where to start?

I am home safely from Costa Rica... I'm worn out, mentally, physically, and emotionally. This was the trip I have been waiting my entire life for. We missed nothing and saw everything we could. Where we stayed was part of the Baru National Reserve where the rain forest is protected from ugly unsightly development, but even where the land is not protected, the people CARE! We interacted with the people and came to know some people well for such a short time. In a way, Costa Rica feels like a home away from home and I KNOW I will return for a longer stay to take more of it in... I cried when I left. It was hard to leave such a beautiful and well loved land. I feel blessed by it. My heart is open in ways I didn't know it could open and I have learned so much about myself and what I want for my life. Thankfully, so much of what we are working towards is already in line with where it feels like I am headed, but my focus is much clearer and my vision is much clearer. I did miss Jason and the kids terribly, but I was totally cut off from the world in the ways we are most used to connecting, so getting in touch with them was VERY hard. I was only able to call home twice for 10 minutes each time - certainly not enough to fill my cup of them. There were NO televisions, NO Internet, NO cell phones, NO telephones... some of you may think that sounds terrible, but other than not being able to talk to Jason and the kids, it was wonderful. I wish more of my life contained less of those things. Coming back, I was thinking of ways to cut down on my computer time, but I do love writing on my blog for our family, but I will be spending a lot less time on here from now on. Coming back to the states was a bit of a culture shock... I learned so much Spanish I am still pronouncing a lot of my words with Spanish sounds and my dreams are in Spanish. I am in LOVE with Costa Rica and its people and their worldly intentions... If you didn't look up the place we stayed even the website doesn't do it justice, but you should look at it from the post below. We stayed in the butterfly suite. I can't say enough good things about Fateh and Franco. There is nothing they overlooked and their 3 villas are not just buildings in the rain forest, they are works of art. I will post photos of the place in a few days once I can get some more of the photos that Ashley took because she took more of our villa than I did and hers came out better... They are very dedicated to their visitors and work very hard to make sure the people visiting their place have the experience they are looking for there. Our last days I sobbed as I explained to the two of them I had been waiting my whole life to spend time in the rain forest (at least since I was about 5 and read my first book on it). The beautiful thing is they cried with me as I told them how my dream had become reality and the role they played in it...they are passionate about what they do and it is inspiring.

So, what is the best part of the rain forest? I could not possibly tell you... I think each of us came away with something different, and today, I don't have the words to explain it as my heart still wishes it were there. It is something you have to experience. It puts the soul in touch with the earth. You feel her loving arms enveloping you and hugging and squeezing you in the way only a mother can. It isn't frightening. I spent some time in it by myself in quiet and was in heaven. The size of the plants we can't imagine. Things that we grow in our homes that are small are giants and our annuals are giants and bloom year round. We weren't there during the flowering season, so I will have to go back to see all the blooms when I return.

I have over 300 pictures and I'm hoping to get Ashley's pictures in the upcoming days as well as the videos Holly took (some I can share, some I won't be able to.) I will probably post photos for the next few days of the trip rather than trying to share them all with you now. I saw most of the animals one would want to see when they visit a rain forest, frogs, birds, a blue morpho butterfly (I did not get a picture of this), sloths, iguanas and monkeys... and so so much more. We also went snorkeling and the fish and sea creatures I saw... It's just so much to put into one post. I learned a lot and experienced a lot and had the most amazing adventure I could have wished for. I am thankful to be home safely, but cannot wait to return! Come back tomorrow for photos...