A change in calling Costa Rica

When we first moved here we had a seven-digit phone number. We learned that all phone numbers beginning with three, eight, or nine were cell phone numbers; anything else was a landline.

A few months ago, ICE (the government-owned phone company that has yet to install a landline in our house) announced that there was an insufficient number of phone lines to accommodate the country’s population of about 4.5 million people, and that instead of adding additional area codes (there is only one serving the nation), all phone numbers would go to eight digits. Rumor has it that this change will increase Costa Rica’s phone number capacity to 20 million phone lines, so the change oughta last a while.

To call a cell phone, one must now dial an eight first; all landline numbers are preceded by a two.

I had to edit all the numbers stored in my cell phone, which really wasn't that big of a deal, especially compared what those with commercial numbers likely had to change. I’ve seen instances where companies have squeezed in that eighth number on business cards, stationery, billboards, and signs. It’s kinda funny seeing it painted, penciled, and pasted in front of the other seven numbers.

The conversion seemed rather smooth. Now if I could just get my landline, I’d be happy to share my new eight-digit number with everyone!

Only 132 shopping days until Christmas

Last September I mentioned how we saw Christmas candy on store shelves—and how this surprised us, seeing as it was only, well, September.

I would be remiss if I neglected to mention that our family went to Pricesmart last Saturday, August 16, and couldn't believe our eyes when we saw prominent displays of holiday decorations. Christmas trees in mid-August (and who knows how long they've been up)! I smiled and rolled my eyes as I passed the trees and continued down an aisle, but Erin followed me laughing so hard she had tears in her eyes, and Dan was amused too. Rumor has it that as they walked by these tall trees adorned with sparkling lights and gaudy ornaments, a young boy happily passed them singing Jingle Bells.

Pass the egg nog!

Our first year

Today marks a milestone for our family: it was a year ago that we left Ohio for more tropical spaces. It's almost hard to believe an entire year has passed since that day.

To celebrate, we went to Pane e Vino—a favorite Italian place and the first restaurant we ate at as a family here in Costa Rica. As we devoured our pizza, we reminisced about our first day here: how excited, nervous, happy, exhausted, and hungry we were in those first hours. (And perhaps even just a bit overwhelmed with it all!)

Dan and I have also been talking about how much pressure we feel to keep traveling now that our time here is getting shorter. We've already done and seen so much—much more than appears in my blog—but there is plenty left that we want to do and see. We have learned a lot about ourselves and the world during these first twelve months. I look forward to seeing what the coming year has in store for our family.

I want my NBC

One of my favorite slang terms in Spanish is "estamos fritos," which means—literally—we're fried. The translated saying means we're out of luck. We're hosed.

So here we are in Costa Rica, greatly anticipating two weeks of glorious Olympics watching. Swimming! Gymnastics! Track and field! But when we turned on the TV to begin days of sports viewing we got a polite little note from our Costa Rican cable company that our NBC feed out of Denver was being blacked out. For two weeks. No games. ¡Estamos fritos!

I know you're wondering about Costa Rican TV. I mean, we can watch in Spanish, right?

You'll have to take my word for it when I tell you that Olympic coverage in this country is spotty and at times nearly non-existent. It is enough to make a girl cry.

Dan immediately began scrambling around with the computer, desperate to find some way for us to get video. Through a convoluted series of riggings made more difficult by our being in Costa Rica, he has finagled a connection from his laptop to our projector TV, and at night we are watching bits and pieces of the games on the wall in our office. I've been lying on the floor atop a sleeping bag and pillows, and Dan sits on the office chair to watch. Sometimes the girls come in with beanbags or pillows and join us.

We can't watch any video until NBC posts it (and of course that is delayed until the footage has aired on the network), and even then it's not the best quality and certainly not even close to HD. It's really sad.

