I recently visited Costa Rica with my family. This was our second visit and it was just as memorable. Costa Rica is absolutely beautiful—the land, the people, and the weather.

We arrived at the resort around 5pm. But we were all exhausted because we had been up since 2am. That didn’t stop us though. Even though we were half asleep, we quickly changed out of our sweats (when we left Chicago that morning, literally there was a snow storm). To come from that blizzard to paradise, we weren’t trying to waste any time.

After eating, we headed to the ocean. It’s the most fulfilling feeling to be around that massive body of water. Honestly, the ocean is definitely one of the most beautiful sites that Earth has to offer.

Hanging out until we were all about to pass out, we finally decided to call it a night. Oh, did I mention that our rooms had a beautiful view of the gardens and the ocean? Even the maids were amazing. One day when I came back up to my room from the beach, not only was the room spotless clean, but they had the small table nicely decorated with the books we brought with us. I mean how do they know I’m a lover of books??? It just made my day to have Chaysing Dreams alongside such great books like Insurgent and Paper Towns. Yeah, I felt pretty special.

The rest of the week, we definitely spent some quality family time. Having two teens (one in college), it’s nearly impossible for all five of us to get together. We swam in the pool, played on the beach, went for our morning walk, played in the ocean, ate all our meals together… ahh, finally!

My daughter turned 19 in Costa Rica! How cool to celebrate her birthday as a family in paradise! The waiters brought her a personal cake and sang to her at dinner. Ahh, my baby girl is growing up quickly!

And let’s not forget about the wildlife. We saw some wild monkeys, vultures, iguanas, and exotic birds… Nothing beats seeing these animals living wild and free.

For our excursion, we went hiking through the rainforest and took pics by the active volcano (Volcano Arenal). We then visited the natural hot springs created by the volcano. There were waterfalls and even natural steam room (inside a cave). Truly, Planet Earth has so many amazing things to offer!

Oh one more thing; while we went on our excursion, we stopped at a small village where Costa Rican aborigines lived. Now that was cool! I was disappointed that they weren’t there at the time, but we did get to see their huts and their way of life. It’s amazing to see the different cultures that exist in this world. It truly made me think of the difference between “wants” and “needs.” Like our tourist said, air conditioning is a “want”…“a luxury.” This is from somebody who lives in 90 degree weather! Of course she’s right. We just end up taking so much for granted. Their lives are simple. No TV’s, no cell phones, no computers… God forbid, we take our kids’ cell phones away from them! I mean the world must be ending!

As I write this, I reflect on my life. Sure, we were lucky that we were able to make such a wonderful trip to the beautiful Costa Rica. Although it’s a poor country, the people are happy. Their motto? PURA VIDA!

Shouldn’t we all just take a breath and slow down? Once in a while, we need to look around us and really notice the beauty. Maybe we need to not focus on what we don’t have, but what we do. Maybe just maybe, we can shrug away the “wants” and appreciate the “needs.”

Thanks for the memories, Costa Rica! Until next time…