Rainy Days in Saipan...

Well it has been raining for what seems like '40 days and 40 nights' here in Saipan....or at least the past 3 weeks anyway. But I must admit that I am actually enjoying it! If I turn my air-con on pretty cold, light some candles and drink some hot tea, I can almost imagine that it is autumn outside my windows! So the rain has really gotten us in the Halloween spirit and pumpkins even arrived to the local grocery store last week...so we are set for our 4th annual Halloween Party. Every year tons of kids gather at our house for some pre-trick-or-treat fun (destroying my house in the process) and then we all go in a group trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. It is out of control, wild and fun and I must admit that I look forward to the craziness every year! There are not many good spots to trick-or-treat here on Saipan as there are not many 'neighborhoods' - so given that we live in one of the true neighborhoods with sidewalks on the island, our house is a hot spot for this trick-or-treat thing! Stay tuned for the pictures after Halloween.
I posted some pictures I took of our 'monkey' Sera (who will turn two on Nov. 15). She seems to think that sitting IN her hairchair is boring and needs to add some adventure to her meal time. I'm not sure what to do with her b/c she just isn't ready to 'join' our dinner table yet as she thinks that EVERYONES plate and cup are HER plate and cup...spilling everything in the process. There is never a dull moment here at the Hyper-Hawley household!
If you look carefully at the first picture, you will see that she is recovering from a black eye. Max was swinging on some giant wooden swings at the Hyatt and Sera thought it would be a good idea to walk in front of his swing.
Otherwise, we all have been great...Nate will do a mt. bike race next weekend here on Saipan - taking him from beach at American Memorial Park (sea level) to the highest point on Saipan - Mt. Tapachau (1800 ft.). He is also coaching Max's 4 year old soccer team - only requiement for that was 'a good sense of humor and lots of patience!'
Happy Halloween everyone! Send pictures of Autumn leaves and colors, costumes and even the snow...we miss it all!