Costa Rica: Days 1 and 2

We just got back from an awesome trip to Costa Rica. Our first stop wasn't in Costa Rica at all, and we actually have no pictures of it, but we had a 5-hour layover in Panama City, so we took a bus to the mall. Anything to get stamps in those passports, that's the ol' family motto! It was quite an experience! Panama seems to be a little less developed country than Costa Rica, that's for sure!

We got into Costa Rica around 7:30 p.m. local time (9:30 EDT) - already completely dark there. We got our rental car and found our hotel after a wild goose chase through the maze of one way streets. M is a super duper executive level member at the Raddison, so we got upgraded to a very nice room, and they even had dessert waiting for us when we arrived. When we woke up in the morning (6 a.m. of course!), J was eager to look out the window. 

L snoozed a little later than J.

After we got up, we ate breakfast at the hotel, and had our first taste of Gallo Pinto, the Costa Rican national breakfast food (or so it seems). Delicious rice and black beans. It was a hit for three of the four of us! We walked a few blocks to an ATM where we pulled out 100,000 colones (there are 535 of them to a dollar, so not as much as it sounds!), then a few more blocks to grab some fruit and snacks for our drive. Then we headed off toward La Fortuna and the Arenal Volcano. 

The roads are windy and skinny, and L learned not to read his Lego Movie book along the way! Luckily, we noticed his poor, pale face and found a spot to pull over before he threw up his mango. I was glad to not have a stinky rental car the rest of the trip!

We traveled through city, desert, mountain, rainforest, and plains. After a few hours, we spotted Arenal, or at least 80% of it! That RV ahead of us had a sticker on the back telling of their current trek - all the way from the southern tip of Argentina to the northern tip of Alaska! Hard to imagine!

We arrived at our destination for the night: Cabinas Faro Arenal - we rented a cabin at the foot of the volcano. Below is the view from the pool area. The weather was perfect - in the low 80s - and the owners were so kind and helpful.

They started filling up the children's pool as soon as we got there, which L thought was awesome. He loved splashing in the water, and scaring his mother as he daringly ran and jumped on the slippery tile. I told him I did NOT want to find out where the nearest hospital was!

The area was so lush and green - things growing everywhere, even right up through the deck of the pool! It was like the Garden of Eden.

Have I mentioned that our boys love dirt? They do. If there's dirt on the ground, they will dig in it. Costa Rica was no exception!

The owner of our hotel/cabin recommended a few things to do, and we decided to head to the hot springs called Los Laureles that first afternoon. We got there around 4:30, and within an hour or so, it was this dark:

There were about 12 pools, all heated to varying degrees by the volcano, and it was great fun for the whole family. We tested all the pools, finding which ones were not too hot and not too cold, but just right. L had a great time, especially in a small pool that had a little water slide. He could have stayed forever!

We watched a beautiful sunset, and then headed back to our cabins.

The next day, we hiked down about 500 steps to see the La Fortuna waterfall. It was gorgeous! The water just below the waterfall was too deep for the kiddos, but M swam there, and the rest of us swam/waded a little downstream.

L really wanted to catch a fish with his bare hands - I don't know where he got that idea! He stood still for as long is it is possible for him to stand still (not very long), but to no avail. The fish didn't get close enough, or he wasn't quite fast enough. We reassured him that people who can do that have practiced for a very long time, and now he's one day closer to being able to!

After a little while of that, I noticed a teensy lizard, about half an inch long, climbing up L's leg! I ran back for my camera, but I missed him! He jumped off before I was able to take the picture. L was a little weirded out by it.

M swimming in the pool below the waterfall - can you tell which one is him? He's the closest to the center of the frame.

After the long hike back up those 500 stairs, and a nice picnic lunch, we went for a drive, partly to let J nap, and partly to see the sights. We drove around to the other side of the volcano and saw the pristine lake and a great view of the mountain.

After that, we debated about what to do, and eventually decided to head back to the hot springs since we'd enjoyed it so much the day before. It was a relaxing way to finish off the day! While there, J learned the word goggle (gogg - gull) and L said, "I have a great idea! What if we came back here on my birthday?!" If only, kid! :)

9 months in, 9 months out!

Little J is 9 months old today! Clearly I am not on the ball in sharing details of my little people as they develop, but I thought I'd throw out a token blog post to appease the guilt within me.

First of all. This kid is cute. Enough said.

LIKES:
Mommy (more than anyone else)
Daddy (loves playing when he comes home from work)
Big brother L (giggles and gives excited kicks more for L than for anyone else)
Baths with L
Peek-a-boo
Being outside
Gnawing on my chin (less pleasant now that he has four teeth)
Gnawing on anything else that isn't a toy
Most food he can hold in his hand and feed himself - no pincher grasp yet
Drinking water from a grown-up's glass
Smoothies - the only food he'll take on a spoon
Singing
Watching life happen from his perch on my hip
Playing chasing games with Mommy and L
Playful kisses under his chin
Hanging upside down
Scooting around on his tummy
Licking water off his high chair tray

DISLIKES:
Baby food (won't eat pureed peaches, but will gnaw on a broccoli floret)
Actually, he dislikes being served anything that the big people aren't eating. He loves to share!
Napping
Diaper and changes
Being held by anyone else when Mommy enters the room
Being set down on the floor
Being squirted in the face by his playful bathtime buddy
Coming inside
THE CARSEAT
Sleeping through the night - he hasn't tried it yet, but he's pretty sure he'll hate it!

