Costa Rica

lobby of Hotel Kokoro

We just got back from the most HEAVENLY vacation!

Jeremy had an excellent year at work and won the President's Circle Award.  He also won what our kids call "Guy of the District."  Between these two awards, our entire vacation, including the extra few days we spent by ourselves, was paid for.  WOO HOO!!!

It had been over two years since we had gotten away by ourselves, and it felt fabulous.  We left our kids in the very good care of my niece, Bethany, for the first few days and then with Jeremy's sister, Jenny.  It was hard to leave them, but knowing they were in good hands made the trip so much more enjoyable.  We were gone a total of NINE exquisitely wonderful days.  Big, contented sigh.  (:

As it turns out, Costa Rica has a wet season and a dry season.  We were there during dry season, which meant that when we got off the plane, it looked like we were in Afghanistan.  Luckily for us, we had spoken with some friends prior to the trip who warned us of this and told us to be sure to spend some time in the rainforest where it is GREEN.  We drove up to the most darling little town near Lake Arenal.  It is next to a huge volcano and was breathtakingly beautiful.  We stayed at Hotel Kokoro, which is now one of my top favorite places to stay.  We had our own quaint little bungalow and awoke every morning to the sounds of tropical birds.  

We did so many fun things on our trip, but the highlight for both of us was zip lining over the rainforest.   We went on a series of eight zip lines to get down the mountain, some of which were over a half a mile long.  It was among the most breathtakingly beautiful sights I have ever seen.   There are really no words to describe it.  The zip lining itself was exhilarating, but the highlight was the scenery.  Unbelievable.

During those three days we had alone, we managed to go zip lining, rappelling down waterfalls, soaking in hot springs, and white water rafting.  This is in addition to plenty of relaxing, beautiful drives, some shopping, and walking around the cute little town La Fortuna.

On Sunday we left the rainforest and met up with the rest of the award recipients from Bayer.  I was worried about having to spend so much time with Jeremy's colleagues because I didn't really know any of them very well, but as it turns out, we had a great time with them and I feel like I have new friends. (:  We were fortunate to stay at the Four Seasons Hotel, which is the premier resort in Costa Rica.  It was hands down the nicest place we've ever stayed.  The staff anticipated every need and was so friendly and kind.  We had access to beautiful beaches.  The trip included "excursions" that we could choose.  We went on a relaxing catamaran tour, where we snorkeled and saw tons of dolphins.  We had a couples massage (our first time ever-- LOVED it), went four-wheeling, and spent some time on paddle boards and kayaks.  

It was a dream.

Things I don't want to forget:

Jeremy's favorite place to get Chalupas

The longest 90 minute drive we've ever been on

Lake Arenal

Paying $20 to get into the National Park (inside joke)

ziplines

Pura Vida

the quaint little church at La Fortuna

watching how brown sugar is made

taking the plunge into the water hole on our rappelling adventure

Skittles

the hot springs

Frasier

white water rafting

rice and beans

the shades on our bungalow

monkeys

falling asleep on the catarman

couples massage

Jeremy on the paddle boards

seeing the sunset from the kayaks

water volleyball

The Utah group heading up the dancing

raiding the snack bar

dolphins and rays

lots of pina coladas

listening to the waves at night

Tonight I took out one of my shirts from my suitcase that I had only worn for a couple of hours and put it on.  It still smelled like Costa Rica.  Not sure how to describe the wonderful smell, but I went up to hug Jeremy and he took a deep whiff of it and about melted.  (:

Thank you, Jeremy, for working so hard and earning this most lovely trip.  

Thank you, Jenny, Bethany and Charity for your amazing help with the kids -- we love you!!!

Hotel Kokoro

We were EXHAUSTED by the time we arrived!

View of the bungalows

On our porch, Hotel Kokoro

Arenal volcano

Getting ready to zip line

Riding the tram to the top of the zip lines

Overlooking Lake Arenal

The trainer zip line

Practicing for the bigger zip lines

I loved these red flowers!

We had some of the yummiest food!

Getting ready to rappel

Watching them make brown sugar

Getting ready to leave Hotel Kokoro  ):

Arrived at the Four Seasons

Looking outside our window

On the catamaran-- we LOVED the afternoon spent here

Kayaking 

With Jeremy's co-worker, Sarah, and her husband Brady

We saw lots of monkeys!

We saw HUNDREDS of crabs on the beach at night

Jeremy had to take one last dip in the ocean

Happiness!

Sophisms

Last night I took Parker to football practice and ran some errands.  I told Christi I would be home by 6:00pm.  As often happens, things took longer than planned, and I didn't get home until about 6:30.  Since I was so late, Christi had started dinner without me.  Partway through the meal, Sophi asked where I was.  Christi told her, "He must have gotten lost.  He was supposed to be home at 6:00.

Sophi replied, in her precocious and straightforward way, "Mom, I think you need to marry a new guy!"

Thanks, Soph!

