Now the holidays are over, the work begins. Delphine’s reading. Maths.. For sure, we’re the luckiest people in the world. We have two beautiful girls who are funny, enthusiastic and loving. We especially enjoy spending twenty-four hours together. Every day. Creating all these great memories where the girls will be able to finish their sentences with; '…and even though we asked them to, they never left us alone.’ For me though, the cream on top must be teaching Delphine. If you blink, she’s outta there. A jewel thief couldn’t be more cunning. Every time, that kid goes back to her Barbie world. Her Barbie love started years ago, when her wonderful therapist, Ruth (hey, Ruth!) brought a Barbie to one of their sessions. Suddenly, it was as clear as air. Changing Barbie’s clothes was the perfect way to get Delph to work her right hand. To make the precise, fine-motor movements she needed to practice but would rather chop off her hand if physiotherapy was written anywhere near it. Even as a toddler. Thanks, Delph. So without hesitation, we got her the first Barbie. And then the second. Now we have a Barbie camper van on Quest. And a scooter. A small, pink car. A sackful of outfits. A large box of shoes. And by Lulu’s count, 32 Barbies on board. By some dumb luck, we insisted on leaving the Dreamhouse at home… At any point, if you lie on Delphine’s bed (procured from her sister based on needing room for the Barbie paraphernalia), you may get a tiny comb in your hair. A minute watch. Maybe an intricate necklace. If it were any other crew member of Quest, this stuff would be long gone. Lost forever in the bilges. Not for Delphine though. 

Should we be surprised about the disappearing trick when the workbooks come out? Lucia loves her internet school, does her homework faster than anyone could tell her to, wakes up at painful o’clock to attend her first lessons. And her sister? For our first sailing year, it’s true I was super paranoid they shouldn't fall behind. To cure my paranoia, we spent days, weeks, months in a strict school routine. Atlantic Europe, the Canaries and half of the Caribbean in our Quest classroom… oops, sorry guys. Then something changed. It was like we all took a proper breath. In particular, Delphine retreated to her play world, her drawing. And of course, Harry Potter on her headphones.. I might not have believed it had I not seen it, but people who have experience say it's normal. A sort of letting go. We know that Delphine loved her friends at school and her teachers too but not so much the work. We know that she struggled with the idea of keeping up with her class. Now without really trying, the last vestige of that stress feels gone. And the work? Well, two can play at the Barbie game. Counting is made easy with four hundred pairs of shoes. Times Table? Four times four bikini outfits. Fractions? A quarter of the Kens are going surfing. Measuring? The question on Quest is do you start from Barbie’s heel or pointed toe… are we lucky or what?