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A good friend recently commented to me 'why is everyone's life so grown up lately?' Undoubtedly, there have been many people we know dealing with some very grown up life situations in recent times. Personally, I'm often shocked and surprised to be witnessing many of the life events that are shaping our times. It doesn't seem possible that we are at the stage in our lives to be dealing with our parents encountering illness, or having responsibility for raising children, or battling mortgages and worrying about job security. But these are the life and times of myself or the people I care about. We have indeed grown up!
But being a grown up shouldn't be all work and no play. Our weekend in Copenhagen with Luke, Maria and Liam served as a welcome reminder that life should be focused on creating as many fun-filled and joyous moments in every day as we can. It was 6 months since we last saw the Nylund-Odell trio and meeting them at the airport, we were surprised by just how much Liam had grown! It took a little while before we could get our first hellos and cuddles in as Liam was naturally wary
of grownup strangers. But it didn't take long before he'd found two new playmates for the weekend and play we certainly did! I've always marveled at the boundless energy little kids have, and Liam is no exception. From first thing in the morning to well into the evening (with perhaps a brief reprieve in the afternoon by way of a nap), Liam was always ready for a game. The weekend very much played out around maximising playtime, not only for Liam but for us grown-ups too!
Copenhagen is perhaps one of the best cities we could have chosen to visit for big kid play time. The city itself has a great vibe-there are fantastic cafes and restaurants on every corner, the shopping is brilliant and there is plenty of green outdoor space for soaking up the sunshine-which was certainly at its best during our long weekend away. Staying at a hotel right in the heart of town, we took long leisurely strolls all around the city, stopping at local play grounds for Liam to test out the swings, slides and climbing equipment. Liam wasn't the only one making use of the playground equipment though-there was certainly plenty of opportunity
for the big kids among us to have a go too!
Trivoli is a small theme park based right in the centre of the city and this was the main setting for the best big kid playtime. With Liam taking a nap, Maria and I decided to take on 'The Demon' roller coaster and the two of us were practically jumping out of our skins with excitement as we lined up in wait. We scored the best seats in the house-front row-and screamed with terror and exhilaration as we took a ride on the Demon track. It was the most awesome fun-it's been a long time since I've been on a roller coaster ride. We both had the biggest smiles on our faces as we met up with the boys afterward who were brimming with excitement as they contemplated taking on 'Vertigo', a rhythmically circling and rotating car suspended upside down for most of the duration. They took it on and managed to keep the contents of their stomachs which I felt was a solid achievement (and I was thankful for it too as I'm quite a sympathetic spewer!)
Interspersed with playtime was a bit of sightseeing. We
visited the Little Mermaid, a tribute to the great tale by Hans Christian Anderson, as well as the main Cathedral and Palace (we were disappointed not to see Princess Mary!)
There was also 'The Signspotting Project' on display in the main square which was showcasing an array of 100 humorous road and information signs from around the world. We had a good chuckle walking along, reading captions like 'beware of invisibility', 'check under your car for penguins', and 'Beware: Wild animals/children' and numerous others.
The rest of the time though was spent drinking beer and wine, lazing around in the sunshine, eating ice ream, wandering through the shops and dining at fantastic cafes and restaurants.
Liam was a blast to hang out with. He's at such a wonderful age where everything is new and exciting and waiting to be discovered. He's quick on his feet and climbing up onto everything and he can get away in the blink of an eye too-so he certainly kept us on our toes the whole time. But he helped remind us what great fun being a kid can be and hanging out with Luke and Maria felt very much like we
were kids playing with our besties in a very exciting new playground.
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