Thursday
Yesterday we had our first tsunami warning since we've been in NZ. The waves hit Mount Maunganui main beach around 10am. A rescue helicopter flew along the beaches warning people over a loudspeaker. We have tsunami sirens, but they weren't set off because the tsunami wasn't expected to be that big and they didn't want to start a panic. Nonetheless, the beaches were cleared (some of the gung-ho surfers left rather grudgingly), and hundreds of looky-loos climbed Mauao and Mt Drury for a safe view of the impending "disaster." The waves from the Samoan earthquake did hit us, but weren't more than a meter high, the difference barely discernible to the naked eye.
Ro bouncing on the bungee in Bayfair yesterday
Ro's swimming lessons this week at Baywave, the local indoor aquatic center, have been somewhat frustrating. Ever since falling in the pool in Rarotonga, he's been petrified to put his head underwater. Four days into his lessons, and it's still a challenge to get him to stick his face in the water and blow bubbles for more than a second. The friendly ladies teaching the class are very patient with him, but progress has been slow.
Learning to kick
Today while Sherry went bathing suit shopping, Mark took Ro to Coronation Park for a little footy practice. Sherry had packed us some sparkling apple juice and candy bars (a rare treat), thinking we were going to the rock climbing gym, but Ro decided he'd rather relax in the park on such a gorgeous day. Sherry came home to find Mark and Ro already back from the park, playing on the deck with Ro's small sandbox (and making a colossal mess). Mark and Ro were essentially commanded to burn off some more energy and get out of the house, so we went down to the pool.
First time Ro's seen a baking soda/vinegar volcano
Relaxing near the lawn bowls club, candy bar in hand
Ro's "special experiment"
It remains a mystery what finally prompted Ro to put his head under water this afternoon. Mark showed him how to sit on the bottom of the spa tub with his head under the surface, which Ro soon copied! It's not as if we hadn't tried to get him to do it before, though. Sherry's jaw dropped when she got back from her run up Mauao and came down to the pool (in her new bikini) to find Ro jumping into the spa tub and getting his head all the way under. In short order, he was diving to the bottom of the spa tub to retrieve toys, swimming under Mark's submerged legs, and even rolling backwards into the tub from the edge like a scuba diver leaving a boat. When Sherry asked him what was different today that made him finally do it, he responded matter-of-factly, "I just did it."
Ro was beside himself with giddiness at his newfound ability to "swim," as he calls it. In actuality, he has just figured out how to sink without drowning...lol. His flailing can hardly be called swimming at this point, and he refused to get into the big pool to really prove he could keep himself above water, claiming it was "too cold." Regardless, we were all thrilled at his major breakthrough, and eagerly anticipate his swimming lessons tomorrow.
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