An Impromptu Long Walk

E and I have never been the kind who rush to an attraction within weeks of its opening.

Even when we are curious about the place or its offering, we tend to research a little, listen to others' feedback on their experiences and still, we wait a little longer. Why? I guess one of the main reasons is we simply refuse to follow the crowds. An attraction will always be there after its opening, but the mad crowds will ease after the novelty is gone.

This is also why we never ever take advantage of all those Public Holidays promotions even if we only need to pay half price for admission tickets.

Anyway I digress.....

A few months ago, we finally made it to the Hort Park. Yes, our first visit though the park was officially opened in 2008. Even my sister who hardly headed out to any places for recreation had been there years ago! Haha...

Anyway, the kids were not pleased at all when the adults made them get in the car. On the way there, we tolerated all kinds of protests and excuses from the boys, who preferred to just stay home to read, watch TV or play games. The dolly showed enough enthusiasm on the boys' behalf though and naturally, as doting and wise parents, the more excuses there were from the kids about why we should allow them to just rest and relax in the comfort of the home and be couch potatoes, the more we believed our insistence was right.

The moment I drove into the parking space (literally!), the dolly informed us of the 'raindrops' on the windows. Sigh! So a little drizzle was not going to stop us. The big boys were very annoyed.

'So silly to stroll with umbrellas!'
'So dangerous to go near the trees when it is raining!'
'So stupid to be out here, wet and sticky, and feed mosquitoes!'
'What if we get bitten by Aedes and get Dengue?! I have PSLE this year!!'

Anyway, it went on and on.... but we just ignored the grumbles and nudged them on as we discovered different parts of the park.

I must say, I really enjoyed Hort Park. It was a refreshing change from the Botanic Garden, which we are more familiar with.

In the end, the drizzling stopped. Slowly but surely, they began to have fun. Lots of fun!

Unfortunately, I am the only one in the family who enjoys long walks. The papa hates the heat though he used to walk for hours in the cooler weather in London. The older boy hates walking or doing any form of exercise (yes, I am aware of how unhealthy this is and have been desperately trying to change this!). The younger boy loves any exercise because he is really into fitness and strengthening his muscles (yes, I am aware how different my two boys are), but he hates long walks which he finds too boring and is in the opinion that they are only suitable for old people. The princess loves to go for any walks as long as I promise to carry her after the initial 10 minutes because her legs will ache too much.

Sigh....

But I still enjoy my long walks and dream of having loving company with me.