Round and about with the grandchildren

The Hills were chez nous for twelve days. Although still very lively Betty is calmer and sleeping better. They both get excited when we take them visiting, something that’s not always easy to do in August with all the crowds.

After the zoo we drove into Les Sables to find a spot of lunch.

Whist Mamie & co chose lunchtime sandwiches I persuaded Alfnbets to pose in front of l’Église Notre Dame de Bon Port des Sables d’d’Olonne.. It slightly dwarfed them!

Then a walk around the more industrial Les Sables…

…with its large silos…

…pleasure boats…

…and fishing vessels.

Just round the corner from our house is the skate park, Betty asking nearly every day to go and practise

One proud girl!

Not sure what Alfie’s up to here…

…but I know we had a lovely evening at Fafa’s one time, giving Nadine & Simon a ‘date night’ elsewhere. I’m sure you’ve spotted Sacha too!

Fun at the zoo

Another outing was to the zoo at Les Sables. We hadn’t been for some time but we certainly enjoyed our return visit.

They don’t get much brighter than this scarlet ibis

We all love penguins…

…hence two photos!

Giraffes are also family favourites, one of the youngsters here.

I hadn’t realised that the warthog is related to the wild boar.

One of the weirdest creatures has to be the anteater

This lorikeet made friends with Nadine or at least her jacket. There were so many zooming around. Their enclosure has double doors to prevent any escapees.

Some creatures are hard to capture in photos but the tigers, lion, meerkats, pink flamingos and lots of different apes/monkees were equally impressive.

AlfnBets go fossil hunting

It was lovely to Nadine, Simon, Alfie & Betty for 10 days over Easter. Obviously they had come for the family reunion but we managed a few more visits whilst they were here. 

Nadine with the children on the beach at Le Rocher…

…and a bit nearer.

The delight in Betty’s face showing off some of her finds…

…now with Alfie too.

Some of the fossils are within much larger stones

Another discovery on the beach: tiny creatures which we now know are called Velella Velella or by-the-wind sailors. More info here: https://www.freetheocean.com/journal/the-mysterious-arrival-of-by-the-wind-sailors/

A ‘bac à Marée’ where visitors are encouraged to deposit any rubbish washed up by the tides

Family catch-up, springtime in the garden, and another low tide

Loulou, Sylvie and family were up in La Tranche for the family.

Niece Caro with her partner Jo making the most of being by the sea!

Sylvie, Tine & Nadine with your faithful blogger

Now joined by Alfie, Caro, Matt, Jo & Loulou. Simon & Betty must have been playing table football.

Meanwhile chez nous springtime colours abound: forsythia…

…wisteria…

…cyclamen…

…and apple blossom!

As my knee improves so I get to walk along the beach more. 

The view back to town from La Grière…

…where the ‘écluse à poissons’ was uncovered.

Ignore the wobbly horizon but appreciate the mussel ‘bouchots’ creating next summer’s local favourite.

Back to our beach and I spotted the first boat being put out to its summer mooring.