Many of you know we’re huge swimming fans, and it's hard for us to wait until tonight to watch the men's 4x100 relay, which looks to be one of the greatest moments in US Olympic history. NBC is pulling its broadcasts off youtube, so this morning Dan and I—in sheer desperation after hearing about the mind-blowing anchor swim by Lezak—watched a video on youtube of the relay from a television station in Brazil. We can understand just enough Portuguese to get the idea of what the announcers are saying—and they were actually very animated—and in between Portuguese we kept hearing "Michael Phelps!" I got my first goose bumps of the games watching Lezak’s thrilling comeback. Now I'm aching to see it in English and am hoping for post-relay interviews and (dare I wish it?!) a medal ceremony.

I miss Bob Costas and his end-of-the-day synopses. I miss the tear-jerking and sometimes cheesy stories about athletes who have experienced the hard knocks of life. I miss the segments about China and how it prepared for the games, the Olympic theme, the medal ceremonies, hearing my national anthem, the interviews with athletes. I might even miss the commercials. I want my Olympics!

We waited four years for this? Estamos fritos, indeed.

Goodbye, Wisconsin

Five weeks in Wisconsin. Wow, what an amazing vacation!

There are so many memories already flooding my mind as I realize how much I didn't blog about: my 20-year high school class reunion (fantastic!), our picnic at the park to see the American Queen riverboat with stacks so tall they lower them to travel under the Mississippi's bridges, the girls' sleepover at their aunt and uncle's house, family cribbage tournaments, numerous trips to the library (books in English!), an adults-only dinner at a great little Italian restaurant with my brother and sister-in-law, more shopping than I dare to admit, golf cart rides, early night drives through the beautiful bluffs in the convertible, watching deer run and leap back in the coulee, swimming at the local pool, eating homemade ice cream at Ranison's ... what a time!

Yet nothing could be more special than spending this extended vacation with my mom and dad, and for the girls to fully experience a Wisconsin summer. It's hard to convey the joy it brings me that my daughters know and love the state that is always home for Dan and me, and that it is truly another home for them, too. Saying goodbye on Wednesday at the Milwaukee airport was really difficult for us all. I am so grateful knowing we had this unique opportunity, yet sad that it has ended and will likely never come again. What a great bunch of memories we all made!

Thanks again to Mom, Dad, John and Shannon for letting us share your lives and homes for the past five weeks. It was an experience we truly cherish.

An underground adventure

There isn't much that could get my family to don jeans and sweatshirts on the first day of August in the Midwest, yet we did on a trip to Harmony, Minnesota, where we explored Niagara Cave. Whether the temps are sweltering or freezing, this cave is a constant 48 degrees all year—a nice change in the summer!

My parents, the girls, and I traveled to this sprawling, natural limestone cave—rated one of the top ten in the country—and took an interesting one-hour tour. The girls led the group with the guide (Lauren was nearly holding his hand) as we navigated hundreds of stairs into the cave's depths and saw a stalactite room, calcite flowstone, an echo chamber (very cool!), and ancient fossils. There was an active stream in the cave and a 130-foot rock-vaulted dome with a 60-foot waterfall that we saw from a bridge high above the floor of the cave. (Admittedly I did not last long on this bridge; my fear of heights is alive and well.)

After our tour of the cave we drove across the Minnesota/Iowa border for a quick peek at cornfields (and to add a state to the girls' list) and then headed back into Harmony. Traveling in this part of southeast Minnesota is a bit like stepping back in time; we saw pretty little towns and farms amidst green, rolling hills. The charming downtowns sport bed-and-breakfasts, unique gift shops, and cafes that tout hearty dishes and homemade pies (we had a delicious lunch—pie included—in Harmony). Additionally, the county is home to the state's largest Amish population. We saw several Old Order Amish families traveling by horse-drawn buggies and a few Amish people in town as well.

We drove through the Root River Valley on the way home and saw plenty of people tubing through the water that cuts through the bluffs. Oh, and I can't forget to mention that we stopped at the Aroma Pie Shop in tiny Whalan, Minnesota (population 64) to pick up a homemade caramel apple pie we took back to Wisconsin. Yum!

