Tomorrow will mark one full month since our arrival in Playa del Coco. The last two weeks have been pretty tame. Noah and I tried a local bakery, Don Christian where we found delicious bread and linzer tart cookies (Noah’s favorite). They aren’t as delicious as the Manville Pastry Shoppe, but they are the best we have! Rather than powdered sugar, they are half dipped in chocolate. Different, but tasty.

On Thursday, August 10th we ventured into town for lunch during Ken’s work break. We decided to swing by the grocery store, and as we finished up the sky became dark, there was a rumble in the air, and we knew a storm was on its way. At checkout Noah looked nervously toward the door – yup. We were about to get caught in a storm. Ken, burdened with the all bags, followed Noah and I as we scampered to the golf cart. Once things were loaded up, it started to rain. Hard. And our golf cart, although covered, lacks a full windshield! Noah and I were pelted with rain. Squinting through the drops, we started to see the lightening. It was some of the biggest bolts I’ve ever seen. I’m talking huge. Like: put Florida to shame, huge. Noah and I had a show on our drive. Ken, sitting in the back, had no idea what we were screaming, yelling, and laughing about. He was mostly dry, looking backward, away from the lightening. When we got back to the condo we ran through the rain, laughing and jumping. The internet and cable were out, so we all took a nap, needing to relax after the exciting excursion.

That Saturday, August 12th, we spent some time exploring the other side of the beach. We walked toward the other end of the horseshoe. Along the way we found sand-dollars (alive!), sea urchins (some alive… others not), puffer fish, and baby STING RAYS (one clearly dead, but one alive that Ken put back into the ocean)!!!

We tried a new place for lunch, Bamboo Beach Bar, and my Baja Fish Tacos were amazing, Noah’s cheese burger was not. Most of the time Noah is adventurous, this time he went for an American staple and it just wasn’t what he was used to. After the pool and dinner we took another ride down to the beach and watched sunset. Simply amazing!

Sunday was pretty low-key. Saturday took a lot out of us. However at night, when Ken and I were getting ready to watch Game of Thrones, we heard a HUGE BANG! I got nervous, but Ken looked outside and found fireworks! We ran upstairs to: 1) check that Noah wasn’t scared, and 2) wake Noah up to watch! We made our way up to the roof deck to watch the show. I’m assuming there was a wedding or some celebration at a nearby resort, but either way, we reaped the benefits. They were beautiful.

This past week we, again, stayed close to home. Noah and I followed our routine of school / walk / pool, while Ken worked. We get to enjoy time together in the afternoons and between Ken’s meetings. We either walk to the beach or swim all together.

The days are so relaxing, I sometimes feel as if I’m TOO relaxed. I’ve read a bunch of books, Noah draws all the time . . . It takes some pep-talks from Ken (and some calls home to friends) to remind me that this change of pace is what we wanted. Experiencing the uncomfortable-ness of the change is expected. I do struggle with the lack of responsibilities. Setting my own priorities, not dictated by work or family or anything, is not something I’m used to. I guess this is a taste of retirement, huh Dad? 🙂

On Thursday of this past week we finally finished reading the first Harry Potter. Noah LOVED it. And on Friday, for movie night, we watched the Sorcerer’s Stone. I found myself making arepas on Saturday morning. Arepas are a Colombian food made from corn, and, of course, I add cheese.

After breakfast, I took a nap (I know… hard life), Ken went to the gym, and Noah looked through the pictures in the Harry Potter book (for the 5th time). Before lunch we took the golf cart for a ride around to explore some other roads around us. We swung by the beach, and then back home for lunch. After lunch we got our suits on and went to the beach to snorkel. The tide, however, was not cooperating. It was high tide, and not just a little high, it was a wall of water crashing down toward the shore. Ken and I realized, quickly, that this was a bad idea. We made a short pass at the beach and decided on the pool instead.

Sunday found us again relaxing until lunch time. We made our way into town for lunch and then the grocery store. Once home Ken and Noah played a game, I read some more, and then Noah and Ken took a walk. While they were out I made a batch of Rice Krispy Treats and guacamole (not to be consumed together), and then Noah watched Sorcerer’s Stone, again. After dinner we played another card game, began reading a new story for bedtime, and Ken and I watched the latest Game of Thrones (HOLY BLUE-EYED DRAGON!!!).

Iguana on the pool edge!

There is a lot planned for this coming week. On August 24th, Ken celebrates his birthday. To celebrate we’ll be renting a car on Friday and driving out to Arenal! This is one of the volcanoes in Costa Rica. Don’t worry guys – it last erupted in 1968. We’ll be staying at the Arenal Observatory Lodge, the only lodge inside the national park. We hear there’s a high probability of sloth sightings!! Fingers crossed 🙂