"Very often the essential is weightless. Here the essential seems to have been merely a smile. A smile is often the most essential thing. One is repaid by a smile. One is rewarded by a smile. One is animated by a smile." [Antoine de Saint-Exupery]
We went to The Strand Water Park. BigMan was very, very brave!
I thought I was pretty brave, too! I've never attempted the Water Park with both kids on my own before.
It was worth it though! We had so much fun! The smiles were priceless.
At one point my little explorer insisted in standing right. under. the. big. bucket. He coped remarkably well, but it did melt my heart when he ran to me with his arms up for a little cuddle from Mummy.
LittleLady had a wonderful time watching it all from the comfort of her pram!
Once BigMan started chasing the seagulls all the way to the beach, I decided it was time to move on. So with BigMan and Mummy both wet through, we went to play at the park.
As I sat cuddling LittleLady, I watched my still-one-year-old run, run, run, STOP! Stop to pick up a seed pod. Inspect the seed pod. Bite the seed pod and make a face. Run, run, run, STOP! To explore the big metal springs in the 'seesaw' toys and once deemed satisfactory, climb up and bounce away happily. But not for long!
He stood for whole minutes running his little fingers all over the bark of the tree, exploring the grooves and roughness of it, before bending down to play with the stones at his feet. I watched as he climbed up the ladder to the very top of the 'Pirate Ship', run around on top before sliding down the slide and doing it all over again!
I saw my still-one-year-old boy being a little boy. And I want to remember this, because one day he will be a big boy who no longer looks up at me and pleas, "Mummy kiss it better?" or, "Mummy cuddles?"
