School Friends

On Friday, Lora and Emma both had friends over after school for the first time. It was very exciting for all of them....let me just say that! We had lunch, they were in and out of the pool, laughing like crazy and talking spanish the whole time of course. I loved listening to my girls try to keep up with them. They are doing great. I love that kids can make friends so easily. They don't even have to speak the same language to love each other.
These are Lora's 3 closest friends from school. Katya, Maria and Norma. They tower over Lora but they have been so sweet to her and just love her to death.

This is Kristen (pronounced Kreesten) and she is missing her two top teeth, Emma is missing her two bottom, so they are a cute pair.

I thought Emma had a good tan going until I saw this picture.
Such a fun day and so good to see that my girls are happy and making memories with friends here.

A week with Nana and Aunt Kristen

Having my mom and sister here with us last week was so much fun! This is us on a boat excursion for the afternoon where we fished, snorkled, ate, and relaxed in the sun. We saw Sting rays, an octopus, held a puffer fish...it was a great day!

Here we are hanging out at a favorite spot of ours...Bahia de los Pirates

Mariah and Lora

Just after sunset. Picture doesn't do it justice

Having a girls' night out with my mom and sister....it has been way too long

Of course my girls were included in this too....wouldn't be fun without them!
I loved being able to share part of our experience here in CR with my mom and sister. It was so fun just to be with them again. It wasn't a 5 star resort for them, but I think they enjoyed it!

Gratitude

My heart has been feeling a little heavy the last couple of days. Feeling some "after company blues"since my mom and sister left and now with the devastation in Japan, I am feeling very melancholy. It just didn't seem right as I was busy whipping up pancakes and eggs for dinner tonight that there is so much suffering going on simultaneously. It all of a sudden puts things quickly into perspective when something like this happens and you realize the absolute frailty of life.
As we gathered our kids around tonight for some reading and then family prayer, I was just so extremely grateful for my testimony of the meaning of life and for my knowledge of eternal families. My job as a mother suddenly became the most important thing in the world to me. Sometimes I forget that.
I am so blessed. I am so thankful for what I have and for what I know to be true. Life is too precious to waste any time feeling angry, being critical, saying unkind words, doing anything that detracts from having joy in our lives. Today I recommit myself to being better, loving more, and making the most of every minute of every day. We never know when the storms of life will hit our own family. Preparation starts within.

Service Project

Don't you just love this little guy?

Anyone that knows me well, knows that I have always had a special love in my heart for the elderly. Sometimes in high school, I would just drive to the nursing home to hang out and visit with the patients there and I would always come away feeling "full". So, when our branch here planned a service project to the local nursing home...I was anxious to go. It turned out to be just our family, the branch president, the missionaries, and part of one other family. The boys went to work in the yard and garden areas and the girls cleared out the cafeteria tables and chairs and did the floors. I volunteered to give massages...thinking that I would be giving hand or foot rubs. Oh boy.....I got myself into something I wasn't expecting. It was actually quite funny. Let's just say that I soon had a line up of people and I had to enlist my faithful partner ( Lane) to help me. We have some pretty funny stories, that you will just have to ask us about in person. I have pictures, but maybe not too blog appropriate. Ahhhh...gotta love the elderly.



Why is cleaning so fun when it is for someone else?? These girls were troopers and worked their tails off. Emma completed the whole task in her heels! She is such a girly girl.
This was a memory that we won't soon forget. The people were so happy to see us and it is just so fun to see their eyes light up when they get visitors. One woman that I was giving a massage to told me that she does have children in the area but she never gets any visitors. "Ellos son ocupados" (they are busy)....that is what she told me. It broke my heart. How can that happen? I can guarantee that will NOT happen on my watch if Lane or my parents ever end up in a nursing home!
This is such a great family home evening idea....just take your children to the nursing home...prepare a little song or two, bring some pictures the kids have drawn...if nothing else just bring your smiles and some hugs and you will leave feeling "full". I promise you that.
Some of my most treasured memories have to do with serving the elderly. I am thankful that the Lord blessed me with a special love for them. I have had so many opportunities throughout my life to serve for, with, and among them. These experiences have added so much to my life. I hope when I am one of "the elderly"...my kids will feel the same. I have a feeling they will.

some thoughts...

