Home Alone

Well, I post that as a title, because it the first time this has happened since we left the states....I am actually home ALONE.
Lane and Abe left early to take the girls to school and then the two of them continued on to Liberia to figure out something on our car. You might ask what would motivate Abe to get up early and be excited for 2 hours+ in the car. Three words: McDonald's in Liberia! ha ha

It has been really nice to have several hours to myself. I did some dishes, caught up on my journal, read a chapter of the Book of Mormon in Spanish (even though comprehension is still at about 5%) and studied out of a couple other Spanish books we have. I am actually waiting now like an impatient mother for Alex's weekly email to arrive.....it is usually at about the same time every Monday, but now and then he throws me for a loop and he does something totally bizzarre, like goes to the dentist and I don't get a letter until way later....oh I hate when that happens! Writing to your mom is way more important than clean teeth. Hasn't he figured that out yet? Not to mention that the Spanish version of "what not to wear" is really getting on my nerves in the background!

As I am walking around my house this morning....I just keep thinking to myself, "I am living in Costa Rica" It still seems a little surreal to me. I guess it is proof that actions always start with a thought and if you think about something long enough, it WILL happen. This is a lesson on the power of thoughts huh? This concept, like most things in life can be good or bad. Maybe that will be our FHE lesson for tonight.

OK, Alex's letter just came and now I have to dry my tears. His letters always choke me up. I miss him more than I can even explain, yet at the same time, I don't want his mission to end because being a "missionary mom" is one of the best titles I have ever had. It is hard to explain until you are there. Ahhhh....deep breath. Love that boy.

My heart has become very tender for the missionaries since he has been out, expecially since we are living out of the country. I see the sacrifices that they make and yet they are always wearing a smile. One of the cute missionaries in our branch here was saying yesterday how much he misses "Cheez-its" but that was followed quickly by his energetic attitude toward the work. They shine their shoes every morning and yet they are muddy and dull within just a few minutes of tracting in the rain. I believe that is why they are always so happy: they have learned to be obedient in the little things, even when sometimes the "rule" doesn't make perfect sense.
When we put forth just a little effort, out Heavenly Father blesses us more than we can imagine.

My heart is full today with love for my family back in the states. All of Lane's family....I love them so much, and all of my family....they mean so much to us. And my sweet kids, Alex and Mariah....remember, we are looking at the same moon.

From Abram's kitchen...

Abram has always enjoyed being in the kitchen, and it is no different here. He made this yummy omelet for the two of us the other morning and that same night he made homemade chicken noodle soup for the family. Both meals were delicious! He is wanting to make homemade pizza tonight but the store closest to us does not have yeast....we have to go a bit further and hopefully the "big" store will have it. It is frustrating to not be able to find things that we are used to and then when you DO find them...they cost at least double. I guess the positive side of this is that when we return to the states, buying groceries will feel like such a bargain! That will be nice for a change.

Abe is always my "go to guy" when I need a recipe. He is getting really good at looking them up online and figuring out how to make things. I had my recipe book packed at home, but it was one of those things that I had to take out last minute because it was either start taking things out, or bust the zippers open on the bags.

Church on the Beach

Sunday we had an interesting experience. We attended our normal sunday block of meetings in our Santa Cruz Branch and then had the opportunity to attend another sacrament meeting.

Apparantly there used to be a branch meeting in small town called Brasilito which is about 10 minutes from our house. This branch started about 25 years ago and had a fairly good group of people. Over the years the number attending dwindled somewhat and there were more members in the Santa Cruz area, so the branch had to move to Santa Cruz where more of the members lived.

This unfortunately meant that the branch in Brasilito dwindled way down since hardly any of these people had transportation to get to Santa Cruz. When Lane went out with the missionaries last week, they visited many of the members in Brasilito and promised them that the church would again be organized there in time. As of now, we are going to hold a sacrament meeting there every other week. There is no building, but we will meet in a covered patio area of a member's home that is about 30 meters from the beach.
Aside from our family, the branch Pres. from Santa Cruz and the missonaries, there were 7 other members there from the area. They were so grateful to meet again and we are hoping to help in the reactivation of the many members there.

