I Think I See A Monkey!

We set expectations pretty high with the kids about all the monkeys we were going to see in Costa Rica. Needless to say, they have been a little disappointed that there haven't been any here in our neighborhood, and we haven't seen any as we've been driving around either, except one dead on the side of the road.

Well today was our lucky day, cause we saw two monkeys. Corey spotted them first from our bedroom. Some of the kids were in with us, the others all came running in to see, then outside to try and see better. This is what we saw:


Isn't that amazing!!!! WOW!!! Two little black dots! Kids: "Where?" Right there and right there! Can you see them? "Where?" Right... there! Blank stares. One at a time we tried to align our finger with their point of vision. "Oh! I see them!" No way to know for 100% sure, but we are positive they were monkeys. They moved, grabbed stuff, and Ethan and Mel said they saw a tail.

Some better pictures as close as my camera would zoom.

Truly a day to be remembered.

Sunburn Thoughts

So, my back still hurts. It's the 3rd almost 4th day, and it's still as red as the 1st day.

The sun wasn't even out, but I totally got fried from our trip to Flamingo on Saturday. Is that cause I'm just so white? My back hasn't seen the open sky for a long long time. Maybe it's cause I'm getting old? I've noticed these past few years that I bruise really easily and they take a while to heal, maybe it's the same for sunburns? Abi and Lily have recovered from their redness. Honestly I totally had my guard down cause of all the cloud cover. It's left me a little amazed. I'd heard you could get burned, but didn't think it would be this bad.

I've heard the analogy that sunburns are like sin, and it's better to prevent sin than have to repent of sin. My Skin is like me and my life, the Sun is the devil, the sunburn is the pain he leaves in my life, repentance is like Aloe Vera, sunblock and clothing are the armor of God ... To what can I compare the clouds that deceived me into a false sense of security?

On the bright side, I am glad that my farmer tan from spring soccer is finally gone.

Whatever Makes Her Happy

Do you let your 1 year old walk around on the table during dinner and other meals?

Neither do I.

Rain Rain

The pool level lowered a little today from the kids swimming and splashing. It's fun, but the pools been getting colder too. I'm sure it will be overflowing again soon. It doesn't rain the whole time everyday ...yet. They say that is coming in October. Apparently there are 2 weeks of the rainy season in October that are the big deluge - all the shops close and they even cancel school. We'll be doing lots of reading, cause their toys are disappearing. I gave them two weeks here where I'd pick up toys and put them away, now it's over. Mostly this effect Abi, and I'm sure she won't even notice. But when I find something left around, it goes into the suitcase waiting to be remembered and earned back with a chore, or waiting for the trip home in December, whichever comes first. :)

Grasshopper Knocking

So, word has gotten out to the dogs that we offer out scraps at night. Our hurt dog friend has been scratching at the door the past two nights. So naturally tonight, when I kept hearing scratching at the door, I assumed it was our dog wanting some food. I ignored it for a while, then felt like a jerk cause that poor dog is starving and I've eaten like a pig today. (ramble: Shirley made fried empanadas for lunch, and I ended up helping the kids finish off theirs, so instead of having just one which I felt a duty to do to be grateful for her work I ate three, so I was going to just go super light for dinner, but yesterday we invited one of the American families over, so we made a big meal again which I didn't eat much of, except for the chocolate oatmeal cookies they brought to share... so anyway, I was feeling like I'm out of control, and I have been...) can't I share some of my caloric bounty with the poor starving dog?

So after ignoring the scratchings at the door, my heart finally softened and I thought I'd give him the last two empanadas which nobody wants to eat anyway and I'd like to get them out of the house...

I go outside, no dog. I look around to the back door where I also heard scratching, no dog. I wait, I hear a ruffling in the bushes... Dog? Wait, silence. No dog... I think "If there's some guy with a machete in the bushes this isn't going to be very good for me..." (Corey talked with the 24/7 security guy who guards the gate and asked him if he's ever had to shoot anyone with his gun. He said just once when a guy climbed over the fence with a machete and he had to shoot to scare him away...) no guy in the bushes, I heard another scratching/ruffling sound and kept holding still and looking around...

