23 May 2017
22 May 2017
Julia & Spice, and Everything Nice
We have the schedule from Julia and Jonathan's massage studio. The earned a small bit of money for each 15 minute massage session (i.e. mostly walking on people's back). The clientele was only extended family members. In the last picture Julia is wearing some of Stacey's clothes. She had fun trying on various outfits. However, I think this really says less about Julia and more about Stacey!
20 May 2017
U2 Joshua Tree Tour - Rose Bowl
On a last minute whim I decided to fly out to see Michelle and U2 in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl. We had talked about the concert months ago, but didn't really pay much attention to it until the date got closer. I had thought about going the week of the show, but then decided not to go because I was really busy at work. Then, a coworker that sits a couple of desks over reminded me that she was flying out to see the concert with a friend. After talking about it and looking at some old pictures, I decided to pull the trigger and book the flights.
This was probably going to be the last time I would see U2 and it was a good opportunity to see Michelle as well. I had never been to the Rose Bowl either. And...I had a free taxi service and place to stay (i.e. Michelle).
We ended up walking over 10 miles on Saturday around Pasadena. We walked to lunch and then ran an errand or two before heading over to the shuttle pick up area. The line was hugely long, so we decided to keep on walking another 30 minutes or so to the stadium.
The show was good. It was cool to hear all of my favorite songs from the Joshua Tree album plus a few other well known songs from their long and impressive career.
The opening act was The Lumineers. One of the highlights of the show was the massive video screen behind the stage. It played full screen videos that were related to the song U2 was playing, or it split the screen doing that plus showing a closer view of the band. This was welcomed as it was hard to see much of the stage from where we were sitting.
I was pretty beat the entire time after working a very busy week, flying in, and not getting to sleep until after 1:30 a.m. Colorado time both nights. Although I'm not yet 40 years old, I definitely felt that. I'm sure much of the crowd felt the same way the next day, seeing as most of them were also my age or older and probably had to wake up early the next morning to "adult".
This was probably going to be the last time I would see U2 and it was a good opportunity to see Michelle as well. I had never been to the Rose Bowl either. And...I had a free taxi service and place to stay (i.e. Michelle).
We ended up walking over 10 miles on Saturday around Pasadena. We walked to lunch and then ran an errand or two before heading over to the shuttle pick up area. The line was hugely long, so we decided to keep on walking another 30 minutes or so to the stadium.
The show was good. It was cool to hear all of my favorite songs from the Joshua Tree album plus a few other well known songs from their long and impressive career.
The opening act was The Lumineers. One of the highlights of the show was the massive video screen behind the stage. It played full screen videos that were related to the song U2 was playing, or it split the screen doing that plus showing a closer view of the band. This was welcomed as it was hard to see much of the stage from where we were sitting.
I was pretty beat the entire time after working a very busy week, flying in, and not getting to sleep until after 1:30 a.m. Colorado time both nights. Although I'm not yet 40 years old, I definitely felt that. I'm sure much of the crowd felt the same way the next day, seeing as most of them were also my age or older and probably had to wake up early the next morning to "adult".
15 May 2017
Artist Themed Month
As I was gathering all of these recent pictures together I realized that almost all of them were artistic in nature. School is winding down for the year and the kids both had their class musical recently. The first few pictures are from Jonathan's class or Jonathan's field trip to the zoo. Jonathan's friend Cade is pictured below, and I imagine he's trying to stop the alligator from eating him. Both of them said that they wanted to be football players when they grow up. Starting the artist theme, I included a picture of the fruit and vegetables Julia made with play-doh since they look amazing and she paid very close attention to all the details.
Jonathan had gone almost seven years without a real bed and simple furniture. He had been sleeping on his infant bed since forever. Recently I got out the paintbrush and roller and painted his room, ordered some furniture on Walmart (and put it together) and picked up a mattress and box springs. He picked out The Avengers bedding and curtains.
Then came his class musical. He played a cow and he knew all of the moves and songs. It was very cute and funny. If you look for the girl in the green, that is Addison. She and Jonathan are buddies and they had a couple of play dates together already this year.
Julia also had her class musical. She was very nervous leading up to it and asked several times to get out of it. In a classy move, Mom and Dad unexpectedly got her some flowers for after the show. We won't do that often (i.e. give rewards for doing what you should do any way), but it seemed appropriate this time. She was looking to see if we had picked her up flowers when she walked by, but we had them hidden from her. It was fun to see her perform and hear her deliver her one line to the entire crowd.
Jonathan had gone almost seven years without a real bed and simple furniture. He had been sleeping on his infant bed since forever. Recently I got out the paintbrush and roller and painted his room, ordered some furniture on Walmart (and put it together) and picked up a mattress and box springs. He picked out The Avengers bedding and curtains.
