The ocean view from our upstairs "guest" apartment!!!

The parking lots at church....room for 6 cars, plus grass parking.

There is a huge mango tree in the background which begins producing

around February (firm, apple-like mangoes) and goes through May

(the juicy, delicious mangoes). We've heard everyone just gorges themselves

on mangoes after church, hanging out and chatting. Looking forward to it.

So far, we haven't been overly impressed with the produce selection, though

pineapples are so delicious and super cheap (about $1.25). Everything in season, I guess!

Zach and the kids in front of the Chapel. The door you see is the main entrance,

nothing too fancy!

On Sunday we drove the 40 minute dirt road to church again. There were about 20 more people in attendance, and one family is American. Caralee and Tom and their three kids have lived here for a year. Tom taught last year at Educarte, an early education bilingual school nearby. They loved it so much, that he signed a two year contract with Country Day school and will be staying for a while. The week before last they were in the States, which is why we didn't meet them, and they said this visit, they were so ready to come back to Costa Rica. I guess after some time, you just get more and more accustomed to the ways of life here, and I imagine that perhaps I will have another tough adjustment back when we come home next summer. Interesting to think about. Caralee and Tom live in Huacas, which is where the kids' school is, so they are fairly close, and Caralee works at a "club" near our home, as the athletic manager. We have heard that there are actually two MORE american families moving into the branch in September, both from Utah, one with 5 kids, the other with 7! I'm not sure how they will fit everyone into the chapel, and the parking lots has enough room for 6 cars.????

Second week of school was better than the first for the kids. Owen and Jed cried less, but Jed still tells me everyday he doesn't want to go....absolutely heart wrenching! I thought he'd adjust more quickly and enjoy having kids to play with, and I think he does once I drive away, so I'm not sure what the hang up is....I think it just makes for a long day, and he's just exhausted. Twice this week he just went in his room, lay down in his bed, and went to sleep (at 6:15 or so). I started classes this week as well, and had two other gals in my class. One a psychology professor from Oregon taking a sabbatical, and the other from France, traveling with friends and learning a new language. She already speaks french, dutch and english with spanish being her 4th language. I'm still not sure why we do not implement earlier in our schools an in depth second language (or third and fourth like many countries). I am seeing how very, very difficult it is to learn a new language for me and the kids, and think how amazing to just "know" it because it was just part of life as a child. I also met a couple there from Norway, just traveling and studying...they also speak english and "always have", plus they said, "Everything is in English...movies, books, etc, so we just know it, we have to."

My Spanish classes were great, and I learned so much that I really didn't have time to absorb it all, nor practice it all. Most of the students are living with homestay families, so they are speaking and hearing it all day. I think I may plan to take a week of classes, then take a week to study, and so on. I've also heard that it is very helpful to do one-on-one classes, so perhaps I will try that as well....

The kids are graduating from boogie boards to surfboards. Owen and Tia have especially taken a liking to surfing. Kaylee and Ethan would rather boogie board and play in the sand building things and throwing sand balls. Jed still has a slow transition when we go to the beach. He likes to play in the sand, but doesn't like any crabs, bugs, ants, or what not. He loves to play in shallow water and have me help him jump the waves. We go out literally every afternoon once we get home from school and have a snack. Zach is usually finished with work and we play until dinner time. Then it's time for bed since we are on an early schedule. The Costa Rica clock is perfect for our early-to-bed, early-to-rise family... the sun goes down around 6pm and comes up around 5:30, the kids wake up around 6am.

I had another cucuracha experience the other day. As we were leaving for school, I was standing in the doorway and heard a flapping, buzzing sound near my ear. I looked down to see an enormous cochroach on my shoulder. I flung it off onto the ground and it immediately ran into our house. I hollered for Zach (I catch or kill most things in our house, but don't have the stomach for anything crunchy....) who stomped on it and told me he was having such interesting memories of Argentina....yuck! The bugs, ants, cochroaches, crabs, etc are just part of the experience....it didn't take long for me to just start ignoring the single, large ants. They are just all over, if you killed one every time you saw one, you'd spend a good deal of your day doing just that. The other animals that hang out around the house are howler monkeys, that we usually hear in the morning, and raccoons, that usually jump onto our roof any time during the night and scratch and fight with each other. They are loud and it sounds like someone is stomping on the roof. The owner warned us of this, but still, the first few times it happened, I thought for sure someone was on the roof.

