South

So...the whole point of labeling the last post "North" was that three days after we returned from Beyond, we flew "South" to Costa Rica with Stephanie and Reid. I am sure the contrast has been lost in my delay, but here are a few images from our trip.

First stop, Volcano Arenal in La Fortuna.

Cyrus ate arroz con pollo a lot on the trip. He claims this one (his first and most interesting) was the best.

Catarata de la Fortuna

Next, we spent 2 days in the mountains exploring the cloud forest. We took a guided walking tour too see the forest from below and then we took a zip line tour to see the forest from above.






I have plenty more pictures from the forest if you want to see them...I was fascinated by the diversity of life - plants and animals...as a Biology geek I was in heaven.

Steph

Hanging bridges

Cyrus has no fear


Abbie was a bit more cautious

Greasy from the pulleys and the rain, but worth it.

Don Juan's coffee plantation. We toured and tasted coffee grown in the mountains of Costa Rica. We even met Don Juan, although we were too star-struck to say much.

flower from a coffee plant

storing dried beans

Reid and Abbie separating coffee beans from the husk

Next we headed to the Pacific coast and Ian and April Foster joined us for a night.

Unfortunately, this was the only turtle we saw.



But my iguana friend hung out by the pool one afternoon.


We spent five days exploring different beaches...

Harassing the crabs....

Making sand angels...

and boogey-boarding! (this was the best part)

To travel between beaches in the rainy season you have to cross a few rivers...here we are checking it out before.

And Reid bravely driving through....good memories.

Thanks for a great trip Steph and Reid!

North

As soon as we finished teaching we drove to Beyond to lead Guide Training, affectionately known as "10-Day". We climbed Sun Peak and completed a lot of training along the way. This is a view of the peak from Sun City (camp night 1).

Contact Lakes campsite

Looking for a crevasse to use for training

Success! We had a great day for crevasse rescue training and a beautiful crevasse to jump in.

Lunch break

Inside the crevasse

Sunny days...views of Mt. Albert, the Bon Bon glacier and Smithman's Ridge

Summits of JJ and Sun Peak

Crossing the summit ridge

We LOVED being in the mountains. It was the best way to transition after another school year. The Beyond staff is full of wonderfully talented and compassionate people. I am excited for the work they are doing this summer.

Misleading

After I finished the last post I took Roscoe for a walk. As I walked around the neighborhood at dusk and processed my day the words I had posted floated around in my head. I boasted of our dog and the adventures we've had -the easy experiences of the last two months. I don't want to give the impression that is all that our lives have been. Granted, this is a public forum so my words may not be disclosing, but I want to be honest.

Yesterday, two students stole my classroom key off my keychain at school. The keys were sitting on my desk the last few minutes of the day as I helped a student understand her grade. In that time, a student slipped 2 of my 3 keys off the ring, leaving a few odd shaped keys and the laynard. I didn't notice the two keys were gone until 20 minutes later when I left for the staff meeting.

I felt scared. I feld embarrassed that I had let this happen. I felt betrayed and disrespected. Who would steal from me?

This morning the students were found, consequences assigned, keys returned, apologies spoken. This may seem a simple story, but to me it is more than that. The students were two of my best; smart, nice, respectful, funny. They claim they planned to play a prank and rearrange my room. They made a poor choice.

Today I was reminded of how much I care about students. With only 7 days left of school I had entered survival mode. I was doing all I could to teach each day, prepare for the next day, the end of the year, and already beginning next year's responsibilities. My energy and motivation levels are low. But it's not over. I am still an adult in a young adult world. It was devastating to watch these young people make a poor choice. It was painful to be hurt by their choice. And yet, I am excited to seem them for a few more days until the year ends. I am grateful for the opportunity to be in their lives.

For Heather

Yes, the last two months have been full of playing with Roscoe. A while ago Heather confessed she checked our blog daily for new pictures of Roscoe and I have failed to supply them.
Heather, this post is for you.

Of course we have done other things - rock climbing, snow camping, built and planted a vegetable garden, worked, bought a BBQ, spent time with friends....but all that for another day.

Roscoe loves anything that rolls, but a new favorite is the soccer ball.

It barely fits in his mouth and usually his teeth get caught in it and he can't drop it.

Isn't he the cutest?

I just melt when he crosses his paws.

The leftovers of a squeaker ball from Steph.

It lasted 3 minutes.

