Me: You enjoy our visits to the activity field, don’t you?
Nell: Yes. I particularly like the soft grass underpaw.
Me: And Dave and Poppy love running off lead.
Nell: They do.
Me: It must be hard for them to see you and Harriet off lead on the beach but Dave is too big and boisterous.
Nell: And Poppy is too wild and mean.
Me: I’m afraid she is a bit of a bully. I’d say it was because of her illness but she’s always been like that.
Nell: She threw an egg at Malcolm this morning.
Me: But he’s the politest flamingo I know.
Nell: Fortunately Manuel caught it.
Me: Do we know why?
Nell: It would have broken all over Malcolm’s feathers.
Me: I mean why Poppy was cross with Malcolm.
Nell: He said we should try our cream tea the Devon way.
Me: He didn’t.
Nell: I’m afraid he did.
Me: But we eat our scones the Cornish way. Jam on first and then clotted cream.
Nell: I know.
Me: And never the Devon way. Cream on first and then jam.
Nell: Actually your sister Alex does it the Devon way.
Me: What?
Nell: Just saying. We do live in Devon.
Me: I’m afraid I’m on Poppy’s side here. We’re all about the cream not the county.
Nell: What do you mean?
Me: My theory is that if you’re a jam person you like it to be on top but if you’re a cream person you like to taste that first.
Nell: Perhaps everyone should just enjoy their cream tea the way they like it.
Me: As long as it’s jam on first.
Nell: It’s not like you to be so inflexible.
Me: We’re talking about scones, jam and cream here, Nell. This is serious stuff. Sorry.
