Costa Rice - Day 3 & 4 - Arenal Volcano by Raft, Air and Foot

Our first four nights we stayed in La Fortuna, outside of Arenal Volcano National Park.  The volcano is active, the last eruption in 1968.  Arenal is a tourist trap with exquisite beauty.  The volcano grows about 5 meters a year.   With the grandeur of the volcano in the backdrop one hardly notices the billboards.

Arenal Volcano billowing smoke

 Sunday we got up and left our cabin in the rainforest and drove an hour to church.  The road was flat and we were able to travel through several small villages and got a feel for what Costa Rica is really like.   The church was in the a town of about 70,000 people.  Again the waypoints.  We got to the suspected area but couldn't find the church.  Then we saw father and son walking down the street in a white shirt and tie.  We stopped and talked to them and were just a few blocks off from our destination.

There was something so striking about the image of the two white pressed shirts on the backdrop of the of the cities dirt, concert, bars and wire.   It was a reminder that the Gospel of Jesus Christ allows us to rise above our surrounding environments and circumstances.

Church was great, because we were out of the tourist zone very few spoke English.  The LDS church has the same lessons world wide so I had my English copy on my phone and was able to follow along (somewhat).  Relief Society was great.  The RS president looked calculated and very organized. I got a warm handshake.  However her counselor came up grabbed my by the shoulders, said who knows what in Spanish and kissed me on the cheek with a big smile.  A welcome that would warm any woman's heart.  The next hour I didn't catch much but it was a welcoming atmosphere and I enjoyed sitting back and watching the interactions of the sisters. 

We drove back looking for our next hotel.  We both thought we were staying at the Arenal Volcano Ecolodge.  We turned off the highway onto our first gravel road (if your thinking gravel, think Grade B at best).  And within minutes the gravel triggered my "clutch memory".  While tourists creeped along scared to be off pavement , our Yaris flew by giant 4x4's leaving them in the dust.  The gravel had cured my driving issues and for the first day I really enjoyed being behind the wheel.

View from the Volcano Lodge

We drove thirty minutes out to the hotel, the road becoming smaller and rough, only to find ourselves at the base of the volcano with waterfalls and trails.  We were so excited to stay here to spend the next two days hiking and exploring....only to find out that we were at the wrong hotel.  Our hotel was the Volcano Lodge in town.  While they didn't have trails or waterfalls, they did make cute jungle animals with their towels. 

Monday Jared talked me into zip linning.  The girl who two days before wouldn't make a 20 ft jump into the river with a helmet and life jacket on was about to strap herself to a non-American engineered cable to be hurled 600 feet over the jungle floor at 55mph.  There were several lines that cris-crossed the gorge.  The volcano is rarely visible this time of year due to cloud cover but today was clear.

Arenal Valley from the Zip Line

Our pre-death pic opportunity (in case we didn't make it back)

After the initial push off the platform and the urge to spew a  few lines of four-letter words (I didn't but the girl in front of me quickly earned the name "Jersey" for language like Jersey Shores).   The views and the feeling of flying overoad the fear.  It was a spectacular way to see the valley, lake and volcano.  We had about a dozen people in our group from all walks of life.  There was 15 minutes between runs giving us time to talk and hear people's life stories. 

We finished the ziplines around noon and the day was still clear.  We decided to hike Cerro Chato, the smaller dead sister volcano.  From what we read this was THE HIKE and view of Costa Rica.  Our window was small but we paid our $20.00 and started off.

The brochure said it was "strenuous".  Jared and I are both in decent shape and like to hike.  And by NPS standards "strenuous" means that most of the general public can still do it.  The hike started in the foothills and quickly we realized what a 2400 foot assent looks like in 1.8  miles.   By halfway in I understood what the review title on Tripadvisor "I lost the will to live at the forest line" meant.  The fields turned to deep rainforest and the path was a ladder of tree roots. Many being a good three-foot incline at a time.  Being 5'3" many steps were higher than my  hips.

Starting the Cerro Chato Trail

The trail steps, keep in mind Jared is 6'0" tall

The "good" part

The trail upwards

Got to get my giant tree photo in!