We had also been warned about theft here. There is a gate around our entire house, and we have a guard from 6pm-6am every night. We've been careful to always lock the house and protect our computers etc. The owner even told us to lock the back gate or people would come and take swim suits, towels, etc off the back porch. So we've been super cautious about that as well. However, Sunday afternoon, Zach went looking for his tennis shoes, which he couldn't find...then he asked me where my running shoes were..... we quickly realized someone must have hopped the fence while we were at church and taken what they wanted off the back porch. We gradually discovered we were missing two pair of running shoes, Zach's flip flops, my Chacos, Zach's new swim suit, and two bottles of sunscreen. They left all the kids suits and shoes. They must know what sells for the best prices, because we're out about $400! Now we don't keep anything on the porch, sandy or wet or whatever. We also take our computers with us when we leave anywhere together. Usually Zach is here, but on occasion we're both gone. Bummer!!!! I had to reassure myself, so I again asked the owner to reassure me that we are safe, and we are, it's just that people steal anything. He and his wife lived here 20 years.....

I'm getting more and more comfortable with my new duties....cooking almost everything from scratch, including all the kids' snacks. I can't just serve up the usual snack- crackers, cheese, dried fruit, etc. Anything imported is VERY expensive. A box of wheat thins-$7, 1 lb of cheddar cheese - $10, small bag of goldfish crackers $3..... interesting since you can grab some authentic tico food in a nearby town- rice and beans with salad and fish or chicken (really delicious and a good serving) for about $5. I've made granola bars, banana bread, cookies, flatbread/crackers, and so on. If you have any ideas for snacks, I would LOVE them! Overall, we are well. I am learning so much and I know the kids are too. We are planning on sending some post cards next week....... Hope to hear from you soon.

It happened by chance....

After a weekend of pondering over sending the kids to school or not, I decided to give it a try this past Monday. Everyone, including Jed, went to school bright and early Monday morning. Our original plan was to homeschool everyone, and we had hired a private "tutor" everyday to speak to the kids in spanish. When the house in Nicoya went belly-up, we no longer had that hired help to count on teaching our children. Zach and I looked into some other options, including some of the private schools around here. The two most popular schools weren't going to work for us. One is about $500 per month per child, and the other doesn't focus on Spanish, but is a wealthy school for American kids who live here but want to "American" education...Country Day School, if that tells you anything :). Well, one day when we were driving between towns, on our search for a home to rent last week, one of the boys had to pee, and just couldn't wait another minute, so I screeched over on a dirt road off to the left, and let the boys hop out and pee in the creek. While waiting, I noticed a sign you could see from the road, "Blue Ocean"....but the part that couldn't be seen underneath in small print, read, "academia bilingue" (I think). For some reason, the location, the small, clean school, and the feeling about it just stuck with me. I couldn't find anything online about the school except a blog from a couple who said their child went there last year and had a great year. I returned the next day and found someone on the grounds. He let me in and took me to the elementary director. We spoke a little (broken English and Spanish), and I got the prices, which were excellent comparatively, the schedule, and a little more information.

Against my "nature", I actually went with my "gut" this time, and followed that feeling I had that this could be great, for the kids, for me, for our whole situation. It is a little drive, takes us about 15-20 minutes one way, but I also found a "school" for myself that is just a bit past the kids' school, so I don't feel like I'm driving out of the way. I start classes this coming Monday and am in class from 8:00am-12:00pm, which couldn't be more perfect since the kids start school at 7:30am. I have a little time in the afternoon to regroup and then pick up kids from school. Owen and Jed are out at 1:30 and E, T, and K, are finished at 2:30. Kaylee's class is 4th and 5th grade with 5 children in class...Tia and Ethan are together with 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade,, with 6 kids in class. Owen and Jed each have about 9 kids in class. So, from 30+ kids in class at Meridian to 5 kids in class in CR....can't we find a happy median here???

