I LOVE my host family. My family consists of:

Luz Marina, who is 50 and the matriarch of the family. She bakes and cooks and raises chickens for a living. So I gave her an immersion blender as a gift.
Jose, who is 26 and a very smiling, good-natured sort of fellow. Luz's son.
Che, Jose's 21-year-old wife.
Jose and Che's 4-month old baby.
Tito, who comes in and out... he is... 28, perhaps? And another of Luz's sons.

None of them speak any English, but I've actually been having a much easier time communicating than I had expected... and I can feel my Spanish-brain-pathways improving all the time! I love that feeling, oh man.

Their house is open and breezy and is located in the midst of a bunch of cow fields, by some mountains. I've been taking long walks in the mornings with Luz and her friend Carmen (and one time with Carmen's daughter Juliana, who I may be teaching) and some dogs, and yesterday morning we hiked to a river that is largely dried up, surrounded by mountains and forest... beauuuutiful. When I say morning, I mean 5am. Which is when the chickens wake up. So, it's when I wake up. I was actually so exhausted last night that I slept til 7:30am this morning (whew!) and thought it must have been 10, it was so light outside.

Every morning we have the most delicious coffee, and cereal or toast or bananas or other fruit.
I've been spending the days with the group from St. Mary's, mostly, since it is Semana Santa and the families and everyone else goes to the beach... so, we've been exploring the nearby beaches and making friends and hanging out at Angela's gorgeous little house with a pool. It's the life.
We also went to a yoga class the other morning at 8am, which was sooooo good. Mmm, muscles.
There are pictures on Katie Siguenza's Facebook, if anyone would care to see them who is friends with her!
Dinner is usually gallopinto, or rice with peppers, and black beans, and papas (potatoes), and salad and veggies... and delicious juice.

We travel by bike, foot, pickup truck, and 4-wheeler, mostly... not many cars here, although Johan, the host brother of Chris, Molly, and Britt, has a car and has driven us some places.

I must go make coffee or I may fall asleep... it is muy, muy, muy caliente in the afternoons here, hard to stay awake or do anything productive! I'm proud that I'm even writing this...

Next week we travel to San Jose for a week of language school (yessss). Tonight is Good Friday, so I may go to mass.

Out of everything, I may be most excited about how easily we are meshing with the local people... life is very different here, but there is a level of sameness (a belief in the value of education, an optimistic outlook) to the general perspective on life in Costa Rica that makes it very easy to talk and relate to everyone... and I am just so excited to know enough Spanish to be able to hold actual, real conversations... when gesturing is involved.