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STJ through the eyes of a 7-year old
STJ through the eyes of a 7-year old
June 26 - July 3, 2012
For boys anyway, I'm not sure there's a better age to be than seven. Your perception of life is still fairly idyllic. Your parents are still pretty cool. And despite rumors to the contrary, there's still a good chance Santa exists and your baby sister is just visiting.
Your biggest concerns pretty much begin and end with seeing how far you can stave off bedtime, avoiding the consumption of vegetables, and losing TV privileges for the myriad mischief you get into when you're not watching TV.
Heck, other than the occasional booster shot, spelling test, or requisite visit to Easter Vigil (to assuage the guilt of your not-so Catholic parents), your life is pretty darn copacetic at age seven.
It's also the age my wife and I decided that our son Archer was finally ready for and could appreciate a visit to St. John.
This was our 5th trip to "the Rock" and every visit prior had been like a second honeymoon. Admittedly, we hesitated when deciding to take him, thinking the entire week with our son would be like herding a mongoose and constantly saying, "Archer, don't do that," "Archer, that's not a toy," and my personal favorite, "Archer, please just don't kill yourself." But our fears were quickly allayed as we soon experienced first hand that St. John with our son was nothing like what we had imagined it would be and everything we imagined it could be.
In a word, Archer was in his element. He instantly made the island his home, the people his family and the ocean his best friend. (Rachel, the best taxi driver ever, even offered to keep him...don't tempt me
We have no regrets waiting until now to introduce him to our favorite place on Earth, but as you can imagine, it'll be quite a while, if ever, before we visit again without him.
Here's St. John thru the eyes of a seven-year old...I hope you enjoy.
"Are we there yet?"
"Dad, this is NOT a comic book."
Arrived in STT at 8:30pm...not recommended with a 7-year old unless of course you're flying free on miles (and have unlimited patience).
"Are we there yet?"
Took the 10pm ferry from Red Hook...what bedtime? (other family we stayed with got there earlier to check into villa, rent first car)
"Dad, are we there yet?"
"Ask your mother."
Early the next morning at the Reef Bay Holiday Villa (other side of Fish Bay). How early? I don't know but we woke up the roosters.
"Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad...we have a pool!"
"I know, but what about the ocean and the mountains and the trees?"
"Um, Dad..."
"Yes, Arch."
"Can I get in the pool?"
If we would have let him, Archer would have also taken his meals and slept in the pool too...and I'm not kidding. Not counting sleep, he probably spent more time in the water than he did on land that week.
"Dad, this house is much neater than our house."
"Thanks for noticing."
"And the Jeep is much cooler than your car too."
We hit just about every North Shore beach during the week. Archer loved them all, but Gibney (the far left side) stole the show.
"Dad, why isn't the water in Galveston this clear?"
Archer has taken swimming lessons, but this was his first time to snorkel. We brought a vest and thought we'd have to stick to short runs like here at Salomon, but the kid was tireless. We went out to the tip of the Trunk Cay, way out into Francis Bay and all the way around Waterlemon from the beach at Leinster (it's like a mile). We got out exhausted, he stayed in the shallows chasing a Nurse Shark for another hour. Kids are amazing.
"Dad, when I'm 8, you won't have to tow me anymore, but this year I like it."
As you can probably imagine or relate, discussions about not taking things home from the beach or trails were daily occurrences...if he could have fit STJ in his backpack, he would have.
"Take only memories, leave only footprints." (literally)
Since our villa was located right off Reef Bay, we had the unique opportunity to hike down from the Reef Bay trailhead and back to our villa rather than have to hike down and back up. Archer practically sprinted the four miles.
"Dad, are we going to a beach?"
"Sort of."
"Are we going swimming?"
"No, we're going hiking."
"Why?"
"Ask your mother."
Petroglyphs
"Dad, is that C3PO?"
Little Reef Bay - There is one rock outcropping that you have to navigate around between the beaches, but Archer actually ended up leading us around it.
"Mom, can we keep him?"
"No, Archer, he belongs here."
"Dad, can we keep him?"
"Sure, why not."
You must be this tall to eat the cheeseburger.
Oh yeah, he finished it...mom was not amused, Dad could not have been prouder.
"Mom, I love St. John. You let us eat junk food here."
Among the many smart items my wife brought to keep Archer preoccupied during dinners out, perhaps the coolest was the costume moustache kit...though there is an overworked waiter at Shipwreck who probably thinks we're crazy.
The Most Interesting Boy In The World...He doesn't always drink milk, but when he does, he prefers Dos %.
We didn't hesitate to take Archer to any of the restaurants including higher end places like Rhumb Lines and La Tapa. But the best dining experience was by far the one we had the Beach Bar of all places. We just sat at one of the tables near the bar or down on the beach while he played in the surf or climbed a tree. No nanny required.
"Dad, I don't want to go home."
"I know Arch, but we have to."
"Why?"
"Ask your mother."
St. John, soon come again.
For boys anyway, I'm not sure there's a better age to be than seven. Your perception of life is still fairly idyllic. Your parents are still pretty cool. And despite rumors to the contrary, there's still a good chance Santa exists and your baby sister is just visiting.