Move over, John Deere

Erin drove solo for the first time this weekend; she took Grandpa's riding mower for a few slow spins around the driveway by herself and did a great job. Only five more years 'til you get your license, Kid!

Lauren couldn't reach the pedals alone, so she had help—but make no mistake, she was extremely focused on the task at hand.

I'm pleased to report that everybody (and everything!) survived the test drives. Dan and I will have to pull these pictures out some summer day a few years from now when the grass is long ... "Sure you can mow the lawn, Erin. You used to think it was fun, remember?!"

A waterful day at Noah's Ark

With only sun in the forecast and temperatures at a comfortable 80 degrees, our family decided to take it outdoors to Noah's Ark—America's largest water park.

My dad, brother, Erin, Lauren, and I road tripped to the Wisconsin Dells (about 80 miles from here) yesterday morning and staked our claim on two lounge chairs that merely served to hold our towels and shade our bags. We didn't waste any time getting our feet wet on our first attraction—Black Anaconda, the biggest watercoaster I've ever seen. It was amazing!

We spent the next eight hours at this awesome park that boasts 49 waterslides, a 4D "dive-in" theater (featuring SpongeBob—who else?—and plenty of special effects), huge wave pools, big tube rides, and the list goes on. I wish I could have taken tons of pictures because we had such a terrific time, but who wants to carry a camera around a water park? That said, I did take one shot of the girls in front of one of the wave pools when we first arrived. See how dry they are?


My favorite ride was Time Warp, billed as the country's largest bowl ride. John, the girls, and I climbed into a four-person, clover-shaped tube and descended into a steep, black tunnel that took a great drop. Centrifugal force then took over as we swirled around the strobe light-filled bowl and finally slid into the pool below. Erin screamed through the whole thing ("Mom!!") and it was a great rush.

Another favorite was The Plunge: side by side vertical-drop slides that you fly down head first. John and I got a little air on these at one point, though the girls (who weigh so much less!) didn't go quite as far or as fast as we did.

When we really wanted to get wet, an activity area had an eight-foot bucket that spills 800 gallons of water at once and has a 25-foot splash zone. The huge spray soaked us and was great, yet paled in comparison to the drenching we received standing on the bridge over the Flash Flood—a giant boat holding 20 people that takes a 50-foot drop into a pool, creating a massive wall of water 40 feet high. Talk about wet!

We left in time for a late supper at Culver's and by the time we got home the kids were completely exhausted. They konked out almost as soon as their heads hit their pillows, and Dad and I weren't far behind. All that sun and water really made for a memorable day and a highlight of our summer.

A country carnival

It's not often my girls get to stand on the steps of a giant tractor, but here they are doing just that at the Interstate Fair in West Salem, Wisconsin. It has occured to me during our vacation that Lauren would make an excellent farm kid; she loves animals, playing outside, and isn't averse to getting dirty!


The fair is just a few miles from my parents' house, and we headed over after supper when the temperatures had cooled. We began by traipsing through several barns filled with cows, pigs, horses, chickens, rabbits, and (yes, Lauren was in heaven!) ducks. Many of the animals were judged as 4-H exhibits and had ribbons attached to their stalls and pens. We saw a few spring calves born last March and a bevy of oinkers with names such as Porkchop, Hammy, and even Austin Powers. I love their curly tails, and they all looked so fat and happy.

Dad and I watched the girls whirl about on carnival rides and then we walked around and looked at everything all lit up while the kids indulged in sticky wads of pink and blue cotton candy. None of us had batter-fried cheese curds (though we've certainly had them since arriving in America's Dairyland), but they definitely did smell enticing when I walked by the cheese curd vendor. Mmmmmmm! A sure sign of an authentic Wisconsin country fair!

Big mall = big fun

What do eight hours at America's largest mall get our family (other than really tired!)? How about marathon shopping, plenty of eating, and a whole lot of twisting, turning and laughing at Nickelodeon Universe, the mall's indoor amusement park?

