Written by Mia: 

There has been a lot of counting down to the first of April this year! Then when the answer to the question “when is my birthday” finally was “tomorrow”, he squealed and crossed his toes. The day unfortunately started with a goodbye. We had hoped to have a lot more time with Bright Eyes once they got over to this side, but alas it did not come to pass. They very generously took us in and made us feel like family when we were in Menorca and we met up along the way enroute to Gibraltar and they were there to wave us off in Tenerife and then our paths were askew over here. We did however manage to meet up in the middle of the sea and waved to each other on the morning of Teo’s birthday. Teo waved with two hands because he is now six and you just have to use two hands for six fingers.

Breakfast for the birthday boy was crazy Sugar Bomb cereal. From the set of mini cereal packets, Teo chose Froot Loops just like Mark and I did when we visited Mossa and Oke when we were small. There was a pile of presents and crown with a 6 on it. The Norwegian tradition of giving the birthday hero a crown is such a great one and I think a Teo is finally warming to the idea! This year it was made out of blue foam with yellow foam letters and a giant 6 of course. Sta Vast were with us in spirit and left a generous bag full of gifts which Teo declared were his favorites of course. There were lots of hand made treats and cards and we also had phone calls with family and we are touched that everyone made the effort to wish him a great day!

As we arrived in Falmouth, Antigua, Bonaire came out in the dinghy singing happy birthday and as we were anchoring Blue Zulu were singing, too! Teo was very very happy, smiling from ear to ear! He spent the rest of the day visiting friends and then we went to the beach, too. We put up the dress overall signal flags and made Itchy Foot look fancy and in the evening we had company. Blue Zulu, Bonaire and Dana de Mer came over for a movie night. The kids sat down in the saloon and ate pasta with pesto (Teo’s choice) and watched Pirates of the Caribbean (also Teo’s choice). The adults drank Rum punch and ate Spaghetti Bol ala Anna. It was a lovely evening!

The birthday celebrations continued and next day we celebrated Fin and Teo with a pirate party on the beach! Teo was picked up by some small pirates in an Optimist sailing dinghy. There was a treasure hunt on the beach, that the dads put together with clues hanging from trees and submerged in the water. Anna made a pirate cake, complete with paper sails that all turned into an inferno when the candles were lit which the boys loved! We grilled food, there was a painting project, a bonfire and lots of giggling. All of that adds up to very happy kids! Teo especially loved the bonfire he helped a Jage build and was pretty proud to be the last one to leave the party on the beach! The wonderful friends we are making in the cruising community made Teo’s day very special and the Itchy Foot crew feel very lucky to have them.

We’ve had the pleasure, joy and fortune to spend Every single day of Teo’s fifth year in his company. He is a lovely little man who brings daily joy to our lives with his affection, sense of humor and imagination and we feel incredibly lucky to spend so much time with him this year.