Cottage: Wildlife

The cottage is a fantastic place for a little girl (or a littler boy) to experience the wonder of the great outdoors. Our yard at home is no sterile rock garden or anything, but there is something about being far away from civilization that allows the reality of the natural world to soak in, rather than manufacturing it by planting begonias. Sophia (and the rest of the family) were treated to many wilderness experiences, both fauna and flora, while we were there.

The island is a small chunk of rock about 200 feet from the shore, and while it is officially government property, we feel a kind of kinship with the island, since it is right in front of the cottage building, and we swim to it regularly. On the island, there is an old dead pine tree which is a favorite perching spot for bald eagles:




Here's Sophia looking out the window at the eagle on the island.




Loons, are, of course, a plentiful and vocal presence on any northern lake, and our little bay is no exception. There is a pair, named Louie and Lou-lou, who return to our little bay and try each year to have a couple of chicks on the island. Unfortunately, the odds are stacked against them because of fluctuating water levels and an abundance of predators, including the bald eagle. Regardless, the loons return year after year and keep us company with their haunting call. Their haunting, 4:00am call.



Deer are also plentiful where we are, with a family which seems to have nested (burrowed? set up a shanty? what do deer do anyway?) about 300m from the cottage. We have seen the parents and the young faun a few times, ducking in and out of the road, and once they stood at the top of the hill by the cottage for a while, just looking at us, and we could see new antlers on the male.

You don't have to go far from the cottage to see interesting animals. There are a number of habitats right near the building. The propane tank, with its cool metal and shaded valve cover is a favorite hiding place of green toads or tree frogs (not sure), while the garden is popular with leopard frogs. The north-facing wall of the building, bathed in sunlight, is a favorite sunning spot for moths, including Gypsys and Lunas.



We also discovered this year that the front step is inhabited by a least weasel. Look closely, they're quick little things:






Of course, there is also a wide variety of plant life at the cottage, and the recent news that half of UK kids can't recognize an oak leaf or that US kids can recognize a thousand corporate logos but only 10 plant species makes me want to expose Sophia to whatever natural ecosystems I can. While at the cottage, we went for walks through the forest and up on the hill, looking at trees and plants and bugs. We even identified poison ivy for her, although I think she will need a few more lessons about why it's something to avoid when every other plant is something to poke at. Her most exciting identification was blueberries, and she went to the top of the hill several times to pick them. You can't tell me that there is anything better than sitting on the hill picking and eating wild berries.

Cottage: Boats Galore

Of course, one of the primary activities at the family cottage is "simply messing about in boats". With the wind low and the lake calm, it's the perfect day to get canoe, rowboat and kayak out on the water. Getting two adults to balance in a canoe or rowboat is sometimes challenging enough, but with a little one who is very interested in the water going by, it can be downright nerve racking. No casualties were reported, however, and the fleet traveled around the island and investigated out to the point. The rowboat couldn't keep up with the canoe, of course, but it was not a race and mere paddling was the main objective.







Later, a second class of boating activities was pursued, consisting of various methods of being dragged behind a fast-moving boat. The children did not participate, but they did watch and laugh. In fact, only Marie-Eve and David participated in said activities, with various excuses by the other adult members of the tribe being offered.

Unfortunately, little photographic evidence exists (on our cameras) for these events, besides this "outbound" pic, but but the events consisted of tubing, kneeboarding and water-skiing.

Cottage week 1: Sailing and Swimming

So many activities are available at the cottage, and since we wanted to get as many of them done as we could, the first nice day with wind was a day to go sailing! Before we could sail, though, there was much to be done. We had to retrieve "The Laser" from its storage location (hung from slings from the roof of the boathouse), wash the winter gunk off of it, and put a coat of wax on it, before it could even go in the water.

It should be noted, in passing, that "The Laser" is the only boat at the Gerhard cottage that does not have a name. The big boat is called "Ed" (not a very stylish name, but tin boats should not have stylish names), the little rowing dinghy is called Pegasus (Since it was, in one incarnation, the tender to the Gerhard's 27ft C&C called Shadowfax), and the red canoe is called "Tyrannosaurus Rex", since it is properly Adam's canoe, and that was his first choice when a now-retired member of the fleet was to be named years ago. That boat was named "Abracadabra" instead (his second choice). Adam was four years old. Now that he is a grownup, it seems, he can have a boat named "Tyrannosaurus Rex".

The Laser is called "The Laser" because it is a Laser.

So anyway, we got the laser down from the slings and onto the dock where we gave it a good scrub and polish. The waxing was hard work and hardly something to require of visitors to the cottage on their second full day here. But that's what we did. ... Actually, Kelvin and I waxed up the sucker something fantastic, shinier than it had been in a long time. And it was worth it, too, because that baby hummed afterward. I mean literally hummed. OK, sorry about going link crazy. That last one wasn't completely sufficient. When a "The Laser" sails fast and flat at a particular point of sail, a harmonic resonance is set up in the keel and rudder such that the hull starts to hum. That means you're doing it right.

