MAKING MY LIST, CHECKING IT TWICE

In the spirit of the season, I have made my list and checked it twice, so I thought I would send it to you dear Internet:

• Christmas gifts purchased - done
• abovementioned gifts wrapped - done
• tree purchased - done
• abovementioned tree decorated - done
• begin making menus for inlaw visits - done
• purchasing of crap white wine for family - done (Seriously, Wilson's mother and grandmother drink Black Tower - my teeth hurt just writing this sentence) - done
• house decorated - done
• Arthur's Christmas collar and leash dug out - done
• annual argument with Wilson about how much Christmas costs and that you can't abdicate all shopping responsibilities and then bitch about how much money is spent (when in reality it was not a lot, but we have done a couple of big projects on the house and have line of credit debt right now that freaks him out - but then all debt freaks him out!) especially when the presents are for his family as we draw names in my family and the limit is really low - done
• take back abovementioned Christmas gifts because of aforementioned argument in which my husband was an idiot - done Yup, I took most of the presents back! 
• make up from said argument - done
• laugh about argument - done

How goes your Christmas prep? 

 

THREE YEARS AGO TODAY...

On a beach in Philipsburg, St. Maarten, Wilson and said I do.  While we may make each other crazy sometimes, there is no other person on this earth that I can imagine spending the rest of my life with.  As I said to him this morning - 3 years down, 47 to go!  And I can't wait!  Happy Anniversary Baby!

 

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

So he called!  Well, really he emailed but who cares!  Is there a better feeling in the world than the boy who gave you the butterflies; the za za zsu; that crazy feeling in the pit of your stomach; the heart palpitations...OK, you know what I mean - contacts you.  Nope - not even a really good pedicure and y'all know how much I love a good pedi!!

We email and flirt, we call and flirt some more and then being the good sales guy that he is, he closes the deal and makes a date with me.  It was a Thursday evening at a local Thai restaurant just up the street from my house.   There are no embarrassing lulls in conversation, lots of laughter initated by both of us and otherwise a great evening.  We decided to walk and get ice cream for dessert - both of us love it and there was a great ice cream store around the corner from the restaurant.  We walk, get our cones and then were going to walk around the neighbourhood before heading for home.  However, Mother Nature had other plans - she is a crafty one she is.  It starts to rain and we head for his car for cover.  My apartment was around the corner and I suggested that we go back there (totally innocent suggestion - I SWEAR!).  We go back to my place and Wilson gets to meet the real love in my life at that time - Maggie.  For some reason, this dog who never and I do mean NEVER liked anyone when she first met them, decided  on the spot that Wilson was all hers.  Seriously, she sniffed him, let him pet her A LOT and then laid her head on his knee - all of this before we had even kissed properly!  Wilson, to his credit became a large pile of man goo because of her attention and I have always felt that I owe our relationship to her in some way.  Our joke is always that Wilson met me, liked me, thought I was cute but then he met Maggie, fell in love with her and had to take me because I came with the dog.  Seriously, is it bad that your dog gets ALL of the heavy petting on your first offical date? 

Here is how bad my dating life was before the self-imposed man hiatus - we had a great evening of good food, laughs, easy conversation  - and I was completely caught off guard by that.  It had not happened to me in a long time and I was totally gobsmacked by it.   So after the date, the next day, I emailed to say what a great time I had and wouldn't it be great to do it again.  The email I got back was, to say the least, not encouraging...lots of work, blah, blah, blah, get together again, not sure when, will call you!  In other words, a brush off, a nice one but still, a brush off.   I could not believe that I was the only one who had a great date but the evidence was telling me that "he was just not that into me". 

So I thought, maybe I had this great date to remind me not to give up on dating and men, just maybe going forward make better choices.  In the back of my mind, I just knew that somehow we weren't finished yet.  Little did I know how long I would have to wait before Wilson would make his next move.

Stay tuned!

ALONG CAME WILSON

So after lots of time, I reached the age of 36 and convinced that I was never going to meet someone that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with - let along bring home to meet my large, crazy family.  I decided that I was going to focus on my career, have fun with friends, enjoy my time with the dog and just have fun.  To this end, there was an opportunity for a some professional development that work was willing to pay for - it was a lot of money - so I took it and had a great time.  It was 4 days of networking and education and by the end of it, I was exhausted!   There was a swishy gala dinner at the end of it and while I wanted to go - there was some great entertainment - the tired half of me just wanted to go to bed.  But I dragged my ass there, got my table assignment and went in to eat and be entertained.  HA!  At a dinner of 3,000 people, I get stuck with a table of world champs at boring.   At this moment, I wish more than anything, that I had stayed home.