By almost the top I was drenched in sweat and my heart rate was well above what was humanly possible.   I didn't think I would make it, that lost the will to live thing set in.  Jared wouldn't let me stop and we soon we reached the top to see this view.  We just hiked what 99% of the visitors would never see.  We caught our breath and hiked the final 100 meters DOWN into the old crater to the Green Lagoon. We made the assent in 1.5 hours (they said it would take 2-3 hours) which is probably why I felt like dying, poor pacing.

Em on the top of Cerro Chato half dead

Jared looking like he just walked down the block

View of Arenal from the top of Cerro Chato

The Green Lagoon

Storm rolling in on the hike down Cerro Chato

 Sitting at the lake we hear thunder and started to head down the volcano trying to escape the rain, which was unsuccessful.  But we got through the most difficult passage before the rain came.  After that hike we spent the evening lounging in the hot tube nursing mangled quads and decided the new hotel wasn't such a bad gig. 

Costa Rica - Renshaw Style - Day 1 & 2

When Jared and I were first married we backpacked Belize and Guatemala.  At the time we were in college and dirt poor.  We spent twelve days hitchhiking and camping across the two countries on a shoe-string budget.   Looking back we spent $60 to snorkel and that was our "big expenditure".
It was on that trip we fell in love with Central America and for years we talked about another visit, but kids came and between babies, nursing, sleepless nights and Jared's masters program on top of working, world travel was not exactly at the top of our list of priorities. 

This September will be our 10th anniversary and it was due time.  We decided during the spring that Costa Rica would be our first choice but we couldn't find tickets and sitters to match the dates we needed.  Disappoint we purchased tickets on a whim to Washington D.C., mainly because they were cheap...and we are cheap, so naturally that's how you plan a vacation right?!?

Then last month we found tickets to Costa Rica out of O'hare for $370/ticket and we decided we had to do it.  Luckily our DC tickets were through Southwest so we could bump them six month (maybe I'll get luckily and see the cherry blossoms next year ;)  We had three weeks to plan a foreign vacation, thank you Trip Advisor! And this was it.....eight days of Pura Vida!

Day 1 - Meet the Yaris
We flew into San Jose airport and picked up our rental car.  The manual cars were drastically cheaper than the automatic transmissions.  I grew up on a manual but haven't touched one in a decade and Jared doesn't drive one at all.  So naturally we booked it (because I thought it would be like riding a bike, I would jump in and we would smoothly roll out of the parking lot....right???)  So when everyone else was pulling out in a mongo 4x4 automatic, we pulled out in a Toyota Yaris with a stick.

To make matters worse it was rush hour in San Jose.  A place where all road rules, warnings and common sense are optional.  Throw in gigantic hills, bikes, motor bikes and my lack of clutching skills and it was hot hell mess on wheels.  I was in tears as we drove aimlessly attempting to find the road out.  There are no addresses or road signs/names.   Everything is off waypoints, most from the Catholic church.  For example your hotel would be 1km west, 300m north of the church, next to the laundry place.  Great for a small village, not so great for a large city.

Things got better when we left the city....and then we hit the mountain roads.  The landscape was stunning - lush, rolling, mountains laced in fog.   The roads were still paved but incredibly narrow and so steep that trucks would stall out going up....which meant we would stall out....which meant I had to clutch start on a hill that made my driveway back home look like child's play.  The curves were so tight every so often a bus or truck came the other direction it would create a pinch point and the other lane would have to stop and back down to let them pass.   We stopped at a road side restaurant to let the clutch cool and ate our first casado meal (rice and beans).  It was this shack that had a million dollar view and I instantly fell in love.  We had stepped out of the slum of the city and into the cover of National Geographic.  It was only about 80 miles to our first destination but took us 3 1/2 hours to drive it.

Day 2 - Survived to see La Forturna- Arenal Volcano Area

We survived the drive and still had part of a burning clutch left for the rest of the week.  Our first two nights we booked at Cabanas Rucstico.  For the price I was expecting a shack in the woods, but much to our surprise the cabin was beautiful.  The owner was a true craftsman and the detail and design were beautiful.

