For those of you who have been reading along, you’ll know how delighted the kids are to go on a family walk. No drama or exaggeration at all… the ‘who would get eaten first if we never made it back to civilisation’ was a real highlight.
However my husband and I persevere, and even tried to spice it up this time in San Sebastián, Spain, with a zip line experience.
That was enough to get them out the door pretty easily until they realised we left out that the zip line was at the top of a hill.
My daughter quickly realised, and her pace seemed to be inversely related to both the gradient and her complaints.
This wasn’t helped when we passed another family coming in the opposite direction who told us there was no way to the top on the road we were on. So we had to retrace our steps to find the right path… which together with the perfect storm of hot, steep, and sub-standard snacks, was not the recipe for familial harmony and good cheer.
At this point, my husband, usually the most patient person I know, volunteered to go ahead to reassure the company that we were actually on our way. As none of the rest of us had our phones, this risked us not showing up at all. Perhaps a calculated move?
My son also found his halo, pointing out if we hadn’t indulged (!) his sister, she would have been powering up the hill (like him obviously).
All of which had the net result of both children receiving the benefit of my wisdom on important life lessons while I, mostly figuratively, pushed them to the top.
Luckily, this was all put behind us as we zipped around the course and enjoyed the views.
Until next time…
Tough Mother 