As I got to my table, I realized that I was at a table full of suppliers who were going to talk business with me all night.  No laughs, no fun - just more work.  A girlfriend walked by my table and stopped to say hello - and not being shy, I begged her to save me from my boring table.  Ten minutes later, she came back, told me there was a vacant seat at her table and to get my ass over there asap.  Which I did in world record time.  

I sat down beside my friend, said hello to everyone and then turned to my right, stuck out my hand and said "Hi, I'm DiDi".  The response was "Hi, I'm Wilson."  Did I know at that moment that I was sitting  beside my future husband?  Answer - NO!  However, I was wearing a great dress that showed off my cleavage, I was VERY funny that evening and if the truth be told, I thought he was gay so I felt no pressure.  That's right, I thought my future husband was gay!  In my defense, I am an event planner and 98% of the men in my industry are gay.  I just thought he was in the majority.  We are laughing, having a great time and I thought - nice guy, of course he is gay!  My friend who brought me to the table leaned over to me and whispered "I think that Wilson likes you!"  My response - "Of course he does, he's gay!".  To which she responded "Honey, my husband is a waiter, I know gay and that man is so NOT gay".  At that point, I reapplied my lipstick, turned back to Wilson and did not talk to my girlfriend for rest of the evening.  Funny enough - he went to university an hour from my home town and knew people I went to high school with.  As well, 2 of his closest friends are from my home town.  How is that for 6 degrees of separation!

We danced at the after party and had a great time and for the first time in a very long time, I felt actual butterflies about a boy.  All I knew was that I really wanted to see him again and did not have a single clue how to make that happen.   And then he called! 

Stay tuned - first date coming up!

STILL HAVEN'T FOUND WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR!

Last week, Wilson and I went to see U2 and it was AWESOME! From the stage, to being surrounded by 62,000 people all singing along to some of our favourite songs, to having a great date with my favourite boy!

Those 4 Irish boys put on a helluva show and they were the one band that I have always wanted to see. So glad that I finally did!

 

While I really wanted Bono or The Edge to see me int the audience and invite me to come on tour with them (and perhaps be their tambourine player) but alas, I must wait another year for that to happen. 

 

However I have decided that I am One with the fact that I Still Haven't Found What I Am Looking For in the place Where the Streets Have No Name.  

 

 

OFF WE GO

to the magic land of Egypt for 2 wonderful weeks!  This makes the past 2 weeks of work hell so worthwhile!  I will miss you Internet but will be back soon with LOTS and LOTS of pictures to share. 

Stay well and keep warm! 

WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW1v-nMMYA4

In less than 1 week, Wilson and I will be boarding a large plane to start that will take us to Cairo and help us to start walking like an Egyptian.  I cannot believe that this trip is finally here - we booked it almost a year ago.   Preparation is near complete - hair dyed so that the gray is not visible; mani/pedi done; legs waxed; new clothes purchased and all that is left is too put all clothes, shoes, sunscreen and all other personal products into the one suitcase that we are allowed and at the weight that won't cost us any additional money. 

Needless to say that I will not be posting for a while but when I get back there will be plenty of pictures to see and many stories to tell. 

I will miss you internet but never fear, I will return. 

BACK FROM VACATION

Happy Monday Internet!  Am back from Belize and I have a slight tan - WOOT WOOT!  However, Belize and I did not agree.  First Delta Airlines lost our luggage - this usually is not a problem but when you get on a sailboat immediatly and leave port - not having your luggage does equate to a problem!

Second - we had 2 amazing days of sunshine and then came the overcast and rainy days.  4 days of overcast and rainy - WTF!!!

Third - and this is the part that sealed the deal for me - SAND FLEAS AND FREAKIN NOSEEUMS!!!  Where did I go - Florida for the love of God???  Multiple bites and much scratching later, I have determined that Belize and I are not meant to be together!!

However, it was a blast with our friends and I laughed so much every day and drank WAAAAYYY too much!!  Reality hit with a vengenance when we got off the plane last night and the pilot said it was minus 12 degrees Celsius (I have no freaking idea what that is in Farenheit!). 

Am now back at work and wish I was still on vacation - just not in Belize! 

VACATION BOUND!

