At the start of July Cori went off for a few days' work in London, leaving me to look after Orry as Finn was still at school. Orry and I coped quite well:
However, as the afternoon nap ended up being an afternoon rest-time, which looked much like this:
I had suspected for some time that there wasn't a day-time nap in him anymore. Not that he doesn't benefit from it, and not that he doesn't zonk out every early afternoon car drive; but he doesn't have enough tiredness to get over the hump of resistance anymore when at home. So, instead of struggling through it and making of misery of everything, we're now beginning not to fight for it at all. And, besides the later-on grumpiness from Orry, we're all better for it.
Unfortunately, Cori's time away meant that she missed Tynwald Day. It is, of course, a big deal in the Island, and, since Finn's school faces Tynwald Hill, we'd seen it taking shape for weeks leading into it:
On the day I had to be in work, sadly, as it was a great day. Everyone was at St. John's and Finn and Orry had a wonderful and busy time seeing all that was to be seen at their Fair with Granny. When they called in to see us in the afternoon, Finn and Orry were very excited and full of stories of what they had seen, and Granny was just tired! Unfortunately, she still had hours after that until I was to be free from work! Sadly, I don't have any pictures of everyone at the Fair (as I was in work), but here are Finn and Orry, and Finn's friend from school, taking a sneak preview of what was revealed at more work on Tynwald Day - as a hint at the fun on offer:
We kept Cori updated as to what she'd missed out on by being in London, by sending her this fascinating video, conceived and directed by Finn, of the bike he had won at the Fair:
Since Finn's school-mate appeared in that Tynwald-related picture, we might as well show Finn and him again, this time with Finn modelling his new wet-suit on the beach at Peel.
Orry got one too, and also looks rather fantastic:
The progress into summer was obvious by the time we spent on the beach, and also by things like...
... the mobs of ravenous ducks even climbing over our feet and snapping at our hands as we fed them (I had to pick Orry up when I went with him, as he was rather frightened by them all):
... And also the handsome progress of the boys' sunflowers:
... And the development of the baby pigeons in their (rather precarious) nest in the house across the street from us:
The weather also encouraged more trips to the Wildlife Park. The place near Ballaugh is great, with lots of good animals and the like, but they also have a great array of play areas, inside and out. Trips now tend more towards the play than the animals, but we guess that it's still a good day out regardless:
Talking of trips north, we enjoyed a few trips to Ramsey, such as our first trip to the Grove Museum, when we timed it with the appearance of an olden-days car...
... to the Mooragh Park, where we had the rare treat of going out on the lake & exploring the island in the middle with the cousins...
... to the free rides at some special event at the Mooragh Park:
Finn loved the Ferris Wheel, but Orry hated every moment of it and sat there almost crying throughout. But Finn was nice and help his hand to help him, as he waved furiously to us with his other hand.
In the midst of the chaos and disorder that Orry wilfully and carelessly creates all around him, he continues his fine attention to order about some things:
It's a shame that this can't be redirected to a desire in him to put things away after use!
Never mind. Here's a picture of him with a mini steel drum for a hat:
A surprise to us all was our managing to have a pleasant day out on a walk with Finn. He has been fighting the very idea of a walk for months, immediately asking about any activity on the weekend whether it involves walking. But we worked out that it was mostly a hang-up about walking up Cronk ny Arrey Laa in the wind a few months back and getting cold. So we convinced him that a walk to Lag ny Keeilley wouldn't be windy as it wasn't up a hill. He was suspicious but accepted it. But once we were waking, he really enjoyed it:
In fact, it was a very long way and tiring for all of us, but we narrowly avoided Finn complaining, thanks to the good weather and also the handful of cards of things we wanted to spot: a bird, a sheep etc., and, most excitingly for Finn, danger. The danger was, perhaps obviously, the steep cliffs we were walking along, but the ferns had changed the frightening drop into nothing too dangerous since the last time I'd been there (before the ferns had sprung up). Indeed, perhaps helped by his smaller height, Orry took it as a big joke to fall off the path into the ferns constantly:
He was carried on the way back, whether he liked it or not!
A great day out was had by everyone, even if we did have to pick tics off him aplenty by the time we got home!
Here is a video quiz to break things up a bit:
What is the well-known phrase which the Finn & Orry band are performing here...?
Any idea?
... Well, here's Finn with the answer:
We have no idea what that is all about. It was just Finn's idea of something we should put "on the internet" one Saturday morning, as you do!
The wooden train track hasn't been used over the recent months, but it is beginning to come out again, although Finn's excitement over it has waned. Now it is more Orry who enjoys it. But, for him, he just wants a track of a metre or so long. So all of this sort of thing is a waste...
With any sort of clever connection, here is how Cori found Finn & Orry after she returned from the toilet before their bedtime stories - it was almost as if they didn't need her at all!
One of the big things in the Manx cultural calendar is the Celtic music festival held in Peel year year. Cori volunteered to help out at the evening events this year, which meant that she got into the thick of things. It also meant that Orry was able to tag along to some of the daytime events, and also to pick up some excellent Irish dancing which he had seen at the House of Manannan:
Orry's excellent dance skills also show up in his happy taking up of the Manx dancing which Finn is still going to and refusing to join in on (and yet still wanting to go back, with a fight, each week, infuriatingly!). Here is Orry's excellent impersonation of the 'Nur jin shen!' / 'Don't do that!' part of one of the kids' beginners' dances:
After only a few weeks of July, Finn's first year at school drew to a close, and he was done for the summer. To mark the occasion, here he is on his first and last day of the year:
The final thing in the school's year is the big summer show. This year it was Snow White, or, as it is in Manx, Sniaghtey Bane:
The show was brilliant and Finn, like every other child in the school, was in it. He was one of the scary woodland beasts who Sniaghtey Bane was frightened of when caste out into the woods. With the rest of his class, Finn did a fantastic job at singing and dancing in front of everyone, even if he did wave to everyone he knew constantly!
Orry was allowed only to the Pre-school performance, so on the Tuesday night (on Finn's third performance of the sell-out show), he and I were left to fend for ourselves after we'd dropped off Finn at the hall. Happily a ball to throw around and lovely weather in St. John's made this a very easy and pleasant task:
Because we deliberately booked flights off for our American trip as soon as possible after the end of school, the only thing after this that we did was pack, and trip out to get our on-flight magazines... which meant a pleasant walk around town which looked like this:
And, after that, it was up early and off on our grand trip to America...!
