Competitive?

Everyone, Huffle excluded of course, had a lovely relaxing slow morning of breakfast, TV and playing. It was another hot day and the bicycles were taken out ready for a our bike ride to swimming lessons. MrsSwim asks me everyday (third time this week so far) if I want to put the kids into competitive swimming. Everyday we tell her we are too busy and the boys don't really want to do it. It's nice that she thinks they are good enough but her forgetfulness is worrying. I asked her today if Small could just swim and not do the theory part. I don't think she was too happy but she did oblige and then later she said "did you ask me the same thing last year?". I don't remember (ahhhhhh it's catching) but I suppose I could have seeing as he hasn't done any badges with her for about three years. Today he concentrated on stroke improvement which he says is hard because she teaches certain strokes different to how he has been taught before. He did some endurance too and Smallest and I counted for him because we thought he was cheating. At the end he did a lot of diving off the board and some cannonballs. He didn't want to get out because he said the water was so nice. I sat there thinking how nice it would be if we had a proper in ground pool. That's never going to happen as they cost thousands!

Smallest still has to do theory and he learnt about hypothermia today, did stroke perfection and his laps plus various dives. He is such a strong swimmer, well they both are but considering how small and skinny Smallest is, he has so much strength. She says his kick is amazing and the way he glides across the water - he should be in competitive ha!

He wanted this photo taken and I wouldn't have put it on normally except that I didn't take any photos of him swimming!

We cycled home (hopefully MrSwim is going to check the bikes over for us tomorrow if MrsSwim remembers to ask him, insert emoji with wide mouth and teeth here), and had lunch. The boys watching TV inside and Huffle and I watching First Dates on the porch (we have had to go back to series 2 as we have finished all the others).

This afternoon the boys did some research on the Internet for things they wanted to do this Summer, including the address, price, times and days open for The Science Museum, Canada's Wonderlandm(I can't see that happening without Huffle with us), Biking at Centre Island, Swimming at Leisure Centre and Splashing at the Splash Pad. I was very impressed and left them to it while I visited The Royals with a bowl of raspberries, a pot of jam and a stone from our holiday beach. We sat outside and chatted for ages and when I came home they were playing on their tablets after taking down bits of tree, that Huffle cut down, to the fire pit. Huffle cut down a tree that was outside our landing window and gave us some privacy but it looked ugly and wasn't a nice tree, plus it blocked our view of the side garden we have created. It somehow makes the house look bigger from the side now and has really opened up the space. On the down side, I now want to plant it all up properly and finish the paths but I can't because we have to have some work done on the septic tank openings and that won't be until Autumn.

I had some time to myself on the porch and then came in and made dinner. Smallest helped me again today and we made Leek and Cheese sausages for me. He wasn't so good at shaping them but excellent at rolling them in breadcrumbs though he didn't like getting his hands messy. I do like the fact that he wants to help me.

After dinner we all went to football. Now, we have been away for two weeks and it seems in our absence that MrFrench (dad of twins who Huffle coaches on the side) has completely taken over the coaching of the team. He started by telling us that he preferred to stand on the opposite side of the field to the one we normally stand/sit on. Huffle said fair enough as he felt it was better to be away from the parents in case his language got colourful. Then he proceeded to organise the team and tell Huffle where he had placed certain players In different positions. After the team had a small kick around he made them run around the pitch three times and shouted at them if they didn't go fast enough or tried to duck out of the running (like Small who ran round once and then lay down at the side of the goal trying to look inconspicuous - to be fair it worked). I feel he overstepped the mark seeing as he isn't the Coach, he isn't the Assistant Coach and Huffle was now back. Apparently some of the boys told Alfie they didn't like it and they were pleased our holiday was over. Huffle is not pleased with the stress, mainly from me telling him not to let it continue and how I felt it was unfair on his assistant coach. The man takes over and takes the game too seriously. It is House League after all and is supposed to be fun. Even MrFrench's two wives were there putting in their six penneth.

My view of half the football field. The sun was so bright and so low!

Tonight we harvested from our garden, a handful of French beans, a very proud courgette, some lettuce and some orange tomatoes that Smallest really likes. Oh dear MissMo, what will you do now that your tomatoes are being eaten?

Some beauties in our garden right now

 

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