By 3:00 everyday we're on the beach. I absolutely love the ocean. It is a new play yard everyday, with a new tide, new critters, and new friends. I may have already said this, but it's just great. I also feel like I can go down with a few of the kids and the others can come down where they are ready.....

Yesterday, Kaylee's main focus was to catch fish. She discovered that it is easier to catch them with her bare hands than to try and scoop them up in something. After trying for several days to catch the little minnow-like fish that get caught in the pools when the tide goes out, she caught four in one day. The kids have them as pets in a water jug on the back porch, and are feeding them cracker crumbs...we'll see how long that lasts. Today, Zach took all the kids out on boogie boards to catch some waves. When they actually "caught" their first wave, I think they were totally amazed to just keep going and going until they were on shore. I couldn't get K, T, and O to come inside for dinner.....looking forward to tomorrow already!

We are settling in more and more everyday, and I didn't realize how much I thrive on a routine...just like a child. It brings me peace and purpose to know what's on the calendar and when...of course, not a totally full calendar. I love the free time all afternoon with nothing but play time and loving time. My favorite thing about the kids' school, is that homework is only two days per week....

This is our "view" from our family room. The ocean is just past the

two crooked trees in the distance. It really is one of the most beautiful views

and the gives the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen.

On the dirt road on the way to our house....so many potholes....

The father of my good friend, Shanna, gave me some advice before

we left for Costa Rica. He said to just watch and record all the

funny and interesting things that you see. I've tried to do this

and his words are sticking with me as I seriously see something so

bizarre everyday. Today, some cows just decided to cross the road in

front of us on our way home from school. The cows here are very

skinny, yet have every opportunity to eat as much grass as they would like...

and you know me...this makes me very suspicious of our "cows" in the United States.

What are we feeding them???? Yuck! More and more I am converting to the

rice and beans diet....

Also on our way home from school, we saw this not-so-funny, but very

interesting sight. This small boy was taking a nap on his mother's arm....

Comfy, as long as you're not riding on the back of a motorcycle?

My kids want to know why no one wears a helmet when they can't leave

the driveway on a scooter without a helmet?????

This is seriously our driveway! I love love love to come home everyday

and see this gorgeous, lush sight.....and we just paid how much for our

"professional" landscape in Colorado? I now want to puke!

From the beach, looking at the back of our house...If you decide to come visit us,

your view would be from the windows above the patio, overlooking the ocean!

La cucaracha.....

Yesterday and today were such a blessing to me.....happiness, tranquility and new friends. We all slept in yesterday morning, and after breakfast went out to play at the beach. I went for a run, and once back, Zach took off for his run. The kids and I walked about a mile down the beach to a huge tidepool that was almost as big as a pool, though not as deep. The girls built an amazing "castle"/cage for their two hermit crabs they found. Both hermit crabs we trying desperately to escape the, and we were trying to see if we could force them up the "stairs" and down the "bridge" that the girls had built out of sand and these tall, pointy shells that are everywhere on this beach.
The beach brings a new scene and new pets everyday for the kids...I love that aspect. Every morning there is a different tide at different times, tide pools here and there, critters all over, and new shells.
We walked back, Zach telling a hilarious made up story about 5 kids named Katia, Talaylee, Ethed, Jowen, and Jethan....and pirate excursions in Costa Rica. This took the edge off the long walk, and all kids begin starving since it was about 1:30 already. After lunch it was nice to just be home for a bit, but that didn't last long once the tide came in, friends were playing outside, and it clouded over and was cooler....we all wanted back outside for one reason or another. Zach and Tia played out in the water, trying to ride in waves. Jed and Owen ran from the tide or let it wash over them for about a hour, and Ethan and Kaylee were just reading and enjoying the cool breeze. I whipped up some fajitas for dinner, and we had a pretty calm and enjoyable bedtime..... As I was on my way to my room to put something away, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of something big and black near my foot...it was a huge cochroach, and I leaped up onto the couch. I squealed (after being the one who has shewed out many crabs, a baby gecko, taken care of spiders, etc, I just couldn't handle the cochroach). Zach ran in and grabbed a huge, heavy book of bedtime stories off the coffee table, and dropped it square on the book. I wasn't so sure he "got" it....that sucker knew something was coming, and was ready to run. I screamed for Zach to lift the book, and no one wanted to see something run out from under there, but when he finally lifted it, la cucaracha was most certainly dead! What a way to go.