Saturday morning we got up and went white water rafting on the Sarapiqui River.  It had rained the night before so we had some 4+ class rapids which made for an excellent run.  Our guide was great and the other couple we were teamed up with were really laid back.

 We stopped to do some cliff jumping.  Jared jumped...I valued my life more and did the walk-of-shame down to the river (which the photographer was more than happy to document).

But to redeem myself I "Rode the Bull" through a few sets of rapids.  Yes that's me, Miss-worry-about every-possible-way-to-die, sitting on the front of a rubber raft lurching through raging water in a third world country. 


This way my favorite part of the trip.  I love being on the water (not in the water), paddle in hand creates such a different experience in an environment....and it didn't require a clutch. 

LIVESTONG at the Y

We just graduated our first Livestong class at the Y in May.  I got my certification last fall and the pilot program started over the winter months in Cedar Rapids.  The instructor I teach with is

 a close friend and we have enjoyed working together. The program is a free 12-week fitness program for any survivor and their caretakers. 

The participants have been wonderful and such an example of how to live life.  While the situations are heart breaking,  the majority have forgiven those who have wronged them, fixed the things in their life that needed to be fixed and have learned to smile through incredibly tragic times.  For many of them it seems when they realize that time is short life becomes whole.

And I didn't realize at the time the best accomplishments would be the little things.  Watching people walk up stairs for the first time in months, hearing their stories of being able to get off the ground without help and watching the improvement in daily living.  We are teaching another session this summer and another great group of people.

Spring

We spent the past several months doing this....

and this ....(don't even ask about the driveway)

Needless to say it was a  LONG winter, but we made the best of  it.  The kids used a sled as a mode of transportation to the bus stop a the end of the street.   They would ride down in the morning and tie their sled to a tree and I would pick it up in the afternoon.

We took a short weekend vacation to Dubuque to the indoor water park. And had to make a stop at the new Grant Wood larger-than-life statue.  While Dubuque is a beautiful city to visit during the summer, there isn't much to do with snow on the ground but it was a welcomed weekend away.

Per tradition Jared took the girls out to buy new Easter dresses, they decided on matching this year and Ike picked out a new flashy suit....attempting to get a decent family photo :)

   

 One of the highlights of the Spring was the Mother's Day weekend Laces for Learning 5K. I signed up with a couple of sisters from church and all of the kids did the one mile.   Its was cold, incredibly windy and hilly.  Eliza was sobbing the last quarter mile, it was a track finish at the stadium and I thought i was going to have to carry her.  She said never again, until they called her name for 3rd in her age division, I think she wore her medal all week (and taunted her sister that she didn't place).  Erin missed placing by one second but ran an 8:12 mile (almost two minutes faster than Eliza but we didn't want to spoil to fun).

I love this age, its so fun to watch them grow and enjoy life!

 

We're still here!

Well the Chrismtas letter made it as far as the desktop this year...We are alive and well!
 
We have now been in Iowa a whole year and have adjusted back to our roots (and the weather)!
The seasons are beautiful and we are looking forward to this Christmas Season and snow.

We are still working on the house (slowly).  We now have all functioning bathrooms,  90% of the interior painted and the retaining wall rebuilt.  In August we went on a week “camping” trip (we stayed at a KOA with a water park and pizza place) at Mt Rushmore.  On our way home we camped in Badlands National Park and were lucky to catch the annual astronomy symposium and toured the missile silo bunker.  The stars were beautiful, as was the weather and no cell phone service.

Over the summer had a community garden plot at the local park.  We met lots of people and carried hundreds of gallons of water by bucket because of the drought.  In the end had a productive garden (and good looking arms).  We did several one-night camping trips in and around Cedar Rapids. Emmaly & Jared did their annual canoe trip on Turkey River in NE Iowa... at the end of of drought...we ended up walking next to our canoe for three hours, but enjoyed some kid-free time.  

Jared:
Jared continues to work at Rockwell-Collins under the government division.  Last spring he spent a several weeks (months?) in Virginia for work.  We are happy to have him back in Iowa again.  In March Jared was called as a Bishop at church, it flipped our lives upside down for the first few months, but we have learned to prioritize and enjoy serving the people in Cedar Rapids.  In what little free time he has Jared enjoys spending time with the youth at church and at home with the kids.


