and yes, there was a beach trip, thank you!

down the road not far from that beautiful house, was a beach...

It started out sunny but by the time I got out my camera, the clouds had rolled in...

The waves were wild so I did not go in bobbing, although Dale did, and our friends and fellow bobbers, Jerry and Carol, as well as Lukas went in bobbing also.  But before the rain came, there was time...

...time for some beach collaging...

...with treasures collected from up and down the beach...

including a coral heart!

There was also this lovely palm tree trunk pattern...

 

and yes, I WAS there! here's the picture to prove it! (I hardly ever get into the pictures, as I am usually the picture taker!!)

Wishing you a day full of treasures and blessings... love, Shari

it was an art thing...

First... there was gelato...  coffee plus coconut.

Shari and Carol... VERY happy!

Then, there were the flowers...  beautiful, intricate, colorful flowers...

And then, there was this public building. They had dressed it up with some gorgeous mosaic! I can't imagine the time it took to do this!

The leaves were children's handprints...

Some of the mosaic bits were mirrors, so that the whole thing sparkled in the sunlight!

Another building with mosaic just at the roofline.  Fabulous. Gorgeous.  I was lost in wonderment.

And then. There was one last look at the ocean as we began our journey inland. 

Imagination is an incredible thing!  Decorate a little piece of YOUR life today, okay?  Flowers. Bits of broken china. Bits of broken mirrors. It might all turn out to be very very wonderful.  love, Shari

Farewell to Potrero... I hope I get to come back sometime...

Back to jungle nights full of bird-song, howler monkeys' roaring, geckos' chirps...

sunset at Potrero Apartmentos...

Back to the little pool that refreshed us, rain or shine...

Dale soaking in the rain...

Back to this tiny oasis of serenity and quiet...

Where the rainstorms were beautiful to watch...

And the yard was full of beautiful flowers and butterflys...

And coffee on the front porch was a soothing ritual...

Carol and Jerry

Yes, someday, I would like to return here.  But for now it is a treasure of a memory, tucked away to make me smile on some less beautiful day....   Wishing you a lovely little oasis of your own today...  love, Shari

they went to the coast...

We have spent the last week at the ocean at Playa Potrero. This is the place that Jerry and Carol took their intensive Spanish classes for10 weeks.  It's absolutely gorgeous here.

Vulcan Arenal, on our way here...

We are staying in a small apartment in Potrero. It has been a little haven for our souls.

It's a lovely little 8-apartment complex with a pool.  We didn't realize how we would come to love this little pool, a refreshing hideout from the heat...

Jerry and Dale in the pool

Of course, there WAS a burn factor...  This is the "before" picture. Color them in with red, to see what happened later...

Carol, in front of "our" apartment...

I really love the color of this little building... and swinging in the hammock I could hear the parrots screeching in the trees and the thunder from the purple clouds rushing past, and the rushing water sound from the pool's waterfall.

The grounds were kept groomed by a young man named Alvero, who we came to really like... he was always smiling.

going in...

And then there was our beach time.  It was partly cloudy/partly sunny on our beach days, and during the week we pretty much had the beach to ourselves.

The water was like bath water and so relaxing! Well, except for the wave that slapped me upside the head and knocked my sunglasses from my face.  Jerry found them a  few minutes later, which was a miracle!

ocean bobbing... one of our favorite things to do!

And so there were hours of bobbing, talking, bobbing, talking... then the rain would come, and back we would go to the apartment. *Washingtonians.... the rain here does NOT cool anything off!!  It is so not like at home.

the view from the beach...

view from the ocean

Mother's Day fell on a Thursday here, so that day the beach was more occupied than usual. But it was still wonderful to just bob....   Wishing you plenty of time to just relax and refresh yourself wherever you may find yourself today...  and ocean breezes. and calypso music. and palm trees swaying.  imagination is a wonderful thing!!   love, Shari

missing the beach...

the sunsets...
the mariachi band...
beachwear...
glorious clouds...
and exotic flowers...
our next adventure: trip to Nicaragua...please pray for us and stayed tuned for the adventure!!

they ran away to the beach...

we took 3 days and went to the pacific ocean... we were awed by the beauty of the flowers...
there was so much yellow!
so much delicious eye candy!!
so exotic, so tropical...
our first night on the beach, we dined under this canopy. our feet were in the sand and the ocean waves were right beside us. we were treated to floral-scented water to dip our hands in for washing up before dinner. our food was fabulous!! some of us ate fish, some chose pasta, katie tried calamari... then a mariachi band came and serenaded us!! and as soon as we were done eating, we dipped our feet in the warm bath-temperature of the sea... WOW! what a night!!
everywhere we went we were under the canopies of huge ferns and palms and banana trees..
we enjoyed sitting outside our rooms on the deck, visiting and drinking coffee...
"the essence of quietness"... ha! not with us there! no, really. it was very peaceful and quiet and only a short walk to the beach...
the girls (katie, and the 5 oldest wisdom girls) roomed in the top floor of this apartment and enjoyed the swimming pool on the bottom floor. one long slumber party!
every day when we came back from the beach, there were blossoms on the fresh, folded towels on our beds.
these are colored sugar cane tops... aren't they gorgeous?
the stairs going up to our deck and rooms...
a little costa rican decor...
and our guard armadillo. also our rain gauge...if he's wet, it's raining.

our lovely room...
with the giant bed...
we were treated to a fabulous sunset...
and every single one of us enjoyed playing in the sand and finding sea shells. one entire beach was made up of shells and shell bits... collector heaven!!

there was lots of deck visiting and we kept the coffee pot full...
and the cold water jacuzzi soothed our sunburns when we came back from the beach.
more from the beach trip soon. sending our love to you this rainy day back in san jose...