I read something in a book once that really stuck with me. A husband was asking his wife why life couldn't just roll along smoothly all the time...why so many trials, discomforts, illness...etc. Her wise response is something that I just love.
"honey, if you were hooked up to a heart monitor in the hospital, would you want to see a flat line? No. It is the ups and downs that let us know we are alive."
Don't you just love that little nugget of truth and wisdom? I do.
Today has been a day of reflection and deep thought for me. I had a good long sit by the ocean this morning just trying to dig deep and pull out those things inside of me that I know are there...they just get buried sometimes by life.
I read something else just today that I really love too:
"Sometimes the things we view as our biggest weaknesses, turn out to be our greatest strengths. Don't be too eager to rid yourself of your burdens. Your burdens are what shape you"
I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who gives us weaknesses so that we can grow. I have many. I am so thankful that I am surrounded by people in my life who love me in spite of them.

Happy Birthday Abram

February is a special month around here since Alex and Abram both have birthdays. I have to give a little shout out to Abram today as we celebrate his 15th birthday. As you can see by the picture, he is almost taller than me so I still have a few more months hopefully to call him my little boy.
Ah...what to say about this guy......Abram keeps our family exciting. He got some serious creative genes from both sides of the family and he amazes us with his creativity and talent. When he gets focused on something, there is nothing stopping him until he figures it out. This kid is smart. So smart. He loves to cook (and eat). He has become quite good at making stop motion videos. He is an excellent artist. As of late, he has become an avid reader, which has never happened before in his life. Read for FUN? Why would he ever want to do that? Well, thanks to his Aunt Amy who sent him a new series for Christmas, that really captured his attention...he now spends hours a day reading for FUN! I love it.
He has developed a new infatuation with owls lately too. His birthday morning breakfast was a real "hoot" haha....we searched high and low here for some fun owl things and actually we were quite successful. Check out his blog for pics of his new friends. That, along with 3 new bottles of Tabasco sauce and he was a happy guy this morning!
Abram is truly unique. No one ever told him that teenagers don't like to hug their moms anymore and so I get to be the recipient of many hugs every single day. I hope he never outgrows that because I love them. He is super sensitive to other people's feelings and always looks out for the underdog. He adores his sisters like nothing else. He is also a good pal to his dad and still loves to go fishing with him even though they come home with an empty hook every time!
Abram makes the most of every minute. He is up early and stays up late just to fit in all the things he wants and needs to do. He is getting super grades this year doing his online school and we are so proud of him.
This morning I got a little choked up as I realized that we only have him home with us for 3 more years and then he will be off to college and mission as well. Time goes so fast. Thank you for being you Abram. I love you.

School girls

Well, we decided to add a little more structure to our homeschooling efforts and put the girls into the public school here in Matapalo. The schools here have been on summer break so we were anxiously awaiting for it to begin again. Emma was super excited as you can see. Lora....not so much. She was actually forcing a smile here for this picture.
That has changed drastically now that they have been in school for 3 whole days. The girls quickly found that they are basically celebrities with the "paparazzi"following them both around like magnets all day! It may get old, but for now, they are both soaking it up and it is providing us with lots of great laughs here when they come home with their stories! oh, so funny.
Emma is like this glowing blonde angel in this sea of black haired, black eyed, chocolate milk skin, beautiful tico children, and Lora is the "nina de estados unidos"that all the chicos (boys) are mesmerized by! Emma came home the first day and said, "apparantly the kids think I am a toy because they are all fighting over me and touching my hair!" Lora said a boy told another girl that he wants to kiss Lora and she had a good laugh about that.
Lane and I are so happy that THEY are so happy going to school. Whew!! We didn't know quite how they would do. They are both just getting in there and trying to do the best they can with their limited spanish, but it doesn't seem to be holding them back. Kids are amazing that way. They both have made good friends already and it is just so fun to listen to them talk to each other. Emma uses her hands like crazy and it is so cute. Lora just seems so confident and is not afraid to say, "no entiendo". She just keeps trying until she gets it.
This experience will be so priceless for them down the road and I am so thankful that they are both willing to be the minority and just jump in there and adapt!
We found out on the first day that these little blue dresses are actually the kindergarten uniforms...oops....so we have since outfitted them in the proper ones, which are white button up shirts and navy skirts or pants. They look adorable of course!