 
Emmaly:
Emmaly is finding a bit of new freedom with only one at home.  She started working at the local YMCA this fall teaching a youth fit class.  They gave her a room full of preteens and a whistle, what more could a woman ask for?  She also became a trainer for the LIVESTRONG cancer rehabilitation program through the Y and is excited to see it launch this winter.   Em ran her first sprint triathlon this summer and lived to see the finish line.

Erin (8):
Erin was baptized on her eighth birthday in November and we enjoyed the day with lots of family and friends.  She is active in Girl Scouts, is on the Junior Skippers jump rope team and loves the second grade! Last spring she ran track through the “Y” and long jumped 9’4” leading the women's division.  She loves to dance and sing and enjoys reading.

Eliza (5):
Eliza started all day kindergarten this fall and also loves it!  I hear that she is perfectly behaved at school.  Eliza was in gymnastic last spring and played t-ball over the summer.  She kept with the boys pretty well.  Eliza enjoys harassing her little brother and drawing.

Isaac (3):
Ike is into trucks and planes. He joined Mighty Mites at the “Y” and has enjoyed getting to know other kids his age.  His favorite thing to do is go to Aldi’s grocery store.  He is VERY talkative and is an entertaining little guy.

We wish you all the best during this Christmas Season.  May your find great blessings in your life as you celebrate and reflect on the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Blur....

Where does time go?  I was looking forward to a nice relaxing summer....and well I am still waiting for it.  Life has been moving at full-pace and I am starting to realize its not going to slow down anytime soon.   Here are some late spring/early summer happenings at the Renshaw household.  

Jared received his last documents from United Space Alliance and almost a year later his dealings with the Space Program are officially closed.  He enjoyed a couple of days at Scout Camp and Girls Camp. We went to see Jared's baby brother off to the MTC.  He leaves for Chile for a two-year mission. Life keeps J moving at race pace, but he's managing well.

I'm still plugging away at training.  I am regularly biking 20 miles, running 3 miles and swimming longer that I ever thought possible.  I still look beached whale in lane 2 when I swim, but at least my arms look good :)  I turned 31 and found out I have serious arthritis in one knee, this 30-something sucks, can I have my twenties back :).  I attended YW camp for a few days with Jared.  It was a wonderful experience to get to know the girls and the leaders.  I started working for the family business again, picking up their computer layout side of the business.  I am also getting ready to pick up a couple of certifications to work at the Y this fall.  So needless to say laundry has been piling up :).

We've spent some much needed time with family.  Jared's sister came to visit in June and the kids met their cousin Macy for the first time and had a great time.  Grandparents have been bouncing back and forth to see the kids, celebrate birthdays and watch games. 

As for the kids....

Erin completed the first grade, her report card was stellar. She finished the year with a "woodland creature fashion show".  Luckily it was PETA approved and no animals were harmed in the process.  Each kid researched a native animal and shared a fact they learned and made a costume to model down the red carpet, too cute!  We then had lunch on the green.

 Erin also bridged from Daisy Scouts and is now a proud Brownie.  She also attended jump rope camp and now has some killer jump moves.

 Despite the heat we have managed to hit the bike trail a couple of times.  Cedar Rapids has a nice network of paved trails, its a great way to see the city.  Erin can now ride up to six miles on her own....Eliza sits on her tag along bike and lets Jared pull her :).  Ike loves the central trail since it goes by the train yards.

Our Tuesday and Thursday nights have been consumed with ball.  Erin is playing Softball and Eliza is playing t-ball through the Y this summer.  They both love it. 

 We spent a day in Nauvoo for the ward temple trip.  Eliza and her friends played at Pioneer pastimes for HOURS.

 Ike decided that to was too hot for clothes, but not for his sister slippers  (he is now into hats of all kinds).

 We spent some time feeding the geese at Ellis park after working in the garden.  Its been an incredibly dry year and we spend a lot of time watering with 5-gallon buckets, but the garden is doing well.  We've had a good crop of peas, green beans, zucchini out the wazoo, and picked our first tomats this week!