Yesterday morning, Erin, Lauren, my parents, and I traveled to Minneapolis, Minnesota—home to the sprawling Mall of America. The girls knew this is the biggest mall in the nation, but they had no idea how big it really is! For the uninitiated, the Mall of America has more than 520 stores, 20 sit-down restaurants, 30 fast food restaurants, 14 movie screens, and 40 escalators. You could fit seven Yankee Stadiums inside the mall or 32 Boeing 747s. Whew! We didn't even come close to walking through the entire mall, instead opting to target select stores for items on our wish lists.

As much as we enjoyed browsing store aisles and finding bargains, the highlight of the day was undoubtedly Nickelodeon Universe, the largest indoor family theme park in the United States (seven acres with more than 30 rides and attractions—and not just wimpy stuff, but some wild rides for the daring, too). We didn't tell the girls about the park before we arrived, so they were completely shocked to see roller coaster tracks and a ferris wheel soaring to the high glass ceiling. They each got an unlimited ride wristband and we alternated between shopping and riding the entire day. Both agree that the best ride was the Orange Streak, a long coaster that traveled through the entire park.

It's about 2.5 hours of driving between the Mall of America and my parents' house in Wisconsin, and we got home just after 11:30 last night. Everybody slept in a bit this morning, and today—when temps are supposed to hit a sweltering 93 degrees—we girls are opting to stay home in the AC, do a little cooking and reading, and just chill out. A day at this mall requires recovery time, too!

Double unos for the birthday girl

Happy 11th birthday to Erin!

What girl wouldn't love two celebrations for her birthday? Since Dan couldn't be with us on July 5, we had Erin's "Costa Rica birthday" last week and her real party yesterday.

Erin has asked to have her ears pierced since she first stepped foot in Costa Rica. It's a cultural norm for Tica babies to have earrings since infancy, and Erin was the only girl in her class with naked ears (perhaps in the entire fourth grade!). We decided to surprise her on her CR birthday with earrings.

The only place we found to pierce ears is an upscale jewelry store at the large mall, Multiplaza. When we arrived at the mall, I pretended as though I wanted to look at something in the store for myself (don't I wish—they had Cartier, Tiffany... but I digress. Oh, and it's worth mentioning that high-end shops like this are not open to just walk in—one has to go through a door that is guarded like Ft. Knox.)

I had arranged the surprise with the sales staff the day before, so they had the starter earrings ready, and I waited a minute to give Erin the impression I was actually shopping. I returned to the mall and begged Dan to come see the earrings I liked. I asked Erin which color she thought I should buy and then if maybe she'd try them in her ears. She looked at me quizzically, not understanding, and when I suggested we have her ears pierced, her face turned bright red and her jaw dropped. It was a perfect surprise!

The piercing was uneventful, other than Lauren commenting, "They're going to shoot a hole in her ear with that gun?" and soon Erin was the owner of pretty new earrings. She wore them to dinner at La Fabbrica that night where she enjoyed her own caprese salad and a margherita pizza. It was a great birthday in Ticalandia!

Enter July 5, Erin's actual birthday. The house was decorated with streamers, balloons, and a big Happy Birthday sign. We went for a ride with Grandpa in the convertible, shopped at Barnes & Noble (all those books—in English!), and met up with Grandma for lunch at Panera.

Later, we had a party here at my parents' house. The girls rode up and down the golf course in a cart with Uncle John and Aunt Shannon, did sparklers in the yard and snaps in the driveway, and we all enjoyed grilled brats and cheeseburgers, with cake and ice cream for dessert.

The highlight of Erin's birthday bash was the huge mess of fireworks my brother shot off behind the house. No ordinary fireworks, these were purchased from a guy my dad knows who does fireworks shows. They are some big shots and, unlike one would do in Costa Rica, my dad had to get a permit from the sheriff to shoot them off. This is a family tradition—the third time we've watched our own wild fireworks display—and the best way to end a birthday with a bang!

