Buenos

Good morning, folks. Auntie M is all settled in, we all had a good night's sleep, and we are up and rarin' to go.

Is it weird that as I sit here, I'm taking a few minutes to think of what activities we should do for Christmas when we get home, what gifts still need to be purchased, what reminders I need to send MOMS Club for our December service project and what groceries/supplies I need to purchase as soon as I get home. As I look outside, it's kind of a weird sensation.

I was talking to Mandrike about Christmas the other day, about their traditions and what it's like to celebrate Christmas without any snow. I guess I should tell you that Mandrike is our pool boy. He's 20. Lives in Playa del Coco. He works, goes to the University and loves surfing. He has 3 sisters and 4 brothers. He's the 2nd youngest. He can't imagine celebrating with snow. He's never seen snow. They, too, decorate Christmas trees, but they are much smaller trees. His mom decorates their house a little, but it's usually just the tree and maybe something on their front door. Santa no longer comes to their home but they sometimes get gifts from each other. I love that the holiday is so much less materialistic here. It's wonderfully freeing.

Everything here is less materialistic. You buy what you need to survive. That's really the gist of it. It's incredible. Seriously. I don't notice a big sense of competition about possessions or "brands." Latin American women also love their bodies despite any and all imperfections. They have so much self confidence and self love that they wear whatever bathing suit they want and don't worry about it. It, too, is so incredible freeing. I feel like in the US, everyone judges everyone else and loves to put each other down. From my experience, Latin women either don't care or build each other up. Regardless, it's a much more pleasant experience. That, or, well, Costa Rica just calls to the laid back persona from any country.

This is Yvette, our housekeeper. She has three beautiful children (14, 11 and 8). She got married yesterday. We really like her. She LOVES Owen. We talk with hand gestures and broken Spanish and English about our children and our lives.

I love getting to know about these amazing people! Off to another busy day.