Keeping up with the Bakers

in Cura�ao, Netherlands Antilles!

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:31:00 -0400

Well, we're here! Living in the Caribbean. We'll try to use this space to keep you up to date on what we're up to, how we're doing and, most importantly, where you can reach us so you can come to visit.

We have several photo albums at the top of this page, so check them out when you get some time - keep an eye on them; we'll add to them as we have more adventures!

Also, there is a link to "Our Videos" at the top of the blog. A few rock climbing videos and one from a quick trip to Dominica. Others will be added over time.

(Warning: We can't promise how frequently we'll be updating but try not to hold that against us!)

Lake Tahoe

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:15:00 -0400

In early September we left Curacao for some adventure in the Southwest U.S. Our first stop was Reno, Nevada. This was only because it was the nearest big airport to Lake Tahoe. The following day we set off with our rental car stuffed with the added luggage required by the addition of a baby, and drove a very picturesque drive though Ponderosa Pine forests to Lake Tahoe.

We were joined there by Dom's parents and spent a week climbing, hiking and exploring the area.

Here's our first glimpse of the lake as we approached from Carson City:

Dom and Joshua in his brand new carrier:

Having a snack at Donner Pass (if you don't get the reference, google the Donner Party):

From Lake Tahoe, we moved on to a house just outside the Red Rock Canyon in Nevada. This was a great staging area for climbing, hiking, canyoneering, and just enjoying the outdoors in general. We spent two weeks there and the weather was perfect the entire time.

Here are some Joshua trees in the desert in Red Rock canyon:

Lianne, Joshua and the Bakers hiking on the red rocks:

Dom leading the first pitch of "Lotta Balls" (Lianne had been wanting to climb this one for years and we finally did):

Here's our boy relaxing in the house we rented:

Dom and his dad went to Utah to hike the Buckskin Gulch; the longest slot canyon in the world. It takes 2 days to complete the hike and they were going to camp on the canyon floor for one night. Unfortunately as they were travelling there, thunderstorms in nearby Zion National Park caused a flash flood (and this only happens 3 times a year!!!), so they couldn't hike the Gulch. They returned to Zion and spent the day hiking through the park instead. They will be back to hike the gulch...

Midway through the day, they ate the supper they had packed for the night in the canyon - beans and weiners!

Where is Joshua?

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:09:00 -0400

Whenever we travel, we've taken "Where's Joshua?" photos, here are a few from our recent trips. Can you find him? (he's very obvious in some photos and very hard to find in others)

Joshua in Reno

Joshua in Red Rock Canyon

Joshua overlooking Red Rocks

Joshua in the Aruba Marriott

Joshua on the grounds of the Aruba Marriott

it's hot.

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 13:14:00 -0400

Uh, today is 32 degrees Celsius. Sounds toasty until you add the 75% humidity, which makes it feel like 47 degrees. We tried to enjoy lunch at a cute ocean-side restaurant today but it was too frickin hot.

Weekend in St.Martin

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:09:00 -0400

Dom had 4 days off in a row so we took the opportunity to fly to St.Martin for the weekend.

It's a pretty neat place - it is the smallest landmass (37 square miles, or 96 square km if you prefer) in the world shared by 2 independent states. On an island one-fifth the size of the island of Montreal!! St. Martin in the north is a territory of France and Sint Maarten in the south is a Dutch territory and part of the Netherlands Antilles (as is Curacao).

On the French side, everything is priced in Euros (and is accordingly quite expensive - 4 euros for a beer, anyone??) but they also do business in US dollars. On the Dutch side, they seemed to predominantly use US dollars but would also accept euros or the Netherlands Antilles Guilder, which is the official currency (and, again, also that of Curacao). The Dutch side seemed more developed - more populated, more large resorts, while the French side seemed to have more of a genuine Caribbean feel.

Our hotel was up as far North as you can go, on the French side. We had a relaxing stay. Both Dom and I had the chance to dive and Joshua enjoyed a dip in the pool.

This is the "famous" Orient Beach on the east side of the island:

Joshua enjoying a dip in the pool with Mummy:

.. and having a beer with Dad!

