The First Day of School

Today was a pretty exciting day. We woke up at 5:15 to get ready for our first day of school. Matt and the boys had to make it to the bus stop by 6:15, so they left a little before 6:00. It gets light here at about 4:30-4:45 and we have been waking up at that time ever since we got here. We had everyone go to bed at 7:00 last night and they were asleep in no time at all! Matt and I went to bed at 8:00. So much earlier bedtimes than we are used to, and a way earlier start to the day for sure!  I made the boys some toast and cut up mango for their breakfast. I packed them sandwiches, apples and a granola bar for lunch. Then off they went. It was really foggy this morning, which is why I think the pictures are kind of blurry. 

It was pretty tough getting everyone else ready to leave. Rex didn't want to wake up, and there is a lot to do before you leave the house. Since there are so many bugs all over the place, you have to completely clean up any food from your meal. So I made the same breakfast again, packed the same lunches, washed all the dishes, cleaned the kitchen, swept under the table and in the whole kitchen. Then I hung up all the towels so that they would hopefully dry. It takes things a lot longer to dry here because it's so humid. We wanted to leave at 6:35, but we didn't leave until 7:00. School starts at 7:00. 

Our house is about a mile away from the main road. We walk down a dirt road with lots of hills. 

The school in about a block up the street once we get on the main road. We got there okay and got all the kids situated. The principal asked me to help out in the cafeteria. I was so happy to see my first group of kids come in. 

Rex's teacher said he jumped right in and started interacting with the other kids immediately. He ate his rice and garbanzo bean stew and headed back to class. 

At the end of the day, everyone reported back with good stories and happy attitudes. They we all welcomed by classmates and felt like everyone was really nice. All the kids are actually excited to do it again tomorrow!

I Was a Lunch Lady!

We showed up for our first day of school today. After I saw that all the kids were settled in nicely, I told the principal that I was happy to help out wherever she needed me. She promptly walked me down to the comedor and set me up with this lovely hair net.

My first job was to fill a bunch of cups with this stuff. 

I later learned it was a fresco, or fruit juice, and that our kids would get a fresco along with a full meal every single day that they went to school. 

Every meal they would have at this school included some type of beans with meat, rice and a salad. 

I got a lot of strange looks from the kids that came through the lunch line. I wasn't sure if it was me or my hair net. 

Our Neighborhood Park (and McDonald's)

We did a little exploring in our new town today. We stopped by the elementary school to ask if we could bring our kids there for the summer. Which they said was totally fine. Then we saw our town's park. Our kids ran straight to the playground and played for almost an hour! I think we will be spending many an hour here.

Then we went all American and took a trip to Walmart and to McDonald's. We are easing ourselves into our new culture just a little bit at a time. 

The Paraiso Ward

We were really excited to find our ward for the next 7 weeks. We woke up pretty early today because the sun comes up early, because of the neighbors roosters, and because we didn't sleep super awesome our first night. Hopefully that changes.  We all showered and ate a familiar breakfast of pancakes. We weren't sure when the bus would come, so we tried to get to the bus stop as early as we could, just to be safe. We made it to the church with 10 minutes to spare! I was very surprised by how big it was, and by how strong the members are there. I loved sitting and listening to all the great talks, lessons and comments. It seems like the Paraiso Ward is going to be a wonderful family for us this summer. 

Tres Rios Open Market

We got to experience our first open market here in Costa Rica. In many towns, there are open markets every Saturday. It's basically a farmers market, and people from all over town come and buy their weekly produce. We bought a few things, but since we aren't in our house yet, we didn't want to get too much. We also got all the kids their own fresco - or fruit drink.

Poor Cameron

This poor guy finally fell asleep after a good, long cry. This has been a lot of change for Cameron and he couldn't handle it any longer. He misses his house, his bed, his Pokemon, his friends, and every other familiar thing. We cuddled for a little while until he fell asleep. I hope this isn't going to be too hard for him.