We have a guard who stays at the house all night and watches the front and back from 6pm until 6am. Our usual guard went to see his family and thus introduced us to the guard who was filling in for him .... Well, last night, the guard was a little over ambitious, and I could see him walking around with his flashlight checking all the doors, etc, as I was getting ready for bed. In the middle of the night, Zach and I heard a blood-curdling scream and Ethan came bolting into our room....terrified because someone had just shined a light in his room. Zach had to go outside at 2am and let the guy know he could chill it just a little. We do feel safe here, so for that we are grateful. Zach teases that he hopes he doesn't get billy-clubbed one night when he's just going to get something out of the car.

Today, Sunday, we gave ourselves 40 minutes to get to church, but still ended up being about 10 minutes late. We sat separately, as seats were sparse, and I might have actually understood some of the meeting except for the horrible microphone in the "chapel"....We immediately noticed a nice looking American family, who I assumed must be just visiting, but right after the meeting, the mother turned and asked me if we were the "other family" who was moving here for a year. I, surprised, said yes, we were moving here for a year but that we couldn't possibly be that family since no one knew we were coming. As we chatted, we found out that they moved from Gilbert, AZ about a month ago. Tara and Lane also have 5 children, but their two oldest are on a mission and at BYU...here younger kids, a boy and two girls, are 14, 11, and 7....Kaylee and Tia made immediate friends. Kaylee commented that the whole entire primary was smaller than just her class in Colorado. There were 11 kids in primary today, and the president kept saying, "muchos hijos" with a huge smile. Zach translated for the primary, and I helped the first hour, and then went to RS, where they asked me to read twice. I felt like I did pretty well, but after the second time, this nice older lade beside me just put her hand on my back and just rubbed a little, and smiled at me, with what I thought I heard, was a small little chuckle under her breath.....Not sure what that meant, but they are so loving and just happy to have you there...no offense can be taken. And I'm not out to impress, so it's good to get in all the practice possible.

Tara and Lane invited us over to chocolate chip cookies in the afternoon. We drove to their home, about a half hour away, and visited with them for a little while. We had some good laughs sharing our stories thus far, and realizing that their story is exactly the same as ours. It felt good to know someone else has decided to do something this ridiculous.... Tara and Lane first rented a house in Nicaragua (ironically, the same house we looked at renting...thanks to craigslist). After a week (I commended her on the week), of washing clothes by hand, no a/c in ridiculously hot weather, bugs everywhere, dim dull lighting, no car because the owners said they would be fine with bikes and horses, and living on ritz crackers, cheese, and nuts that they had purchased from the PriceMart (Costa Rica's Costco....ha!), they'd had enough. They sought out a new place, and are now renting another home in Puerto Viego. Their goal is 1-2 years, but her words, "we'll see...". I was impressed that neither of them speak spanish, but have wanted to learn for some time. Their girls will be going to a Beaches Homeschool Academy (homeschool because it's taught in a home). I'm actually looking into a school called Blue Ocean Bilingual Academy for the kids. We will check it out tomorrow morning, the actual first day of school since they follow an international calendar. Our original plan was to homeschool, but it was also to have a private tutor for spanish 8 hours per day....so we are replanning.

Let me clarify that I am also using this blog as my journal or at least being as detailed as possible so I can cut and paste into my journal. At first I thought I'd update about once a week, but I'm seeing that in order to capture and remember the experience, I might be updating more frequently. Enjoy as much as you wish!!!

Una mas cosa!!!