-------

This morning we were talking about how much fun the kids had with Aunt Jenny while we were gone.  (A post on our trip to Costa Rica is coming soon!)  I said to Soph, "Would it be fun next summer if maybe you and Jesi and Lexi got on an airplane and went to see Jenny in Oregon?  You could stay at her house for a few days."  Sophi screwed up her face in a disgusted look and said, "But you have sit still and be quiet on an airplane!"  Leave it to her to see the big picture;)

-Jer

An Elli Moment

Today I was driving with Elli.  A radio advertisement began and a child's voice came on.  "Mom, do you known where my shoes are?"  

A moment later Elli's voice came from the back seat:

"Dad, do you know where my socks are?"

Sweet Elli.  How much do you understand in there?  We love you!

-Dad

Science Success

Once again, Taylor is at the state science fair competition.  It's held every year on BYU campus, and it seems like just about every year Taylor is there.  This is certainly a testament to his strong science aptitude and his ability to communicate.  But it is just as strong a testament to the dedication of his devoted mother.  Way to go Christi! Doing a brief calculation in my head, I estimate that my relative contribution to the combined 467 science projects our family has completed over the past several years is approximately 2.06%.  (On the other hand, Christi's participation in the boys' Star and Life ranks in scouting is approximately the same number:).

Graci and Parker have also done well with their projects over the years, always advancing at least to the school-wide level.  Parker actually took first place in his division at the state level last year.

Despite the large number of science projects our family has already completed, we are still less than half way through.  But that's ok, cuz they're Christi's favorite thing to do!

-Jer

Trolls

I'm sure all of you with kids are aware of how challenging it can be to help your children keep their rooms clean.  It's difficult for kids to find the motivation or the belief that cleanliness is an important thing.  Many of you know what it's like to have a bedroom shared by two young girls.  One age nine, one age five.  It's a pretty tough prospect to ensure that the rate at which things are put away exceeds the rate at which they are strewn around the room.

Now imagine if the nine-year-old was blind and the five-year-old had no arms.  Entropy defined!  That's the situation in Lexi's and Sophi's room.  Christi will spend a couple of hours deep cleaning it with them. Graci, Cali and Jess will help get everything picked up.  No matter how clean it gets, you can guarantee that 24 hours later (at the LONGEST) there will be about eight million items scattered about the floor.  

There is always lots of doll stufff.  Often cereal or crackers or something edible and slowly crumbleable.  We have this container of craft beads that for some ridiculous reason we have never moved out of their room that gets knocked over at least once a week.  Every so often this tips over and scatters literally hundreds of beads around the floor.  It is virtually impossible for Lex and Soph to clean these themselves.  Pillows, blankets and stuffed animals from the beds are common as well.  (Being a man, I still don't understand the necessity of 18 decorative pillows on a bed, but hey, like I said, I'm just a man...;)

Probably the hardest thing about this situation is how challenging it is for Lexi to navigate her room when it's in this state.  Particularly when she wakes up in the night to use the bathroom.  She groggily stumbles through a variable and veritable obstacle course.  When we tuck them in at night, Christi and I try to at least clear a path from Lexi's bunk bed ladder to the door of their room in hopes that our sweet Lex can make it out unimpeded.  

Last night after the girls were already asleep, Christi called out to me, 'Look in here!"  I peeked in the room and saw rocks all over the floor.  Like, well over a hundred of them.  1/2 inch to 1 inch diameter rocks.  All over.  What?!?  We cleaned them all up and made sure Lexi could get out of the room without stepping on something painful.  

The next morning I asked, "Who put the rocks on the floor in your room?"

Both girls got BIG smiles on their faces and said, "We did!!!" with great gusto.

"Where did you get them?"

From the rocks at the bottom of the deck stairs."  (We have a nice gravel path that leads from these stairs to the grass in the back yard.)

Me, obviously not in touch with little-girl logic, "Why did you spread them all over your floor?"

Another big round of grins:  "We were playing they were trolls!"

Forunately I had seen Frozen and therefore understood this concept.  What cute little girls.  We had a small lesson about leaving the gravel where it's supposed to be:)

-Dad

Blind leading the blind...

Lexi loves to help out around the house.  Her lack of sight makes some tasks more challenging, so we are often looking for ways to include her in chores and other ways to help.  The other day we were all sitting down to dinner.  Elli was down in her room.  I asked, "Lexi, would you like to go get Elli and bring her to dinner?"  Keep in mind that when Elli doesn't want to come, even our strong teenage boys have a hard time getting her upstairs.  Without hesitation, Lexi said she would help.  With her cute and unique "excited walk" she headed downstairs.

Several minutes later, Lexi walks into the kitchen with her hands on Elli's shoulders, guiding Elli toward the dinner table.  (Fortunately Elli was feeling like coming up that day! :)  I was so proud of our Lex.  Always willing to take on any challenge, including being the "sighted guide" for her very disabled sister. Way to go, Lexi!

