Enjoying our Stay-cation!

Well our big adventures in Panama have come to an end.  We had an amazing vacation but I do have to say it has been nice being home.  We cherish every moment we are away, but it seems like whenever we leave it just makes us appreciate LIFE, and our STUFF so much more when we come home.  I guess, maybe, because we see how so many other parts of the world live and "survive"& we see a lot of poverty.  We definitely live the life of LUXURY here in the U.S. and seeing other parts of the world just makes me appreciate what I have so much more.  To be honest, I don't know which I prefer...there is so much to be said for the SIMPLE living, but then again we have so much advantage just being a U.S citizen.  I am torn!    I do believe there will come a time in our lives when we will make our EXIT...in the meantime, we are going to ENJOY our time here in the "land of plenty"!

                                    Riley and Cole at the Antique tractor museum.

            Riley has taken up surfing this summer...here she is checking the waves with Dad and Cole.

                                                           Nothing like chasing seagulls!

                                          And a visit from Mimi, "my mom", from Hawaii!

                                                               Fun times with cousins!

                                                                         And sisters!

There's honestly nothing better than coming home from a long vacation and appreciating all of the things and people that we missed while we were gone.  I couldn't ask for more from this life of mine.... I am definitely blessed all around and wouldn't change things for the world!!

Good Times

Well I feel like I have been slacking a bit in the blog department.  Sometimes it's just hard to stare at the computer when I could be looking at this...

                                                   So I have a little catching up to do.

The weather here in Bocas is so unpredictable.  We, for the most part, have gotten great weather.  To me that means waking up to a sunny morning,  heading out to the beach, hanging out with friends, or going on a new adventure, having the clouds build throughout the day, heading home (without getting caught in the storm), cooking dinner while it is dumping rain and then sitting on the porch and enjoying the thunder and lightning.  But that being said, we have been caught in our fair share of storms.  We have been heading straight into a lightning storm, we have been drenched in the boat, and we have had to wait out storms.  It's just all part of the adventure, right?!

Two weeks ago (July 13) we had a visit from Robert (a retired ENC fire captain) and Bob (an ENC fire captain).  These 2 were traveling around Panama and stopped in Bocas for a few days.  Alex met up with them their 1st full day here and took them to Playa Wizard to surf.  They anchored the boat off shore and swam in.  Not long after arriving a storm blew in and they had to leave so he took them over to Bastimentos and had lunch at Roots (which is one of our favorite places to eat).  Jerk chicken, coconut rice, black beans and salad for $4.  And don't forget the $1 beers!

The next day we all went out to Crawl Cay Restaurant.  We wanted to head to the Zapatillas but were tight on time as we had to be back for dinner at the Cerruti's for dinner.  So we just hung out and snorkeled in front of the restaurant, ate and drank.  

Robert and Bob still wanted to visit the Zapatillas so the next morning (after the morning rain storm) we were picked up by Andres (the driver for Dolphin Bay Hideaway where R & B were staying) and headed out.  The clouds were high but no thunder clouds in sight.  We had a great day on the beach snorkeling, eating pasta salad and starfruit, and collecting shells.

On the way home we drove right into a rain storm and were all SOAKED!  

Sunday (July17) our neighbors, Dave & Linda, invited us to Tranquilo Bay.  The owners of this resort were just a couple of guys in their 30's who had a dream of living in paradise and made it come true.  Along the way got married and had a few kids and created an amazing eco resort.
  Dave & Linda thought it would be fun for all of the kids to get together and play.  They had a great time kayaking, fishing, and swimming off the dock.  We packed a picnic lunch and had a great day.  We were all a bit nervous on the way home heading straight into a lightning storm, but we made it just fine.

The rest of the week was pretty mellow, only heading into town forour weekly supplies. 

 On Wednesday (July 20) I went with our neighbor Mary to hang out with the ladies and play Mawjan (spelling?), a chinese game played with tiles.  We sat around, ate snacks, drank wine and I got to hear all of the latest  gossip.  This was the first time in over a month I had been away from the kids and I have to tell you it was lovely!  It was also Dave's 75th birthday so we surprised him when he got home from town and carried all of his groceries up the hill for him and had a few birthday drinks with him and Linda.