One more thing....I forgot to mention. We now have a pretty incredible apartment above our house that we are renting with the house. It will serve as Zach's office, with an amazing ocean view. It's got a small kitchenette, a nice sofa, that could sleep a couple of kids, a queen size bed, and a twin size futon or something like that. If you can get a flight here, and a car to Tamarindo....you are welcome to stay (Zach can work in our room, no problem). We'd love to see friends!!! We are totally serious. Chance of a lifetime!

Our new backyard...at sunset. This is seriously gorgeous!

Hotel Bula Bula....suspiciously "happy-looking"

If you look closely, you can see the pig we watched get "roasted"

A true, authentic pig-pickin'....

"We are so done being in this car!"

A park in downtown San Jose...one of our first days here in CR.

I'm realizing now, I need to download these in reverse order of viewing!!!

More pictures to come soon. We are finally feeling good....

Where are we??????

When Zach and I realized today that we've only been here for 6 days, we couldn't believe it. The last week has felt like seriously a month, and has been mostly unpleasant, to say the very least.

On Friday, after two full days in San Jose without a car, in a tiny apartment, we realized we were anxious to get our home, enough so that we rented a car (Zach had cashier's checks to buy a car, and we were unable to cash them quickly enough), and drove to Nicoya, hoping to get settled in quickly and start our new life in Costa Rica. We picked up the keys from Jorge who showed us to the farm. Jorge saddled up the horses so all the kids could ride...they were in heaven. Afterwards everyone went skinny dipping in the pool and thought it was so hilarious. The property was gorgeous with so much land, views, and just private and peaceful. Zach and I moved all our belongings from the car into the house, and Zach made a trip to the store for food and some supplies. After dinner, and upon trying to get the kids to bed, we realized none of the beds were made, and all the sheets in the house were moldy and mildewy. Zach and I also spent several hours banging out the mattresses, dirt and debris all over them. We swept the floors and cleaned spiderwebs from the floors and ceilings, around the beds, etc...While Zach went to the store to buy new sheets, towels, pillows, etc, the kids explored the house, and the loft...they loved seeing the lizards on the screen windows until they realized they were inside!!! A hole in the upstairs screen also allowed several wasps to be swarming around inside, from a nearby nest. We had everyone sleep downstairs. After sunset, we realized the bugs were definitely going to be a problem. I was cleaning up after dinner, and with the light on, all the bugs and critters congregated around the light with me. When we tucked everyone in, we had to keep flicking bugs off the bed without any of the kids seeing....or no one would sleep. The ceiling fans were not working (3 out of the 4 and no standing fans available at the store), and this was the only way we were going to keep the bugs away. Luckily the kids fell asleep out of sheer exhaustion. I seriously would've been better off camping outside, at least in a tent. Through all this, Zach and I never said a word, but just kept cheerful faces and attitudes....but both of us were thinking the same thing. I didn't sleep until about 4:30 in the morning, up all night anxious and concerned about this place. I finally slept for about an hour, sweating under a sheet to keep the bugs off my face.... In the morning, I'm sure the look on my face spelled it out, but I still managed to keep it together. Zach noticed that throughout the night, dirt and debris had fallen from the ceiling/roof all over the kids and the new sheets, etc. We sent the kiddos out to swim, and I broke down, admitting that I was NOT going to make it in this place...How am I supposed to create a cozy place for our family and homeschool, etc, with this??? Zach readily agreed, and assured me that if I had not spoken up, he would have within the next day or so. We continued chatting and planning out by the pool. The kids were screaming about a piece of "poop" they found in the pool. They were pretend-trying to catch it and teasing that they would throw it on each other (same little savages as always). I figured it was a leaf, stick, or that really one of them HAD pooped in the pool. But when Tia (or all the kids) finally caught the poop, she saw it was a "slug".....I saw it and immediately knew it was a LEECH~......okay, so packing up the car now! I didn't tell the girls what the slimy poop was until we'd left the house, belongings in tow, not to return...not sure where we were going.

