Mother’s Day is a very special day. It represents a celebration of some of the most hard-working and often unsung heroines that walk this Earth. Moms… I consider my wife Anna to be the best mother in the entire world and I am lucky enough to witness the magic that she performs on a daily basis up close and personal. She started being the mother that she is today many years before our 1st little girl, Violetta, was even born. Anna was (and still is) an active advocate and champion of all behavior that contributes to a healthy lifestyle. Consumption of strictly organic foods as often as possible, use of natural products rather than chemical based items, a consistent yoga practice to strengthen mind, body, and spirit… She worked so hard to make certain that her body and mind were at maximum strength before creating another life within her. My wife is ALWAYS researching and doing her best to make certain that the entire family is as healthy, educated, and globally responsible as we can be. She became even more militant about what she ate once we found out she was pregnant. Exercise was steady and regular and she taught her yoga classes at the El Castillo de Relajamiento right up until midway through her 8th month of pregnancy. We endeavored on the wild adventure of attempting a home birth in a relatively foreign country without pain medication of any kind and she was a valiant angel throughout all of it.  I say “we endeavored”, but let’s be honest- I was present and did everything within my power to help and support her through the process, but it wasn’t me trying to pass a watermelon through a small opening without any pain relief… Anna embraced the entire journey and only after she had been FULLY dilated for over five hours due to a complication and we had literally exhausted the possibility of having our baby at home, did we execute Plan B with decisiveness. The hospital staff was excellent and little Violetta surprised us all shortly after midnight on August 28, 2011. Due to Anna’s tenacity in the face of excruciating pain, our baby girl was able to enter this world drug-free. The pain medication was administered and before it could even have a chance to get live in the umbilical cord, Vio was out. Anna endured all of that and more solely for the purpose of giving our unborn child the best possible start to life that she could offer…and she continues walking that road every day now that V is with us… It seems that I have gone off on a bit of a tangent here, but maybe I’ve struck the real point of this blog post: honoring a great mother on Mother’s Day… I imagine that when she first reads this post my wife will want to kill me for being so raw and honest about this sort of thing on a public forum, but I feel that it must be said… ***Anna: you are a fantastic mother and I am so proud to be your husband and to have the opportunity to raise children with you.*** I gave her “carte blanche” to do whatever she wanted today and told her that I would be in her service, but in classic Anna fashion she chose Zoo Avenue in La Garita so Violetta could make her first trip to a zoo… A quick 30-minute zip down Highway 1 and we were there-

Baby V apparently approved, since she spent most of the day smiling and clapping her hands. She got to see some wild monkeys and regally beautiful peacocks… and not just the ones above…ha ha ha! Some bonafide wildlife-

We enjoyed a wonderful day together at Zoo Avenue and what makes it even more special is that all of the proceeds (4,900 colones entrance per adult/ 2,000 colones for kids)  go towards supporting and furthering Zoo Avenue’s animal rescue & preservation mission. They work to protect endangered species, rehabilitate injured animals, and try to make the living quarters for their animal guests as close to their natural habitat as is possible. Zoo Avenue is a respectable operation and turned out to be a very enjoyable day trip from San Ramon. It was nice to spend Mother’s Day among so many other creations and children of Mother Nature.

Now that we live in Costa Rica, we have the opportunity to celebrate Mother’s Day twice! We still recognize the holiday on the same date and fashion as we always have in the US, and then on August 15th it’s Mother’s Day here in CR… Ticos take the festivity a step further though, because Mother’s Day is a national holiday here. Banks, government offices, and most businesses are closed. Costa Ricans believe that everyone should have the opportunity to visit and spend some quality time with their mothers at least on this one special day. No soldiers left behind, so to speak. It makes me smile 🙂 In closing, HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all you amazing moms out there!!! I’ve been on this computer far too long now and I think it’s time to go give my wife a foot massage-

PURA VIDA!!!