J is a sweet, sweet baby! No one else cares, but for my own records, he got his first tooth (a top one!) on April 23rd, followed by the second top on May 5th, a bottom one on the 8th, and the second bottom one on the 12th. L is impervious to pain, and I never knew he was teething until a tooth appeared. Not so for J! He's a sad, sad kid when he's working on a tooth!

He had his first ear infection on April 30th - the very day we had plane tickets for a nighttime flight to the west coast! I was nervous, but he (and L) were amazing on the plane. Easily the best behaved children on the flight - which is obviously not always the case, so I was definitely counting my blessings!

At that doctors appointment, he weighed 19 lbs. 9 oz. so he's holding steady right around 20 lbs. But, I swear he's gained a pound or two in the last couple of weeks because my arm just kills some days! :)

He is SO CLOSE to crawling. He began doing a tiny bit of tummy scooting about three weeks ago, and he's now able to move several feet pretty quickly. He's now lifting himself up to hands and knees and rocking back and forth. Won't be long! He surprised me in the bathtub tonight and pulled himself up to his knees on the side of the tub, and then to his feet while holding my fingers. Then he refused to sit, and the rest of the bath was a little hazardous!

Happy 9 months, J! We love you!

Cherry Blossoms

Now that we've done it twice, it's officially our tradition to go see the cherry blossoms in a beautiful neighborhood in Maryland. When the children are older, we'll venture downtown to the memorials once again, but for now, it's nice not to have to worry about parking and traffic and the crowds! We met up with a sweet little cousin, and made a day of it - playing at the playground, eating our hodgepodge picnic, walking through the cherry blossom lined streets, and splashing in the stream. This year, we also hit Georgetown Cupcakes on the way home, which I think will definitely become part of the tradition!

General Conference - April 2013

L did NOT announce (as he has other times), "I HATE General Conference!" So we'll call this one a success!

Spring has FINALLY sprung (I hope it's here to stay!!!). We had outside time before conference in the mornings, and in between sessions, which helped break things up for L. It has been so nice to just get out and get some sunshine! Yay for Vitamin D!

For the first time ever, I actually got my act together and had a couple of conference activities for L to do. For Family Home Evening last week, we made these charts - the pictures of the prophet and apostles with a space next to their names. L enjoyed finding the one who was currently speaking and listening for a word to write down. He's just starting to show some interest in writing. I love all the little backwards letters. 

In case you're curious, L's list reads, "Temple, Sacrament, Light, Jesus, God, Good"

Snacks are important. I "planned" - I use that word very loosely - a fun snack for each session. Here L's trying to sneak something ;)

The picture below has nothing to do with Conference, but we are growing some awesome wheat grass! 

And here's little J who napped through most of each session! He was awesome!

And here's L in his uniform his friend's Spiderman costume. I'm totally going to have to order one, so I can return this one!

Hair, there and everywhere

Hair, hair, how I have been neglecting you. I've been cutting my own hair, for better or for worse, for almost two years now. That sounds like a long time, but it really means three or four haircuts. I do it so infrequently that each time, it feels like the first time all over again, and I make some horrific mistake that dictates how short I must cut the rest! It's been awesome. But I have saved myself some serious money!

Recently, I watched all the Dressing Your Truth videos (the free ones - I'm so cheap!), and it confirmed what I had been feeling lately - my hair wasn't working for me! I needed something more structured, less all over the place. My hair used to be REALLY curly. I look back at pictures from my mission or our engagement pictures, and WOW - it was super spirally all over. After L was born, it relaxed a lot, and I think it may have even relaxed more after J, and I was left with waves. I've been styling them curly ever since we moved to the humid East Coast. Didn't seem worth it to bother with straightening. Plus, what mom doesn't want a hairstyle she can scrunch gel into and then forget about? That part was great. But it was time to move on.

I've had short hair before so I knew basically what I wanted, but let's be honest, I was spurred on by Snow White/Mary Margaret/Ginnifer Goodwin. That's some seriously awesome hair.

Source: cablecarcouture.com via Karey on Pinterest

I asked around to friends, and ALL of them use the same person, so I figured if I went with her, I'd be in good hands. And I was.

I LOVE IT! The night before, I was having second thoughts, but all my fears melted away as I browsed photos of short cuts and pixie cuts online. My sister Kelly came along "for moral support", but I think she was more nervous than I was! Well, I don't know about that, but I wasn't nervous at all! Just excited!

When I came home, L gave me lots of hugs and kisses, which I think means he likes it. I brought home a little bag from the salon. It had a few little freebies inside. L brought it to me the next morning and hesitantly asked, "Mom, is this where they put the hair they cut off?" That cracked me up! Of course! What else would be in that bag?!