a healthy tan

sun 3.10.2010
My kids have not got sunburned once on this trip. We have been travelling for three and a half weeks, been in the tropics and not a single red nose. Every time we were heading to an outdoor location, I was really good about making sure they had sunscreen lathered on them before they were touched by the biting rays of the outback sun. They weren't allowed out without hats, played in the shade and didn't swim in the middle of the day. But apart from all these careful measures, I realised there wasn't much chance they would burn anyway. They are covered in a fine layer of grime which gives them a physical barrier against burning. Each layer of sunscreen would then attract a new layer of dirt. Two things have made this possible. One is that my kids get dirty the minute they walk out the door. They play with sticks, rocks and dirt and play games like "restaurant" which involves making leaves into "food," bark into bowls and making us pretend to eat it. The other - and most significant - is that I haven't washed them much. I know I mentioned previously that it was essential for a woman to at least wash her face every day, but I've found it very difficult to organise four kids at all this trip, let alone four wet and soapy kids. At home J.T. showers the kids. When we used to bath them I found it too hard on my back and now we are on tank water and they have showers he has kept it up. I say it's so J.T has some special bonding time with them, but it's really because I can't stand the constant bickering for who's turn it is in the water, screams when water goes in someone's eye, someone yelling half-way through that they need to go to the toilet even though they went 5 minutes ago. Now combine that with a campground shower 1mx1m and it gets plain crazy. I like to think it really doesn't hurt them and that the layer gives them a fake tan without the chemicals, but I will be happy to get home to our own shower where J.T can make them sparkly clean every day.