I am very grateful for a pool. We are incredibly lucky to have a house with a pool for Christmas, so while Ali headed out to finish the last few bits of shopping, the girls and I settled into full “back-garden holiday” mode.
Georgia and Dotty spent most of the morning in the water, taking turns riding the inflatable dolphin and splashing around on the shallow step. I sat in the shade watching them and couldn’t stop thinking about the Bluey episode Christmas Swim, where Muffin, Bluey and Bingo’s cousin, charges around the garden shouting “Christmas swim! Christmas swim!” at Uncle Stripe and Aunt Trixie’s place. It felt very similar here: hot sun, kids in and out of the pool, that slightly chaotic excitement that says Christmas is very close.
It is a completely different feel to a UK Christmas, but sitting by a pool while the girls play and the cicadas buzz away in the background, you can absolutely see why an Aussie Christmas swim is such a big deal.