I led the music and Abe passed the sacrament. The waves were crashing in the background and there was a sweet spirit there. It makes for a long day, but we are anxious to help them get a branch going again in this area.

Saturday Sailing

Lora is doing a good job at her lifesize burrito!



A few interesting road signs...




these are some monkeys hanging out in the trees by our house.


We had a great opportunity to go sailing in Saturday with some friends that invited us to go with them. This family has been here on vacation from Canada for the last 10 days and are staying at the Pirate's Bay Hotel, where we hang out alot because it is close to our house, great beach and beautiful pool. The guy that runs the hotel has become a great friend and he loves to have us come and hang out there.

Anyway, the family from Canada are Joe & Eva and their two children, Niki and Luke. Sailing was at 2pm so our family took the morning hours to explore another beach and we ate at this great little taco shop.

On the sailboat, we were able to see a few Dolphin jumping in the distance as well as sea turtles. It was amazing. We did stop in a bay to snorkel as well, although we have had so much rain lately that the water is not that clear. In the summer months (November-April) the water is much clearer we have been told. We did see a few interesting fish though and the whole thing was just beautiful and amazing. We really really loved it and can't wait to take family on this excursion when you come to visit!

In case you are wondering, the temple trip for the branch was cancelled yet again this past week, so we did not go. We are hoping to go this Saturday, but it may not be until the next week. We are very anxious for that experience as well.

Our Little Santa Cruz Branch

This is the small building that we meet in. They are planning on expanding it sometime within the year hopefully.The first picture is actually the chapel, but this was after the meeting so all the chairs were taken down. There are 2 classrooms and the Branch President's office and then the bathrooms. That's it. The primary met outside today for part of it and the girls said that there was a family of monkeys in the trees across the street that were picking mangoes and eating them, so they thought that was really fun to see.
Sweet Elder Martinez is being transferred this Wednesday. It was sad to say goodbye to him. He really has a great spirit about him and we will miss him. At least we get Elder O'Dell for awhile longer.
I really missed my friend Mirna today at church to help translate for me. It feels so frustrating to not understand much at all. I hope that the speed at which we are learning will start to pick up soon. I will be subbing everyday at school again this week and so I know I will learn at least a few new words. I told one of the 2nd graders last week that I wanted her to be my spanish teacher. She took me VERY seriously and at the end of the day handed me a paper that she had written about 10 words on for me in spanish and told me to write them all 3 times each and that she would be giving me a test on Monday! WOW! I better be studying. I don't want to disappoint her! What a cutie.
Another Gringo family has moved into the Branch as well. They have a similar story to ours, just wanting the adventure for their family and they really want to learn Spanish. The husband served a mission in Argentina so he already speaks the language but his wife and kids are wanting to learn as well. They have five kids and the oldest is only 10, so they have their hands full. They seem like great people. We had them over tonight for cookies and had fun getting to know them better. I am sure they will become good friends. Their names are Zach and Kristy. They are going to watch Lora and Emma this Saturday while Lane, Abe and I go on a temple trip with the branch. Next time we can switch with them and they can go. The temple is in San Jose which is about 4 hours away, so it will be a long day but I am so anxious to go. I have missed the temple so much since leaving home. Makes me so appreciate that we were only 45 minutes away before.
My thoughts have been on Ometepe today. My emotions are so close to the surface when I think about our experience there. I wish that we could pick up this house that we are in now and just put it on the island. I wanted it to work for us there so badly. I can't help but feel that we abandoned those people there and that is just haunting me. I know that we felt so good about going there and so it is still confusing to me that we had to leave. I am praying for an answer about that even still. I am happy here, but my heart is still there on Ometepe and I think about Leyla and her family constantly. I hope that I can find ways to really interact with the local Tico people here like I want to. It is important to me to feel like I am making a difference. I don't just want this to be a "vacation". That was not our purpose in leaving the states. I pray for guidance everyday that we can find ways to make this the experience that we want it to be for our family.