 Erin and Eliza read a book about a boy who made play clay cookies and gave them to people to eat.  Erin and Eliza made play clay cookies and proceeded to give them to Ike to eat.....they then documented his reaction.....love what I find on my camera and the stories that go with it :).

And that's life!

Birds of All Kinds

We've had a theme this week and it been all about birds.

Bird 1:  This pigeon showed up early last week and hung around for five days.  At first I thought he was sick, then when I drove over him (straddled him) I thought he was just a little slow upstairs.  Then we took a closer look and he was banded and we realized he was tame??? I could pick him up (which of course is when the neighbors comes over and I am walking around with a pigeon, chalk one up for the new weirdos in the hood).   The kids named him Lulu and started feeding him cupcakes.  I have a friend from college who is a bird guru and he said that he was probably a "racing pigeon".  What the heck???  So thanks to a Google search of "Lost Pigeon" we found the American Pigeon Racing Association where we could key in his band numbers and let the owner know his where abouts.  He was gone the next day so I am hoping he found his way home and not to the neighbors free-range hunting dogs.   Either way I feel a bit more normal now that I know people race pigeons for a hobby.

2.  Eliza ran in all excited on Thursday talking about a giant black and gray bird that was "as big as she was:".  Eliza is in that lovey story telling age where things tend to get stretched a bit.   We walked around the house and didn't see anything so I told her it was probably a crow.  Ten minutes later we walked outside and she yells "Mom there's my crow!!!!"  Standing 10 feet away was a giant tom.

3.  And lastly.  Erin ran track this spring through the YMCA.  I was one of the coaches and it was a blast!   We had K-5th grade.  It took two weeks to get the little ones running in the right direction and finally by the last meet they learned to stay in their own lanes for the 4x1.

We are finding out that Erin is a distance runner.  She did very well in the 600M and unexpectedly this kid can fly.  Her first meet she long jumped 7'6".  Second meet 8'0" and this Saturday she jumped 9'4"!  The last race of the season the 600M, Eliza decided she wanted to get in on the action and ran the last 300 with Erin, while she didn't keep up she had plenty of cheers from the stand as she crossed the finish line.

Learning to Swim

I keep thinking that I am finding which way is up and then waves chaos flattens that thought.  We are learning quickly to prioritize, simplify, pray more specifically and I am learning for the first time in my life to say "good enough".  Jared comes and goes at random intervals.  Many nights we only see him for dinner and then its off to church.    He left for Washington DC again this morning, he is starting one week rotations between CR and DC.  They said it's short term, but last time short term turned into three months.  Don't get me wrong, its been a good experience, just a change of pace.  The marathon has started, there are days I feel the cadence and others I feel like I tripped in the first 20 feet and am being trampled :) 

And I am learning to swim, literally.  Somehow this months visiting teaching spiritual moment included signing up for a sprint triathlon August 11.  Its a 300 yard swim (in a pool, because we all know I don't put my face, or really any part of my body for that matter, in open water), 15 mile bike and 5K run.  It's one of those things that sounded like a really good idea at the time and then you wake up the next morning and think, crap. But I've paid my $50, therefore I may die, but at least I'll get my t-shirt. 

J left for DC today and we had a great day!  I taught my last after school gardening class at Erin's school which was a blast.  Erin and I swam laps at the Y, I officially made it 300 yards, in 15 minutes mind you.  I am now confident that they won't require me to wear a life preserver at the triathlon.  We played at the park and after a day of the kids getting along Eliza walked into her bedroom missing her bangs....yes that crucial part of your hair that screams when missing "nerd"!  Its so bad, I about died laughing.  Its off to my hair gal tomorrow to see if she can work miracles.

I found some photos from the spring on my phone....

  Last month we went to the Children's Museum in Iowa City.  Rockwell Collins sponsored an  avionics day and it was a blast.  They had several of these pedal plans and Ike fell madly in love.  I was impressed with the museum, chalk up another mark for Iowa.