Sophie's Dad and William's Dad getting ready to sail





Swimming is also a popular activity at the cottage since the water is clear and fresh and screaming cold these days. It's not bad once you get in (they all say that) but the easiest way not to be intimidated by swimming in the cold water is to just dive right in. The kids had their first cottage swimming experience already, but the adults were merely wading. In order for the adults to actually go swimming, jumping off the dock was preferred.



Since it was a bit slippery from a recent rain, baby wrangling was required, but it was made much easier by life jackets. It's great that kid's life jackets have handles on the top. They pretend it's to make it easier to haul the kid out if they fall in, but we all know it's to keep a handle on them so they don't fall in.

Pregnant woman, not into diving off the dock, becomes designated wrangler

Show a little modesty, eh?

(due to the sensitive nature of this post, there will be no accompanying pictures!)

So, we are at the cottage, and are following our regular bedtime routine...bath, snack, bottle, story, bed. This has been working just fine for getting Sophia to sleep (now staying asleep is another matter entirely and may make it into another post). Anyway, our child likes to be naked. Our child likes to run around the house. Add the two together, and, volia, a new ritual is born. It's the "Naked Baby" run. One night last week, Sophia shed her towel, and went for a swift run through the house, giggling all the way. Someone said, "watch out, here comes the naked baby!" Well, the next night she again went running through the room, except she stopped in the middle of the crowd, to pose with arms out (as if to say "ta da!"), and proudly proclaimed: "Naked baby". This now happens every night, regardless of who ever is here. It is really quite endearing, with her cute little grin and that belly of hers!

Cottage week 1: BEARS!

Well, three bears to be exact. Kelvin, Marie-eve, and William joined us at the cottage for week 1 of our annual month-ish at the cottage. Our family cottage is in Sioux Narrows in Lake of the Woods, on a beautiful stretch of water called "Regina Bay" (coincidental, no?). The cottage has a little beach, a little island, a lot of land and several boats (big and small) to play on the lake. There's lots to do, but no requirement to do any of it. It's the cottage, after all.

After a long drive (9 hours, stopping in Moosomin, Brandon, Winnipeg (for shopping), Prawda, then Sioux Narrows), The convoy pulled in at the end of the day on July 4. The kids (and dog) fared quite well, although toward the end of the drive everyone was starting to get a little cranky. We arrived, moved in to our respective rooms, made ourselves comfortable, and slept.

Sleeping arrangements at the cottage are a little different than at home. Although it's a big place, there really are only three bedrooms, and so each family was in a room. Kids napped and slept on mattresses on the floor beside mommies and daddies (in real beds of course) and though there was plenty of room in each bedroom, sleeping in the same room as your kid is a little different when you are used to a nursery.

The weather at the cottage cooperated (for the most part) - we had sunny days the first couple days, including wind; a couple of rainy days, and a couple of calm days appropriate for watersports. Sophia and William began Day 2 with playtime on the beach. (in fact, almost every day that had some sun had at least an hour of beach time, often much more).

After some beach swimming in cool water, cuddling is an appropriate way to warm up


Another way to spend time at the cottage is the collection and sorting and listing to of music, in an attempt to collect a playlist for Kelvin and David's amazing band-to-be



The sharing of recipes is, of course, fundamental to cottage life. Food is the number-one priority, and everyone shared and participated in food. Here, Grandma and Grandpa experience Quebec "Sugar Pie" for the first time. NOM

Boat rides of many times are common fare at the cottage, and the first day we all piled into "Ed" (our tin boat with a big motor, appropriate for long rides to distant island destinations). This was what they call a "shaking out cruise" where we go our for a while to make sure we can handle going out for a longer while.

Each member of the crew was required to qualify on the wheel. Here, Sophia renews her qualifications from last year


William also was successful in piloting the boat


Haley, lacking thumbs, remained a passenger for the entire trip

And all of this on the first day!

More cottage report to come. Cottage is all about relaxing and not stressing about stuff you gotta do, after all.

birthday party

Sophia turned 2 years old on June 29th. Yes, this entry is a little late.

Sophia's party was great fun for all. Sophie had 3 friends over: Claire, Owen and William, along with their respective entourages: Pam and Gary; Heather and Jeff; and Marie-Eve and Kelvin. Tricia's parents were also in attendance, so it was a full house.

We had a beach party, consisting of the little wading pool and the little sandbox. Claire, Owen, William and Sophia alternately went in the pool and the sandbox, and Sophia showed them how toys, sand, rocks, water and dirt can migrate from their original locations to new and interesting locales.




The cake was an original Tricia Gerhard creation, now famous around Regina for being the subject of many Cake-Smash photo shoots. We didn't smash this one, but Sophia did blow out the two candles, and the kids had messy handfuls to eat.






We also had helium balloons, which were a huge hit with the kids. Lots of cool stuff you can do with a helium balloon, although we didn't inhale at this particular party.






After the party proper, we had bison burgers and everyone stuck around for a great dinner. All in all a fun time was had, and I think Sophia actually understood a bit of what was happening. She knew it was a party, and she knew it was a "happy birthday" (she had been singing happy birthday to you since the last party she was at) but I think she did kind of get that it was her party, for her, about her.