Surf girls in the making? Can we keep up?!

We watch in awe at the youngsters doing their exhausting surf life saver training at Lyall Bay beach. Knees on surf boards, bodies bent over, they paddle out, round the buoys in the distance, back to shore and out again… and again. Their energy is incredible. Watching them makes me feel old – and I’m only thirty-three!

The girls at Lyall Bay: Surf girls in the making?

I envisage myself going for daily runs once my little’uns are all at school. Finally, taking surf lessons. Going to regular yoga sessions at the Lyall Bay surf club and maybe even the occasional weekend retreat of yoga and meditation in tranquil Nelson. I visualize myself being fit enough to keep up with them when they hit their teenage years. We want to be a family of outdoor enthusiasts. We want to take the children kayaking, skiing and tramping. We also want to be fit enough to enjoy it!

Today I jogged the five-km return from our home, in Houghton Bay, to Island Bay. The wind was strong and it was easy on the way there. But pushing the double buggy against the oncoming wind on the return walk was tough (when I tried to jog I felt like I was running into a brick wall!)! Nevertheless, I did it. I felt brilliant. Shame I let myself down on the fitness front by opening a bottle of bubbly, left over from New Year’s Eve, this evening! C’est la vie!

Dan was back at work today and it actually went surprisingly well – I always get the jitters about ‘going it alone’ after having him at home for a holiday! Crazy, I know, but life is just so much fun when we’re all together.

We’ve spent the past few days at Lyall Bay, Princess Bay and taking Charlotte climbing at Ferg’s climbing wall. It’s been awesome. At the beach, the girls waded in the clear water and marveled at fish and various seaweed formations in the rock pools. They jumped the break waves with delight and trepidation.

At Princess Bay (neighboring beach to Houghton Bay):

I watched Charlotte’s enthusiasm and fearless determination on the climbing wall at Ferg’s Rock Climbing. I was so eager to have a go myself – but Sophie was too young to leave alone. She loved watching and can’t wait to be old enough to have a go herself.

In Wellington city, after the rock climbing, they delighted in the shop window displays (especially the Christmas window displays of Kircaldie and Stains). They gazed in amazement at the wind sculpture on Lambton Quay; moving as if by magic.

They adored their free shopping bags from Dymocks Book Store, having enjoyed a little shopping spree there!

One of the books I treated myself to was a wonderfully illustrated book on the magic of fairies. We’ve spent today putting down little pebble circles, with sparkling offerings of mirror-balls, to entice the fairies to the garden. I’ll post more tomorrow about our little changes in the garden to turn it into a haven for the fairies! One of the many wonderful delights of being parents is reopening our minds to the world of magic – and wishing we’d never lost touch with it!

Here’s visualizing a future of fitness, outdoor pursuits and lots of magic!