Thursday (July 21) Jan and George (cruisers housesitting for Cindy) invited our "neighborhood" over for a BBQ. We ate like Kings and Queens indulging in steak, chicken, scalloped potatoes, fruit, and lots more.

Tuesday (July 26) we woke up to a beautiful day.  We decided to pack a picnic and head for the Zapatillas one last time.  By the time we got there the clouds were already building.  We played for about an hour or so then headed back home.  Let's just say we didn't beat the storm home.  The rest of the afternoon was sunny though and we enjoyed it from the deck of the house.

Yesterday (July 27) it was another beautiful day.  I have been hearing about this Thai restaurant on Bastimentos that is wonderful so we decided to try it out.  We parked in the Red Frog Marina and hiked over to the beach (about a 10 minute hike).  We rented boogie boards for the kids and hung on the beach.

We then headed over to the community dock in Bastimentos for lunch.  We met up with Craig, Lizz and their niece Cassandra (more cruisers) and hiked up to the restaurant.  It is about a 15 minute hike from town

 and across fields

Almost there...

And finally we made it!

It was worth all the effort.  Probably some of the most authentic Thai food I've ever had.

Our time here at Cerro Velero is quickly approaching.  We are going to enjoy our last few days in paradise and hope to return in the future.  

Buena Esperanza

A few days ago we went and visited the local Ngobe village, Buena Esperanza.  There are a number of villages nearby, this being the closest to us.  This was a wonderful experience for the kids, as well as Alex and I.  The villagers welcomed us with shy smiles and lots of stares.  They do not get many outside visitors so many were shocked to see blonde hair and white skin.
We met Michelle, a Peace Corp volunteer, who has been living in the village for 2 years and is nearing the end of her stay.  She educated the village on the importance of clean drinking water and helped them put in water tanks.  She also has been teaching them English.  Michelle gave us a "tour" of the village and introduced us to many of the villagers.
The kids got to sit in the classrooms and play with the kids at recess.

The kids soon warmed up to us and were treating us like one of their own.  They even invited Riley in a game of baseball.

Cole eventually got tired of the little girls chasing him and giggling.

They taught the kids to play a game called Mar y Tierra (ocean and dirt).  The kids quickly caught on.

This is one of my favorite pictures.  Cole was trying to have a conversation with the kids.  They were so interested even though they couldn't understand a word he was saying.  It was absolutely precious!

Then it was lunch time.

The women cooked big pots of food in the kitchen.

The kindergardeners ate first.  They enjoyed a creamy soup.  Then the older kids had beans and rice.

Many of these kids have never seen a camera.  They loved having their picture taken and then looking at themselves.

Despite the grim and often times unsanitary living conditions, these kids are as happy as any kids I have met.  It just goes to show that you don't need fancy cars, over-sized houses and video games.  You can live just as happy of a life with next to nothing, as long as you have food, shelter and family.

To Good Friends & Mother Nature

Time just seems to fly by here.  It's amazing that we have only been here for 3 weeks and I already feel like this is home.  We have met wonderful people whom have taken us in as family.  There is a very tight network of friends here and you feel like they would do anything for you.  I can only hope that when Alex and I retire we can come across such amazing people like the ones we have met.

Here we are at our house with our 2 sets of neighbors, Dave & Linda and Carl & Mary.  We invited them over a few nights ago for spaghetti.

Last Sunday at our weekly outing for pizza at Rana Azul, we spotted a three toed sloth walking on the ground.  Dave picked it right up and gave the kids a close up view of the cute little guy.

Yesterday, Dave & Linda invited us over for a walk around their property.  They own 30 acres of beautifully maintained jungle and cacao trees of which they make into their famous Cerruti chocolate.  The kids had a blast romping around in the jungle, catching frogs and picking flowers with Linda.

                                          The tiniest bee hive I've ever seen... even comes with mini bees!

                                              A family of bats in the trees.

                                                                Green dart frog
There are so many beautiful plants and flowers in the tropics.  I could mozy around all day in awe of nature has created.

This place has so many wonderful things to offer... from good friends & new adventures to the amazing beauty mother nature.  It makes me appreciate the little everyday things that we so often take for granted.