Your biggest concerns pretty much begin and end with seeing how far you can stave off bedtime, avoiding the consumption of vegetables, and losing TV privileges for the myriad mischief you get into when you're not watching TV.
Heck, other than the occasional booster shot, spelling test, or requisite visit to Easter Vigil (to assuage the guilt of your not-so Catholic parents), your life is pretty darn copacetic at age seven.
It's also the age my wife and I decided that our son Archer was finally ready for and could appreciate a visit to St. John.
This was our 5th trip to "the Rock" and every visit prior had been like a second honeymoon. Admittedly, we hesitated when deciding to take him, thinking the entire week with our son would be like herding a mongoose and constantly saying, "Archer, don't do that," "Archer, that's not a toy," and my personal favorite, "Archer, please just don't kill yourself." But our fears were quickly allayed as we soon experienced first hand that St. John with our son was nothing like what we had imagined it would be and everything we imagined it could be.
In a word, Archer was in his element. He instantly made the island his home, the people his family and the ocean his best friend. (Rachel, the best taxi driver ever, even offered to keep him...don't tempt me
We have no regrets waiting until now to introduce him to our favorite place on Earth, but as you can imagine, it'll be quite a while, if ever, before we visit again without him.
Here's St. John thru the eyes of a seven-year old...I hope you enjoy.
"Are we there yet?"
"Dad, this is NOT a comic book."
Arrived in STT at 8:30pm...not recommended with a 7-year old unless of course you're flying free on miles (and have unlimited patience).
"Are we there yet?"
Took the 10pm ferry from Red Hook...what bedtime? (other family we stayed with got there earlier to check into villa, rent first car)
"Dad, are we there yet?"
"Ask your mother."
Early the next morning at the Reef Bay Holiday Villa (other side of Fish Bay). How early? I don't know but we woke up the roosters.
"Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad...we have a pool!"
"I know, but what about the ocean and the mountains and the trees?"
"Um, Dad..."
"Yes, Arch."
"Can I get in the pool?"
If we would have let him, Archer would have also taken his meals and slept in the pool too...and I'm not kidding. Not counting sleep, he probably spent more time in the water than he did on land that week.
"Dad, this house is much neater than our house."
"Thanks for noticing."
"And the Jeep is much cooler than your car too."
We hit just about every North Shore beach during the week. Archer loved them all, but Gibney (the far left side) stole the show.
"Dad, why isn't the water in Galveston this clear?"
Archer has taken swimming lessons, but this was his first time to snorkel. We brought a vest and thought we'd have to stick to short runs like here at Salomon, but the kid was tireless. We went out to the tip of the Trunk Cay, way out into Francis Bay and all the way around Waterlemon from the beach at Leinster (it's like a mile). We got out exhausted, he stayed in the shallows chasing a Nurse Shark for another hour. Kids are amazing.
"Dad, when I'm 8, you won't have to tow me anymore, but this year I like it."
As you can probably imagine or relate, discussions about not taking things home from the beach or trails were daily occurrences...if he could have fit STJ in his backpack, he would have.
"Take only memories, leave only footprints." (literally)
Since our villa was located right off Reef Bay, we had the unique opportunity to hike down from the Reef Bay trailhead and back to our villa rather than have to hike down and back up. Archer practically sprinted the four miles.
"Dad, are we going to a beach?"
"Sort of."
"Are we going swimming?"
"No, we're going hiking."
"Why?"
"Ask your mother."
Petroglyphs
"Dad, is that C3PO?"
Little Reef Bay - There is one rock outcropping that you have to navigate around between the beaches, but Archer actually ended up leading us around it.
"Mom, can we keep him?"
"No, Archer, he belongs here."
"Dad, can we keep him?"
"Sure, why not."
You must be this tall to eat the cheeseburger.
Oh yeah, he finished it...mom was not amused, Dad could not have been prouder.
"Mom, I love St. John. You let us eat junk food here."
Among the many smart items my wife brought to keep Archer preoccupied during dinners out, perhaps the coolest was the costume moustache kit...though there is an overworked waiter at Shipwreck who probably thinks we're crazy.
The Most Interesting Boy In The World...He doesn't always drink milk, but when he does, he prefers Dos %.
We didn't hesitate to take Archer to any of the restaurants including higher end places like Rhumb Lines and La Tapa. But the best dining experience was by far the one we had the Beach Bar of all places. We just sat at one of the tables near the bar or down on the beach while he played in the surf or climbed a tree. No nanny required.
"Dad, I don't want to go home."
"I know Arch, but we have to."
"Why?"
"Ask your mother."
St. John, soon come again.
It’s not about yesterday or tomorrow...It’s about today, for come what may – Sun, rain, or hurricane – we've only time for a smile, and none for sorrow
-
StJohnRuth
- Posts: 1989
- Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 8:42 pm
- Location: St. John, VI
Appreciate ya, Ruth and thanks to you and St. John Spice, we now have one ceremonial boomerang and two cats that are currently MIA.StJohnRuth wrote:Fabulous!
Thank you, 54b.
- Ruth
I can only imagine if we'd said yes to the pirate swords.
It’s not about yesterday or tomorrow...It’s about today, for come what may – Sun, rain, or hurricane – we've only time for a smile, and none for sorrow
-
mindehankins
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silverheels
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