Beach fun

10 November 2018

The glory of a fourteen hour sleep was wiped out when the crazy kid woke up at 02:00 and did not go back to sleep at all, which meant that I also did not sleep again. I tried settling her back in her bed, and in our bed, but neither worked – she was wide awake. She clambered all over me, lying on top of me when I was on my back and my front, and patting me to check I hadn’t gone back to sleep. Argh!! She went back to her room at about 06:00, equipped with pens and paper, but ran in to me every fifteen minutes or so, again making sure I wouldn’t be sleeping any more either. I gave up trying just before 07:00, and while Ian went back to his slumber, Bugsy and I had breakfast together and watched a bit of TV quietly.

Ian finally rose, having the decency to let me know how tired he was, and then showered, dressed and had his breakfast. After my shower, we were ready for a day at the beach – the bad weather of the last two days has given in to the sunshine at last! (Last night it was so windy, that the balcony door was banging away continuously, and coupled with the popular bar that didn’t close its doors until 03:00, we probably weren’t any worse off being woken by Bugsy!!)

I had chosen Orewa, 45 minutes north east of our apartment, because on my “beaches in Auckland” search, it described it as having a long beach, kids’ playground and lots of cafes for lunch, and sounded perfect for us. And so it was! Bugsy and I spent an glorious hour playing in the sand, while Ian went for an explore researching lunch options and best beach spots. I made the usual sand boat for Cornelia while she ran up and down to the sea, refilling her bucket, and covered herself in homemade “cement”. 🥰

Today had been on my mind because, of course, Mum should’ve arrived today and this was brought to the foreground of my mind when a woman and her mum asked me to take a photo of the two of them on the beach. Wish we’d been able to ask them to return the favour, but perhaps we will on a beach in North Cornwall instead one day!

Ian suggested the cafe a little further down the beach overlooking the sea for lunch. Great choice! We sat outside and while we waited for our food to arrive, Cornelia coloured in a turtle, accessorising with shoes, a hat, a wristwatch and a pair of sunglasses! We enjoyed our burgers, and even though they gave Cornelia fish and chips rather than the chicken nuggets she’d ordered, she ate the entire plateful.

It was all going so perfectly, then completely out of the blue and totally unprovoked, she took a swing at my jaw! I was lost for words, other than to say “You silly child, you’ve just lost the ice cream you wanted after lunch!” She was immediately repentant, begging to lose her Kindle for the day instead, but I held firm, and she lost her Kindle subsequently for spitting on herself. The episodes are so curious to me! I don’t particularly mind them, as she is exploring her boundaries and working out consequences to actions, but nevertheless, she has never behaved like this before. I fully appreciate that being taken away from her friends and family is significant, as is the permanent presence of Daddy, and I suspect that a change in rhythm due to the long distances we have travelled also has an impact on her, but it’s just the sudden lashing out that has me baffled! I’m going to remove the current TV programmes on her Kindle and swap them for some more “positive” programmes and see if that makes a difference…!

Anyway, after lunch, we played in the park for a bit (well, Ian played with her, while I treated myself to a spot of sun gazing!) before Cornelia asked if she could check that her sand boat was still around.

Indeed it was, but she didn’t bother playing in it, instead going off with Daddy for a very long walk along the beach while I actually lay down on a towel in the sunshine. Ah, it was blissful! Ian did a great job of exhausting her out, not that she needed it after her 2am start, but she had a super time splashing in the pools that were forming on the beach as the tide went out, and she made friends with Allegra, a little girl who was three.

Once she’d rinsed off in the sea, we had one long gorgeous cuddle during which she nearly fell asleep, then I carried her back to the car (she was virtually asleep).

I sat in the back with her, desperately trying to keep her awake. Mid “Monkey Preschool” (a spelling game on my phone) she fell asleep. Argh! I managed to wake her by putting a movie on very loudly which, thankfully, kept her interested for the last ten minutes of the journey, and we also managed to get her to eat a piece of cheese on toast before she begged to go to bed. It was 18:00, and she was asleep before Ian had finished her story and she hadn’t even noticed that Cowbat and Cowding (two Gang members) weren’t in bed with her – that’s how tired she was!

I knew that it may mean an early start for me tomorrow, but I reckoned she’d sleep the full twelve hours and I can cope with a 06:00 start!

I was still full from lunch but scoffed a piece of cheese on toast too, and then Ian and I spent the evening planning a route around North Island and booking cars etc. We now have a plan… of sorts!!