Just hanging out at home

Who knew that a swirly staircase could provide so many hours of fun? Seriously, I am thankful for these stairs as they act as an indoor playground for the kids. They find very creative ways to play on them and are constantly just "hanging out". Me, on the other hand...have trouble navigating up and down them while holding onto the railings, let alone with a basket of laundry in my arms. Let's hope I don't trip and fall one of these days. If you have ever seen me step onto an escalator at the mall though, you know that a trip and fall wouldn't be too unlikely. I am a little challenged in the art of balance and timing. Enough said.

En la Cocina

The missionaries called up the other night and asked if Lane could go with them to a teaching appt. of a brand new investigator that lives in our area. They were going to take a bus as close as they could get to our house and then needed a ride. Turns out that their schedule allowed them to be at our house for about an hour and half before their appt. so of course we grabbed the opportunity to feed them! I hurried and made some chocolate chip cookies and some spaghetti. Can't go wrong with those comfort foods right? We also had some plantains that I had bought but didn't know what to do with, so I had Elder Martinez (from El Salvador) give me a little lesson on how to cook them. They basically tasted like fried bananas would taste if you fried them....pretty good, but not our top of the list favorite.
It was so great just having them in our home. I just love the missionaries. There is such a special spirit about them. They are both just awesome young men and they are helping us so much with our Spanish. They are Elder Martinez and Elder O'Dell (from northern CA)
Lane went with them to their appt. with a family that consisted of a mom and her 3 teenage kids. He said it was such a sweet spirit and they plan on more lessons. I am hoping to go with them next time and get to know the mother. We always welcome any opportunity to spend time with the missionaries .Any bit of them that can rub off on us is a good thing. Elder Martinez had never had choc chip cookies before and I wished I would have had a picture of that. I think he has a new favorite food!

Our Beach

OKay I thought I had better stop posting pictures of tarantulas or no one is ever going to want to come and visit us....so here are a couple of pictures of our beautiful beach. I say "our beach" because it is so private and secluded that there is hardly anyone there but us. It is truly beautiful here. All the beaches have their own unique thing about them so it is fun to explore them. It is so green and lush and the rain just makes everything seem clean and fresh. So, start planning a trip to see us! You won't be disappointed.

My near death experience...

Well it took me overnight to recover from my near death experience. My heart rate is finally back to normal and I can only hope that seeing these pictures again will not send it soaring.
So, last night Lane and I actually went on our first DATE since leaving the states. We went to Eddie's restaurant, which was wonderful! Anyone who comes here to visit will for sure have to plan on eating there.
Actually, I am afraid that by posting these pictures, it will greatly reduce the chances of us ever HAVING any visitors, but I hope that is not the case. I know that my sisters and my mom share the same fear of spiders that I have, so I hope they can recover from these photos as well.
As we were driving down our dirt road again last night, we saw 2 more tarantulas crossing the road. (what is so exciting on the other side of the road??? I have no idea.) Anyway, I was a mature woman and just waved to them as we drove on by. Then we pull into our driveway and there is this monstrous one just sitting there waiting for me. TO make matters worse, it was ON MY SIDE OF THE CAR!! I needed to get out and into the house as quickly as possible, but here was this THING blocking my way. I lost all maturity and started wimpering like a two year old, shaking and....ok..I am embarrassing myself I know, but I have a severe phobia so just try to be understanding.
Lane and Abe thought it was just awesome and just had to catch it and bring it in the house. I have nothing more to say.

Happy Birthday Emma!

The baby of our family turned 7 yesterday!We had a great day celebrating with her. We went to the beach and even though it rained, it was still fun. Then later Eddie and Mirna came over for cake and ice cream with us. Emma brings so much joy to all of us. She is always happy and gives out hugs and kisses regularly. She is always so concerned that everyone around her is happy and does whatever she can to please those around her.
WE LOVE YOU EMMA!

