Saturday, May 26th – another fun weekend

This was supposed to be a quiet weekend for Paul, after 2 overseas trips back to back during 2 weeks, and some hectic weekends in between. Maybe it was his 4 day work week (taking Wednesday off so the girls and I could go to London), but he was interested in doing a family outing on Saturday. The beautiful weather was short lived and it’s in the high 40s, low 50s (YUCK) and rainy (DOUBLE YUCK!). We decided to go to an indoor swim place called, the Oasis, in Bedford, about 30 min away. Great fun was had by all. I don’t think England has ANY outdoor pools; they would only be used intermittently for about 3 mo of the year. However, their indoor pools are really amazing! This one had 2 different flume slides – a slow one and a fast one. The fast one was actually pretty fast! It had a black tunnel in the middle and a scary “ooooh” noise as you were skimming down the slide. Back in the pool, every 30 min they turned on the waves which mimicked the feeling of being in an ocean. After the waves wore off, they switched to the giant sprinkler. There were 2 waterfalls for playing, 2 different currents (lazy rivers), a slow one and a fast one, and a bubble pool. There was a deeper, smaller pool for younger children that didn’t have so many amenities (just good swimming fun), and 2 hot tubs. The faster of the 2 current areas actually went OUTSIDE, into the 40-50 degree weather, and it was amazing to whip along in the water, feeling the cold on your head and having your body immersed and carried along by the warmer water.

We all had great fun, although it was tiring for Paul and me to keep an eye on the younger boys. We generally trusted the girls’ swimming ability, and they were very good about checking in with us throughout the afternoon, but neither boy can swim, and one of us had a boy at all times. There was the odd occasion where we’d trade off and one of us watched both boys while the other one enjoyed the attractions.

One sad note – we had two sets of water wings, one that worked, and another set with a single working water wing (I’ll call it the “left” one) and a leaky 2nd wing (I’ll refer to it as the “right” one). ½ of the right water wing stayed inflated, while the other ½ wouldn’t inflate. It took a few minutes to realize that John needed the water wings and Andrew was OK without them, as long as we watched him like a hawk (note: this may have seemed obvious to some of you; however, our thought was that we would have 18mo old John with us at all times, and dare devil 3 yr old Andrew would benefit from wearing water wings and being able to move around while being watched and/or held by us). Paul put the broken water wings over the edge of the pool, near the drain, and I warned him that they would be taken. They had our name in bold letters on them, but that didn’t matter. With-in minutes they were gone. So far I’ve lost a baby blanket, a single winter glove and now the water wings. Each item was taken almost RIGHT AWAY. This compares with a sweater that we lost for a year in Austin, and was at our church the whole time. I was sure it was either in H.E.B. or McDonalds, but it wasn’t, and I was completely shocked when I happened upon it at church one day when they had all of the “lost” items laid out for display. Granted a church might be a safer bet in which to find a lost item, but it’s still sadly surprising how quickly things are grabbed up here. Paul couldn’t believe anyone would want water wings that only ½ worked! I think it’s a sign of living is a significantly less Christian nation. Everyone decides what is right here for themselves…no answering to a “higher power” (in general).

After the good swimming fun, last night was the BEST night that everyone slept. Not a SINGLE child awoke until after 7:30am!!!! I wanted to take a camera with us, but we couldn’t keep track of both boys, the girls AND the camera. (and it was way too big a risk to get stolen) You’ll just have to visit and enjoy these attractions personally when we show you around!