A Cultural Experience

Today was the parade of oxen carts downtown San Jose. We had made plans to go on Friday when the school sent a note home with the kids. We thought it would be a really neat thing to see. I mean how many times do you get to see oxen carrying hand painted carts? So we get up and get ready this morning and Shannon looks one last time on the internet for directions. Big mistake! We end up going to Iglesia de San Francisco past Escazu. We get all the way there and find out that the parade is downtown San Jose. So we head back to San Jose. By the time we got there the total cost for the taxi was $20 bucks. Oh my goodness!!! Why do we always learn things the hard way? Oh well, the parade was great and we had a great day.

All the carts are hand painted and handmade. They are very beautiful.

After the parade we went downtown San Jose. Is this not the ugliest women statue thing you have ever seen?

Feeding the pigeons.

Our first Thanksgiving out of the county

Thanksgiving was so different this year. Different but good. It is so strange celebrating Thanksgiving in a country that could care less about it. Why would they? It's not America. The kids were suppose to go to school for half a day yesterday but I didn't make them. However, we all went to school today. It was so strange. What happened to my black Friday? Ok, back to Thanksgiving. We had a big feast at Cincel with our missionary friends. We got together around 2:00 and got home around 6:30. It was a really fun day. Shannon did call his family during their get togethers and I think he talked to everyone of his family members lol!

I thought it would be fun to make a list of the things that I am thankful for. When you live in America it's so easy to forget about the little things in life. Since living out of the country I have come to the conclusion that it's about the little things in life. Please don't laugh at my list!

In this moment I am thankful for:

Drinking water

Campbell's cream of mushroom soup or chicken

Real brown sugar

Taxi's

Chaco's (shoes)

Price Smart (aka Sams)

Spices

Laughter

Hillsong Spanish

Herseys Cocoa

Things that I will be thankful for when we come back to the states:

Venti hazelnut latte from Starbucks

Olive Garden

Molly

Cheaper clothes

Cheaper groceries

Venti hazelnut latte from Starbucks

English

And of course all the normal things, God, husband, kids, friends, family, etc......

Mk's wrote what they were thankful for.

Back from Panama

We had a really great weekend, long but great. Don't have much time to write so here are some pics.

Ethan eating at the bus stop.

A Costa Rican bus stop....the fish was amazing!

The bus.

Our Room.

Ethan going down the slide.

Who said the slide was only for kids?

E and Meg putting on their new shoes. We bought vans for $6 - $8 a pair.

Eating at Fridays. The food was so good!

Shannon and I at Fridays.

Me and Meg shopping downtown David. The boys went to the beach this day.

Katie, Meg, Rebecca and Tia Maria.

Rebecca, Katie and I eating at the motel grill. Have you noticed that that is all we do is eat?

At the border in Panama. It was so hot there.

All the mk's tired and hot at the Panama border.

.

Panama/Volcano/Haircut

We are heading to Panama this weekend to renew our visas. We have to be out of the country for 72 hours before we can come back. Please say a pray for safe travels and getting through the border. I will post pictures as soon as we get back.

Megan had to make a volcano for a science project at school. She did a really good job. It was so big that Shannon had to take a it to school in a taxi. He is such a good daddy.

I got my first haircut in Costa Rica. I had not had a haircut since August so it was way overdue. The guy did a pretty good job and thank the Lord he spoke English.

Pictures from the weekend

We went back to the park this last weekend. It is so nice to be able to relax and enjoy great company. The kids love it and I might add that I think it's pretty great too. I played soccer for the first time in my life, and I loved it. The girls won by the way! Ok, well the game got called off due to rain, but the girls were winning at the time. So, we win!

This is my friend Marina. Her and her husband are from Argentina and are missionaries to Africa.

All the trees at the park look like this

It's a ghost, it's bee, oh wait it's a Christmas tree!!!

Yes, you heard right a Christmas tree. Trick a treat, smell my feet, let's put up the Christmas tree. (sung by a great MA) That is exactly what we did. WE PUT UP OUR CHRISTMAS TREE ON HALLOWEEN! Who does that? I guess everything else in our lives have changed why not make new traditions? Ok, let me be honest about myself, I wasn't so excited about putting up the Christmas on halloween but Shannon and the kids were. Fall is my favorite time of the year and I love fall colors, the weather, mums, pumpkins, etc. There is no such thing as Thanksgiving here and it makes me sad. There are no turkeys, no fall decorations, no nothing here. I wish so much that I would have brought some fall place mates but I didn't. That is really why I wasn't so excited about putting up the Christmas tree, it's like we skipped my favorite time of the year. Oh well, the rest of the family had a great time.

Here is the only thing that I have in our apartment that reminds me of fall. Isn't it pretty?

Here are the Christmas pictures. Please don't think that we brought a Christmas tree with us because we didn't. The tree and the decorations were in the apartment. They not much but at least we had a tree.

It's the little things in life that makes you happy!

Complete Randomness

It has been so long since I have blogged, I can't believe it! We have been so busy with going to school and studying that I don't have time to blog. I am just going to post some pics of complete randomness. I really hate the word random, but that is the only way I can explain it. So here goes.

Megan made this at school. It's a lantern.

We got so excited about this Christmas tree. They don't have Thanksgiving here but they do have Christmas.

Ethan had a ballgame last night. He just made a basket in this picture.

Shannon, Meg, and Katie at the game. What super fans! Yes, this was rigged!

They had character day at school. She dressed up like the girl off Napoleon Dynamite. Don't ask me!

Ethan dressed up like a razorback fan.

These next few pics are at Rebecca's house on Survivor night. Katie made soup and brownies. Ethan is eating a brownie in this pic.

Shannon made homemade chow mien. It was so good and we can't wait to have it again.