Dear Diary:                                                                 August 7, 2013

Day 7:

          The whole family went hiking. I mean real hiking not just walking up a hill. Surprisingly, Bella was actually incredibly enthusiastic to go. Ever since she and Leah had started hiking as a means of getting to know each other, Bella had really started enjoying it. It made her feel more human to just walk on the rough terrain without falling or stepping over logs without hopping over them like she would do if she was hunting. So at about 11am that morning, we were all off.

          Everyone was mostly walking in loose clusters. Leading the way was Alexander who was in deep conversation with Jasper, Peter, Emmett, and Keith. Behind them, Esme walked with Rogue, Edward, and I. The two women were talking about the weather. A topic Esme never spoke of until her epiphany filled journey cross country. Edward and I were just kind of keeping to ourselves even though I did pick up snippets of what the conversation was about here and there. Esme was fascinated by tornadoes and Rogue, who was good at not only creating them, but she inhaled all the information about them like a sponge so she was explaining the less complicated science about them.

          Behind us walked Nessie, Michelle, Alice, Kim, and Rosalie. Kim and Rose were in the middle of some discussion regarding the carburetor on a Ferrari or something to that effect. Meanwhile, the other three were talking about the next fashion week that was just around the corner and how cool it would be to get tickets to see it. Next came, Leah, Bella, Amy, Corin, and Seth. Corin and Seth were holding hands and just walking along. Every time Seth would look at Corin, she would blush. Amy was content on walking in silence while Leah and Bella chatted about something cooking related. Jacob and Michelle's parents brought up the back. They were both interested in the Quileute legends and Jacob was telling them all he knew. It was a very nice experience as we took in the island from a forest standpoint. That was pretty much it for that day.

Day 8:

          We had Bella and Edward's anniversary party. As previously mentioned, it was a very informal gathering at the fire pit in the backyard. Esme, Alice, Rose, and Leah cooked a meal to feed a small country. We sat on those cushions and couches we had prepared for the occasion and mingled. Music played from invisible speakers. At first it was soothing so people got a chance to walk around and get some food from the buffet style dinner. Bella had even asked if she could wear pajamas to it; I think she was joking but she nearly gave Alice a heart attack.

          Bella ended up wearing a beautiful dark blue dress that had a v neck and like petal layers on the bottom. Edward's eyes were popping out of his head when she appeared; making Alice giggle with delight. Once again she pulled everything off without a hitch. So after dinner, there was a cake that Esme baked. When Bella looked at it....she started laughing. Edward had asked Esme to make a cake in a shape of a lamb. None of us knew what that meant but the two of them shared a look so I took to mean it meant something to them. Either way, the lamb looked cute.

          We were soon done with eating; Jacob even burped loudly which was a signal that he was finally full. At least he said 'excuse me.' We all shook our heads while Nessie and Michelle giggled. It was time to open the presents. As soon as Bella understood that all of the gifts would be champagne flutes but of different shape and color, she started trying to pry out of everyone the details of her birthday present. Nobody budged making Bella scowl a little. Edward kissed her so she stopped scowling and enjoyed the rest of the gathering.

          After the presents were opened, we decided to have what Jacob dubbed a "weird poses diving contest" by the pool. Those that didn't want to participate like Kim, Rogue, Alexander, Maria, and I were the judges. The whole point was to jump into the pool while making the weirdest pose you can think of. Jacob went first and performed a spectacular cannon ball that had the water rising at least 7 feet in the air! Everyone else stood by the pool and waited for their turn.

        Just then I heard and saw something really funny. Emmett was standing a ways away and he wiggled his eyebrows at me which meant he was about to do something; what he did was dive toward the pool but not alone. He bum rushed the women and ended up going into the pool with Bella, Nessie, Michelle, and Corin. Bella hadn't removed her dress yet as she was still deciding whether she wanted to participate or join the judges on the side. Emmett made the decision for her. So she toppled into the water in her new dress! Alice all but had a heart attack; she jumped into the water herself doing some sort of ballerina pose and attacked Emmett by sitting on his back and pretending to choke him while everyone laughed. Even Bella.

        After everyone had their chances to jump into the water, it was on to round two; round one being won by Emmett for his innovative way of getting someone into a pool. Round two consisted of tandem jumping. The winners were Michelle and Nessie who did a very synchronized dance before going into the water via a handstand. Round three was a splash off between Emmett, Michelle, and Nessie which Emmett won just by his sheer girth alone. He was pretty happy about that....sooner or later everyone was in the pool; even the judges. It was a wonderful way to spend the day.

Day 9:

          Was another beach day. This time I got into the water myself and swam around. It felt very heavenly. The surf wasn't bad but the kids still got knocked over by Mother Nature's strongest element when they weren't paying attention. As the saying goes: "Never turn your back to the ocean." I did notice one thing though.....Keith seemed to be fidgeting a lot. I've never seen a fidgety Watcher before; this was new. When he was out of earshot, Edward told me that he was planning a romantic dinner for him and Leah for the following night and wasn't sure how she would react to it. I smiled. I guess we'd have to wait and see.

Day 10:

          On our last full day on the island, we took the time to really enjoy each thing. Esme, Rogue, Alexander, and I went swimming in the big waterfall's pond. Everybody else was doing lord knows what. When the sun started to set, we returned to see Keith telling Leah to get ready for their romantic date. Alice and Bella helped her get ready.

          After she was ready, the two of them walked off hand in hand. Leah looked quite pretty when she left. She was blushing so she matched the dress she was wearing. Their date lasted about 5 hours and when they got back Leah was absolutely glowing. She will tell you all about her date in the next entry. We were very happy for her.

Day 11:

          Today is our last day and we are packing up our own stuff as well as some of the island stuff. We will be leaving in a few hours. I know that the hospital is missing me and I'm missing it. It's time to go home. Everyone is rested, some are tanned, some a little burned (Corin managed to burn her shoulders somehow. Here I thought that she swam in the SPF 50 suntan lotion) and some have a few secrets to share.

          I will stop here. I have a lot of work to do before I get back to the hospital. I hope you have enjoyed your time off from all of these entries. Esme is calling my name. Gotta go make my wife happy.

~Carlisle Cullen