Leg One

We were running around all day and still left things undone when our shuttle arrived at 3:00. Sometimes I say things to the kids only halfway paying attention. And then the other half is speaking from a place that is not in reality. For example, Nina asked me yesterday if I could take her to Dairy Queen. I told her maybe we could go the next day if everyone helped me get ready.  Maybe must mean certainly, and if must mean regardless. So with only 2 1/2 hours before our ride was supposed to come, I loaded up all the kids to run some essential, and some non-essential errands. Returning library books, getting money from the bank, turning in my ballot, and Dairy Queen. By the time we got back home, we only had a half hour until go time.  We left Randell a lovely mess in the kitchen and dining room, but we got everything we needed ready for our pick up. This was awesome. Super easy, and I had time to run through all my lists and make sure I didn't forget anything. 

I finally get to use all the passports we got way back in January. I still can't believe today is here. We have been talking about and planning this trip for over a year. 

I played it safe with our pick up time. Maybe a little too safe. We got to the airport so early, but the kids came prepared. The boys had plenty of time to have a Pokemon battle. 

And we had time to find Panda Express. 

The first leg of the flight went fine. Nina took care of Rex, Howie took care of Donovan and I took care of Cameron. Once we landed, we let Nina navigate us to our gate. 

And now we get to hang out for 4 hours until our flight leaves. At 12:40 am. 

It's Finally Here!

Many months ago I made a countdown chain. Each day we pulled off a piece of the chain and learned a new word in Spanish. We tried to use words that would be helpful for our kids as they lived their lives in Costa Rica. The chain draped across our whole dining room, and we watched it get a little bit shorter as the weeks went on. But even then, it seemed like June 9th would never come. But here we are, learning another very important word. El avion. Our plane leaves tonight and we arrive in Costa Rica at 7:30 in the morning. We will be tired, but ready for the biggest adventure of our kids' lives. 

My Mother's Day

Today has been a very nice Mother's Day. I got to sleep in, enjoyed a delicious breakfast in bed, only worried about getting myself ready for church, got to substitute for Rex's adorable primary class, took a short walk with Howie, and spend time updating my blog. Matt has taken care of everything, even though he isn't feel 100%. He is currently making a steak dinner to be followed by strawberry shortcake. I love how much he supports me and encourages me. I also love these little kids that made me a mommy. And Nina has been pouting all morning. Oh well!

Hopkins Lady Frogs

Last fall Nina played on her first ever sports team. My friend Michelle and I were able to secure a spot with Littleton Soccer's elementary school outreach program, and it was a very good thing for our school.  There is a boys team and a girls team, made up of 4th and 5th graders.  One of their teachers is the coach and they play 3 games against other LPS teams.  I never got a team picture in the fall, but here they are after their final game.  They have shown so much improvement just since the fall, I am so excited to see them play next fall!  

The New Eagle Scout

Donovan had his Eagle Board of Review tonight and came away an official Eagle Scout! Matt talked to Donovan a little bit as the Board was "deliberating".  Donovan said there were some pretty tough questions, but overall he felt confident that he answered everything well.  This is a huge accomplishment for Donovan and I hope he can view himself in a new light - as someone who can do hard things!

And how happy I am that my kids have such a dedicated and talented dad.  I hit the jackpot with that husband of mine.  

Snow Fro 2.0

Tonight was Jermaine Jones's debut game with the Rapids. We saw him play here once before, and wouldn't you know it, it was super snowy that night too!  The field got plowed before the game, and again at halftime.  Matt got a pair of tickets to the game and they were awesome seats. We were almost exactly at midfield, and totally covered from the snow. And another bonus, the Rapids organization gave away free hot chocolate to all the faithful fans. We both had 2 huge cups. The game was exciting and the Rapids won 2-1.

Our March Madness Winner Is .......

Donovan!! He had an amazing first round which helped him hold off Howie's strong finish. Have I ever mentioned how much I love this time of year?

Walking Henry Home

Today Rex got to play with his neighbor buddies for quite a while. He is so happy when he sees his friends home! When it was time for Henry to go home, Dillon and Rex told Henry they were going to walk him home, and this is how they did it.

And since I thought it was so cute, I made them stop so I could take a better picture.