-Jer

"Just because a man lacks the use of his eyes doesn't mean he lacks vision."

-Stevie Wonder

Valentine's Party

I was fortunate enough to be able to volunteer for Xander's and Jessica's class Valentine's day parties at school.  At each party I was in charge of a station that a few kids at a time would rotate through.  For Xander, I led a small relay race.  The first racer on each team would put a piece of paper with a heart on it on the ground.  They would then step on the paper with both feet.  The then placed a second piece of heart paper in front or them and stepped on the second paper.  Finally they would reach back, pick up the first paper and place it in front of them again.  In this way they slowly moved down the hallway and then back.  The kids had fun, although the papers were pretty hashed by the time we rotated to the fifth group.  Unfortunately, I didn't think to get any pictures.

For Jessica's class I led a "Minute To Win It" station.  The tasks that had to be done were:

-move an Oreo cookie from your forehead to your mouth without using your hands.

-Eat a piece of licorice without hands

-Move 10 Sweethearts into a cup using only a straw

-Stack 10 sweetheart into a tower

It was a fun station and provided plenty of laughs.  Jesi did a good job and won a couple of the events in her group:

-Jeremy

Everyone Needs a Jessica

Jesi is our cryptic child.  Often she tries to answer questions in sign language.  Only she doesn't know sign language.  She points and gestures.  Tries to spell the answer in "air letters."  Uses varied facial expressions.  She frequently sneaks up on you (or tries to).  This morning Christi and I were exercising to a workout DVD.  I saw a blond flash out of the corner of my eye.  I turned to look and it was gone.  A moment later it appeared again.  This time I looked behind the couch.  Sure enough, there was Jessica.  Not a word came out of her mouth, she just tried to slide around into a position where I couldn't see her.

Jesi is so much fun.  We love her fun personality and her spunk, her creativity and her one-of-a-kind thought processes.  Last week I walked into our master closet and found her dressed like me.  She said, "Look.  I'm you!" and got a serious case of the giggles.  I rushed for the camera, knowing she would fight me on any pictures, but I finally prevailed:

My hat, tie, coat, belt and shoes.  Love you, sweetheart!

-Dad

Trombone!

Last school year Taylor decided he wanted to play the trombone in the school band.  He's done quite well with it and has been the 1st chair trombone this year.  This week they had a small ensemble concert.  The kids performed in small groups.  Taylor's group played "Love is an Open Door," from Frozen.  I was quite proud of him:)

Enjoy:  (In case you're a complete band novice, Taylor and his trombone are on the far right.)

Master Chef

The other day Jessica found a brownie mix on the pantry shelf.  She asked Christi if she could make it for dessert.  You bet!  So Christi helped her to get all the ingredients out and then left Jesi on her own to put it together.  A little while later Christi came back to check up.  Jesi had already poured the batter into the pan, but Christi noticed a small eggshell on the side of the mixing bowl.  She asked, "Jess, did you get any eggshells in the brownies?"

"Yes, but I got them out."

Christi said, "Hmmm.  Maybe we'd better check."

Upon further instigation they found this small piece of shell embedded within the batter in the pan:

Yes, that is like a third of an egg.  That was the only one they found, so they put it into the oven.  Shortly after it began baking, Christi noticed that the flour she had set out appeared untouched.  "Jessica, did you put the flour in the brownies?"  Jesi paused for a few seconds with a contemplative look on her face.  "Oops!"

Hey, you can pay big dollars for a flour-less chocolate cake at fancy restaurants.  Jesi's just reaching for the stars!

Love you, sweetie:)

-Dad

Creative Cali

Cali is very artistically talented.  She can draw and sketch beautiful pictures.  She loves to sing and just performed in her first school choir concert.  We also just found out she has quite the knack for sculpture!  Her art class at school was doing a sculpture out of wax.  Here is what she came up with:

Pictures don't do it justice.  It's really quite an amazing first effort.  We may have it bronzed.  Cali's art teacher, as well as all her other teachers:), raved about her at parent-teacher conferences last week.  We sure love our girl!

-Dad

Basketball Stars

The 2013-2014 basketball season was a great one for our boys.  They both played on their Providence Hall Junior High Varsity team.  They both did very well.  Taylor started basically every game and Parker started quite a few.  They had tons of points and rebounds (Taylor) and assists and steals (Parker).  We had so much fun cheering for them on the same team.  They also both played on super league teams, again as big contributors.  Graci may have been the most valuable player as she helped a LOT with Elli while we were gone to games.  Thanks, Grace!!!

The Providence Hall team took third place in the state tournament.  Way to go guys!  Taylor was co-captain of this team.  They enjoyed posing with the trophy:

Team co-captains!

Parker's super-league team played in a weekend tournament in January and won their division.  They are a fun team to watch!

Taylor is now officially six feet tall.  he has these loooooong arms.  His body type lends itself quite nicely to defense.  Here are four blocks from ONE game, along with a free throw:

It is so fun to watch your kids succeed:)

-Dad