Then a big red and green feathered thing about 5 feet in the air (right at my head level) flies/flops crazily across our driveway porch and slams into one of the pillars... It looked kinda like a hurt bird, but was too small... unless it was a hummingbird, but a little too big for that... I go to try and peek at it and it's flying again. It lands out of view and flies up again, this time it lands on the door frame and I see it is a GIANT grasshopper. Totally huge. It jumps, flies, and flops around again toward me, I scream/squeal and run for the door back inside. My heart is racing and I tell the family watching TV that there is a HUGE grasshopper out there. They all look at me, excited that there's something exciting happening. I pick up Lily who comes to my legs. I open the door to peek out, and it flies in, lands on the window coverings in the kitchen my the door long enough for everyone to see and scream, I squeal, Lily laughs at me squealing and thinks we're playing a game, even Corey's eyes get big, then luckily the grasshopper flies/flops right out he door with it's green and red wings flapping their bright colors.

"That was huge!!! Did you get a picture?!?" It was hardly holding still long enough for a picture, but I put down Lily and went out to try and photograph it and it flew at me, I screamed again and it hit me in the elbow and I ran inside. I can't scream like that or the security guy will come over. If I did get a picture of it, I would have to have one of the kids holding it or have something pictured next to it to compare it's size too. Ethan "I wish I brought my butterfly net!" So I didn't get a picture, but we quickly found one online, and this is what our brief visitor looked like - seriously huge, as big as Corey's hand, ugh! - I totally get shudders just thinking about it - AHH!!!

Meet the giant grasshopper, or Tropidacris cristata. This baby can be found in both Costa Rica and Panama. Costa Rica apparently is an insect lover’s dream. There are fifty to sixty thousand species of insects that thrive in the jungles of the country. Some say, the insects themselves, some of which are only found here, are worth the trip. Click here to see more amazing bugs. Ick!!!! I'm not a bug person, but that was fun to have him come visit us, (cause I don't want to go to his house.)

Food Ramblings

Shirley didn't come today, cause it's Saturday. She won't be coming tomorrow either. That means no big fancy lunch cooked, cause you know that I can't do that.

...but I'd like to add that she couldn't do it either unless I were here to keep the kids out of her way.

So what's usually on the menu when Mom has to fend for herself? You know it, Rice and Beans leftovers!


Joe has another use for his noseplugs - they help make it possible for him to gag that bowl of barfy blackness down. Joe wins the Best Complainer award when it comes to beans. Luckily it doesn't amount to a lot of verbal complaining, just looks and sighs of dread. I can handle that.

Ethan does very well with beans for some reason, and that makes me very glad. He practically sings when he eats black beans with salt.

Usually though, and this isn't just a new phenomenon here in Costa Rica, but throughout my life of motherhood, my children will come to me and say they are hungry and haven't had anything to eat almost all day. Easier to handle in Utah with bags of Costco Snacks in the pantry, lots of fruits and loaves of bread. I was doing apples here, but am not anymore, cause Abi will go get an apple, eat about 1/4th of it, leave it somewhere in the house where it's wasted, and go get another one out of the fridge. I just can't guard the fridge all day or handle her complaining when I tell her she can't have more apples. Better for the apples to just disappear.

They're drinking a ton of juice too. That's what they know how to do when they're fending for themselves.

Then I begin thinking about what sort of Mother tells her children to fend for themselves, or worse: "you can wait, you've had enough to eat", and then goes into her private bedroom quarters and eats another chocolate from her private stash? I thought that, that mother should be thrown into jail.

"But it's for my sanity!!" - although I really need a healthier stress reliever. My exercise and diet has totally gotten off. Actually I pretty sure I shared over half of these chocolates with the kids.

And I let the kids have 2 each of these - these cookies in honor of Hermana Bonilla, my mission companion whose family from Costa Rica sent her lovely packages in mail with lots of these chiky cookies

I saw them at the store and had a quick flashback and had to buy them. 2 cookies times 6 kids = 12, 24 in the package, so I had half of these ones too, but wait, I did share my 12 with Lily, so I shared over half of these too! so that's a pretty good sharing roll I'm on.

