45under45: Are You Serious!?! Lay Days Part Two and Three and More!

Friday

It seems impossible that more lay days were in our life, but they were. (Click here to read my post about the first set of lay days.) It also doesn't quite seem "right" that I am writing about these publicly but... It's truly what we've been doing. It's been consuming our day to day activities. It's who I am to share TMI rather than be bothered with trying not to. It's a learning experience. It's not been all bad.

Hummmm.... Where the first set of lay days left off was... Summer had a stomach bug and threw up all night. I think that was last Wednesday middle of the night/Thursday EARLY morning. Happily, on Thursday she recovered. She slept a lot and sipped on Gatorade and water. We took turns "babysitting" her while she dozed.

On da couch.

At some point I "escaped" and went for a long walk to the north end of the island. The kids and I had walked there a few days ago (and hitch-hiked back). It was a doable length for me to go out and back. I suited up for a full adventure: comfy bathing suit, the usual hair braids, slightly whopper-jawed hat with butterflies, sunglasses, handy beach combing belt* with two water bottles, chapstick, VHF handheld radio, Crocs attached by carabiner clips (at the ready for when I needed to traverse jagged rocks), and ever trusty iPhone with rake-n-scrape playlist on repeat.

*I bought this "Big Mouth Beer Holder" to serve as my suped up fanny pack for beach combing excursions. It has six beer holders that I've converted for my phone, VHF handheld, water bottles, beach finds, etc. I still stick miscellaneous things in my bathing suit top, but this keeps me tidy and exuded more of a smart, prepper-nerdy chic look than that of a homelss-beach-bag-lady. An A+ for me and some forward thinking!

Some footprints but no other people present!

Low tide.

Turtle tracks and a marked nest.

More turtle tracks and a more island style nest marker.

It kills me to not pick every single one of these up!
But, one can only have so many and they don't really travel well.

Resting in the shade of some pine trees.

Not your typical brightly colored beach shack.
I wonder if their cottage name is "Back in the Holler"?

MORE turtle tracks!

And still more!

M-O-R-E

But wait! There's more!

If you ever get tired of finding sea turtle tracks,
please know that we can never be friends.

I needed that escape!

Sunset

Millie on babysitting duty.

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Saturday

Since we've been staying in the the settlement, there's no need to have a golf cart; they aren't allowed within the town. So, Nicholas and I rented bikes to do some exploring. I brought with me an old copy of a walking tour of Hope Town and asked my boy if he wanted to do that with me. His response, "I'll go with you. But, I don't want to ride the bike, stop every two seconds, and wait in the heat while you read something." After some negotiation, we chose to go south to visit the his friend, Lawrence, at the L.V.A., the Abaco Inn, Sea Spray, and MOST especially Nicholas' dear friend, Brooke at On Da Beach.

First stop: Abaco Inn.

One of my favorite views on the whole island!

Since the seas were calm and it was low tide,
we could actually see what was under the water.

Selfie!

Nicholas and I rode to Sea Spray, checked out their store, bought another Gatorade, and then headed back north to On Da Beach where we had our "usuals": grilled cheese for Nicholas and a grilled fish sandwich for me.

Anyone who knows Nicholas knows that he is a people pleaser. He is also the skinny one in the family and will keep going until he's half dead. Apparently, this bike ride (despite having two Gatorades and lunch) was really just too much for him. A few hours after we got home, he complained about having a killer headache, took an Advil, and then fell asleep for several hours. (Bad, mommy! I broke the boy.)

Oddly though, I felt like I didn't have my fill of being outside. So, since we had the bikes for a full 24 hours, I took myself to the north end of the island for a leisurely ride and a sea glassing session, which proved to be very lucrative. I came back with a cup filled to the top with sea glass, molten tumbled aluminum, and a full feeling of appreciation for how much I love this place!

Low tide at the entrance of the harbor.

I came home and rinsed off. I kept on my bathing suit because Summer and Shawn had mentioned going to the beach near our house. However, with the house being so quiet - allowing Nicholas to nap and recover from his headache - Summer also fell asleep. There was no more beach fun to be had that day. After sitting around in a wet bathing suit in the air conditioning, I got myself chilled. (Take note of my mention of "coldness", as it will reappear later in this post.)

The power to these out islands is forever going on and off. Luckily, just about every house and business has a generator! Nicholas and I noticed the southern section of the island's generators working while we were on our bike ride earlier in the day. The settlement's generators were also humming the same tune, as were the occupied homes at the north end. I mention this to say, I was so cold due to our fine generator and powerful AC at the Lantana Cottage. On the other hand, though, I wasn't able to just sit on our front porch because the exhaust from the next door house's generator was blowing right on the bench where I would have liked to sit to warm myself up. Eventually, I took a hot shower and thawed myself out.

