Another amazing sunset is closing this day. Ieke and Robert, my sister and bf, are visiting. Sahara sand is flying over Bonaire, sand all over from the African continent is blown over the Atlantic. Talking about a meaningless effort, just to dirty our boat and solar panels. But it gives beautiful sunsets. This amazing sunset also marks Suus her due date. We are driving back from the Flamingo minigolf and Suus has killed us on the turf. She easily beat all three of us with a beautiful and impressive belly.

Two days later we are in the hospital again, we had a slight idea that the membranes could be ruptured. The membranes from Suus. After some tests it is clear, it is probably a really small puncture, but it is a puncture. Meaning we cannot wait long until the labour starts naturally. It means there is a “open” connection from the outside of the world with the baby. The little one has to come out within 2 days. We are sent back to the boat to wait one more day. We danced the whole evening, squating together, Suus ate pineapple hearts, we had hot curry for dinner, you name it, we tried everything. But the next day we are dinghying to shore without any real contraction. And it is certain, our daughter will be born before we will return to the boat. We brought the largest bag there is with all things we possibly would need, but definitely returned home with everything unused.

That night Evi is born, in the hospital in Bonaire. Because of the prolonged rupture of the membranes Suus and Evi need to stay in the hospital for one night. Just for observation. I am walking back to the apartment where my sister is staying, just 50 meters away from our boat. Although it is hard to leave my two ladies, it feels ok. I can share my emotions and my thoughts with her. “Oh Sis. It has been such an amazing force of nature. Seeing your loved one in so much pain and the only thing you could do is being there. Watching her do the most intense and impressive thing I have ever seen. I knew Suus is the strongest person I know but doing this, being able to yield and surrender but at the same time control her body and mind and welcoming our little baby. It is again, the most impressive thing I have experienced.” Not much news but it is true. As is most other things they say about having a child we will find out…

The morning after I can pick up Suus. I have never drove so slow and cautious as the trip from the hospital to the dinghy dock. When we arrive Ieke and Robert are welcoming us! Together with Ieke get in the dinghy. Suus, my sister, me. And our daughter Evi. No wind and waves making a perfect flat sea to sail to our boat. Sander from the Blue Beryl is sailing next to us in his dinghy. He makes photos of the mental picture that I will treasure for all my life. Lifting Evi on the boat for the first time, she is home. We are home. With our daughter Evi. 

Final hours, and last smile of Suus…

“Go, go, go!”, just 3 seconds later I signal Jonas to slow down. I am standing on my foil board for the first time. It is made for kitesurfing but we are practicing behind a dinghy.  To get a feeling for the board and the lift it is giving first, before also have to pay attention to manoeuvring the flying kite. A foil is connected to the bottom of a board, and the airplane style wings lift your board out of the water. When you get speed you’re sailing on these wings and not on your board anymore. This flying is an amazing feeling and also creates a really low amount of drag. But by moving your toe one inch and you are already catapulted up or crashing down. It is difficult, really difficult. Jonas (Danish friend from Zoma) and I are having a hard but fun time while Suus is laughing her ass off. 

Suus her belly is growing more beautiful every day and is still amazingly fit. We finish a lot of work and do many trips. We go mini golfing at the Scheetjes (a dutch family that was in a TV show “Ik vertrek”). Suus even goes windsurfing! We also have several trips to shoot content for our deal with the car rental company. The barter deal gives us a beautiful and huge pick-up car while we write blogs, shoot pictures and make beautiful (drone) videos for them.

“It looks like you have contractions already. That is way too early here so that possibly means we have to fly you to Colombia or Curacao”. Suus and I look really scared when the midwife tells us her conclusion. It is midnight and we have been told to come to the hospital 2 hours ago. Suus is only 32 weeks pregnant, the healthcare in Bonaire is really good but doesn’t have the technical ability to receive a child before 36 weeks. The genealogist does a lot of tests and around 03.00 we are allowed to go home. We have to return the day later and if the uterus has not opened more than now that what could have been contractions didn’t had any result, so won’t have a result probably later. A scary and sleepless night later we get good news at the hospital. If it were contractions they didn’t result in opening up the uterus, meaning it didn’t start the delivery! It is a wake-up call. The biggest reason for having early contractions is stress. We, and especially Suus, have been way to busy, Suus is so strong that she does not let the belly, and everything else changing in her body, stop her doing normal amounts of work. Next to that living on a boat is a bit different than living in a home on shore. We decide that she will stop working, she is going on a pregnancy leave. From this moment we are counting the four weeks until Suus is 36 weeks.

It also wakes me up to prepare the boat even quicker for the little nugget. On Facebook we buy an old cradle and make a closure for the baby bed from the bars. My toolstation has already been transformed into a changing station. All the wood is painted and we put up some stickers of sea animals. But it seems that I feel the pressure now and start painting all the wood of the boat, every day a small part so the chemical air is gone really quick for Suus. All screws, bolts and nuts are sorted in size and material, and we find spots for all things that needed new “homes”. The boat gets more and more ready for a third member.

All spare materials and DIY stuff gets sorted and new places on the boat.