Why did the Tarantula cross the road?

To give me a HEART ATTACK I guess!!!
Well last night we were almost back home from being at mutual with Abe..we were headed down the 2.5 mile dirt road to our house...only our headlights were lighting the road in front of us. We are driving along, trying to dodge the potholes and we see this rather large black thing walking across the road. We whiz by and then Lane and I look at each other and say at the same time, "was that a tarantula??" Well, we just had to back up and see if it indeed was a tarantula. Sure enough, we back up and there sitting in the middle of the road stunned by our headlights was this big, black, hairy, did I mention BIG, scary looking TARANTULA! I know that people say they are harmless and I have even heard them described as beautiful. Well,I am not ready to attach either of those adjectives to this discusting creature. Those of you who know me well, know that me and spiders just don't get along. I am probably going to need therapy now and the therapist will most likely not speak english so it will just be useless right?

Lane and all the kids jumped out of the car and looked at it, but I just remained firmly frozen to my seat in the car trying to slow down my heart rate.
If I EVER see one of those in this house....I am catching the first flight home. Mom and dad please don't pray that I see one in the house! I know you miss me.

I have been praying constantly for personal growth and to be able to overcome fears and embrace new challenges. Does this have to be one of them or can I just remain forever afraid of spiders and still go to heaven???

I like Tuesdays

Today I have discovered a couple of reasons that I think Tuesday may become one of my favorite days...
First of all, we heard a very obnoxious honking as a large truck drives up our road. I go out there only to discover that it is a PASTRY truck delivering fresh baked goods of many different varieties to whoever is interested. I was interested!
Just the whole back of the truck loaded up with so many yummy treats...kind of like a really good dream. Can you tell that I have been seriously deprived of my treats?? Well, these nice gentlemen just got themselves a new and loyal customer.

Secondly, the property manager just set up a maid to come every Tuesday and do whatever I need her to do in the house. It is only going to cost us $4 an hour and she plans on 3 hours each week. I figure $12 is a great deal. I will make a new friend, learn some more Spanish and get my house cleaned all at the same time. Plus it makes you feel good to be helping someone else financially for a pretty small price to us.

Thirdly, the branch has Young Men's activities on Tuesday evenings so that means that we will all get to go to Santa Cruz at least once a week and explore the town.

All of these things combined have just added Tuesdays to my list of favorites.

After Lora and Abe's scare at the beach yesterday (see Lora's blog post) the kids were not ready to go back in the water today so they have found something else to keep them quite entertained. They have been making a movie with Abe's laptop literally all day. We got up and had our family scripture/study time, had breakfast and then they started in on their movie. They stopped for lunch, but other than that they have been completely entertaining themselves with this project. They politely tell me when to leave the room so that I am not "on camera" and let Lane and I know when the crying and or loud outbursts are just part of the movie so they don't get in trouble.
I have to say that it is so great to see them working together on something and being creative. After Abe saved Lora's life yesterday, they have a new BOND.

I have spent my day studying spanish and reading my novel. I think I can get used to this.
Emma's birthday is in 2 days so tonight when Abe is at mutual, Lane and I will look around to see what we can find for her and put Lora in charge of keeping Emma distracted.
I hope that more than just Abe will show up for the activity or it might be hard to keep him excited about going. We shall see....

Angels at the border!

I wanted to post a picture of the WONDERFUL family that picked us up at the border and helped us so much. This is Mike and Lisa Ballantine and their awesome kids. We love you guys and will never forget how you were truly "good samaritans" to us that day.

