Hols Wk 2: Spider Monkey, Lockdown #2 & Boo! Night

William got a place on the Section Paloise Dauphins swimming course for the second week of the holidays. Arts got a place too, so Jess and I were absolutely amped for them both. I wasn't sure how William was going to cope with the intensity of it though: 2 x 1hr sessions each day - morning and afternoon. I kind of expected him to be over it by the Wednesday but he absolutely loved it and was desperate to get back for all the sessions. On day one, they did a very rudimentary pre-assessment involving jumping into the pool to check their confidence in the water. I was both amazed and horrified to see William launching himself into the deep end, unassisted, then scramble to the side. This brazen attitude was clearly all that was required and he was immediately put into the "top" group. I must admit that I tried not to be the proud (smug) PE teacher mum about this but the feelings were definitely there. 😉 The next few days saw his skill level rocket. What he'd initially lacked in technique, he certainly made up for in confidence and determination and this attitude saw him go from an exhausting doggy paddle to a full 25m of basic free and 25m back kick. It was really great to see him develop at such a pace. While he swam, I tried to keep active too but my dodgy back limited me to walking only and I explored lots of different routes around the Stade Nautique. 

Here's the spider monkey:

He was going great guns, then, on Wednesday night, the Supreme Leader spoke. There had been all sorts of rumours circulating all week and they were right: Lockdown 2 was on the way. Macron said that that although schools would return after the holidays as normal, as of Thursday night all non-essential shops would close including restaurants, cafes and bars, as would indoor public spaces such as gyms and swimming pools. So that was it. William was allowed to do his sessions on the Thursday which included a wee test involving jumping in, some swimming underwater and doing two lengths of the pool. He could really have done with more practice but although it wasn't to be, they still signed it off. We were really gutted he didn't get to finish all the lessons but at least we got through most of the week. Bloody Covid strikes again. 

Thursday night was absolutely beautiful and everyone in Pau was out enjoying their final night of freedom. Town was pumping! We took William to FNAC to spend his birthday money from Auntie Anna as a "well done" for completing his swimming lessons. He spent ages choosing just-the-right-toy and came away with some new Playmobil. He was delighted and it certainly kept him entertained all through the Friday when he should've been at the pool. It was quite a different feeling in town on the Friday when I walked round to the chiropractor, and when I went for a scan on my thyroid on Saturday. Its so frustrating being stuck in the house when the weather is so good!

Saturday was Hallowe'en. In Pau, this traditionally involves a really great sweet / candy hunt around all the local shops but with us all back in the hoose, it was cancelled. I'd already bough William a wee devil costume and we wanted to do something, so we ended up having a Bo! Night party at home, just the three of us, completely inspired by a combination of Glasgow childhoods and the tv show Sarah and Duck. 

Iain and William had already carved a pumpkin whom William named John Martin (?!) then William and I spent most of the day making Boo! Cakes. Around tea time we got him and ourselves dressed up for some old school guising. Fortunately, Iain had some costumes from work from last year so everything fell into place and William was off the chart with excitement. We went full Glasgow with us all doing a "turn" before being allowed any sweets or cakes and we played all the old games like dooking for apples and eating bread and jam (nutella) suspended on a string. What a laugh we all had. Just brilliant. 

What a great way to round up the holidays. Onwards to lockdown life. 

Lorna ;)