Then came his class musical. He played a cow and he knew all of the moves and songs. It was very cute and funny. If you look for the girl in the green, that is Addison. She and Jonathan are buddies and they had a couple of play dates together already this year.
Julia also had her class musical. She was very nervous leading up to it and asked several times to get out of it. In a classy move, Mom and Dad unexpectedly got her some flowers for after the show. We won't do that often (i.e. give rewards for doing what you should do any way), but it seemed appropriate this time. She was looking to see if we had picked her up flowers when she walked by, but we had them hidden from her. It was fun to see her perform and hear her deliver her one line to the entire crowd.
11 April 2017
Flag Football
We signed Jonathan up for flag football this spring. Although he's only played one game due to the weather and other reasons, I was able to get these hilarious pictures. He likes it/wanted to play, and that's all that matters. He'll play soccer again in the summer and fall, but for now he's learning how to play flag football for the first time.
09 April 2017
Julia Pictures
First night with oversized Vermont Teddy Bear from Papa and Nana.
Reading scores: 95th percentile and reading at a 6th grade level (5.9).
Fun with dish soap! All you need is a plate and a straw...
Reading scores: 95th percentile and reading at a 6th grade level (5.9).
Fun with dish soap! All you need is a plate and a straw...
07 April 2017
30 March 2017
Costa Rica - Impressions & Final Thoughts
Thought I would take a few minutes to post some thoughts about our time in Costa Rica. It was the first time we had taken the kids outside of the country, the first time we've traveled internationally on our own, and only the second time (Peru) Stacey and I have been out of the country if you don't count a cruise we took around Mexico several years ago (and Canada doesn't count). I've been to a few other countries by myself when I was in the Air Force though.
First, the kids did great. It was pretty easy to travel with them now that they are older. They understand a little more and are more self-sufficient, especially since Jonathan is eating on his own and we don't need to travel with a blender.
My impressions of Costa Rica are very positive. I think it could be somewhere that I would be willing to go again over Spring Break. It was much warmer than Hawaii. Almost half of the population lives around the capital city of San Jose, so there is probably only 2.5M other people scattered around the rest of the country. The places we went were fairly rural and not heavily populated and there weren't a lot of tourists and crowds. It was a nice mix of another country and experiencing some of its underdevelopment and lack of infrastructure, yet it had enough modern conveniences so that it didn't feel like you were seriously roughing it. Because they get enough tourists, and their economy were we visited relies heavily on tourism, there were plenty of things to do.
Driving was pretty easy. People didn't drive crazy and they drive on the right side of the road. Most of the main roads are marked well enough to get you where you need to go if you're paying attention, yet it's still possible to miss a turn. However, there are few major roads so you can get cell phone service (i.e. Google Maps) on them and make sure you're going the right way. Sure, they'll pass you on left on a two lane road if you're going to slow, but we do that here too.
A lot of the people we met spoke some English. I was able to practice some Spanish and was able to get around fine since I can read a lot more Spanish, but for the most part it was really easy to communicate. Pretty much all of the people we met were very friendly, warm, and kind. Lots of people gave the kids smiles and wanted to ask them some questions. I am sure that this partly due to the fact that we weren't in the big city - more around country folk. But, they seemed genuinely happy we were there. I never once felt uncomfortable or unsafe where we went. I think they are just used to enough of us that it wasn't awkward, but weren't yet resentful of tourists since there weren't that many of them around...yet.
I say yet because I think the word is starting to get out about this being a great place to visit. Hopefully it won't become the next Waikiki Beach, since it may only attract a certain type of person. There are resorts where we were, but those kinds of people probably are more interested in other things like restaurants, pools, and all-inclusive type resorts. It does take some effort and traveling to get to the Arenal area, which probably keeps some people away.
Obviously, you can see from the pictures I posted that it's a beautiful country. A good way for me to describe our trip is perfectly balanced. We had beach, sunsets, another culture, jungle, a volcano, etc...but the crowds were small enough that it was still restful. The people, weather and food were great, and we had to give up some conveniences, but it wasn't bad. It was still modern enough and yet not modern enough and another country that it was enjoyable and also still fun and restful. I'd go back again, especially over Spring Break, since it's relatively close and warm. We're glad we took the trip!
First, the kids did great. It was pretty easy to travel with them now that they are older. They understand a little more and are more self-sufficient, especially since Jonathan is eating on his own and we don't need to travel with a blender.
My impressions of Costa Rica are very positive. I think it could be somewhere that I would be willing to go again over Spring Break. It was much warmer than Hawaii. Almost half of the population lives around the capital city of San Jose, so there is probably only 2.5M other people scattered around the rest of the country. The places we went were fairly rural and not heavily populated and there weren't a lot of tourists and crowds. It was a nice mix of another country and experiencing some of its underdevelopment and lack of infrastructure, yet it had enough modern conveniences so that it didn't feel like you were seriously roughing it. Because they get enough tourists, and their economy were we visited relies heavily on tourism, there were plenty of things to do.