An awesome weekend

We are happy to report that Lane is pretty much 100% better now. It seems that the second Dr. was accurate in her diagnosis and the medication has worked quickly.
We had met this wonderful couple in the branch last week at church, Eddie and Mirna. They are a little older than us and are watching over us like parents as well as friends.
Eddie has 3 restaurants with his brother Carlos. They have one in Chicago. One in Guatemala and then they just recently opened one here in Costa Rica, not too far from our home. It is called “Carlos & Carlos”: Italian Restaurant. Anyway, Eddie and Mirna have become such good friends already. They have been so helpful to us and we really enjoy being with them.
Friday, Mirna came and picked me up and the two of us went shopping for groceries and a few things that I needed for the kitchen, etc. We went to lunch together and just had a great day. She is originally from Mexico and so she helps me with my Spanish a lot. Eddie is from Guatemala.
Saturday, Eddie and Lane went to the Priesthood session of District Conference in Liberia. I stayed here with the kids and we walked down to the beach. It was a beautiful day and the waves were a little bigger than normal, so we had a blast playing in the water.
The kids were excited to see some things that they hadn’t seen before. Lora saw a huge starfish, Emma saw a puffer fish and Abe…..well….he was a little disturbed at what he saw.
Explanation: there was this woman at the beach with her little 13 month old daughter. They ended up coming out into the water with us and playing and talking with us. She is from France. Well, her daughter apparently got hungry halfway through our conversation and decided to get herself a snack. Abe was not prepared for the way French women do things, and lets just say he got an eye full! This nice lady just didn’t bat an eye that her daughter was helping herself to a nursing session and she just kept right on talking and playing in the water with us.
It made for a good conversation on the walk home with the kids about how people do things differently in other cultures. I am sure that will not be the last time the kids see that, as this woman plans on meeting her new friends at the beach more often now! Maybe we will have to get Abe a pair of goggles that only let you see under water…hmmm….I will check E-Bay.
So Eddie and Mirna brought us a pot of homemade Marinara sauce from the restaurant and we had pasta for dinner. SO yummy! Afterward, Abe looked up a recipe for “No Bake Cookies” online and he made those for us. Used up the whole jar of $6 peanut butter,(very small jar) but they were worth it!
Today was District Conference in Liberia for church and once again our wonderful friends Eddie and Mirna made the awful trip down our pot hole, dirt road to pick us up bright and early for the meeting. They are so fun to be with. We all end up laughing a lot because things just seem funnier for some reason when we are all together. They are just happy people. They are leaving in 10 days to go back to their restaurant in Chicago for 3 months and then they will come back here. We will miss them a lot.
The conference was great. Lane and I each had an English speaking missionary come and sit by us and help translate the talks. I guess it was the highest attendance they have ever had at a District Conference here. Over 500 people. It was held in a banquet room of a hotel. Not like a nice hotel, but it was adequate. We were a few minutes late to the meeting because we got pulled over by the police on the way….so as we got out of the car, we could hear them singing the opening hymn, “We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet”. I can’t explain how that made me feel inside. It was like chocolate cake to my ears! Even though it was in Spanish, it was so familiar and it just made me so happy to hear all these wonderful Latin people singing at the top of their lungs.
We were able to pick up our rental car on the way home so now this week we can get around a little more. The kids are excited to go explore another beach farther away tomorrow.
We have progressed a little more in our Spanish this week. Lora memorized the first Article of Faith in Spanish and we are reading a little of the Book Of Mormon in Spanish each night, along with the English one so we can see them together.(that was Mariah’s idea for us). The missionaries have agreed to come over on Saturday mornings and teach us for an hour or two. That will be fun. I need to get some more peanut butter by then…that is one thing that they say they really miss! Like I said, it is very expensive here, so they don’t buy it.
We are feeling more comfortable here. Life is very relaxed and we have lots of family time. It feels good. We know there will still be challenges to face, but we look forward to new experiences.
We love our families at home so much. We find ourselves talking about them now more than ever. My younger brother Matt got married Saturday! We are so happy for him and the kids are so excited to have a new Aunt Heidi and her 3 adorable kids to be new cousins.
I always look forward to Mondays because it is when we hear from our missionary son! It is still the highlight of our week. Thankfully we have skype and get to talk to Mariah nearly everyday, so that is the highlight of my DAY! I love them both so much and am so proud of them. We are very blessed.