| Tico ♥ Tina

Hi. We’re a family who likes to ask questions.

We ask “why”, a lot, because the answer “everyone is doing it” or “it’s what’s expected” makes us suspicious that it’s likely not the right solution at all… a quote that sums it up nicely, by the ever pithy Mark Twain:

Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority it is time to pause and reflect.

(get a free printable of this quote here)

This is not to say that our goal is merely to “be different”, but rather that we want to know why we do what we do and believe what we believe… so that we can effectively pass it down to our children, and perhaps share with others as well.

We also find great joy in asking “why NOT?!” because way too many things are never attempted out of fear, or just plain belief that it can’t be done. We beg to differ.

This blog is about embracing the journey of those “whys” and “why nots” and how they are lived out in our rather unusual lives, together 24/7 – through our business as creatives, our experiments in homeschooling, and on the road with our random adventures.

We keep it real because our hope is that somehow, in some small way, you’ll be encouraged on your journey, too. And maybe have a chuckle here and there… because let’s face it, we’re not all models and life is not a movie where everything wraps up into neat little packages in 180 minutes. Plus, laughing is one of our favorite activities.

Hang out a while and come back often (see what we’re up to now)

Tico♥Tina on Love

There is never a good love story without all the stuff before you get to the part where you know it’s a love story. ~Tico♥Tina

it all started with a pair of Dr. Seuss Cat in the Hat slippers…

(but if you want to know about those you’ll have to watch the more detailed version of our love story here)

“we” are Tico♥Tina, a Costa Rican boy and a girl with Irish blood flowing through her veins. we grew up worlds apart but were plain and simply made to find each other.

from the time of our meeting at the end of 1999 (you know, when everyone was buying generators and stockpiling food), until we finally got engaged 4 years later, we had learned that the third time was the charm with us.

there were a LOT of ups and downs, but what good love story doesn’t have those? taming a Latin loverboy isn’t easy, but well worth the patience… (pssst, a little secret – for best results, ~~play hard to get~~ sit on your hands to keep them from trying to snatch away the pen God is using to write your love story, because you know that he has far better handwriting and a much more interesting imagination)

Tico♥Tina on Debt

we had the great blessing of being able to go through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University only four months into our marriage – not long enough to have done too much damage, but long enough to know we could be doing much better! everything inside us just said “YES! this is us, this is what we have to do”. we believed in the (very simple) concept enough that we went on to become certified financial counselors through Dave’s program, and by the grace of God we have been living a debt-free lifestyle since January, 2005. little did we know how crucial that building block would be to the foundation that God was laying in our lives to make it possible to pursue the dreams he would also place in our hearts.

Tico♥Tina on Creating & Collaborating

We’re currently the location independent creatives behind Kaleidoscope International, helping and encouraging small and start-up businesses in putting their best foot forward through vision and identity design, and owner/artists with the Beauty of One, exploring and developing lines of inspirational art that fit your space and style. We’re really passionate about both of these, but we’ll let you check them out for yourselves They are a work in progress!

We have many other projects up our sleeves, some of which are in early development stages, and we’re just doing our best to seek out and understand God’s timing and guidance through it all. In the past year or so we’ve really been recognizing the immense value of collaboration, and are now always on the lookout for fun ways to work with others. If you have an idea for a way you’d like to collaborate with us in what we’re already doing, a project you think we’d add value to, or something completely new, we’d love to hear from you!