Wilson and I are vacation bound.  Where are we going do you ask dear Internet? Well let me tell you...

BELIZE!!!!!!!

That's right - sunshine, unlimited bar, sunshine, no work and sunshine! 

I will be back in a week, the same pale shade I am now (due to a large hat and copious amounts of SPF 45) but relaxed and happier (due mainly to lots of vacation sex with Wilson)!

Have a lovely week and I will raise a glass or 12.  I promise pictures when I get back!!!

WE'RE IN!!

Summer has officially begun for Wilson and I as we launched our boat, Summer Breeze, yesterday. Alert your livers sorority girls - boating season has begun. Bring on the heat weatherman - this girl wants to get on the water!

SENTIMENTAL

Every so often I read or hear or see something that strikes a chord within me – and it is usually about a couple who has overcome some kind of crazy odds together. Usually, because I am some kind of sap, it moves me to tears. OK so I am a sap that happens a lot.

Recently I was reading a very emotional novel about the hard choices of love and my sappy heart is very emotional. I welled up continuously as I read the difficult choices the characters in the book have to make and, of course, being the sappy, impractical girl that I am, I put myself and Wilson in their shoes. I, of course fast forward to the end when we overcome that obstacle and move closer to our happily ever after. I know that life isn’t like that but somehow I know that no matter what life throws us, we will hold tight and get through it together. Some would call me naïve – and I don’t care. I know that what we have, our partnership, can withstand any test.

There are times that when I am with him that my love for him almost brings me to my knees such as when he reaches for my hand during a difficult moment just to give me support or when he puts in my favourite movie after he has made me a wonderful dinner just to make me happy; when he rolls over in bed, snuggles close to me and whispers he loves me; the love behind the kiss that he gives me before he leaves for work every morning and when he comes home from work every night; the kindness that he shows my aging parents, small nieces and nephews, brothers and sisters.

Some would say that I love too easily, feel too much, blah, blah blah! What I know is this - I waited a long time to find someone who loves me! Me – this sometimes too loud, crazy girl who never thought that she would find someone who would see through the crazy and love the girl under it all. He is home to me – where ever that may be – here in Toronto, on a boat in the Caribbean or where ever life takes us. He has taught me that love isn’t loud or flowery – it is solid, quiet, caring, sweet and truly better than I could have ever imagined.

I know every day that I married the best man for me. Our story is a journey – with highs and lows, clear sailing or bumps in the road – but as long as we travel hand in hand, seeing each other as only we can, caring for each other and forgiving each other when need be – that we will reach our sunset together. I know that my life is better for having him in it and I am grateful for every shared moment. Wilson I love you today, tomorrow and forever. You are the one I never thought I would find and I so glad that I stopped looking and that you found me.

I love you! Happy Valentine's Day!

DiDi

PS - now that I have written this wonderful entry about you, can we please buy a snowblower so I never have to shovel again????

SNOWED IN!

Wilson and I were supposed to be winging our way to Houston today for a conference but alas Mother Nature had other plans. She decided to drop a foot of snow over Southern Ontario and cancel our flight. On the plus side - am sitting at my dining room table, in my pjs with my fuzzy slippers on, surfing the net, ooops I mean working.

We leave tomorrow on some convoluted flight plan but we will get there. And the best part - no snow and sunshine!

As the commercial used to say - "It's not nice to fool with Mother Nature!"

DECEMBER 9, 2007

I know, I know - it is waaaaaay past December 9th but I have been a busy girl. Went on a catamaran cruise around St. Vincent & the Grenadines (FAB!), got back, went back to work, Christmas shopped my brains out as well as a myriad of stuff that is too boring to even mention.

But December 9th came and that means that my beloved Wilson and I have been married for an entire year. And what a year it has been for us both! Running away and getting married on a beach with Wilson was the smartest thing I have ever done! This year has had it hard moments but having this wonderful, smart, sexy, funny, sweet, aggravating, oh so loving man by my side has made every moment sweeter. Having him by my side, holding my hand makes every day married to him the best day. While there are days when I could cheerfully punch him hard, I know that in an hour we will have forgotten about it and be laughing at something else.

I always knew that being married was something that I wanted - I have the best example in my parents who are still in love and happily married after 58 1/2 years together. But never in my wildest dreams did I think to myself that I would find a man who has the same picture in his head of marriage and is so in it for the long haul with me. Knowing that, being married to that - makes it all worth it. I am looking forward to more years of fighting and making up, snuggling in bed, walking the dog in all kinds of weather, vacations, summers, winters, kissing him good bye as he leaves for work and then kissing him hello when he comes home again for the rest of my life. You and me baby - it's all I could ever ask for!