¡Feliz Cumpleaños, Kid!

This is my country

"My soul is rooted deeply in the soil on which I stand, for these are mine, my own United States!" — Don Raye

I might normally use this blog to detail our family's celebration of the 4th of July. To tell you about Riverfest, held in a spacious park along the muddy Mississippi. To mention noshing on a long-awaited supper of Taco John's soft shells and batter-fried cheese curds. To regale of the girls' flying through the air on bungee cords. And best of all, to note how much I loved spending the holiday with my daughters, parents, brother and sister-in-law (and how I missed my own husband, too!).

But plans changed after the evening's grand finale. As spectacular fireworks burst before my eyes, I found myself—a bit unexpectedly—brushing tears from my cheeks as my heart swelled with an uncontrollable pride for being here in the United States. And that's what I feel led to journal now.

Having lived away from my native land for many months, I can see with more clarity both America's faults and merits. Yet while patriotic music accompanied the thunderous explosions overhead, our nation's shortcomings were far from my mind—because I know without a doubt that America is a most amazing, beautiful, and blessed nation. How fortunate I am to spend July 4th in my lovely America. There is so much I adore about traveling abroad, so much to treasure about our adopted home of Costa Rica—but the United States? I cherish her, I love her, and I am so proud to be an American.

Happy Independence Day!

A berry good day

My dad has a reputation in our family for his sweet tooth, and no dessert makes him happier than my mom's homemade shortcake smothered in juicy strawberies fresh from a local farm here in Wisconsin. We all love it, truth be told, so this morning Mom, the girls and I went to pick some berries in anticipation of having shortcake after dinner.

The girls had never picked strawberries, so this was a new and fun experience for them. We went to Jolivette Family Farms, best known in the area for berries, sweet corn, and its pumpkin patch. The weather was gorgeous—sunny and 70 degrees with low humidity—which was perfect for being in the field.

I'm not sure how long we picked, but Mom and I appreciated the girls' help; I think it's a lot easier to pick for kids who are naturally closer to the ground! They really enjoyed finding the biggest berries and those that had grown into "triple berries." A nice lady a few rows over even found a "quintuple strawberry" whose five berry sections looked like flower petals, and she gave it to Erin and Lauren.

Once we'd each filled our flats about halfway we decided to head in. I think the girls would have picked longer, but they didn't have to clean all the berries! We rode back to the roadside stand on a big wagon behind a tractor. Then the girls helped Mom and I get our berries on the belt to be weighed; I don't know how many pounds we picked, but I do know that it took us a long time to clean them, and my nails are still a bit stained with berry juice.

We made shortcake after supper tonight and oh, was it good! There are lots of berries left (bunches of them in the freezer) and we'll have shortcake again tomorrow, too. Dad's not the only one happy about dessert!

So long, farewell …

These past few weeks, our family has been living a series of goodbyes. The farewells began on the last day of school—a trying time because many kids won’t be returning next year, and so some of the goodbyes were forever. I picked the girls up from their final classes and saw a friend (now living in Mexico) walk by with tears in her eyes as she helped her kids leave their school of the last three years. I know I’ll be the same when we leave CDS.

The next day, friends of ours flew to Spain for the entire summer, soon followed by many other families that we have come to care about. This is a difficult aspect of living abroad: there is a cycle of comings and goings, reminiscent for Dan and me of his years spent in the Navy.

We attended a great farewell bash for three families whose company we enjoy tremendously. There were plenty of stories, lots of food, tears over videos made for each family, and loads of laughter and joy (particularly when the mariachi band came to play). Now they’re off to other adventures—new homes, travels, and more memories to make.

Meanwhile, it’s normal for many expat families to leave the country for the rainy season, and our friends who are traveling out of Costa Rica for the summer are now gone. We are among the last to remain, until tomorrow morning when the girls and I hop a plane to Wisconsin.