But was well worth the entertainment for us and for him.

Playing fetch at the park

We have also been busy taking training classes with Roscoe. We are learning and so is he. I am happy to report that he knows his name, sit, down, come, drop, wait, and this week we're learning leave it and shake.

We love having a dog.

A Very Fine House

Roscoe got his own house yesterday. He was sitting in it by himself and then I ran to get the camera. Of course, he followed me, so Cyrus had to get in to pose for the picture. He hasn't spent much time in the house yet, but it's been so sunny this week! Wait until it rains Roscoe, then you'll be thankful.

More or Less

Roscoe has been part of the brown team for a week now. Here are some of my reflections:

We get up earlier on days we don't have to work
We get out of bed faster
I am usually happier when I wake up because he is there to greet me (wanting me to feed him and then throw the ball)
I spend less time getting ready in the morning
We spend more time playing fetch (getting in shape for softball season)
I care less about how I look
I have more mud on my clothes
We have dog hair on everything we own
We spend a lot more time outside (even when it's raining and snowing)
We spend less time in front of the computer
I have visited more parks in the last week than I usually do in a month
We eat at the table more often (he lays at our feed and doesn't beg)
There is more dirt in the house
We spend more time cleaning the house
I have been referred to as "mom" for the first time
I have referred to Cyrus as "dad" for the first time

Synposis: Life is better with a dog around. We'll keep him.

Day 3: Snowing!!!?

"There's no crying in baseball!" Tom Hanks, League of Their Own. I thought there was no snowing in April, but here we are March 28th and it is full on, no holds bard snowing in Tacoma. Global warming is definitely not happening (that was sarcasm). Talked to my friend Andy today, who is a geologist doing consulting work for WSDOT on Snoqualmie Pass, and right now they have the second deepest snow pack in recorded history on the pass. I don't think we will be hurting for water this summer, or we will be washed away in flash floods later this spring. Either way, the probability for a drought is about 0.0001 (nerd alert!).

Roscoe is calming down some. Day Three looks like playing fetch out side, following me around the house and realizing the I am completely boring then laying down to nap. This is a good change.

My business advice for the day: invest in desalinization plants and low flow toilets in the Southwest then snowplows and snow tires in the Northwest.

Cyrus

Day 2 with Roscoe

Hello all, Cyrus here as your guest author. Two things I have learned about Roscoe the last couple days. Roscoe loves to play fetch and he love squeakers. Here he is with his first squeaker, which he totally destroyed about 30 minutes later. Day One with Roscoe consisted mainly of following me around the house and playing fetch. Day Two consisted of following me around the house and playing fetch. Well, at least we are starting with a routine. He is a bit of a softy and wants lots of attention. The most interesting thing about Roscoe is that in two day I have not heard him bark once. A dog that does not bark? Can it be?

For now we need to work on not jumping up on furniture.

Granddoggy

Meet Roscoe, the newest member of our family. My mom called him her granddoggy. She was excited.

We adopted him from the Humane Society yesterday. He's approximately 2 and 1/2 years old. He is mostly yellow lab with some possible chow-chow in him.

He loves to play ball. He will never be tired of playing fetch - in the house or at the park. He even wanted Cyrus to play while he was unloading the dishwasher.

So far Roscoe has a lots of energy, but also rests when we do. He has followed Cyrus around everywhere since we brought him home. He's on spring break and I'll join him next week, which may explain the timing of the adoption. We have wanted a dog for a long time. It was one of the reasons we bought this house - all fenced and ready for a dog.

Roscoe was brought to the Humane Society as a stray, but he seems well cared for; nice teeth, good coat, house trained (so far). Although he definitely doesn't want to be left alone. We'll need to work on that.

Yesterday, as we drove home from the Humane Society - we felt like new parents. We are, in a sense. Maybe I got a glimpse of what it may feel like to bring home a baby someday. I was so nervous. I felt like we'd planned for this and talked about it a lot but now the dog was actually in OUR car, we were going home with him. I couldn't shake the pit in my stomach. It had been there all day because I was so excited to pick him up, but the pit felt heavier after we left the pound. I also felt a great sense of hope and was already planning trips to the park, introducing Roscoe to friends and family, wondering how he'd be at home. Excitement and nerves are a magical pair of emotions.

Mickey

My brother created this picture to remember our beloved Mickey.
Thank you Tim, it's perfect.