We had a little "prayer meeting"....pleading with all our hearts that we would feel good about any place on the map. We discussed a few coastal towns we had read about online, and headed that direction. On our way out of town, Zach stopped at the mercado to return items we no longer would need, and while we waited for him, the kids had lunch in the car, PB spread (by my finger) on some dry bread, papas (potato chips), and some bananas. No one complained, they must have "felt" the stress in the car. Our first stop about 2 hours later was Playas del Coco, per a recommendation from some locals who said it was not as touristy as Tamarindo....They have a different idea of touristy...there was not a tourist in sight, which quickly made me realize we better request a place that is moderately touristy :)....Coco did not give me a good feeling, but we chatted with a parking guard while the kids played happily on the beach (for the first time), and then drove to the next town that he recommended. Up and over the mountains, the drive into Playa Hermosa was absolutely gorgeous! We checked out the beach area, and it was better than Coco....we drove up and down the streets, looking for places for rent. Down one secluded street, some Ticos were having a pig-pickin, and we got to witness the a good deal of the preparation, entering the scene when they were pouring boiling water over this pig to remove the hair. They were getting ready to "hang" him on the smoking stick when we decided to split. Needless to say, we passed on Hermosa, no matter how beautiful. We decided to press on to Playa Tamarindo, the "very touristy" place, but at this point, thought we'd at least welcome some American faces, and a nice place to stay after driving so far. It was evening by now, and we'd been in the car for about 7 hours. We found the most American place to eat, a brick oven pizza joint that had hammocks the kids could play in while we waited for pizza...I ran across the street for a smoothie, and it was seriously the best food we'd had in what felt like forever.

The sun goes down early all year round in Costa Rica, and right now it's down by about 6:30 latest, so after dinner we desperately started searching for a place to crash for the night. We tried a beautiful resort and asked for a suite with a kitchen, etc, but they were full.....All the other shotty looking hotels were, to our serious disbelief, full also....that, or there was just no one in the office to ask(???). I was driving, and Zach was jumping out in the pouring rain, and in the dark, asking if there was vacancy. After checking out 6 or 7 hotels, kids were bawling, exhausted, and we were all breaking down, we went back to the resort and basically begged them to let us stay in a room with 2 queens and we'd put kids on the floor. They were kind enough to pull in two roll-aways, and three kids slept horizontal on the queen, and everyone slept uninterrupted until late in the morning...we needed it!

Next day, we let the kids take a break in the morning. The resort served an amazing buffet breakfast, and it was so cute to hear all the kids talk about how amazing the food was. A quote from Ethan, "This is the best food I've ever had" We then played at the beach all morning, then swam is the resort pool. Zach worked and looked at houses all morning. He picked us up later and we drove around Tamarindo and the adjacent costal town of Langosta, looked at about 5 houses, but didn't feel good about any (or their locations). We had one last home to view in Playas Grande (I had actually seen this one on Craigslist several months ago). We drove 30 minutes around the estuary (it's a 5 minute boat ride to Grande from Tamarindo, but a half hour drive), and seriously thought we were lost. I wish I could adequately explain the drive, but basically after getting through the small town, we continued toward the coast, through nothing but just crazy jungle on a crazy bumpy dirt road....nothing...kept driving, nothing, miles and miles until we passed another car coming in the opposite direction (our first sign that there was indeed life somewhere along this road). We stopped the car, asked him if he knew "Steve" who was renting a house....Of course he did! So after finding our destination (the house was absolutely gorgeous, brand new...but as I mentioned, in the middle of nowhere, with only one way in and one way out, a long way, and not much human life around), we were done for the night. Fortunately our "friend", whom we had passed on the way in to Playas Grande, was the owner of the one hotel there....a funky little joint that looked like one of those places where people come to do their weird meditating and smoke strange things without anyone knowing....Hotel Bula Bula, if that tells you anything:) We rented two connecting rooms and Zach took the kids for a swim while I scoped out some food, realizing we had all of two choices. We ate at a super authentic Tico place that I drove past three times before I realized it was THE restaurant.....and lucked out, it was seriously delicious....my first real rice, beans and fish experience. Zach and I couldn't resist eating there the next night (while the kids had cereal).

