By 3:20AM on Sept 2nd, our entire family of seven (the 2 and 3 year olds included) was not only awake but also loaded in our minivan. Accompanying us were: 12 suitcases (many weighing 49.9 lbs), 2 car seats, 1 booster, 1 stroller, and 9 carryon packs. Only a most amazing place and an alluring adventure could have have inspired us to take such extreme measures :). Costa Rica was calling.
Leading up to departure day, the excitement of all the children was unbounded, from 2 year old Adria right on up to almost 14 year old Justus. Although we have visited CR on 4 other occasions—this one took the cake when it came to excitement and anticipation. 4 years of special memories in CR, combined with the upcoming 45 days of opportunity for new experiences and new birding records, bubbled up in all the kiddos.
12 hours after departing our house, we arrived at our tried and true San Jose hotel having lost only 1 bag during the transit, and within 10 minutes, the boys had unloaded all our many bags and were out roaming the hotel grounds looking for birds. I enjoyed letting the little children run around in a safe and cool place while Caleb took off to go collect our bus (a mini-tour bus is what it takes to transport us these days :).
45 days later, we have traversed all across this little West Virginia sized country, with the cooler locale’s of Monteverde and San Gerardo being our highlights. For the last 4 weeks of journey we settled into one spot on the Caribbean (Puerto Viejo). Since arriving in CR, we have collectively spotted______ species of birds, have spoken good amounts of Spanish, have visited world-renowned Caribbean beaches daily, have drank many many ounces of fresh coconut water (collected by the boys who have scaled many a coco tree), have been stung by countless ants (but gratefully not by any huge scorpions), have served the YWAM community by building 30 feet of sidewalk, have reunited with Teen Challenge missionaries, and met some new ones (that’s a neat story) and have eaten a ton of rice, to name a few of our activities here.
Although much has been the same (same location, same house, same Spanish teacher, etc.) there are a few new things that have spiced up the trip. For example, we have attempted more Costa Rican cuisine, with our favorite being Arroz con pollo (this is the star recipe), however the green banana ceviche that Zadok spearheaded is going down in the books as the most unusual and interesting.
High points of this trip have the two nights we stayed in the magical and cool San Gerardo de Dota, where a Resplendent Quetzal visited a tree in our yard (ask the boys for pictures—they all got some stunning shots)! For Caleb and myself, our morning quiet times on our private balcony that features all levels of the forrest canopy are in themselves almost worth the work/money it takes to come here! Our family devotional times have been a source of joy (although not without challenges) as we have focused on learning about the boys and the special ways they have been wired (e.g. learning about 8 great smarts/intelligences, special giftings/abilities), discovering hints about their futures, and most importantly, hearing God’s voice on that journey.
The boys dreaded going home. Thaddeus poetically explained that “we leave our hearts in Costa Rica” They love being able to climb a coconut tree and get “free” cocount water, they like going out into the big yard and hacking away with their machetes the coconuts till they reach the desired liquid, they love waking up early, 5:15am, and going birding around our house, and they enjoy being barefooted most of the day. Our daily beach outings are a source of great fun for them—they jump waves, snorkel, play in the sand and build dams and channels for streams that are emptying into the ocean. And the occasional waterfall visits are major highlights for th 3 big boys.
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