Sure the views were breathtaking, the beaches pristine, the food savory, yet my favorite part of our recent family vacation to Costa Rica may have been watching our kids and their cousins at play.

The 9-year-old girl cousins were as conspiratorial as ever, stuck together like velcro, looking for adventure. But it was the younger boy cousins that were the most satisfying to watch. Probably because as recently as two years ago, the cousin — let’s call him George — had only one curse word. My son’s name.

He absolutely could not stand Coop. With good reason. At four, Coop was bowling ball and George, a candlepin. Fortunately, we were all able to laugh at it because the whole setup was a ready-made family feud. But we stuck it out, insisted that we do things as a family but didn’t force them together or hover. We just let it play out, as it were.

Time has balanced out maturity and size, and at six they are hilarious, all but inventing a private language and playing hours of foosball (did I mention that the villa my in-laws provided re-validated my choice of spouse?). Which leaves the grownups much more time to enjoy all the fine things that Costa Rica has to offer (read: Pilsen, Imperial and Flor de Cana).

Actually, Costa Rica has tons to offer in addition to refreshing beverages of many kinds.  The place is all that you imagine: mountainous jungle dropping to arcs of white sand beaches, and it has just the right mix of the unspoiled and touristy.  Convenient enough for families traveling together, without feeling Americanized or exploited.

I’d say “not Disneyfied,” but that would then require me to admit that we also went to Disney World on this trip.

Look! A sloth!