this sign. Washroom 30 metre, mas o menos.

Sandy Pose

Nice work on the photos Mommy. We especially like the side shot of Mr. freckles mixed with the sand from the beach.

Beach Strolling

This was a public beach which always makes it more interesting. The people on the beach are more interesting, and they come from all walks of Dominican life. So it's always worth a stroll.

Surfer Boy

There wasn't much surf up on the far north east point of the country, past Samana, but I was prepared.

De-stressor

Sometimes even Daddy likes to unwind and relax a little bit. The sound of the incoming waves helps a lot with that. But so does that little plastic up filled with cerveza.

Las Galeras

Not soon after Mommy came back, we went up to the Samana coast for a beautiful weekend. We stayed at a little B&B a short walk to this lovely beach. Not too shabby.

Fancy Footwork

It was a little difficult playing the beautiful game on the side of a hill, but we tried.

We had fun at the Finca.

La Finca

The following day, we were invited out to the "campo", or the countryside, for a family pig roast. As good as

I am at BBQ's, I was not taking on this task.

Sandpeople

Okay, so we don't have the costumes of the famous Star Wars creatures from the dunes, but it was cool pretending. We can now see why they had those costumes.

Camila

She took me under her wing on this great trip to the dunes. It was great exploring with someone who had been there and done that.

Quick Sand

I'm clearly no roadrunner, as my feet got stuck in the sand

and needed some help from Camila just to get back up to the top of the dune.

Gotta wear shades

You literally do if you don't want to burn your eyes. But what a view of the sea.

Sun Break

While a cool location, the sun here is not exactly cool. In fact, it's almost unbearable.

Shade, find me shade!

Group Shot

Our tour guides, Sr. Mark and his kids Alejandro and Camila showed us this new location, that we didn't even know existed.

Beep, beep, where's the road runner?

Las Dunas

With Mommy away in Canada to see the Doctors, we got to go on a dry adventure. Not dry as in boring, but dry as in desert-like. Less than 2 hours southwest from Santo Domingo is a practical desert, including these spectacular sand dunes.

Mr. Dressup

It was professional day at school, so I got to choose what I wanted to be. Guess what, I was an eccentric diplomat, just like Daddy. Okay, except for the eccentric part.

A Big Hello

This is a big hug to Mommy and everyone in Canada. Mommy had to go home for awhile to see the doctors and have some tests. Don't worry, we were good boys and made sure to help him out around the house.

The New Look

Cute as ever, although Mme. Louise was very careful not to cut off too much. With Mommy in Canada to see the doctor, she was still able to place her order.

Qu'est-ce qu'il y a?

Hey, what are you laughing at in the corner M. Tremblay? Quickly, somebody show me a mirror. Daddy, don't pay the lady.

Daring Darius

Not known for his braveness, even shy Darius was comfortable with the expert touch of Mme Louise. Not to mention, there was macaroni & cheese on offer.

Tricks of the Trade

Oh, I see Louise's majic weapon. Soren, is that a lollipop in your hand? Soren, is that a cartoon show on in the background? That's how you get a 4 year old to behave during a haircut.

Who's 1st?

In this cozy, converted barbershop, it was actually a competition to see who would go first and not a battle to not go at all. Must be that special touch that Mme Louise has.

Dominican Pride

From singing the national anthem at school to sporting the national flag on my face, it's hard to maintain my Canadiana, eh?

Christmas Dinner

A great conclusion to our final Christmas in the tropics. Dining outside on a classic turkey dinner, followed up by rum and cigars on the deck.

Gracias Santa

Utter Exhaustion

With my new puppy, Flacco, I just needed a long afternoon nap. So much excitement that I could not keep going. And this was before the turkey!

Transformers

A new educational computer to help us with our numbers and letters. Well, not to mention loud voices, cool sound effects and never ending battery charges.

Bah Humbug!

There's an awful lot of gifts for the kids. Hey Santa, we're here in with our Santa hats - what gives? We were good this year too.

Archery

The Olympics bring so many options these days. Perhaps I'll have the magic touch with my blue eyes and be able to hit the target.

Pure joy

No other way to express the reaction of the boys to all of the magic that unfolded on Dec 25. Simply opening a prize was enough to bring a large smile to the faces. Equally impressive was their joy at bringing gifts for others.

Whether it's -10 and snowing or + 25 with the sunshine, Santa can certainly bring it.

Christmas morning

What is the 1st thing we have to do on Christmas morning? No, after going to the bathroom and brushing our teeth.

Checking to see if the big guy, Santa came. From Soren B's reaction, it looks positive here in Santo Domingo.

Final touch

It wasn't quite chocolate chippy enough so I had to add a few more of those beauties to ensure a ho, ho happy Christmas.

Let's hope Santa enjoys them.

Tasting Perfection

These cookies had to be just right so that Santa remembered to leave every last gift.

Cookies for Santa

To ensure prompt and accurate delivery of Santa's reindeer and sleigh, it was important to provide some incentive. Cookies for the big guy to go along with carrots and apples for the deer will surely entice him to the warm airs of the Caribbean.

Post Party Pose

After such stellar performances, it's no wonder we were in such demand. Quick little hermanos, strike a pose. The world is watching.

Sing your heart out

Or in my case, stay distracted to avoid the fact that I have to go pee pee. Keep shuffling the feet and you can make it.

P P

Soren was really not impressed when I started the 2 step shuffle as he knew I had to go pp. He shouted out, "Oh no, Darius is going to pee on my present".

Gift Exchange

We were told to wear red or white and bring a gift. The funniest thing was Soren's reaction when he realized I was on stage with one of his gifts from our Xmas tree. He was not happy that I was up there with his gift even if it was only part of the show.

Whose school is this?

It kind of looks like Soren's school with his photo up on the big screen. However, last summer Soren tagged along with me, his little brother to summer camp for a few weeks. These photos are of those good times.

Los Cacicazgos Pageant

Now this is a real pageant. Renting a hall, big screen with photos, elaborate costumes, skits, announcers and numerous songs.

Hey Poppa and Daddy, pay attention the show is about to start. Put the blackberries away.