Out of the mouth of babes

We were at Labrador Park at sunset yesterday.

Kids had a great time scampering among the rocky shore, walking (good thing we had crocs - fake or otherwise) in the sea mud, scanning for fishes and other marine life. Among the families, couples, dogs and kids there, there were at least two wedding couples taking their wedding shots.

I've always wondered, when I see these wedding couples - how come the guy gets off so easy - he just has to take off his jacket, undo a couple a buttons, yank off tie etc to achieve the bare-chested romantic hero look while the poor bride has to slave away with the heavy gown, veil, make-up etc.

Frankly I can't imagine traipsing over mud, sand and rocks, holding up my gown, dabbing away at the face to keep the shine at bay - just to take 'romantic' shots for the wedding album. So hot and uncomfortable! And knowing me, I would have great difficulty looking 'romantic' or anything remotely like a blushing bride if I were wilting under the heat and obsessing about the perspiration, the dress, my heels all self-consciously posing before an interested, unwanted audience.

KH related the following incident to me because I had separated from the group - I was walking on the jetty and they were down on the sand and rocks. A wedding party had come to take pictures near them. The bride wore a flouncy gown and she was, truth be told, rather on the plump side, fleshy arms and extra flesh folding out above the tube neckline.

Caitlin, ever interested in brides and princesses, ventured closer to check things out, then turned and yelled loudly to the rest, clearly within earshot of the bride, "Hey everyone, come and see the fat wedding girl!"

To which, KH later told me, both he and Isaac had made mortified but strangled sounds of protest. And when they told Caitlin later that she should not have called the bride 'fat', my girl retorted, "But daddy, she WAS fat!"

Children - they call a spade a spade and just tell it like it is. No worries about social niceties, formalities, ego, sensitivity etc.

But back to Labrador Park and the jetty - look hard enough and you can spot schools of jellyfish floating translucently in the dark green waters. Very pretty they looked. I also saw this strange-looking fish - very narrow body (looking from the top down), sharp pointed mouth. It was about one and a half feet long and just floated there near the surface. I asked a man fishing nearby what fish that was and he couldn't tell me. It was pretty though and I stood watching it for quite a while until, with a flick of the tail, which flashed blue in the sunlight, it disappeared into the depths. KH later said it was a barracuda when I described it.

We spent a nice evening there - the children enjoyed the search for crabs, sea slugs, shells among the rocks and the sand, they loved the playground. And I enjoyed this kind of quiet time with the family and with KH.

We closed the evening with a sushi dinner in celebration of my birthday on Wednesday (since KH has been working very late over the past week and it would be unlikely that he would get home early on Wednesday to celebrate). The children were blissed out - nothing they like better than a good romp in the park followed by sushi - where they polished off plate after plate of maguro and sake sushi, ikura (expensive tastebuds!). Even baby Trinity got in on it and had her share of chawanmushi and pearls of ikura! I'm only disappointed they didn't have toro - and at the only time in the year that I dare treat myself to the outrageously expensive toro!

All the more I am eagerly waiting for Wednesday where I am booked for lunch at Equinox with a good girlfriend of mine - ready to indulge to my heart's content at the pan-fried foie gras station! Can't wait...