Summer's Over!

August 28, 2011

Two weeks in the apartment.  The air-mattress thing got REALLY old, really fast.  Not that we’re sissies or anything, but, because four of the five of the mattresses  could not hold air for more than about an hour after the second night.  We love the look of our almond-wood floors, but not the feel.  Even so, the kids did not want to go back to a hotel, so they toughed it out a night or two more until the rental stuff got here (I say “they” because I chivalrously went on a business trip to Nicaragua, where, ahem, the bed was quite comfy).  Now we all have our own beds, we have a kitchen table, and a couch and love seat for the family room (in addition to two folding tables and several folding chairs on loan to us by our bishop).  We’re still camping, but, one step closer to normalcy.

Like that dapper school uniform, Dalt.

Dayna has been back in the U.S. for the past week getting our home packed up in Jacksonville.  Keat flew out to help her, and now our belongings are on a container, scheduled to be in our new home by  . . . . Halloween?  Still too far away to real excited yet.  Dayna loved the week with Keaton, and getting to see family and friends as well.

It feels too soon for the kids to be going back to school.  But they did.  With no small dose of apprehension.  The whole “new kid on the block” thing exacerbated by the language and culture, and being the children of a mere mortal business manager, vs. one of the off-spring of Costa Rica’s rich and famous who make up a big chunk of the student body.

Volcanoes in Nicaragua.

Apprehensions were unnecessary, as it turns out.  They all have fit right in, and are already getting invites to parties, play-dates, etc.  Biggest crisis was Braden getting flustered the other day at lunch.  When he finally opened up about the root cause of the fuss, turns out that he couldn’t decide whether he should eat lunch with his fourth grade friends (he is in fourth grade), or his fifth grade friends (peer pressure stinks, no?).  He Solomonically opted to do recess with the first crowd, and lunch with the latter.

A kinder, gentler, more capitalist Daniel Ortega running for re-election

I enjoyed my trip to Nicaragua.  Not what I expected.  Very calm, orderly, pretty.  Said to be the safest country in Central America.  Daniel Ortega (remember the Sandinistas??) is in power, again, and soon to be up for re-election.  Polls show him in a decided lead.  This time ‘round, he’s a capitalist.  Guess since the revolution he has invested in several businesses (including much of the local media), and now has a healthy respect for making money.

The shuttle back from Managua.

Just gonna throw it out there—with all of the joggers and bikers on the roads everyday, I (Glenn) have found myself pondering another “Tri” for next year.  There is one that looks like a hoot a few hours from here on the ocean (“in” the ocean for the swim portion of the race).  March 17 if anyone wants to sign up with me.  Just throwin’ it out there . . . .      http://rev3tri.com/costa-rica/costa-rica-sign-up/registration/

We get Dayna back in about 61/2 hours, and can hardly wait. 

Let us hear from you.  Remember, you can reach us via a local call to our J’ville number:  217-245-9597.

Pura Vida!

The Karlinseys