The School Year Winds Down

June 17 - 18.

Year end prize giving ceremonies. Taylor with her teacher, Mr. Bridgeman; Ryan congratulates Taylor and her friends as they end Year 2; Ryan and two of his friends, Theo and Duncan, at the Year 4 prize giving ceremony.

Ryan's First International Track Meet

June 13 - 15. Ryan had a very exciting and eventful weekend attending the Miami Northwest Track & Field Classic, his first international meet. Ryan is the youngest and newest member of his track club, the Hy-Tech Tigers. He ran the 800M & 1500M and had both his Auntie Nancy, who was visiting Miami for the weekend, and Auntie Jeanie, who lives in Miami, come out to cheer him on. The team brought home 16 medals in total, for a variety of events, including field events, 100M, 200M, and relays. Ryan ran a personal best in the 1500M running it in 6:34. Ryan does not have anyone is his age group to train with, so this meet was a great experience for him and he is eager to get his split time lower and come home with a medal next year.

Boats Boats Boats

Last month we sold our 240 Boston Whaler Outrage and purchased the 270. After all of the boy-toys were added to it (radar, autopilot), we finally had a chance to test drive it today. Not even the rain dampened the ride.

And ...........

Last weekend at the annual Rotary Camelot Auction, as if we needed another boat, we became a one third owner in a run-about boat for the kids, a 13' Boston Whaler Sport 50th Anniversary Edition. We bought this with the 2 Burke families, our future neighbours in The Shores.

Ryan's Running

Ryan has recently joined a national track club and has been training and competing in the 800M and 1500M. Today, he ran in the Truman Bodden Meet. He ran the 800M in 3:13 and the 1500M in 6:57 and came home with 2 golds. In 2 weeks he is off to Miami to compete. Stay tuned for Ryan's progress .....

Hugh's Milestone

May 17th. Hugh's 70th Birthday Party.

Hugh's surprise 70th birthday party hosted by David, Tina, Nancy & Ian (his 2 kids and favorite son-in-law & daughter-in-law) was held in the private dining room at Casanova by the Sea, one of Hugh's favorite restaurants. As the sun set over the George Town Harbour, the guests started arriving. The party goers mingled and enjoyed bellinis and canapes, and watched a wonderful DVD that Nancy had made documenting Hugh's life from birth in Scotland to Grandparenthood in Cayman. Hugh and Angela's dear friends, Helen and Alastair Mirrlees (pictured above with Nancy) flew in from Canada to surprise Hugh, as did his niece, Dara, from Jamaica. Hugh arrived to much SURPRISE!! and then the party truly got underway. The four grandchildren stopped by to surprise Grandpa with a rendition of "Happy Birthday To You" -- they were adorable and performed liked angels. Dinner under the stars at the country-themed tables was delightful. Each table depicted a country in which Hugh lived : Scotland, England, Jamaica, Bahamas, (then back to Jamaica) and Cayman. Fabulous dinner and mushy, heartfelt speeches followed by dancing rounded out the evening. Hugh held up well for an almost 70 year old (actual birthday, May 20th), closing the restaurant at midnight. It was a night of wonderful memories surrounded by family and friends.

May 11. Mother's Day Brunch

While in Georgia for my goddaughter's first communion, Steven hosted Mother's Day brunch at The Club. 15 of us enjoyed dining in the private dining room, including his mother, Aunt Sonia and Rachel's Mum who were all visiting for the weekend, and his brother, Scott, and family. It was a wonderful mother's day and a great cap to the festive weekend.

May 10. Rebecca's 1st Holy Communion

A perfect spring day in Duluth, Georgia for my goddaughters first holy Communion. The service was beautful, and the reception afterwards hosted by Rachel & Steven at their home was warm with love, and filled with happiness and joy. Rebecca even gave a very grown up and touching speech thanking everyone for being a part of her special day. The kids and I flew to Georgia for the weekend for this special event.

May 2. Hospice Big Bash 2008.

Another fabulous fund raising event for the Cayman Hospice Care was held this year at Ristorante Pappagallo. The tireless efforts by Robin, Jennifer and their volunteers proved a success from the moment you stepped foot into the neon-blue themed event. This annual fund raising party is one of the few that does not have auctions or speeches - just dinner, dancing, and lots of fun. As you can tell, even the bartenders got into the groove as they mixed martinis, and David was always surrounded by a bevy of beauties as he was the go-to dance partner for the evening.

April 25 - 27. Family Visits Cayman

What a great weekend we had with our family from Jamaica! James and Fiona Godfrey, along with their 2 girls Saorse and Amber, and some family friends, came over for a weekend of dining, diving, boating and frolicking with the stingrays. All of the cousins, young and old, had a chance to reconnect, and Saorse celebrated her sweet 16 in true Island-Style relaxation.

April 16 - 20. Tennis Legends Championships

The second event of the Tennis Legends Championships series was held at the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman this past week. This year, the legends who are playing for the grand prize are Jim Courier, Paul Haarhuis, Mikael Pernfors, Mats Wilander, Wayne Ferriera, John McEnroe, Jimmy Arias and Todd Martin. At a reception hosted by the Cayman Islands Tennis Club on the Friday night, we had a chance to meet and mingle with the tennis stars. Ryan boldly asked them for their autographs and all of the players were very gracious and charming. On Saturday, we attended the matches of Jimmy Arias vs. Mats Wilander, and John McEnroe vs. Jim Courier. John McEnroe was not too badly behaved, except for when he shouted at a lineman for wearing his sunglasses, offering up that obviously if you could see better with the sunglasses on, then the players would be wearing them. He also berated a ball boy for not throwing the ball to him fast enough. Poor kids. All in all, John lost to Jim in a very exciting match, and Jim went on to win this series event. There are six more stops in the series - if you have a chance to attend, take it. It was a great tennis with players we grew up watching.

March 2008. Easter at Cayman Kai

Another great Easter vacation at Cayman Kai has come and gone. A week of family, friends, sailing, kayaking, great food, boating and the annual BBQ and Easter egg hunt were some of the many highlights. On Easter Sunday, we had a crowd of about 30 kids join us for a fun day in the sun. Chef David once again manned the grill serving up his famous burgers. It was great having Rachel, Steven, Rebecca and Joseph join us from Atlanta again this year for what has now become our Easter tradition. Mum & Dad, as always, were the perfect hosts and the week was filled with laughter and happy times from morning until night.

The YCLA

Saturday Feb 16th. This year, the Young Caymanian Leadership Awards was held at The Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman. Gov. Mike Huckabee was the keynote speaker for this prestigious evening.

Taylor's Sports Day

Saturday Feb 16th. Taylor's sports day was held today. Here she is with her ribbons - 2 1st place and a 3rd, and with her girlfriends from her class (Taylor is the one standing)

Murder on the Orient Express Ball

Jan 26th. The theme this year for the annual Cystic Fibrosis Trust Ball was Murder on the Orient Express. This 30's themed sold out event held at the Grand Old House was a truly magical evening. The "passengers" arrived, many in costume, to a train filled adventure. The volunteers, dressed in conductor hats, took the tickets at the booth and ushered the passengers on board to a champagne reception as the Cayman Islands orchestra played. When the whistle blew and the dining car opened, the scene transformed to a winter wonderland of ice carvings, fairly lights, icicles, and snow flakes. After dinner and a live auction, the dancing took over and the dancefloor was at capacity for the rest of the evening. Requests are already in to book tables for next years event.