 One of the coolest parts of living here is we are in the Nauvoo Temple district. Its a two-hour drive...traffic free, which does not require a quick road-rage repentance session as you run in the doors :) I love it, we walk in and I am home.  Jared and I took a trip to Nauvoo a few days before he was called as bishop and it was a wonderful weekend back where it all started eight years ago. 

 We've climbed trees....

 And did monster Easter Egg hunts...

 Our hideous looking dandelion-filled yard welcomed hundreds of butterflies this spring, the kids spent hours each day catching them.  Ike just liked whacking Eliza with his net, he got really good looking innocent and saying "I missed" :)

And Good Friday our community garden opened.  We are plot C-9 (so if your going to scavenge, scavenge elsewhere)  So far we have onions, lettuce, carrots, potatoes and peas planted.  Ike really had to go to the bathroom one day when working out there.  He figured out how to stand up.  Now every time we go out to work he feels it's his duty to mark his territory, boys....

Spring is Here

Spring has been here for almost a month now!  It's been in the 70's and 80's which is crazy, but no one is complaining.  Garden and yard prep is now in full swing, although I have to hold back knowing it could still freeze.  The kids are loving it, we have 1/2 wooded lot and they play outside for hours.  So here is our spring going-ons....




This little man is officially potty trained!  Actually has been since late January.  All it took was a $30 Thomas-the-Train pillow pet and a few packs of Cars undies.  And he is doing awesome!  This is our first time in seven years not having anyone in diapers and its NICE! Right now he is all about trains, cars and of course the Space Shuttle.  He can now recite Eric Carle's "Panda Bear Panda Bear" book and chatters incessantly. 

Eliza is as crazy as ever.  She loves gymnastics and is really good, she is completely focused in the midst of a crew of four year olds.  Her speech is coming along and we got her registered for Kindergarten.   She has made lots of new friends and loves to collect worms from the yard and sometimes put them on Erin's side of the bed :/

Erin grew up over night, she is almost as tall as me now.  She is completely obsessed with chess, drawing, art and reading, she is my brain child.  She is excited to start track through the Y in April.

As for Jared and myself we have been busy painting the basement, still need to do touch ups, but its looks really good. Jared spent the majority of the spring in Washington DC for work.  It sounds like his travel will now be limited which is an answer to prayers. He was called as a Bishop this month which has flipped our lives upside down but we are slowly finding which way is up.  Things are falling into place and he'll do a wonderful job.  And our front yard looks like a swath of yellow from the dandelions, such is life :).

The $60 update

  Most of the house we are keeping with a natural/nature color palette (frankly I don't want to have to repaint if we ever put the house on the market).  But you have to have a little fun with the kids areas right (according to J, no.  But when J is on travel, E get to do whatever she wants to :D

Jared is a drywall master, he did a great job!

Original - baby blue toilet seat included

I was at Menards in January and found a gray and orange/red  I really liked on the mismatch shelf for $5.00/gallon.  The orange matched the shower curtain perfectly.  When I got it up on the wall, it was almost HD orange!  The brass towel bars were shot, luckily Menards also had nice chrome towel bars clearance for $4.00 and the mirror was on sale for $15.00. 

Which left the light.  I'm not a fan of the "row" light, plus I wanted that "row" light to put in our Master Bath to replace the hideous monster of a fixture (12 bulbs)  we now have.  The bathroom was a small budget project and new fixtures start at about $60.00.  Which bring me to my new hangout and love - The Restore.  If you haven't been there its a goodwill for home improvement projects.    This fixture was $5.00 (hideous and brass) and then all their glass shades are $1.00 each.  Its kind of a mix and match.  Anyway $5.00  in spray paint and my new $15.00 light was on the wall, I was happy with the final product.  It had a fun modern shop feel to it and was looking kind of girly for Ike.  My bro collect hub caps so he gave me a few old ones to hang on the wall.

One man's junk

A little paint and its wall ready

Anyway minus the cost of caulk and drywall supplies, this is our $60 bathroom update.  I love it, J hates it, the kids are thrilled and its one more project we can cross off the list.  Now we have three out of four bathrooms in working order (which is more than any family needs).