Usually it's rice and beans. You know food is twice as expensive here, we might not break the bank with rice and beans on the daily menu. Got a pot of beans soaking right now. Grab your noseplugs Joe, gonna be a long 3 months.

Tomorrow will still be a slight repeat of today, except that Corey took the kids to go hunt for crocodiles. Luckily they came home with groceries instead. He went to the nice and expensive store where they sell Johnsonville sausage links just like they sell at the Walmart in Quarry Bend. Mmm. They even came home with a can of sour cream and onion Pringles. And apples. Ok Abi, only one more. And what about the rest of my kids - they like apples, I need to think of them too, huh.

Also a roasted chicken, the poor dog with the lame foot was scratching at our door, and we all took pity on him and gave him several servings of scraps. (He was hit by a car, that's what happened to his leg) Roasted chicken and loaf of french bread = one meal. We should be able to survive till Monday when Shirley will return to feed us and keep us alive.

Ethan Took My Camera Without Permission

Our pool, looking North, with our house at Ethan's back

No biggie, I guess, the camera wasn't broken or anything. I probably shouldn't be so uptight. Here are some of his shots providing a quick glimpse of our house.

The towels at this home are a rusty brown/orange color that match the floor tiles


Going up the stairs, first set of stairs above, iron banister, light yellow walls upstiars, white walls downstairs...

A view northward from the upstairs window...

Below: A small mirror that is nailed too high on the wall and thus of no practical use to me or the kids, this mirror is in the small bathroom under the stairs - (a very fun way to use that space, I think - a perfect kid sized bathroom).


Joe reading the Red Pyramid. Looks like he's sleeping, but you can see his book propped up.

Master bathroom, which is where, I'm sorry to say, I found a plunger the day after I bought one. My only excuse, it had a camouflaged handle.


(This is my picture that I took when I found it and felt stupid. Thought this was a good time to post it, and say nevermind to that whole story, or atleast know that the final conclusion/analysis is that it is amazing that I, the American, can survive and function in the world, not Costa Riquenos.) The end.

Flamingo Beach

It rained all day yesterday and boy, did we get an ear-full from the kids. Ethan is the top contender for best complainer for some of these beauties: "I don't want to spend the whole time in Costa Rica just sitting here!!! We aren't doing anything!!! We haven't done anything fun! Is this what it's going to be like the whole time?!?" It hasn't been that bad - swimming's been fun, right? Or the beach on Monday? You forgotten all that? He's probably just mad that we haven't repeated it? (Slight crush on the girls, me thinks. I don't blame him, they were cute).

Below is a photo of Mr. Top Complainer complaining after we first arrived at the beach today about how the salt water was KILLING his toe, wail, cry, scream, wail - he had three small scratches on his big left toe, which said scratches he got from the edge of the stairs in our pool at home. He wanted a bandaid, but I didn't have one. I tried to explain that a bandaid wouldn't keep the salt water out anyway, but he didn't hear/listen... We've got a communication barrier between us.


Well, this morning it looked like a rainy day again, but we decided to try for the beach anyway, and had a GREAT time. We left our home around 9, it was about a 20 mile drive to Flamingo Beach, so about a half hour. We took a shortcut to the beach (unbeknownst to us at the time). We were riding a steep dirt road over the mountain and a steeper and narrow paved road on the way down, and thought we had reached a dead end at some nice homes on the south cove of Flamingo beach. We decided to head back to where we got on the mountain path and get back on the main road to see if that lead to the main beach, but as we came to a fork in the road I couldn't remember which one we came down, and so we took the one that went toward the beach, thinking if it wasn't the right road over the mountain, then it would probably lead us to the main beach. I didn't think all the people in those cove homes which were really nice would tolerate driving over that steep dirt road everytime they were coming or going. Luckily I was right, and we quickly arrived at a beautiful spot on the beach and had it practically all to ourselves.

Joe, always prepared with his nose plugs.