Driving was pretty easy. People didn't drive crazy and they drive on the right side of the road. Most of the main roads are marked well enough to get you where you need to go if you're paying attention, yet it's still possible to miss a turn. However, there are few major roads so you can get cell phone service (i.e. Google Maps) on them and make sure you're going the right way. Sure, they'll pass you on left on a two lane road if you're going to slow, but we do that here too.
A lot of the people we met spoke some English. I was able to practice some Spanish and was able to get around fine since I can read a lot more Spanish, but for the most part it was really easy to communicate. Pretty much all of the people we met were very friendly, warm, and kind. Lots of people gave the kids smiles and wanted to ask them some questions. I am sure that this partly due to the fact that we weren't in the big city - more around country folk. But, they seemed genuinely happy we were there. I never once felt uncomfortable or unsafe where we went. I think they are just used to enough of us that it wasn't awkward, but weren't yet resentful of tourists since there weren't that many of them around...yet.
I say yet because I think the word is starting to get out about this being a great place to visit. Hopefully it won't become the next Waikiki Beach, since it may only attract a certain type of person. There are resorts where we were, but those kinds of people probably are more interested in other things like restaurants, pools, and all-inclusive type resorts. It does take some effort and traveling to get to the Arenal area, which probably keeps some people away.
Obviously, you can see from the pictures I posted that it's a beautiful country. A good way for me to describe our trip is perfectly balanced. We had beach, sunsets, another culture, jungle, a volcano, etc...but the crowds were small enough that it was still restful. The people, weather and food were great, and we had to give up some conveniences, but it wasn't bad. It was still modern enough and yet not modern enough and another country that it was enjoyable and also still fun and restful. I'd go back again, especially over Spring Break, since it's relatively close and warm. We're glad we took the trip!
29 March 2017
Costa Rica - Tabacon Resort
I made reservations at the Tabacon Hot Springs Resort for our last day in Costa Rica. Although you can stay in this upscale hotel, they also sell daily passes that include a meal. The hot springs from the volcanic activity are very nice. This resort has taken the water and built an endless series of waterfalls, hot tubs, pools, and nooks and crannies all over their property for people to enjoy the water. This place is also landscaped beautifully and includes a swimming pool and a swim up bar area as well as non-water places for adults only to lounge and enjoy their favorite book, app, or just relax.
I think the pictures say it all. We used the morning to rest and pack up for our long travels the following day. We spent the afternoon playing in the water, spreading Oreo cookie crumble like volcanic rocks on me, and tossing larger rocks upstream a few feet. Although I purposely took these pictures without people in them (no one likes to be photographed by a stranger while in their bathing suit), you should know that any of these area were open to sit or swim in.
We were visited by a local lizard that possessed a lifetime pass for the springs. There were a few falls that were a little deep or powerful for the kids, but overall the terraced approach worked well. You can see the kids just kicking it in the water.
There was a pretty big waterfall that was located near the main pool area. They had built a bench seat behind it if you wanted to shimmy or just walk through the waterfall and have a seat behind the water. It was warm in there - kinda of like a steam room. Jonathan wanted me to take a picture of him with one of the many rocks in the streams on his head. Due to the color and position, it looks like he's got a man bun! The final shot is a cool aerial view with a person swimming, so you can get a good idea.. The resort limits the number of people each day, so that was nice and never too crowded to find a spot.
Included in our day pass was dinner at the hotel's very delicious restaurant onsite above the pool. It was a buffet format, and the perfect ending to our 10 days of traveling. It's hard to eat a lot of good, fresh food while traveling with kids. I enjoyed a couple plates of different meats, a salad, vegetables, and sampled a bite of every dessert they offered. In other words, the things I hadn't been able to eat much or any of since leaving. After dinner it was dark, so we spent a few minutes walking around the paths, waterfalls, and pools that were illuminated by lights. The hot springs close at 10 p.m., so I think most people prefer night time because of the colder temps and ambience of this place at night.
I think the pictures say it all. We used the morning to rest and pack up for our long travels the following day. We spent the afternoon playing in the water, spreading Oreo cookie crumble like volcanic rocks on me, and tossing larger rocks upstream a few feet. Although I purposely took these pictures without people in them (no one likes to be photographed by a stranger while in their bathing suit), you should know that any of these area were open to sit or swim in.
We were visited by a local lizard that possessed a lifetime pass for the springs. There were a few falls that were a little deep or powerful for the kids, but overall the terraced approach worked well. You can see the kids just kicking it in the water.