Happy anniversary baby!

IT'S TIME TO CALL IT A DAY!

Another boating season has come to an end and Summer Breeze is no longer in the water. Sniff, sniff.... I love when she goes into the water and hate it when she comes out. However, this winter will be much more bearable with the addition of a hot tub in our back yard.

Farewell Summer Breeze for another winter! We will come down and visit you often.

VACATION

I LOVE VACATIONS!!! Wilson and I are off for an entire week together and I love it. The rest of the world is working and we are a lovely combination of boating, being lazy, walking Arthur, drinking A LOT of wine and anything else that we can think of that people do on a vacation. IT IS FABULOUS!!!

Arthur is loving having his parents home for the week and I am afraid that he will never go in his crate again. He is over 20 pounds now and is growing so fast that I can' believe it. He loves vacations too - although any day that he gets to play with another puppy or run off leash is a vacation in his mind.

For those of you not on a vacation right this very minute - I feel for you. Get yourself on vacation as fast as you possibly can - it is just what needs to be done this last week of August.

Have a safe and happy Labour Day dear internet! Back at you in September!

Vacation kisses to all,
DiDi

VALENTINE'S DAY, THE WILSON WAY

My beloved husband continues to amaze me. He surprised me but good for Valentine's Day! He got me a trip to Denver, CO and it fit perfectly.

In years past, we used to go and visit my dear friend Kacy in Denver. It was on its way to becoming an annual tradition then Kacy and her husband split up and then Wilson and I split up as well.

Well it is a new year and Kacy is with a dee-lightful man named Ed who I adore and of course, Wilson and I are now married. Don't you just love happy endings! Anyhoo, Wilson knows how much I love Kacy and how I love to see her, visit with her and since she lives in Denver we don't get to hang out very much. So, he went and confirmed all the details with Kacy, arranged for tickets and then told me all about it. What a guy!

Well we went and it was amazing! Not the beginning part where our plane was delayed by 2 hours and the fact that Air Canada lost Wilson's luggage for more than 48hours BUT once we got there, it was outstanding. We went for Mexican, saw a movie, had a great dinner and that was just Saturday. Did I mention that it was 60+ degrees on Saturday? No, well it was and boy did it feel good. Sunday was even better as it was even warmer and we went shopping at Nordstroms and DiDi bought herself some VERY pretty shoes. I also bought Wilson some jeans and t-shirts at The Gap so everyone got something.

Kacy made a kick ass dinner of chicken enchiladas with a cream sauce and she and Ed through an amazing party. Lots of people came and enjoyed. We all drank waaaay to much but thankfully when the next morning dawned, Mr. Hangover was not hanging out with Wilson and I. He was, however, not being very nice to Kacy and Ed. In fact, Ed was not well at all. He kept repeating over and over again that he was never drinking again. And then he looked at my husband and realized that he was not hurting AT ALL from the shots of sambuca that they decided to have after all of us went to bed. His quote changed to "That fucker Wilson isn't even hungover at all!" Kacy was not doing well with her upset stomach and aching head but still managed to be cute and drive us to the airport. How she can be so hungover and still be so damn pretty is beyond me.

We get on the plane, arrive home and pick up our sweet Maggie. All in all, it was a fantastic Valentine's day weekend and I loved my present. However, I love my man more!

Valentine's Day kisses (albeit a little late) to all,

DiDi

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Normally I don't care too much for this, the most Hallmark of holidays but as this is my first married one - I am loving it! I will take any opportunity to tell Wilson how much I love him and today he will beg me to stop all the lurve!

However Internet, here is a very short list of why I love this man:
- he has a great shaped head and this is key because he has not a lot of hair
- he loves me lots
- he is the smartest guy I know
- he loves our dog so much and is very smoochy
- he walks said dog in the cold weather so that I can stay warm
- he is damn sexy
- he is an amazing friend
- he is calm in a crisis
- he makes me laugh
- just because he is him

I look forward to a lifetime of I love you's with you Wilson and with you every day is Valentine's Day.

Happy Valentine's day everyone and cinnamon heart kisses to all,

DiDi

COME HOME TO US DEAR HUSBAND

This year Wilson will be travelling a lot more in the first half of the year and even though Maggie and I are used to his travel, we still miss him so much when he is gone. Right now he is in Calgary enjoying some good Alberta beef and making business happen.

