A Top Day!

Today was perfect. Blue sky, awesome surf at Lyall Bay and everyone got out of bed on the right side.

We stopped by Kindi this morning for Dan to mow the lawns (along with a few other Dad’s with ‘man tools’ for a working bee session). The surf at Lyall Bay was stunning and Dan said he really must give it a go next summer (me too!). Charlotte said, ‘Will you get a big board or little board Daddy?’. He said he’d get a big board first. Charlotte then said, ‘When you get better you can get a little board and do some big stunts and then I can learn on your big board.’

We drove to Petone at midday for Dan’s soccer game. Petone have great pitches at Memorial Park, excellent club rooms and there is a wonderful playground. The pitches overlook rolling hills and run alongside the Hutt River, with plenty of hungry ducks, geese and a couple of black swans (a little scary!).

After a play we watched the second half from the deck of the club rooms, where there was an abundance of toys to keep the girls amused. They actually watched a good portion of the game with Charlotte commenting, ‘Good passing! Come on Daddy!’ and Sophie saying, ‘Kick, kick! Go Daddy, go!’.

By the time the match finished, a little after 2pm, both the girls were ready for a sleep. They slept till 4.30pm! Knowing we weren’t going to be in for an early night we headed out for a swim and a meal. We enjoyed a beautiful meal at the Cambodian Cafe in Kilbirnie. Charlotte was very excited and said, ‘Will I have a napkin?’. She sat beautifully with her napkin laid out on her lap. She was absolutely adorable, a real little lady and we were so proud of her manners. She said, ‘Isn’t this lovely Mummy? Like the old days!’. Her highlight was the Chinese tea and spring rolls. Sophie surprised us all by dipping her roti bread in the spiciest sauce, again and again!

On the way home Charlotte turned to Sophie and said, ‘Sophie, there’s a MacDonald’s on the way home!’.

Back home there was just time for a quick swing under the stairs in the garden before a relaxing bath and bed (Charlotte finally crashed a little before 10pm!).