Sunday morning.
Sun is shining. It’s above 10 degrees. There is only a 83 per cent chance of rain.
This means one thing and one thing only.
Summer in Ireland.
And our usual Saturday/Sunday morning conversation…
Hubster: “Soooooo, what’ll we do today?” * fingers, toes, legs, feet, everything crossed that I’ll say, “Oh, don’t you worry about that! Why don’t you watch the match while I bring the kids on an epic adventure that will wear them out so much that they’ll sleep the whole way home, up the stairs, into bed and right through to 9.30am tomorrow morning.”
Me: “I’m not sure but whatever it is we need to run the kids ragged so they’ll go to bed early tonight” *and I ain’t doing that alone honey so cancel your plans…..whatever they are.
Hubster: Silence *heart sinks.
Me: “Right so, where can we get some air, exercise, quality family time, ice-cream & coffee?” *Rhetorical question – simply because it’s the same answer every week.
Hubster: “I’ll get my coat” *secretly smuggles headphones into his pocket to listen to match.
And so we pick from our rarely strayed from weekend list of things to do with the kids. They are as follows:
1. Fota Wildlife Park – we have an annual pass and probably spend more time here than some of the employees. It’s called getting value for money.
2. The beach.
3. Scooting/biking down on the old railway line (now a bike/running path) followed by hot chocolates.
4. Visiting one of the many local playgrounds.
5. Going for early dinner – aka ‘destroying someone else’s dining space’.
Sandwiches were made, and Fota with friends was the plan. They have some new enclosures and animals. And with that off we went to see the newborn baby tapir, revisit the Sumatran Tigers & bask in the warmth of the Tropical house.
The Art Tent in Fota is a MASSIVE hit with all children and lately they have been doing face painting in there…..so naturally 1st & 2nd born were willing participants….as were their friends!
After Fota, we hit Wagamama in Cork where they were celebrating the retaurant’s 10th birthday. I call this LUCKING OUT! They had face painting, pirates and princesses blowing bubbles and most importantly…… our reservation!
I’m still not sure what these creatures are but they fit the fun criteria perfectly (in that it was free and, well, free)
And so we ordered our NEVER strayed from kids meal deals of fresh juice, giant chicken nugget (aka chicken katsu curry but don’t dare call it that) and edamame beans. How we ever got our children to love edamame beans confuses, baffles and delights us. They hate veg as a rule, so it’s astounding. All the while there is a mass colouring frenzy until no part of anyone’s placemat/menu remains untouched by Crayola wax.
Bear in mind, we are that family that scours menus outside establishments when on holliers in France to ensure service of chicken tenders and chips whilst eyeing suspiciously (and enviously) all those French children eating their olives, garden salads & mussels. I have long since given up….but I did fight the good fight.
Wagamama seems to be relatively healthy the kids are reasonably happy playing with chopsticks long enough for us to enjoy a warm dinner destroy the tables, floors and everything else we touch. And that is success in my book.
With that, we piled back into the car and headed home for Sunday night bath time.
Yours, *frantically googling local summer camps
Cli xx
I am a stay at home mum of three, soon to be four, having recently given up my medical rep job in favour of full time chaos. I have a passion for sports of any kind, be it as a spectator or participator (when I get time). Other than that, I’m a fitness fanatic, food-loving, tail-chasing, cake-baking ordinary girl with a fondness for wine, jellies and shopping. Follow me at my LeanMeanMomma blog or on instagram, on Twitter @leanmeanmomma or on Facebook.