We both miss the little things when he is gone. I know that Maggie misses the cuddles on the couch and I miss the cuddles in our bed. He gets home from Calgary on Thursday afternoon and Maggie gets him all to herself for the afternoon and then I will break the land speed record getting home for welcome back hugs and kisses.

However he has outdone himself on this trip. Before he left, I did ALL the thank you notes for our wedding reception. That is right - ALL OF THEM while he slept on the couch (he wasn't feeling well). As I addressed the last note, I looked at his handsome face and told him in no uncertain terms that he owed me BIG TIME for completing that onerous chore. And boy did he come through. I was aiming for dinner out or a piece of shiny jewellery or just a hundred kisses but he did so much better than all of that.

He is taking me to Denver for the weekend to visit our friends Kacy and Ed. The same Kacy and Ed who came on our trip and stood up at our wedding with us. He knows how much I love to see Kacy and since they live so far away that we don't get to see them hardly at all. And he knows that we miss each other and love to spend time together and he made that happen. That is my wonderful man!

Hurry home handsome. Your wife and dog love and miss you very much and we need our Wilson home. Life at our house is just not the same without you.

Kisses,
DiDi

JUST AN OLD MARRIED COUPLE NOW...

Well it is all done. The wedding (December 9th), the reception (January 13) and the thank you notes (done totally by DiDi on January 19th). With the exception of my sore thumb from writing notes to our wonderful and crazy generous friends it was all wonderful.

Our reception was so much fun with most of our family and friends joining us at our house to celebrate our marriage with us. God bless the caterers with their staff, amazing food and rentals. There was really no mess for Wilson and I to clean up and a good time was had by all.

My sweet husband looked at all the food when it was delivered and said "It is not enough food!". To which I replied "People will start to arrive in 2 hours and I am not going to worry about this at all. If we run out, we will just order some pizza." Which is exactly what we ended up doing. We had food for 125 people and 112 guests through our house and they all just vacuumed up the food. There was not a morsel left and everyone raved about how good it was. Thank you Daniel & Daniel for making it so easy for us! Our last guest left at 10am the next morning and you know when you end up with a houseguest, that it was a good party.

The entire sorority was present and here is a photo of all its members. We are all so pretty and so drunk (well at least Mellie was...if her hangover the next day was any indication).

At one point I looked around our living room at our family gathered there and realized how many wonderful examples that Wilson and I have of strong and happy marriages.

My parents - 58 years

Wilson's parents - 40 years

My cousin Dianne and her husband Jim - 37 years

My brother Tom and his wife Lynn - 35 years

My brother John and his wife Terry - 22 years

My sister Fay and her husband Ron - 24 years

My cousin Paul and his wife Lynne - 18 years

My sister Debbie and her husband Carl - 38 years (but they couldn't make it)

I know that these marriages have weathered tough times, happy times and all the inbetween times. I take hope that with such wonderful examples that Wilson and I will hold tight to our love for each other and weather the years ahead with the same grace and longevity that our family has.

It has been a wonderful experience getting married this way and I wouldn't have done it any other way. We had all the fun parts (telling people, looking forward to the date and a great honeymoon) and very little of the stress parts (except for the damn paperwork). We got to celebrate with friends and family and I got to wear a pretty dress and shoes.

Being a Mrs. (although I never use the term and my last name has not changed) is pretty damn good so far.

Married kisses to all,

DiDi

PS - the honeymoon post is coming - I swear it is.

THE BEST VACATION EVER A.K.A. OUR HONEYMOON WITH FRIENDS

Well at long last, here is the post about our wonderful trip. This could be the longest post ever but I will try to keep it short. First, a shout out to Jemima, who gave me the info on how to have a Flickr link on the blog so that you can see all of our lovely pictures without me putting all of them into this entry.

Anyhoo, it all started on December 1st, very, very early in the morning. Our flight left Toronto at the ungodly hour of 6:30 am, which meant that the car was picking us up at 4:30 AM - yes that means very fucking early! For all of you that know me well - I don't do mornings well at all! Thank heavens for our dear friends Rudi and Wendy who took our beloved Maggie for the entire time we were gone and we got to drop her off at their house the night before we left. This made leaving at the ungodly hour we did much, much easier.