While the separating can be heartbreaking, I know I am blessed for having met these amazing people and sharing our Costa Rican experience with them; and I’m fortunate to know that in August, a lot of our friends will return to this beautiful country, and we’ll have fun telling each other tales about our time away.

Until then, we’re loading the suitcases and excited to go on one of our favorite vacations: a summer in Wisconsin. We’ll check back in from our home away from home.

Now … back to packing!

Where no badger has gone before …

Costa Rica holds a lot of surprises for our family, but today's was truly unexpected. I went to look out the window after hearing a massive boom of thunder and saw a big, white truck with the Badger Popcorn logo on the side. I started yelling for Dan to run to the window, and soon we were all hooting and hollering as the Bucky truck drove by. It was bizarre seeing the World's Best Badger so out of context!

Bucky in Costa Rica! Yeeehaa! (If only he'd brought us some cheese!)

Blasts from the past

You know what’s utterly groovy and totally awesome for this music-loving American who grew up in the ‘70s and ‘80s? Only two of my favorite radio stations ever—Radio Dos and Best FM—found on the airwaves of beautiful Costa Rica!

Sprinkled with bits of news—sometimes in Spanish, sometimes in English—these two gems are all about the songs of Generation X. What most interests me is that the people who choose the play lists for these stations definitely have favorites, and sometimes they are obscure or just unusual choices to air repeatedly. Months ago I started listing tunes that I hear a lot—many of which I hadn’t heard for years previously.

This list is by no means inclusive, but here are the songs that have stuck in my mind long enough and often enough to make it from brain to blog. And note that I hear a real variety of Heart, Duran Duran, and Survivor—the tunes listed are just those I hear most often.

• Alan Parsons Project: Time
  
• Andy Gibb: Shadow Dancing
  
• Bee Gees: Night Fever
  
• The Carpenters: Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (how weird is this song, anyway?)
  
• Duran Duran: Ordinary World
  
• George Michael: Monkey
  
• Gerry Rafferty: Baker Street
  
• Glen Campbell: Rhinestone Cowboy (always wish I could call Dad on the cell when I hear this in the car)
  
• Golden Earring: Twilight Zone
  
• Heart: Alone
  
• Lionel Richie: All Night Long
  
• Martika: Toy Soldiers
  
• Musical Youth: Pass the Dutchie (on the left-hand side)
  
• Paper Lace: The Night Chicago Died and Billy Don’t Be a Hero (I had to mention both)
  
• Pet Shop Boys: West End Girls (Erin loves this song!)
  
• Sniff’n the Tears: Driver’s Seat (I love this song!)
  
• Survivor: Burning Heart

... and deserving their own mention:

Terry Jacks: Seasons in the Sun: I’ve heard this a dozen times here in CR; before this, I'd probably not heard it since 1978. Erin says "Mom, it's so sad!” and I must admit, I still find it’s as tear-jerking as it was when I listened to it on my friend Lori’s record player back in third grade.

Culture Club: I’m sure I’ve heard every Culture Club song ever made popular in the US and then some while here in Costa Rica. I'm still trying to figure out the deal with Ticos and Boy George. I’ve heard The Crying Game too, more times than I can recall (including just a couple of hours ago on the way home from the grocery store). Oh, and I once saw a CC video/movie on TV here. It’s weird.

The good news is that in addition to these curious choices for repeated play, I still get plenty of pop rock: U2, Foreigner, Van Halen, the Stones, Guns N' Roses, Def Leppard (love them!), Scorpions, Poison ... it's not all Carpenters, thank goodness!

Wanna listen to these totally terrific tunes for yourself? You can get live, streaming audio for 99.5 Radio Dos and 103.5 Best FM online by clicking the links. Which really makes me happy, because I like knowing I can enjoy these cool stations even when I’m back in the Queen City.

P is for chicken

Yesterday was a good day and a busy day: laundry, gym, going to the pool which doubled as a study session (my neighbor is learning Spanish and had a big test yesterday so I quizzed her), lunch at our friends' house, etc.

