Growing Up

Yesterday B said to me how much Katie has grown while she was away, and her ballet teacher said the same to her in class on Tuesday. I've recently that to get rid of a load of her clothes that are suddenly too short. She's looking ready to be "nearly 8". 

She woke me fairly early but I wasn't keen to be out of bed at 5.15. However at 7.15 I had a burst of energy and we both jumped up, got our running kit on and headed out for a few kms over the pastures and down the canal in glorious sunshine. We stopped for a quick drink afterwards and a flying visit to work. We went home and she had a nice bath & second breakfast. I went for a bath while she played some more. She did a lovely long piano practice then helped me make a picnic lunch. 

We packed up outside toys, a blanket and yummy food to walk round to the woods for a late picnic. We wandered round and searched for the perfect spot. As we laid the blanket down, the first drops of rain began to fall! It was only gentle rain and Katie decided she wanted to carry on with the planned fun. We had lunch, we blew bubbles (see extra!), we played frisbee. We then found this fabulous covered area with scramble banks and the rope swing. Just as the heavy rain began to fall! Katie is normally a bit of a 'fraidy cat with things like rope swings but today she decided she really wanted to play on it and had a totally brilliant time. She laughed so much and played for ages! When she was done, we did some scrambling up the banks. We'd got to the top of one of them and were met by a cow staring at us! We went round the cow and found a whole load more of them blocking the route we'd planned to walk. They're normally very friendly to passersby but there's calves with them so they're a bit more stubborn at the moment. We decided to scramble back down and find a different route! Katie declared how fantastic the afternoon had been as we walked home. We found fir cones, got muddy & scraped, threw the frisbee into a high branch, rescued the frisbee, had a wonderful time! 

When we got back, it was bathtime again for Katie. She stayed in for a really long time, swimming and splashing. She got out in time to do some clarinet and have her tea before we went to dance class. I could hear the singing as I waited outside. I could hear her singing her heart out. She came out very excited that they'd gone to show their principal the dance they're working on and Katie does a one-handed cartwheel into the box splits in it. 

Pit stop for chips on the way home, then a snuggle and the next chapter of Faraway Tree. A good day!