The car arrives and takes us to the airport and it seems that there are many, many people leaving at the same time. Customs was jammed but because I am weird about the airport and arrival times, we had loads of time to get through, have an airport investment breakfast (translation - food that costs the earth) and be at the gate and board with the rest of the plebes in economy. At this moment as we walked through first class back into economy, I wish to holy hell that we could have gotten First Class seating with its large seats and leg room but we were denied. Wilson, God bless his bald head, did give it a good old college try as we are both plane snobs and love first class A LOT.

However it was not to be and as we were flying on points, we had an aisle and middle seat. I took the middle seat as Wilson is much taller than me and needs the leg room. I promptly fell asleep on his shoulder (did I mention that we had to get up at 4:00 am) and pretty much fell asleep for the entire flight. We landed in Charlotte, got a Jamba juice (yummy) and got on our next flight. We landed in lovely St. Maarten, collected our bags, cleared customs and headed out into the sunshine. At this point, we have been in transit for 13 or so hours and are in desperate need of a shower or a swim or both.

We arrive at our hotel - the Royal Sonesta Beach and Casino resort, get our room and head to the pool. Never has a dip in a lovely Caribbean pool felt so good on tired travellers bodies.

After we had a refreshing swim that washed the icky plane feeling away, we went to a lovely French restaurant and had a lovely dinner (with lots of wine and cheese). Then we slept the sleep of tired travellers.

Day 2
Spent the day at the beach and what a glorious day it was. It was hot and sunny and otherwise fabulous. We had the better part of the day to kill before Kacy and Ed landed and we headed off to our cruise.

Lovely Maho Beach

When they say the airport is 5 minutes from our hotel, they are not kidding. I swear on my dog pretty head that this picture is not photoshopped AT ALL!

My James Bond pose as Wilson likes to call it (don't worry Halle, your job is so safe). Right after this, I was knocked ass over teakettle by a 4 foot wave and had sand in places only Wilson has been!

My lovely husband, before he was my husband.

Then we left this lovely beach to go to the airport that was only 5 minutes away (see above picture) and pick up Kacy and Ed and begin our wonderful vacation together (we got a head start, they had to spend the night in Dallas). Off we go to the marina together to get on our 50' catamaran and begin our cruise around Sint Maarten. Of course for some strange reason (as we took pictures of EVERYTHING else (as you can see by the Flickr link now on the blog), for some reason we did not take pictures of our cabin) but it was lovely. We meet our fellow cruisers - Roger and Lynne from upstate New York and Diane and Andre from Quebec. Our ship's captain is Scottie and our first mate is Zena who are delightful and we wanted to bring them home with us.

We meet, chat and begin what will become our nightly ritual -- cocktails, chatter, canapes, cocktails and then dinner. We drank loads and ate a great meal of mahi mahi and then went to bed. There are no pictures of this fun evening as I was too concerned about holding my wine glass.

Day 3
We depart from Simpson Bay Harbour in Marigot and head for Anguilla. It is a great sail and we arrive in Anguilla Harbour and head into shore to the only bar - Johnnos. We all decide that we would rather drink and go for a walk along the beach rather than go on an island taxi tour. We all make our way back to the boat and spend the evening in lovely Anguilla Harbour.

Anguilla hot spot - Johnno's

The gang doing what we do best - sitting and drinking!

Day 4

Day 4 of our trip dawns and it is a bit cloudy with a fair bit of wind. We are all game and decide that we are going to head to Sandy Island - a reef just off the coast of Anguilla. It is totally uninhabited but has a small shelter on it that you can use to have lunch or relax. Apparently some brave soul tried to open a restaurant or bar on it and it didn't really go all that well (not surprising since it is a deserted island) but it worked for us. It was a bit of a rough ride over to the island and a number of storms passed us by but for us it was a slice of heaven.

Sandy Island

The Shack on Sandy Island

Shipwreck on Sandy Island

At one point, Wilson and I are laying together in the hammock and Kacy comes over to get us saying there is a surprise for us. And what a surprise it was - we were given vine headresses, I was given a small 'bouquet' and we were 'married' by our ship captain and surrounded by our fellow travellers. It was so wonderful and touching that they would all do this for us. We popped champagne and celebrated our beach wedding in grand style.

Walking up the aisle at the Sandy Beach Cathedral

First kiss as husband and wife (sort of)

Back to the boat we go and we moored on the other side of Anguilla for the evening. There was a gorgeous villa on that we could stare at until the sun went down. I tried to talk Ed into buying it and then we would all come and visit him and Kacy - but he was more interested in his Carib than real estate.