There was a pretty big waterfall that was located near the main pool area. They had built a bench seat behind it if you wanted to shimmy or just walk through the waterfall and have a seat behind the water. It was warm in there - kinda of like a steam room. Jonathan wanted me to take a picture of him with one of the many rocks in the streams on his head. Due to the color and position, it looks like he's got a man bun! The final shot is a cool aerial view with a person swimming, so you can get a good idea.. The resort limits the number of people each day, so that was nice and never too crowded to find a spot.
Included in our day pass was dinner at the hotel's very delicious restaurant onsite above the pool. It was a buffet format, and the perfect ending to our 10 days of traveling. It's hard to eat a lot of good, fresh food while traveling with kids. I enjoyed a couple plates of different meats, a salad, vegetables, and sampled a bite of every dessert they offered. In other words, the things I hadn't been able to eat much or any of since leaving. After dinner it was dark, so we spent a few minutes walking around the paths, waterfalls, and pools that were illuminated by lights. The hot springs close at 10 p.m., so I think most people prefer night time because of the colder temps and ambience of this place at night.
28 March 2017
Costa Rica - Kalambu Water Park
This was probably the day the kids enjoyed the most. A couple of people including our hosts had recommended this water park located on the outskirts of the nearest town called La Fortuna. This wasn't originally on the schedule, but as we got settled we realized none of us wanted to do more hiking in the hot sun and humidity. This was our improvisation.
Because Stacey had to work on this trip over lunch, the kids and I decided to do this by ourselves. It didn't open until 10 am, so we decided to pack food and spend most of the day there. Stacey also had some down time to herself back at the house when she wasn't working.
When we showed up I wasn't sure if they were open. There were no other cars in the lot, and none of the water was running. Turns out we were just the first ones to arrive, which ended up being a pretty sweet deal. For most of the day we had the entire water park to ourselves. Another family and couple showed up later, but they didn't use the same area of the water park. We basically had our own private water park, at the base of a smoking volcano, all to ourselves. The day was beautiful, and the water was kept at a perfect 90 degree temperature. In other words, we were only limited by our energy levels, and never once even thought about being cold.
So here's how the day went down. I think the kids went down the orange slide 100 times. I am not really exaggerating...it was a lot. The big red bucket at the top of the structure would fill up and dump tons of water everywhere probably every two to three minutes. Naturally, that was dubbed hot lava and we couldn't get touched by it. We spent all of our time in the orange slide because it would get hit every time by the "lava" and we had to seek shelter inside of it. What was fun about this was that each time someone went down the slide they would stop a few feet outside the tube, meaning they had to scramble back in before getting hit by "lava". Most of the time that was all of us at once.
Another thing that made this park really fun is that there weren't any lifeguards around this section of the pool. Instead of rules and regulations and the water park being perfectly safe (think U.S. liability), it was a little rough around the edges in parts but also very freeing. Most of the time we went down the slide three at a time, with the kids laying on me or joining up in a train halfway down. A lot of times Julia and Jonathan didn't even walk up the stairs, they just climbed back UP the water slide and I pulled them to the top. Sure, there were a few stubbed toes and head bumps, but that only happens when you've having a lot of fun. It was pretty fun to just do whatever we wanted, however and whenever.
Because Stacey had to work on this trip over lunch, the kids and I decided to do this by ourselves. It didn't open until 10 am, so we decided to pack food and spend most of the day there. Stacey also had some down time to herself back at the house when she wasn't working.
When we showed up I wasn't sure if they were open. There were no other cars in the lot, and none of the water was running. Turns out we were just the first ones to arrive, which ended up being a pretty sweet deal. For most of the day we had the entire water park to ourselves. Another family and couple showed up later, but they didn't use the same area of the water park. We basically had our own private water park, at the base of a smoking volcano, all to ourselves. The day was beautiful, and the water was kept at a perfect 90 degree temperature. In other words, we were only limited by our energy levels, and never once even thought about being cold.
So here's how the day went down. I think the kids went down the orange slide 100 times. I am not really exaggerating...it was a lot. The big red bucket at the top of the structure would fill up and dump tons of water everywhere probably every two to three minutes. Naturally, that was dubbed hot lava and we couldn't get touched by it. We spent all of our time in the orange slide because it would get hit every time by the "lava" and we had to seek shelter inside of it. What was fun about this was that each time someone went down the slide they would stop a few feet outside the tube, meaning they had to scramble back in before getting hit by "lava". Most of the time that was all of us at once.
Another thing that made this park really fun is that there weren't any lifeguards around this section of the pool. Instead of rules and regulations and the water park being perfectly safe (think U.S. liability), it was a little rough around the edges in parts but also very freeing. Most of the time we went down the slide three at a time, with the kids laying on me or joining up in a train halfway down. A lot of times Julia and Jonathan didn't even walk up the stairs, they just climbed back UP the water slide and I pulled them to the top. Sure, there were a few stubbed toes and head bumps, but that only happens when you've having a lot of fun. It was pretty fun to just do whatever we wanted, however and whenever.
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