Joe and Ethan spent the first hour and last our of our time there jumping in the waves. A great activity for young boys (not sure what happened to cure Ethan's toe. Glad he was able to switch off his complain mode). Mel was busy making a sand castle, and it made me think of the differences between boys and girls, men and women. Men/boys looking for adventure and excitement, women/girls looking to create something beautiful... (as much as resources will allow - a stick with a dead leaf for her castle's flag...) and settle down and make a home. I have some of that in me still, I know it's there, wanting to make a house somewhere our home. It just keeps getting pushed to the end of the line of things to do. Corey has said that a home is on his list of acceptable purchases, so that's good. :)

I like something Corey said today, that the ocean provides a perfect combination of exhilaration and calmness for families and kids - Parent's and kids will get calm just watching and hearing the waves, and then you can send your kids out to get up close with the waves and burn some of that energy off while they slightly fear for their lives.

Lily of course loved laying in the dirt, here she is poking it with a stick.

She was so funny, I loved it. I'd try to dig a hole and it would fill up from the water that was in the sand, and of course she assumed it was a little tub for her and crawled right in it and just sat there contently, I was laughing. Corey got some video of it on the Flip Camera, but I don't know how to upload that... I'll see if he can later.

Abi, Lily, and I got a slight sunburn on our faces and backs - we haven't been out as much as the boys who are all turning so dark - their tan line from their swimming trunks is become quite the contrast of white skin to dark skin. They are almost Ticos! (Ticos are what Costa Rican's call themselves).

Abi loved throwing dirt

Wesley was busy building mountains

Hyrum, Ethan, and Joe played in the waves with Corey or I looking on - some of those waves seemed to be pretty big.


Melodie built sand castles, Hyrum joined her while Joe and Ethan kept at the waves.


Eth and Joe joined in on the sand after a while and they had a "sand castle contest".

I asked who won, and they don't know. I guess since we left in a hurry when it was raining, there was not time for the judges to choose a winner. Next trip to the beach I guess.

We stayed there till 1:00, at which time we packed up cause Abi was hungry (no surprise, she eats constantly) and thus fussy. Corey took her for a walk...

...then shortly after he got back it started to rain.

And I even documented my self photographically today

See! I was at the beach, too!

I give Flamingo Beach 5 out of 5 stars for small crowds, beautiful surroundings, lots of shore space to dig, good sized waves - not to big or small. Great beach. We'll be sure to come again!

Individual Action Shots

Continuing our photo session, the kids wanted to capture their individual glory, so Joe was kind enough to lend his nose plugs out so the kids could focus their entire concentration on jumping and not have to worry about holding their noses.

Here's Joe doing a karate chop


Mel - V for Victory!


Ethan - He thought his picture was cool, standing on water!


Hyrum - funny little face



and Wesley -

Now this poor little guy had a scare after this jump. With those little arms reaching upward he plunged into the deep end and his floaties slipped right up and off his arms. I snaped the shot, stood up to show him, and there were two floaties floating by and Wes bookin' it with his little arms and feet doggy paddling as best he could. "Ahh!" I screamed, and all the kids came over to help, but Wes did great and made it to the side of the pool all by himself and considerably shaken up. Now we know: a hand plugging a nose equals an arm locking on a floatie.

Group Action Shots

We decided on Wednesday to get some action shots.

Looks like Wes wasn't ready. It took a few tries for everyone to jump in sync.

Ready? One... Two...

...THREE!

Here's another pre-jump stance shot. I thought this one was cute cause of how they were all plugging their noses.

Why Dads Don't Love Swimming with Kids

It's fun to have a water fight with them them or throw them up in the air like a rocket, not so fun to be a kid magnet. But something about being in the water with them just makes it happen.


Actually, it just occurred to me that this was my fault... if I hadn't given Lily to Corey to hold he could have fought them off and kept having a rough and tumble time. So let me correct myself... Dads probably always love swimming with kids except for when they have to play the Mom's roll.

Wes, so proud of himself that he is holding on so tight.

Trying to Spoon an Apple

Lily looked super cute last night when she tried to get spoonfuls of an apple to eat. She was very patient with herself and just quietly worked. She never got frustrated that she didn't get any apple. I enjoyed watching her try to figure things out. She's a cutie, I love you Lily!