Lauren and I got home at 2:00, and around 3:00—sometime between washing beach towels and checking email—I realized I hadn't put the chicken for dinner in the oven to roast. I ran to the kitchen, pulled the chicken from the fridge, and turned on the oven.

Not sure exactly how much time I needed to roast a 2 kilo chicken (hey, at least I didn't have to look up the conversion to pounds—just over 4, by the way—so hurray for me!), I whipped out my old Betty Crocker cookbook and quickly flipped to the index. To the P section. You know, where words start with the letter P.

I was in a hurry. I was scanning at top speed. P, p, p ... c'mon, where are the entries for chicken?! I wasn't looking up poultry here, I was looking for chicken. Chicken!

Because chicken starts with a P, you know. As in pollo. As in Spanish for chicken.

Some days, the languages just get all mixed up in my brain and I’ve gotta laugh.

¡Pura pollo!

The Rain Forest Café

Parents of CDS second graders need look no further than their child’s classroom for a unique, memorable, and really fun dining experience. The Rain Forest Café, a yearly tradition for seven- and eight-year-olds, is a favorite activity of CDS families and certainly not your typical school lunch. Lucky us that we have a second grader!

The kids prepared for the café for several weeks. Lauren’s classroom was decorated like a lush, tropical rain forest, complete with a waterfall, twisting vines and branches hanging from the ceiling, plenty of colorful animals and insects, and beautiful leaves and flowers. We even saw a few iridescent hummingbirds outside the window which often enjoy the bougainvillea on the fence bordering the school.

As part of the preparations, each student studied a particular rain forest animal and wrote a detailed report about it, including illustrations and interesting facts. Lauren chose the squirrel monkey—my very favorite creature here in Costa Rica and, I think, a suitable choice for Lauren.

After the kids had been working on this project for nearly a month, Dan and I received a lovely invitation printed on homemade paper to come to the school for a special brunch served at the café. And special it was!

When we arrived, the kids were dressed as little waiters and waitresses, decked out in green aprons embroidered with “rain forest café” (what great keepsakes). Our personal waitress (guess who!) gave us $10 in rain forest money, led us to a table in the corner, and offered us a beautiful, hand-drawn menu.

The menu of 19 items included a variety of beverages, breads and muffins, fruit, main dishes, and sweets, all at reasonable prices, of course. An example of the offerings:

Rain forest mud (coffee)
Margay spot muffins
Morpho bread (banana bread)
Flying mangoes
Red eye tree frog sushi
Ocelots’ dinner (rice with palmito)
Scarlet macaw sandwiches
Piranha brownies
Jaguar spots (cookies)

Dan and I placed our order with our sweet server and she scribbled everything down on her tablet. Before she left to total our order, we had a chance to ask her questions about squirrel monkeys—because the tag on her shirt said she is an expert! Did you know that the squirrel monkeys' tails are the longest of all the monkeys’ tails? Or that squirrel monkeys give birth during the rainy season? Our server did (and now we do too)!


Our food was truly a meal's worth (especially the howler monkey pizza). Of course we asked to see the manager (Lauren’s friend Isabel—the capuchin monkey expert—who just happened to be turning eight that day) to give her our compliments. We learned she was made manager because she had the highest score on the math test and was best at helping her classmates make change with the rain forest money.

We made sure to ask plenty of questions of the girls about the rain forest, including whether the girls had their monkey tails hidden in their pants because we’re certain that secretly they are monkeys themselves. That sufficiently embarrassed them, making Dan and me feel pretty good about our parenting skills.

At the end of our meal, we tipped (with real colones this time!) our server and the café manager, and they gleefully wandered off, giggling about their tip and our teasing.