Wilson, DiDi, Captain Scottie and First Mate Zena - after they 'married' us

Day 5

We sail to just off the beach of Grand Case - on the other side of St. Maarten. It is lovely and totally French and littered with amazing restaurants. However, i am getting ahead of myself as I almost drowned...

We drop anchor and all and sundry decide what they are going to do for the afternoon. Stay on the boat and relax, snorkel - whatever strikes your fancy. I am not a big snorkeler but I decide that there are fish to be seen and I haven't done this in a while so lets give it a whirl. I get my mask and fins, get my self into the boat and head out with the others to go for a snorkel. Once in the water, I remember why I hate snorkeling (yes I know - a wee bit too late). I hate breathing through my mouth, I hate salt water in my mouth, I hate salt water in my eyes (I wear contacts and it really hurts) and most of all I hate it when my mask leaks and I almost drown.

I tried to be a trooper but the burning eyes and leaking mask got the best of me. Kacy and I head back to the boat but by this point my eyes are burning out of my head due to the water in my mask and my lovely contacts being in my eyes. It hurts to have them open with the sunshining in them, it hurts to close them, they are watering up a storm. All in all it was very difficult to swim back to the boat. I manage to get a whistle off and get Scottie's attention and he comes and fetches me. Now let me tell you - there is absolutely NO graceful way to re-enter a dinghy from the water. Scottie has to help haul my almost drowned and blind ass back into the boat. At that moment, he was wishing I was the size of Nicole Richie - but I like food and will never, ever be considered a waif.

I get back to the boat and take my contacts out - yeah for blessed release. However, my eyes will not stop watering and I cannot sit outside as the sun hurts them. I have a beer to console myself. Wilson is appropriately concerned and keeps the beer coming. He is a very good man! Bad eyes will not keep my from drining or going ashore to have a great dinner with wonderful friends.

We go ashore and walk around Grand Case and are presented with so many wonderful restaurants to choose from. Amazing traditional French cuisine, Carribean barbecue, Italian - you name it, it's there. Some with a lovely beach view but all with very yummy sounding menus. We finally decide on a lovely French restaurant for dinner and the food is fantastic. We were VERY full when we got ourselves back to the boat and we relaxed with a after dinner drink under the moon with the ocean breezes keeping us cool.

Grand Case Pier

The four of us at dinner

Day 6

Scuba boy

Isn't he cute

Wilson, whose French improves so much when he drinks, understands it and reads it but doesn't speak it very well at all. His instructor's grasp of English is as good as Wilson's French. Somehow, the 2 of them figure it out and he gets him ready and off they go. He dove down to 40 feet, saw a stingray, lots of fish, went through a shipwreck and had a blast.

Man of Action

We go back to the boat and go ashore at Tintamarre - which is an uninhabited island known for its healing mud. We all follow Scottie away from the beach to the mud area and begin to dig up the good mud - apparently there are 3 kinds - and mix it with sea water. Once it is mixed, we all start slathering it on our bodies. We all cover ourselves from head to toe and make our way back to the beach. We have to let the mud dry on our skin for the best effect and when we get to the beach, Wilson decides to use up the last of the mud on both Kacy and I and dumps it on our heads. Yup, we were officially covered from head to toe in mud. Mud was everywhere on us - seriously everywhere.

We all sit in the sun waiting for the mud to dry and, of course drinking Carib - YUMMY! Once the mud was dry, we raced into the sea and rinsed ourselves clean. I will tell you that my skin felt so soft. It was a total blast and I have paid a lot of money for the spa mud bath experience and this was as good and free.

The muddy gang of Restless Spirit

Once we were all back on Restless Spirit, we sailed over by Orient Bay for the evening and had dinner. It was another amazing day and once in a lifetime experience.

Day 7

We wake up at Orient Bay and it looks so pretty with its yellow umbrellas and patio chairs. The sea was kind of rough but we didn't care because we sailed to St. Barth's. It was the best sail ever - we hit 12 foot waves and Wilson and I were riding the jump seats for a while. The jump seats are 2 little seats at the far front of the boat and your feet hang over the ocean. You feel like you are riding a roller coaster as the boat goes up and down over the waves. Sitting in the jump seats was the best fun - you feel like you are going up so high and then your feet come down and go into the water. It was a total blast!

