Thursday photo #238

For the first time ever, I’m quite enjoying the colder months. It definitely has something to do with embracing the cold rather than fighting it. Better still, we managed to fit in a short break this week, with a Winter weekend at Bluestone. Despite the cold, we spent plenty of time outdoors, riding bikes and I even swam in the sea. It was surprisingly warm in comparison to the river.

The decisions of a six year old

For a long time now, Libby has been asking to go rock climbing. At our local leisure centre, she had to be six before she was allowed to go. Her birthday came and went and we never got around to taking her. So when I realised she could climb at Bluestone, I booked us both in for an hour’s climbing.

As predicted, Libby was really good at climbing. The hand and foot holds were quite large, but it wasn’t a formal lesson. So, for her first go, it was quite an achievement the way she flew up to the top of the wall. She soon mastered abseiling back down too, with no fear of falling.

Unsurprisingly, by the end of the lesson she was asking when she could do it again. Which gives us all a slight dilemma. She is obviously a talented climber, but the likelihood is that this is due to her age, build and lack of fear. The question is whether it’s something worth pursuing instead of one of the things she does regularly.

I’ve said she can’t do more, she’s doing enough for any six year old already. But if this is something she really loves, she’s welcome to give up one of the things she already does to take up climbing. I don’t think she will, but it’s good to be able to give her the opportunity to make a decision like that herself.

Horse riding

For Lia, life has always revolved around ballet. She wants nothing more than to be a beautiful ballerina in a pink tutu. Lately though, other interests have started to creep in. She can swim a length now and hold her own in the swimming pool playing with friends. Lessons are going well, and she always has a huge smile on her face while she swims.

But horse riding is her main focus. Which is odd really, given that she only rides around once a month. Yet she spends a significant amount of time every day pretending she’s riding Leon, the pony she rides in her lessons. She absolutely adores him and can’t wait to go and see him every month. And then, inevitably, she gets on the pony and cries.

There’s no decision to be made for Lia, she knows as well as I do that there’s no point in riding more than once a month. The strange situation we face though, is Lia desperately trying to learn to enjoy riding as much as she wants to.

Thursday photo #238

Of course, this week’s Thursday photo has to be one from our stay at Bluestone. It’s a great place to be at Christmas, and I love this photo of the girls waiting to board the train for their mission in Kingdom of the Elves. The way Libby is standing in this one made my husband and I realised how much she’s growing and changing at the moment. She looks older, confident and relaxed. It’s lovely to see.