We stayed in Playas Grande for two nights, which was a huge relief not to have to "move" all of our stuff again. I had three huge, disgusting bags of dirty laundry, filled with sweaty clothes, wet swim suits, pee pee undies, and so on. The housekeeper at Bula Bula was kind enough to wash all of our clothes and miraculously got the smell out..... In the morning, I went for a run on the beach. On my way to the access, I was dodging tons of these brightly colored crabs (bright blue, orange, purple)...They were everywhere, many flatted (like frogs in Colorado), from having been hit by a car. Later, the kids and I walked to the beach, a huge, flat, gorgeous beach, that was as empty as the town. We played all morning in the water, and on shore, then swam at the hotel to clean off. We set off in the afternoon for Tamarindo...the night before Zach had checked Craigslist ONE MORE TIME, and we found a house that looked like it could be "it"....The owner had responded quickly to our email, and liked the idea of having tenants long term, rather than weekly..so although we tried not to get hopeful until we were "in"....it was near impossible. Everyone was ready to have a home. This was around the first time I heard any of the kids talk about going home (no doubt Zach and I had both already had the thought), but this particular afternoon when I mentioned that we had to get back in the car, Owen asked, "why"...and when I responded, "So we can look for a home", he came back with, "We already have a home...in Colorado...why don't we just go there." Heartbreak!

So in Tamarindo, we were doing some undercover research on this house. There were renters in the home until the following day, (the day the owner said we could see it), but we didn't feel like we had a day to "waste", if the house wasn't going to work we needed to be looking for something else, so we non-chalantly strolled up the beach, and found the home, and struck up a conversation with the renters, taking peeks inside. We were open with him and let him know our situation, so he showed us around a bit. Needless to say, we were all very anxious for the next day, and we called the owner and asked if we could move in that next night. He was super cool and had his maid come as soon as possible, and got us moved in right around dinner time. I marched right in, started unloading groceries and cooking while he was showing Zach lights, keys, gate, and going over the lease details. It was pretty assumptive, but we are in!

So we've done a complete 180. From third world country authentic experience, with a farm, horses, no a/c, no hot water, to renting a home on the beach...the works! Our first day has been most enjoyable, and we've even met some temporary friends....they go back to New York in two weeks. There is a healthy combination of international folks here in Tamarindo. It is not, by our American standards, touristy, though Tamarindo is known as a more touristy part of Costa Rica. There is plenty of opportunity to practice my little bit of Spanish....many Ticos here who do not speak any English. Today, I was able to describe to a lady working in the pharmacy that I needed ear drops for getting water out after swimming. The farmacia was all of one small wall of shelves, and one locked sliding glass case. I happened to notice all the electrolyte liquids...yikes. So far, so good, for us. In any case, we are happy to be here, settling into our new home....you should've seen how quickly Zach and I unpacked last night:)

We are still considering a post office box, but we do have an actual address now, though it may or may not work well. I don't know yet. I do know the kids would love to get something!!!

Our address is: (just write it as it appears..odd, I know)

Casa Palmas

50 meters North of Hotel Capitan Suizo

Tamarindo, Guanacaste

Santa Cruz, Costa Rica

Hope to hear from you soon...email works best of all!

The first 18 hours....

Zach and I were already running on empty the night before last when we left for the airport. We'd spent most of the previous two days packing, running last minute errands, figuring out money etc....Our good friend, Bryan drove our family to the airport at 10:00pm, the car barely fit everything, boxes and bags stuffed under our feet. We immediately got our first "taste" of uncertainty, when Frontier airlines told us they needed "proof" of our plans to leave Costa Rica within 90 days. We have planned to travel to Nicaragua, but didn't have "proof"...with literally minutes left to check in before closing, we purchased refundable tickets from Jet Blue traveling to Orlando in October...:). $4000 later, we were good to go, but it had us all unraveled for a minute. Of course, first thing this morning, we sought the refund. Once everyone was cozily boarded, the flight was easy, except for one small piece of the puzzle for me...sleep. I had purchased a couple of old, crusty car seats from a thrift store the day we left, hoping the boys would just recline and sleep, and even though it was more stuff to carry, it was worth it. Owen and Jed didn't budge the entire flight, Ethan was comfortably reclined on me, and Kaylee, Tia and Zach were dozing away, neck pillows doing the job. My legs were the only thing asleep on me. I seemed the wrong height for the neck pillow so when it butted up against the awesome headrest it just didn't cut it. I tossed it to the side shortly after trying to fall asleep. However, something was peaceful about just looking around and seeing all my little people sound asleep and looking at their adorable little profiles. I probably got a total of one hour of sleep, but said a little prayer that it would suffice.

