cottage cuteness

Just some randomness to share...


LEGO!!!! LEGO!!! David loves spending time doing the lego thang with the kids.



My little potato picking helper. He was quite happy with the haul, however, he could only barely handle lifting the strainer. "Mama. carry."




So, this is what happens when Jacob doesn't have a nap...he passes out on the beach after a swim. I take all the cuddles I get.



A hike and a little campfire. Sophia was thrilled.



Rock climbing...



We had a visitor come and stay for two nights. Bob Thompson is a dear family friend of the Gerhards. Bob's arrival brought much visiting and play. The kids did not play shy, not at all. Bob seems to have a magic with the kids, as he was able to play with them and still have an adult conversation. It was so nice to spend some time with him and to watch the kids with him.





Jacob decided that sitting with Mamma wasn't enough, he wanted Bob. So he sat with Bob and I could see his body relax. About ten minutes later Jacob feel asleep. Talk about trust.
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I believe, Sophia is explaining about crayfish....can't really tell.







Smores!!! What more could a little girl ask for?



Stories with Grandpa....Arthur gets very animated.



identifying Indian pipe flowers. Maybe a botanist like her grandma.



Swinging and pure joy!

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Sailing, Sailing, Sailing the "Ocean" blue

One of the must do's at the cottage is to make a voyage on Shadowfax. Now it is always an adventure, as usually what happens is that we make the 45 minute drive out to Northern Harbour where the sailboat is moored, get out of the dock, motor out into open water, and then the wind dies. Never fails. This time was a little different...we got out into the open, and the wind stayed. We got to sail. It wasn't the have your heart drop out of your chest, brace yourself on anything stable, the boat is tipping at an outrageous angle and the water is coming up over the edge kind of wind....okay, that's me doing the description, if David was in charge of this post he would have described it as perfect, and fun, and awesome. There is the difference between someone who did not grow up on the boat and someone who did. Anyway, seems to be that Jacob has definitely inherited the love of the boat and Sophia likes to stay inside. It was fun anyway...















This is Sophia trying really hard to hang her feet over the edge so that she could dangle her feet in the water. For once her legs weren't long enough.




Success!! It was precarious to say the least.



Ummm...no fear?




















Below...colouring...it was hot.



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Cottaging 2011

Well, we love the cottage...and for a change, the weather has been fabulous. It has been sunny and warm for weeks, so we have been making the most of it.

Turns out that my children are fish...Sophia has been swimming so well and has developed incredible confidence in being in the water. She goes straight in while we adults take our time easing into the water, trying to get our bodies adjusted to the temperature (which is warmer than usual!). Jacob doesn't seem to notice the temperature difference either and easily walks into the water but it takes some time, and his floating boat to convince him to stay. He does get to the chin chattering, blue lip stage a whole lot faster than anyone else, at which point he needs to come out and spend some time wrapped in a blanket (which on no nap days leads to a quick nap --which I will not argue with...I love cuddling with him).

We have done many things so far, mostly hanging out at the beach, hiking, reading, being outside and trips into town, but we have also had company and lazy days.







Jacob hasn't mastered this game....here he is trying to throw the ball over to me. It was quite comical at the time.




Digging...his favorite beach past time.



Everyone having a blast....



Sophia and her water wings, Jacob and his boat (so, okay, it's for infants, but in reality he hasn't even broken the weight restriction, but heck it keeps him happy and floating.


grandpa proudly displaying his sticker badges, happily placed there by Jacob.



Boat? Me. Come. Too?? Boat. Ride? Yeah. (all said at almost an inaudible octave). someone around here loves the boat!!!



Sophia swimming at Timber beach...



Jacob not swimming at Timber, but trying valiantly to cover his feet in sand.



Getting Jacob into the water at Timber by throwing him around a bit. Note: only do this is you are close together and your three year old weights 20 pounds.




The salty pirates Gerhard ....arghhhhhh.



Warming up and wearing Mommy's hat for protection.


A contemplative Sophia...thinking about swimming or maybe thinking about the swimming she had just done, or maybe about the stick in her hand...who knows what happens in the minds of five year olds.



A family canoe ride...no tipping involved.


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Pre-Cottage events August 2011

Well, it is time for our annual vacay at the cottage. We headed out at the end of July and spent a couple of days in Winnipeg doing pre-cottage family events and attending the wedding of a good friend. We got in some great time with the other children in the family, enjoying some cuddles with brand new baby Rachel, and catching up with Adam, Kristine and Matthew. Being in town allowed us some outings, such as heading to the nature playground at Assiniboine Park. Matthew and Adam joined Sophia, Jacob, Grandma, Grandpa, Daddy and Mommy. A good time was had by all. That evening we heading out to Treherne for Allison and Ryan's wedding. After some delays on Sunday morning, we (the four of us and Grandma & Grandpa) headed out for the cottage.



Action shots....insert "Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee"

Adam and Matthew

Cousin Matthew....he is the observer of the kids....he wasn't too thrilled with Auntie Tricia trying to get him to both look at the camera and smile. He was still trying to figure out who the heck I was. "Auntie" for the most part has been Luanne (Kristine's sister), so another Auntie was just darned confusing.

Hellooooooooooo everybody!


Cooling the feet in the water play area....Sophia loved the feeling of the water splooshing over her feet.

Dragging Gma to the slide for the thousandth time. To heck with everything else, Jacob just wanted the slides

Cousins!!! Very cute, and getting along famously.