Basket with school

Basket outing with school, meeting up with teams from other schools after having practiced during a certain time.... and picnic outside in the sun afterwards....

I like this sport outings and often propose to help out as an extra adult.... I wish I could show you some of the action photos I took but I prefer to show only the ones with my own girl.

Skiing with school

Clara went for one week of skiing with school in January this year.  In the mornings they made visits to discover the mountains, old ways of life and how to make goat cheese. In the afternoons they had two hours of skiing in Peyragudes.  Thrilling!

And she was proud to be back home with the second star, the next proficiency level.

Playing tennis

I talk a lot about Björn lately... he started playing tennis this autumn - like his sister and father - and we went to get some extra training yesterday. Clara was tired after playing rugby at school, so the two of us took a casual stroll along the small river. To my surprise she loves rugby!!! Rugby is an important sport in the region so it's good they get to try it out at school.

Björn played tennis with his father and showed great stamina in the warm afternoon sun.....

See the sweat rolling down his chin???

Bike outing in the pine forest

Björn has been practising alot lately to be able to surprise his dad. Biking with no support wheels!! The actual pedalling was not so difficult, it was starting and stopping that needed to be worked on...

Today he was so confident we decided to go for a small outing in the nearby pine forest. The indian summer continues and we had a lovely weather for this family event... even if the trail was a bit sandy at times which proved difficult for our fresh pilot, otherwise everything was perfect... 

We sat down for a picnic by the trail, feeling alone in the world. We could hear the buzz from a fly or a bee from time to time, otherwise the forest was peace and silence. A good silence, calm and warm. I wished for a big blanket, to stretch out and gaze up on the tops of the pines and think of nothing...

(Trails like this are abundant in Landes, proper cycle lanes as well.)

Mushrooms and driving theory...

I've been silent... but trust me, it has been a very active silence! Together with my husband I am preparing to pass the theoretical driving licence test, to go ahead and get a MC drivers licence!
The children are back in school, autumn is Not At All here and still we found two giant mushrooms in our garden... and we are also preparing a surprise for my husband... schh schh...

And by the way, now I find Philadelphia cheese and Digestives in my French supermarket! Celebrated that by making a cheesecake of course....

After school beach time

I whisked the children from school and straight to the beach... isn't there something special about 'cheating' to get another swim at the beach in the after season? The beach is calmer, the sea is still warm and you're saying to yourself: is this the last swim of the year?

Surprisingly there were quite alot of people at the Moliets beach. German, Dutch... and of course, 33 degrees and sun can make anybody want to feel the sea breeze...

No pictures this time... the photos added are from another year, but the feeling is ther. Afterwards we had a mussels treat and then stayed on a while to watch the sun setting in the sea....

Pirat Party

The pirate theme for my sons' birthday was a no-brainer, as well as making a treasure hunt. But how do you make a treasure hunt with children who barely know how to read? I stole the idea from a friend: make photos of closed up details and let one picture place lead to another.... get them the bandana and the one eyed pirate look and the party is a given success!

I laughed a lot at seeing the hord of pirates look for leads to the treasure... and I felt very smug when our neighbor entered at the last stage: dressed as a pirate he was the one who held the old map that showed the exact position of the treasure...

Of course you recognise our mailbox!

This was the last lead....

... before meeting the old pirat...

... and getting the map!

Seven steps straight, ten to the left... but where is the treasure???

We found it!!!

Another hugely appreciated game: find a piece of candy in a bowl of whipped cream. Without using your hands.

Blidö.....

I spent a lot of time in the Stockholm archipelargo when I was a child. My parents had a boat and summer vacation meant one month on the boat, sailing from one island to another... Swimming naked, fishing and playing close to the water. So many memories!

This time we spent one week on Blidö north of Stockholm and one of the bigger islands with about 130 houses and a regular ferry service. My sister was there, my cousin and his children... they spent not hours but days trying to catch small fish with their landing nets.... bliss.

The regular car ferry to Blidö (free of charge)

View from the ferry

Lush! Summer is short but intensive!

Saltkråkan

Happiness is to catch a small mouse and hold it a minute..

Tjälknöl made of reindeer.... you cook the frozen meat in 100 degrees for 6-10 hours.. then marinate for another 4-6 hours....

One of the many boats that goes from one island to another....

Catching small fish, the main activity

And catching not only fish but....

... seaweed!

My favorite part, further out on the south point of Blidö

Rough beauty. I learned to crawl on rocks like these... so I walked on all four like a bear...

Cinnamon buns! Freshly made by Christina, our hostess for a day

A bar/restaurant by the sea... boats stop by to have a beer or food....