That evening, Nicholas and I had also planned to spend time together for a "special" movie date at the Hope Town Community Center. I had heard about this screening of Smog of the Sea during the Cruisers' Net for the last couple of days. One of Nicholas' summer reading requirements is to read a book from this list of titles provided by the school. He... (No. "We" - I mean... I ) chose the book Tracking Trash, a book about the garbage patches of the world's oceans. Thinking this would be a good "text to text" connection for Nicholas, he was volun-told to attend. (Click here to learn more about the film and here to download a PDF of the Tracking Trash book.)

While waiting for it to be time to go to the movie, I sat on the couch, read a book, and was cold. (I also had a slight headache, so I took some Advil, too.)

The presentation about the film was by a cute Bahamian girl, Kristal Ambrose, a crew member on the boat featured in the Smog of the Sea. (Click here for her website, Bahamas Plastic Movement.) Nicholas and I sat in the front row, chatted with a few folks, and... I was cold. Luckily, I brought a long sleeved shirt with me. We enjoyed the movie. At the end, Nicholas said to me, "When do we clap?" Awww! He's so cute.

As soon as we got home, I snuggled myself up on the couch with a blanket and tried to defrost. Eventually, I gathered enough courage to remove the covers and make it up to my bed, where I put on socks, my exercise leggings, and got under the covers...head and all. (Thank you to my C-PAP for piping in fresh air.)

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The following photos are from Shawn and Summer's date Saturday PM. Summer was on the mend and the two of them (plus Millie) went to Wine Down and Sip Sip for a flatbread/pizza take-out.

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Sunday morning: The upper porch, the Mockingbirds, their nest and babies, coffee, Millie, the Cruisers' Net, no generators, and some warmth.

The Mockingbird was on high alert this morning,
making very close passes and checking us out.

The babies were now standing on the edge of the nest.

Stretching wings, ready to fly!

Nicholas agreed to go to church with me this week. On the way there we came across this very friendly and very portly dog. Obviously not a pot-cake but a well-fed fella out for his morning social rounds.

The week's church service featured the kids who just recently returned from mission work in the US. We enjoyed hearing their stories and how they saw God in the people, places, and events of their trip.

Not knowing what to expect, I assumed that this service would be similar to last week's. (Click here to read about my first experience at St. James Methodist.) However, this week was the one week a month that Holy Communion was served. (According to my internet research, this church is visited once a month by a minister who travels through these out islands, offering Holy Communion.) Holy Communion with blessed Bahamian bread and an alter with large windows facing the ocean was really special!

Dear God,
Thank you for blessing me and my family. Thank you for our health and happiness. Please, I ask for special traveling mercies for when it is time to leave this wonderful place.
Amen.

Blessing of the children.
(Nicholas in white shirt on left.)

At the end of the service, with Nicholas as my shield and protector, I made my way against the outgoing crowd and back up to the alter to speak with the blonde smily girl who I was so enchanted with last week. I told her how much I enjoyed her voice and smile... to which she shared that she noticed me in the congregation and my smile. She shared how nice it is to look at the parishioners and to connect. 😇

Millie helped return the bikes.

After church, the bike return, and not having had a restful sleep due to trying to kept myself warm, I chose to take a nap. I'm on vacation. I can luxuriate in a mid-day nap if I want to. And, I really wanted to! But, I was frozen! What the heck!?! My muscles ached from trying to keep myself warm. My knees hurt from sleeping in the fetal position. My hands and wrists hurt from having them balled up and under my body to trap some heat. My nap didn't make me feel any more rested. So, when Shawn and the kids wanted to go the the Hope Town Harbor Lodge for snorkeling, swimming, and snacks, I declined. I needed more sleep. I couldn't even take a bath to warm up because that meant getting out from under the covers, taking off my clothes, and exposing my skin to AC and possible gale force winds from the vents. What I really wanted was more clothes! I even considered getting Summer's neck scarf head band thing to wear as a head wrap...but to get that I'd have to get out of the bed...and whoa is me!!!

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Sunday evening at Hope Town Harbor Lodge: Shawn, Summer, and Nicholas

Eventually, I did warm up (some). Through some problem-solving and research, we figured out that what I was experiencing was basically Synthroid withdrawal symptoms: tiredness, extreme intolerance to cold, achey... Because we extended our trip by two weeks, I didn't have enough medication to last me all the way until we returned to Tampa. Synthroid has a longish half-life and I'd been without it before (if I was having a stomach flu or just too lazy to take it). So, I guessed that I'd be fine. Welp. Apparently not. Somehow, in a moment when the brain fog lifted for just a milli-second, I remembered that I some "emergency" medicine stashed away in my pill box that lives in my purse. Lo and behold...I had stuffed enough tiny blue tablets in there to make it through the rest of the stay. Hallelujah! I never was so happy to down that little sucker! (Since I am actually typing this on Wednesday, I can report that I feel 100%! No joke! That was one weird chunk of time that I am so glad to have behind me!!! Dear God, message received, loud and clear...bring full bottle next time. Gotcha.)