Lianne SCUBAs

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:55:10 -0400

So, it only took me two years of living in a location where there are more dive sites and dive operators than you can shake a stick at to finally get my Open Water certification. Considering I've wanted to do this since I was, like, 16 years old, it took far too long.

But now it's done! Here are a couple of photos from one of my dives and there's an album on the left of lots of the things we saw.

(and yes, it really does look like this!)

Joshua goes to Canada

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 17:53:52 -0400

Joshua and I went to Canada for over 3 weeks this summer. Dom was supposed to go too but didn't get the vacation time approved. :(

Joshua had a great time hanging out in Halifax with Peggy and Paul and he even got to meet his cousins Daphne and Charlotte, who were visiting from France.

Joshua and I in Nanny MacDonald's house in PEI:

Joshua with Nanny MacDonald:

Playing with Paul:

Doing some light reading: (actually, he was trying to eat the pages)

We didn't quite get to see everyone we would have liked to have seen but it was a long time to be away from Dom so we were happy to come home to Curacao.

Lianne

Joshua's First Trip - Aruba

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:13:35 -0400

In June Lianne, Dom and Joshua travelled a full 28 minutes by air to Aruba for a 4 day vacation. This was a series of firsts for Joshua: first time in an airplane, first time in a pool, first time in the ocean, first time ordering a margarita poolside!!

The Great Debate: Disposable or Cloth? The Answer: Neither!!

Sun, 26 Apr 2009 17:51:16 -0400

As we were approaching parenthood, we discovered possibly the best answer to the diaper question. The answer, we discovered, is g-diapers. They are chemical-free and flushable/biodegradable/compostable. Designed to be flushable, if for any reason you can't flush 'em, you can compost them (those that have only "number one" in them) and if they do end up in the landfill, they are completely biodegradable. There is even a pretty neat video on their website (www.gdiapers.com/gdiapers101/watch-the-videos ) that shows the decomposition comparison of a regular disposable diaper, a chlorine-free disposable diaper and the inside of a g-diaper. The g-diaper is completely gone within 2 months but the other two have hardly changed and, according to the video, the plastic will take over 500 years to decompose (if it ever really does). With the number of diapers a baby goes through, we couldn't stomach the idea of dropping that much plastic from disposable diapers into the landfill. Cloth diapers are criticized for the amount of water, energy and the detergents and bleach you need to use to clean them.

Here's how they work: you buy 'little g pants' - essentially a cloth outer layer that comes in lots of cool colours. They have Velcro closures and soft elastic around the legs. Then you snap in a liner that is kind of like Gore-Tex - it keeps the liquid in but also breathes. Into that liner, a refill is inserted that absorbs all liquids and it's this refill that is flushable/biodegradable. Everything else is washable if it gets dirty. We started using them when Joshua was about 2 weeks old and they're great! They can even contain his nuclear poops!

We love them so much we want to tell as many people as possible about them. The website has a lot of information, including a list of where you can buy them (in Halifax, they're available at Uncommon Kids Gear). In our geographically limited experience, the little g pants aren't usually available for purchase at retail stores, but the refills are. We just ordered the g pants through the website and they were delivered quite quickly.

Last point: not only are they great for the environment, they're pretty darn fashionable, too!!

(P.S. They're the only diaper certified "Cradle-to-Cradle", which means everything they're made of can return to the earth. Read the book sometime and you'll rethink product design like never before)

He?s heeeeeere!

Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:26:17 -0400

We would like to introduce our son Joshua Pierre Baker. Joshua was born March 12, 2009. He was already two weeks late and it took 15 hours of labour for him to finally make his appearance. (It looks like he?s inherited his parents? punctuality!) He weighed 7 lbs 8 oz.

He is now three weeks old and we?re settling into our new lives with him. We are thrilled to be parents and so far we?re not overly sleep deprived; he generally only wakes up once a night to eat. Our dog and cat have seemed to make the adjustment very easily, and Tuffy is already protective of him, lying beside his crib and occasionally sniffing him and giving him little licks (not on the face!!). We know he?s being affectionate but we still maintain a close watch when either the cat or dog are near him.

That?s all the news for now.

Check out the photo album on the upper left of the blog named ?Joshua? for some photos!