A great sail to St. Barths

St. Barth's Harbour

Then I drove the boat for most of the way to St. Barth's and developed new muscles in my arms. It was much harder to steer than our boat but then we are never out in 12 foot waves on Lake Ontario.

We get to St. Barths and have a great afternoon - well at least I did as Wilson was a wee bit hungover. I bought myself a great bathing suit that I thought was priced in US dollars but when the credit card bill came in, it was actually in Euros -- EEEEK! It is now called the investment bathing suit.

Came back to the boat after a great afternoon and we pulled around the other side of the harbour and watched the sunset over St. Barths. It was absolutely gorgeous. What was even more beautiful was watching the moon rise once the sun went down. It was a full moon and so bright it was almost like you could read by it.

Day 8

Day 8 dawned gorgeous and sunny - God I do love the Caribbean for the AMAZING weather. We had a wonderful breakfast aboard and then weighed anchor for Simpson Bay harbour in St. Maarten. We had to be back for the afternoon bridge or the complications with customs would be ugly. It was a great sail back and we went right by the spot where we would get married the next day. The weather was so amazing - just enough wind to get going at a decent speed but not so windy that you couldn't move around the boat thinking that you were going to fly off.

Maho Beach

The Gang from Restless Spirit

Day 9 - also known as Wedding Day.

The day dawned bright and early and we all had to depart the boat by 9am. After a quick breakfast, we packed up and headed for our hotel and of course to get married. Needless to say, it was an amazing day and I have documented that day in a previous post so I won't bore you all with the details again.

Day 10

Well it seems that the party is over and it is time to call it a day. We are scheduled to be on a flight at 5pm returning home via Charlotte to Toronto. Home to our wonderful house, our gorgeous dog Maggie and to married life. But before we do that, we spend the day with our dear friends Kacy and Ed doing nothing but wandering, having a few cocktails and waiting for our flights.

We sat at a bar that literally is at the end of the runway at the St. Maarten airport and watched planes coming and going. You could see the people on the planes as they flew overhead. We went and stood in the jet wash of a 767 as it took off - why you might ask, because we could is the answer.

And then we made our way to the airport for our departure. Of course, we had purchased duty free booze and Wilson being the careful packer that he is, carefully packed our scotch and wine carefully...in our carry on baggage. To him it is not liquid but liquor and they are different. This of course, is no longer allowed and off he goes back to the check in area to check our bag of booze. Of course in our bag of booze is our plane clothes - long pants and a fleece for me as I freeze on planes and pants for Wilson. They had to stay in the bag to cushion the booze so we were going to get on the plane in our current state. Let me paint a picture - cute white and black golf shirt, very short skirt with St. Barths on the ass and my bright blue Croc flip flops. Wilson is at least in shorts and a golf shirt with his flip flops. We get on the flight and if you ever want the best service on a plane, carry a wedding bouquet with you. The flight attendants are all over you and are very kind and bring you drinks, etc.

However, this makes the flight sound uneventful which is was not. I look up at one point and notice a familiar face. It is our company's President & COO - and he was wearing RED PANTS! I say to Wilson, is that Nadir? Wilson is not sure and then, I am not sure why but I got up and introduced myself and lo and behold, it was Nadir. He was on vacation with his lovely wife and a local Toronto news anchor and his partner as well as a former company exec who is now the official leader of the opposition for Ontario. He also used to work at our company and Wilson knew him. As I am turning around from our brief chat, I realize as I am walking away that I am wearing the smallest skirt I own and it says St. Barth's on the ass. My mortification is now complete.

I spend the flight freezing and re-reading Memoirs of a Geisha and finally we land in Charlotte. We quickly repack the booze in our real luggage, put on our long pants etc and get ready to board the plane home.

Needless to say, it was not as warm in Toronto as it was in St. Maarten but we were home and married.

It was the best vacation for a number of reasons but mostly because I was with my beloved. We were relaxed and happy and that is all that you can ask for in a vacation.

Whew! There it is at long last - our vacation and honeymoon story.

Still on our honeymoon kisses to all,

DiDi

Day 6 dawns lovely and sunny and we sail from Grand Case to just off Tintamare. For those who were going to scuba (not me) we have a dive master and his boat coming to the boat to get all those who are interested. Wilson, who has always wanted to scuba, signs up for a learning dive and Kacy, Andre and Diane are all avid scuba people and get ready to go. I am not such and avid scuba person and go just to take photos.