Birthday boy!

Today is Kevin's birthday. Two years ago today, we sold our house in Burlington. TWO YEARS! Wow. It's hard to believe how quickly time flies. And yet, it feels like an eternity. Our life here is feeling comfortable, full of daily habits that we embrace. We're not newbies anymore.

Speaking of which, we had a very productive day. Kevin worked with the other men of the neighbourhood to get our community centre ready for the fundraising Bingo we're having on Sunday. The Bingo will hopefully raise enough money to finish the centre. While the men were doing man stuff, the women were cleaning banana leaves for the tamale-making production tomorrow. Even the children pitched in. The youngest, Thomas, was hard at work, giving it all he had. He's always the first one ready and waiting to get started while the other men mosey their way to the centre. He's very cute and helpful. The men are very patient with him, full of encouragement, all taking turns to show him his next task. He digs in and gets the job done. He's only 6 years old... but one of the guys.

---

Then later, we were lucky to get Kevin an appointment at  a dentist. He had a tooth that's been giving him a bit of grief and he wanted to get it looked after before it became a bigger problem (and bigger pain). This was our first trip to the dentist in Costa Rica and far overdo. To say Kevin hates going to the dentist is an understatement.

We were sitting in the waiting room and we could hear someone drilling next door, but not a delicate drill... more like a jackhammer. It really did sound like it was coming from the dentist's office. I thought Kevin was going to have kittens. We made a joke to the receptionist and she laughed, confirming that indeed there was construction being done in the back. Phew!!

When all was said and done, Kevin said it was the best dental experience he's ever had. He didn't even feel the needle, which is a pretty big deal. He had one of his filling restored. It cost $36. And when we inquired about coming back for a check-up and cleaning, the dentist said it would cost $50. What a bargain!!

After Kevin's dental visit, we picked up some take-out Chinese food as a treat and came home. Quite a day.

---