Turtles, duuuuuuude!

5 September 2018

I am loving these earlier mornings!  Cornelia came in at about 07:30 today and had a quick cuddle before she and I played hide & seek, while Ian had a shave.  She was eager to eat breakfast quickly so we could get down to the beach and see if there were any turtles around (having been told yesterday that the best time was first thing in the morning – around 8am – or in the evening).

It was very windy – too windy for snorkelling unfortunately – but perfect for body-boarding, which Cornelia and Daddy did together for a while, when suddenly, we spotted a turtle in the water!  There was a big group of people around it very quickly, so we stayed back, not wanting to overwhelm it, but it was really big and I must confess to being the most excited of the three of us.  As the group dispelled, I put on my goggles and took to the water, carefully following it at a distance, and watching it come up for breath and use its great big flippers to glide through the water.  Definitely one of my best moments of the trip, to see such a graceful dinosauric creature in its natural habitat.  Cornelia was a bit nervous of it, so I held her in the shallows and she followed the turtle with her eyes instead.

Back on land, Ian returned the snorkel and mask to the hire place, while I started building a sand house for Cornelia.  We were doing pretty well until the tide (which should have already passed high tide an hour previously) decided to send some extra big waves our way… so ensued a good hour or so of building moats, reinforcing walls and trying to beat the ocean!  It was such fun, sitting in the sand with Bugsy, building walls, howling with laughter at the naughty waves and dig, dig, digging!

The “house” ended up acting as a windbreak as the gusts of wind blew sand everywhere, lifting our mats, shoes and bodyboards, and sending us racing down our little beach!  Everyone else had disappeared, so we had the whole place to ourselves.  It really is quite idyllic here and we are seriously enjoying the beach lifestyle!

We spotted the turtle again, and as there was no-one else around, I went in to the sea and was able to swim close to it for quite a while.  There were loads of other fish around too, and the turtle was munching from the seabed from time to time.  Cornelia was again too nervous to go near it (which is better than wanting to try and stroke it, I guess!) so happily observed from the shoreline.

When I came out of the sea, Ian pointed out that it was nearly 14:00 and he was starving… Whoops, where did that time go?!  Cornelia immediately realised that she was hungry and found her whiney voice.  Oh no!!!  Ian wanted to get back for food and she was on a go slow, so it took all of my diplomacy to keep them both happy.  For example, Cornelia wanted to wrap a towel around her and walk back in that.  Ian said no, she couldn’t as it would drag on the floor and she’d fall over.  I just suggested she try it.  Obviously, it dragged on the floor and she fell over, and immediately wanted to take it off, but we avoided a tantrum by letting her discover that herself…  Us mummies have this kind of thing totally sussed….!

Cornelia asked once to be carried back, but once she realised that wasn’t happening, we had a lovely stroll back, collecting more flowers and marvelling at how the palm trees managed not to fall over in the strong wind, despite being blown sideways.  Ian jumped in the shower, while I made lunch.  Cornelia wanted to be naked, and we spotted a couple of patches where the suncream hadn’t made it (on the small of her back where her shorts and top meet), and even with Factor 60 suncream on, her tan lines have become really defined.  Ian’s tummy burned, as did my lower back.  Whoops.

After lunch, Cornelia and I showered, then we hung out at the condo all afternoon.  Bugsy played with her Lego, and watched Cars 2, while Ian and I tried to make plans for Vancouver.  All the while, I have been stalking my friends on Facebook, looking out for “first day at school” and “back to school” photos.  This adventure is magnificent, but I do miss my friends, especially on these significant days.  Thank goodness for Facebook and WhatsApp! I think they are on Cornelia’s mind too, as today she came out with:

“On my fifth birthday, I want to make yoghurt to share with my friends. And then after lunch, we could watch Pups and the Snow Monster and all the other Paw Patrols together. Well, maybe not all the other Paw Patrols because there are thousands. But some of them.”

Then she asked how do you make yoghurt, and we ended up looking at a video showing us on You Tube!

After the Lego has been made, we enjoyed an English supper together – baked potatoes, cheese, beans and ham, and jolly tasty it was too!

We still haven’t made a decision re Vancouver – argh!!

Cornelia did some “work” on my computer before bedtime, and I got to read her bedtime stories again, and cuddle her during and after Daddy’s Mumfi story. 💜💜