Finally we left this special café, so tickled with it all. The best part is that all Lauren has learned about the rain forest is applicable to her life here—and she has experienced it for herself. This tiny Central American country is one of the most bio-diverse regions on the planet, a home for some 10,000 species of plants and trees. We have seen and heard the squirrel, capuchin, spider, and howler monkeys in their natural habitats. The three-toed and two-toed sloths are not strangers to us. Agoutis, coatis, bats, scarlet macaws, morpho butterflies, crocodiles, the rare silky anteater, and a plethora of lizards, birds, and bugs—we’ve seen these rain forest creatures (and more!) living in the wild. It’s an opportunity hard to match and a learning experience that extends far beyond the classroom. We are living an amazing adventure!

Tag … I’m it!

I blog to journal our experiences in Costa Rica and so family and friends can see what we’re up to. (Admittedly it’s easier than sending individual emails to everyone who’s interested in our adventures; I hope nobody minds!) While I haven’t ventured far into the blogosphere—no aspirations of winning bloggy awards!—today my journal was recognized by a friend with a “tag.” I’m it!

So part of the game is to answer five questions and then link to someone else’s blog. In a detour from my typical tico-related entries, I’m playing tag today. Here goes:

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was anticipating the first birthday of my first baby and spending time with Dan, Erin, and our friends in Washington—enjoying the sun which was finally making regular appearances after a long winter and spring of rain. I suppose we were also getting ready for our move from the beautiful Evergreen State back to the Midwest.

2. What 5 things are on my to-do list?

Bake 30 muffins for the girls’ last day of school.

Finish creating scrapbook entries for three friends leaving CR soon. (Sob!)

Start my packing list for our summer vacation.

Laundry (I think this is on just about every list I’ve seen thus far).

Organize my desk.

3. What snacks do I enjoy?
Just about anything with cheese, chocolate chip cookies, veggies and dip, lime 'n chili almonds (Dan brings these back from the US for me and I'm addicted!), popcorn … I'm not too picky!

4. What things would I do if I were a millionaire?
Assuming this is a tax-free million to play with ... Invest, pay off our mortgage (if we had one—we don’t at the moment), drop a bundle into the girls’ college funds, donate, buy a few frivolous things, and travel, travel, travel!! And then travel! Think I can do all that for a million?

5. Where have I lived? (OK, here goes!)

San Jose, California

La Crosse, Wisconsin

Onalaska, Wisconsin

Madison, Wisconsin

Guadalajara, Mexico (studied there one summer—does that count?)

Athens, Georgia

Jacksonville, Florida

Mayport, Florida

Everett, Washington

Loveland, Ohio

Liberty Township, Ohio

Santa Ana, Costa Rica

Now I have to tag someone, so I’m going to choose my new-to-blogging friend Lori. This will give her an easy entry to write! Have fun!

She’ll get you—and your little dog, too!

Who’s lean and mean and green all over? That’s Erin, our resident actress and Country Day’s answer to the Wicked Witch of the West in the elementary school play, The Wizard of Oz.

Erin joined drama club at the start of the year and fell in love with acting. Led by Mr. Large—the best principal ever—the club learned a lot about the theater and being on stage. For months they’ve been rehearsing the Wiz of Oz for their late May performance.

We recently went to the show, just over an hour long, and it was good entertainment. Erin was a very animated witch, and everyone in the auditorium got a kick out of her evil laugh. (Admittedly, she has practiced this at home for years—I always thought it was a bit “mad scientist-like” but it worked great for this role too.)

Our favorite scene is when Dorothy and her friends throw water on the witch and she “melts” into a puddle. I think our drama queen really rose to the occasion: “What a world, what a world!” Enjoy the video of her demise. I think you’ll agree Erin must be one Oz’s tallest witches ever! (By the way, if you listen carefully, you can hear Lauren ask at the very end of the clip—a bit gleefully—“Did she die?!”)

After the play and much well-deserved applause, the kids streamed off the stage for the cast party (aka wild food fest). At one point I saw floppy Scarecrow’s plate held several cookies, a massive brownie, and one lonely cucumber; gotta wonder the fate of that little cuke slice.

¡Pura teatro!