In the morning, arriving in San Jose at 5:30, we received a warm welcome. We were quickly helped to find a hotel, and a shuttle picked us up a short while later. The "hotel" is privately owned by a local, and is more of a small apartment, which has been a blessing because we have two small bedrooms, and a separate little kitchen. Zach went to three local markets just to gather enough for breakfast (at 6am..not much was open), and scrounged up bread, eggs, and juice for us. We regrouped, and played in the courtyard for a bit. Kids watched TV, which I actually didn't mind since it's all in Spanish:)..... and Zach and I worked on narrowing down some choices for a car. I took the kiddos across the street and we walked through a cemetery. One of the groundskeepers approached us and I had my first spanish conversation. He appartently understood what I was saying, but then he would answer and go on and on, and I didn't understand a thing (well, a liitle). I must have said "perdon" a dozen times. I loved it though, because I felt uninhibited....a "free" conversation so to speak. I wasn't anxious because I needed something and couldn't get my point across, or nervous because the person to whom I was speaking was being impatient and what not.....this Senor was kind, patient, and spoke slowly with genuine interest. :)

By lunch time, we were all anxious to get out a bit, so the owner's wife drove the kids and me to a beautiful, fun park in the middle of the city. We walked to McDonalds, desperate for something to eat. My second spanish conversation, but luckily I just had to read from the menu.....People would look at us walking down the street, and I think at one point an entire bus of people was staring at us. But everyone has been nothing but kind and helpful. The owner of the hotel is driving Zach around to look at cars, and we are hoping to have that squared away by tomorrow and make the drive to Nicoya....if all goes well. We are back at the hotel now, starting to figure out dinner plans (it's amazing to realize how I need to think about food, especially with the kids, and I just enjoyed a great nap, while all the kids napped, and I even got some quiet time. We also experienced our first Costa Rican rain....it actually woke me up from my nap, coming down on the tin roofs. It confirmed our thoughts that we definitely need a 4 wheel drive, especially since many roads in Nicoya are dirt (or mud).

So I've painted a picture for you, but it wouldn't be complete without letting you know that yes, we are still a traveling family of 7, with 5 small kids who are tired and hungry...it's has been a long and whiny trip...and we are not there yet. We are all trying to be patient, and not wish this time to be past, but we will be grateful to get to the farm and let the kids run and swim. A friend of mine sent a text this morning that read, "Does your world feel upside down yet?".... that pretty much sums it up! Write more later.....

Our 2010 NC trip!

Buckets and buckets of blueberries. We pick every year

and the kids eat as many as they can while picking. This

always made for interesting diapers...thank goodness

everyone is potty trained now!

All the kiddos with G (Kristy's Grandma). The kids love

to go to Grandma's house and sit on her porch swing, play

outside in the back on the backyard swing (same things

we did when we were kids).

We loved going to the pool with cousins. Our pool at home

doesn't have a diving board so the kids thought this was so

much fun. We caught some pretty hilarious pictures.

Kaylee shows her stuff in mid-air.

The boys with Pop (Kristy's grandfather)

Kayl and her cousins, Lacey and Blake finish their first triathlon

(Wake Forest University, NC)

Jed and his buddy (cousin), Hannah, sit by the pool

My awesome sister, Karen, and me!

Jeddy and Mom watching the kids tubing!

Kayl, Tia, Ethan, and Owen get ready for a super bumpy ride!