June 8, 2025
We were out of Nespresso pods, so I went out in search of coffee and a quick breakfast for the boys before their 9am surf lesson. The only shop open before 9am was the bakery so I ordered 2 cappuccino and 2 donuts for the boys. When I got home, I realized the cappuccino were actually hot chocolate– not sure how that order got lost in translation. The boys loved the Nutella stuffed donuts though.
The boys took a lesson today 2 on 1 with instructor Patchier. The boys are both enthusiastic about learning to surf but less so about putting on/taking off the wetsuits. This time, Ollie had the wetsuit style where rather than zipping into it, you instead pull the neck opening over your head like a stiff, small neck-hole sweater. The head sizes in our family are a L/XL across the board so this style poses a problem. After a few minutes of tugging and head tilting, we pushed and pulled Ollie’s head through the minute hole but in the process pulled some of his hair. He soon ran out of the surf tent in protest until we all promised we were done touching his hair. Kyle and I also rented wetsuits in case the current got aggressive like it had during the last lesson. Len’s swimming skills are still questionable but his false confidence is off the charts so we wanted to be prepared.
When we scheduled the 9am lesson, we were worried it would be chilly out but instead the water felt really warm and nearly air temperature. The boys ran into the ocean to warm up with their instructor while Kyle and I watched from the beach. Back on land, they worked on popping up, spreading their legs and bending their knees before heading back into the surf with boards in tow. Patchier impressively navigated holding and pulling both boys on their boards to set them up for waves. They each had a few good rides but spent less time standing than they had the last lesson and more time flopping off the boards. They didn’t seem to mind and were excited to tell us all about their falls when they ran back to the beach, “Did you see the wave roll me Mama??!!”
We drove back towards our neighborhood for brunch to a cafe near our apartment. Unfortunately, they only served coffee before noon, an impossible 30 minute wait for “starving” boys. Ollie asked for “a budget” so he could take Lenny with him on a solo adventure to the bakery. This time, they came back with an elaborate pastry for each of them; a mille-feuille for Ollie and a mango mousse pastry for Len. They ate their pastries and Kyle and I each had two cappuccinos while we played Uno and waited for the kitchen to open.
Back at the apartment, we made another batch of chocolate covered fruit; blackberries (Ollie’s idea), mango (Len’s idea) and raspberries. I also made a ratatouille galette with all the left over veggies from the house with a backup frozen pizza for the boys. We watched the first Back to the Future movie in the afternoon. Much of it went over Len’s head and there was too much dialogue for both boys but they both loved the manure and fighting scenes.
After dinner, Kyle took the boys to the playground by our apartment for one final rugby punting competition before leaving Biarritz tomorrow. Both boys were successful in their tasks and each earned a bonus 10 points each. Len gave all the park goers a chuckle when yelling, “Privacy!!!” as he went to pee behind a tree but still in view of most people. We need to reign in that behavior and work on his discreetness for sure.