That night I asked Summer to sleep on the couch so that I could have the whole bed in order to get a good night's sleep and really recover. At about 3:00 AM, Summer woke me up, teary-eyed. "Mommy, I think I'm having a kidney stone." Are you serious!?! (She was 14 when she had her first. That required a trip to the ER, an IV, and some morphine.) Great. We're on an island, with no doctor and the nurse is on leave. I know no one except the few locals I'd met: some bartenders, Captain Plug, the gal at the house rental office...

She threw up from the pain. I read the internet, looking for some bush medicine/home remedies that would help ease her discomfort. (Shawn and his family are kidney stone factories. So, this was something that I already knew was just going to have to be toughed out. Most times there is no need for a doctor visit because they'll just tell you to drink water and wait for it to pass.)

I put her in a hot bath and reported that I had learned that she should rest on the opposite side of the pain. Supposedly gravity would help the stone fall down through that kidney duct system. (Worth a try.)

She felt zero relief. I just stared at her and felt sorry.

Back to the internet. More barfing. More tears. Some tiny pathetic whimpers. Endless massaging of her back. An ice pack. Prayers. Brain wracking. I turned off my "air-plane mode" and made a phone call to the clinic...no answer. Eventually, she and I just both fell asleep out of pure exhaustion!

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Monday:

By later in the day, Summer had recovered and I felt well enough to take myself out on the walking tour that I wanted to do with Nicholas on Saturday. What a crazy, crazy few days AND nights! I needed to get out.

I brought Millie along with me and set out to get some local knowledge. Sadly though, Millie couldn't hack the heat. I had to cut my tour short to return her to the AC. On the other hand, when I returned Millie home, I wrangled Nicholas into going with me to the Wyannie Malone Museum! I think he was also needing some time out of the house. We meandered through the displays, read the blurbs, watched an informational DVD, and made some purchases in the attached shop, The Ebb Tide.

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Tuesday:

At some point during all of these lay days, I read a book called, Hope Town: Reality of a Dream by Richard Seaberg. (Click here to learn more about this book and the author/architect.) Now... everyone was feeling fine. I did NOT take Millie and I set off for a re-do of my walking tour with both this guy's book and my original book, A Guide and History of Hope Town written by the Dodges and the Malones. (Click here to link to the White Sound Press homepage.) My intent was to carry both books and merge the two. One book was set up to start at the post office dock, go "upalong" to the upper cemetery, "downalong" to the harbor's entrance and then finish at the starting point. The other book was designed to give information about the homes going in order from the very oldest to just plain old. Juggling books, flipping pages, looking at homes/dormers/rooflines, reading and walking...it was quite an undertaking! House names had changed since the original printing. Some houses had been razed. Both books featured sketch style illustrations. Neither book had an easy-access map. I totally need to do this as my project for next year: literally merge the two books, take actual photographs, update cottage names, and include a to-scale straight north to south route/map.

While I was reading about the house next door, I started to enter the Byrle Malone Patterson Park for some shade, I was greeted by a boy who appeared to be about the same age as Nicholas. He asked me, "Do you want to hear a riddle?" Being the dutiful mother/school teacher, I happily agreed. He led me to the covered gazebo of the park where some women were tidying up after having a painting session. Long story short, I struggled with the logic, science-fiction, and mathematics of the riddle until I finally gave up! Very patiently, he explained the solution to me.

One of the painting ladies inquired as to which riddle I had just tried, apparently he has a few of these doozies up his sleeve. During a little chat with her, I shared that I was a school teacher (actually missing a training that very morning) and that I needed to flex my brain since I was about to go back to school next week. Over the course of the conversation I learned that she is Jill who usually anchors the Cruisers' Net. So, I did a little mental exercise and was honored to meet and talk to another person who loves the Abacos as much as I do.

Stepping stones with bronze inlays marking some of Hope Town's
important historical events and people.

View of the ocean from the park.

I continued my walking tour, dropped off some painted rocks "downalong", and eventually made my way home where I learned that Summer was back to not feeling well. On the floor next to her was the all too familiar barf bucket. She had taken some Advil and was ordered to drink water. All I could say was, "Are you serious!?!"

The following collection of photos represent the sadness that is dealing with a kidney stone and the M.D. on call. (M=Millie; D=Dog)