Pura Vida...otra vez!

After a delayed start to a trip that almost didn't happen** (see below)...we got to enjoy another fabulous vacation to Costa Rica as a family of three Gidleys!! Actually, I have to admit, this trip was way better than last time - even with me being 6 months pregnant! (If you remember, Silas was 21 months old on our last Costa Rica trip and, for a variety of reasons, it was a really challenging age to do a trip like this with him.)  He's now 4 years old and a relatively seasoned traveler - plus he's old enough to appreciate much of the cool stuff he saw.



Since we went during the "windy season" (which is also the "dry season"), we spent a lot of time at Lago Arenal watching my parents windsurf and playing in/around the lake.  Matt also did some windsurfing.  We brought Silas' life jacket, so he had a lot of fun bobbing around/swimming in the water.

Mom is in the water at the moment and Dad is zooming by.

  

Silas, as his usual goofy self, playing in the wind.

We enjoyed relaxing at my parents house too - often on the patio (which wasn't scary this time since I knew Silas wouldn't accidently toddle right off the edge and roll down into the jungle!). 




We tried to re-create the classic sunset photo from the last trip...not really the same with a goofy 4 year-old!

 

hammock-time!



Silas loved playing this soccer (aka futbol) game that one of my parent's Costa Rican (aka "Tico") friends, Sandra, had left as a gift for him.  Everyone who visited our house got to play at least one game with Silas.  It's too bad we didn't get a video of him playing with Sandra.  He thought her fast-talking game commentary (that was all in Spanish) was pretty hilarious!

 

 

We did afloat trip down the Rio Tonorio again. 

We saw an incredible amount of wildlife on the river.  I was telling Silas how we'd probably see little cocodrillos again...but I was totally unprepared for the size of this one!  (I guess the little crocs we saw last time grew up!!).  I didn't mind that our guide kept a safe distance...

This also turned out to be our best look at howler monkeys (although we heard their fierce roaring every day from my parent's house...usually at the crack of dawn).

Matt and I got to take a little day-trip adventure to the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve (next to the more famous Monteverde).  It was a beautiful drive and an amazing hike with some cool bird sightings.  We didn't see the illusive Quetzal, but we did see an orange-bellied Trogon (which is also very special and in the same family).

We spent the last few days of our trip at Playa Hermosa.  It was a beautiful beach in a tiny little town.  The Pacific Ocean was calm and relatively warm.  Matt and I enjoyed some amazing snorkeling.  Silas would've enjoyed swimming in the mellow surf...but he got stung by a little jellyfish on his first dip in the ocean.  I actually swam through huge swarms of little jellyfish when I was snorkeling.  It wasn't pleasant - but I didn't have much of a reaction to the stings.  Silas, unfortuantely, did react with more pain and swelling - and that was the end of his swimming in the ocean for this trip!  But we still had lots of fun playing on the beach and exploring the tide pools.

It has been fun imagining how we'll be a family of four the next time we do a big trip!  I'm so grateful we got share this adventure now, before we settle into the next phase of life that comes with baby Gidley.  (And if you're wondering...no, she still doesn't have a name yet!!)

**long story - but our trip delay was basically due to a complication with my pregnancy that arose on Saturday, when we were supposed to leave on Sunday, turned out to be no problem on Monday and allowed us to rearrange all our travel plans to leave on Wednesday!