Poco a Poco

Time is going really fast now and I can't believe it is April!  That's probably why people have been wondering what I have been up to down here in Costa Rica...

Well, teaching is going quite well now.  There are always difficult days, but I'm figuring it out...little by little:)  It is great having my own classroom and teaching the same kids everyday.  I like it.  The days have been VERY warm the past couple of weeks.  I'm very much appreciating the fan!  (Speaking of, we are very excited to have a fan for our house thanks to Rick and Kathie)!
                  

My little classroom:)

The school is used to be a house...a very nice house!
 (There's even a pool on the right.)

4th grade is on the right:)

San Jose's weather is interesting, the mornings are great, afternoons are very hot, and nights can be almost cool.  I forget we are in the mountains and are about 3,600 feet above sea level.  That must be why we have sweaters on in the picture above...It is still fairly humid though.  There are a few more bugs than in Colorado...but we are getting better at killing them.  Thankfully we have only encountered 1 cucaracha!  Although it was HUGE!!  I'm glad Kristin was able to chase it down the street with a bottle of Raid:)  It will not be returning to this casita.



The kids are doing well, we are almost finished with the first quarter!  School has been busy, but we have found time to go to the beach...We took a couple of day trips by bus to a Jaco.  Very nice for a day trip...and much needed relaxation time!

But Manuel Antonio is even better than Jaco!  We couldn't decide between going to the beach or the jungle.  So we did both in a weekend in Manuel Antonio:)  Manuel Antonio National Park is a great place to see White-Faced Monkeys.  We were so close to them..and they were very CUTE!  I probably took way too many pictures of them...

We also learned how to surf!  We were able to stand up, although this is no easy task.  We definitely had bruises to show!

After hiking through the jungle it was time for a nap...for everyone:)

The beach is always great.  But the past couple of weekends, we have been enjoying San Jose.  The market of delicious goods of course!  As well as a 6 hour hike to the top of a mountain that looks over San Jose.  It was so pretty, my pictures can't even show how great it was!

Popusa with a drink of coconut at the market:)

We made it to the top!

Well, on the schedule for the rest of the day is writing exams, grading papers, and making my lunches to last the week:)  This is what everyone seems to do...and it is a good idea!  Leftovers are wonderful!  The kids think it's weird if I eat a sandwich or raw vegetables for lunch.  They always have fully cooked, dinner type meals.  

When it cools off, perhaps we will sit out on the front porch with our new 'camping' chairs:)  Yes, it's the little things in life that can be great!  Hope all is well and more to come soon:)