Summer Summary

We had another fun day on Friday. I'm thinking we need to pace ourselves. I can't keep this going all summer...

Friday, May 30

* I met 2 girlfriends to go on a hike Friday morning. One of the ladies is a very outdoorsy type & hikes all over the Philippines. She has actually paid a few men to clear a hiking trail in the jungle. They clear out the bamboo & vines so that we can enjoy the challenging & shady trek. However, there were a few fallen tree trunks that we had to climb over and some very tall grass at certain areas. All in all, it was a fun form of exercise! We hike different trails every Friday & it's a great way to see parts of the Philippines one wouldn't normally see.

* The boys had 3 friends over to play. And, Sydney went to a classmates house for the day. The kids are staying happy & busy... which makes me happy!

* Several of the ex-pat ladies here got together for lunch. One of the Fed Ex ladies is moving to Hong Kong & it was her last luncheon with us. She & her family have lived here for 5+ years, so it was quite an emotional afternoon.

* Yesterday evening was date night for Sam & I. Before meeting some friends at a Japanese restaurant for dinner, we stopped by another couple's home to say goodbye. They are in the plane now as I type heading back to the states & Canada for their summer vacation. The wife is a teacher at Brent & her husband is the principal. Their youngest son & Nicholas are classmates & good buddies. We have all become great friends & it was sad to see them leave for 2 months. We enjoyed chatting with them for a while. Afterwards, I was finally able to convince Sam to eat at the Japanese restaurant with me! (He is not a fan of unfamiliar food.) The food here is delicious & I constantly crave it, but have never been able to drag Sam along with me. However, I think he really liked it last night. I hope to have many more date nights there!

* After dinner, we went to an outdoor area called Pier 1. They have live music on the weekends & it's fun to just sit & enjoy the music. We enjoyed visiting with friends & enjoying the cool evening breeze.

Today, we have fun afternoon plans. The great thing about living here is that the lifestyle really requires you to rely on friends and neighbors on a daily basis. There is no mall here. There is nothing much in the way of convenience. So, we spend our time with friends! We play outside. We go to the playground. We ride bikes. We go to the pool. And, we get together with lots of other people to keep life fun & interesting! Which is what we're doing again this afternoon. It'll be great!