African Lion Safari

We spent a wonderful day at African Lion Safari in September with Oma and Opa.  I'm a bit late posting these pics, but since Nana and Gigi are on an actual safari in Africa today, I thought maybe it was appropriate timing.

Cohen LOVED seeing all the animals.  He really enjoyed the giraffes (just as much as he enjoyed them at the zoo), and also loved the elephants.  We were lucky to see the new baby elephant, Nellie, who was just over a month old when we visited.  The train ride was, of course, another highlight for Cohen.

Nana's Twins

Cohen and Maddie love to play together and continue to become great friends.  Here are a few pictures of "Nana's twins" together over the past few months.

Colouring together at the cottage

vacuuming together at the library

Reading books to each other

Running up and down the hall while screaming....Best. Game. Ever.

Pausing from the running to say cheese for the camera

Breaking free from the adults on the golf course.

Enjoying breakfast at the cottage.  Sitting on the stools like the big kids!

Lunch on the big Muskoka chairs!

Playing in the new play house

Enjoying a treat together.

Puppy Kisses

Cohen and Molly continue to become good friends.  Cohen is great at being gentle with her (most of the time).   One day Cohen gave Molly a belly rub just like Mommy and Daddy do.  He must have done a good job because Molly gave him a good lick on his face to say thank you.

Molly assuming the position.  I told Cohen she wanted him to rub her belly.

Cohen gave Molly a fantastic and very gentle rub.

You can't see his face very well in this picture, but he's squealing with delight from the puppy kisses.

So happy and proud of himself for "helping" with Molly.

Rock Pile

Who would have thought a pile of gravel would be so much fun for toddlers?  I came home to this at the cottage one day.  Daddy and Uncle Ian thought this was a fantastic activity for 2-year-olds.  They certainly had fun, but as you can see, it was a very messy activity, followed immediately by a bath and some serious laundry time. 

Queen of the rock pile!

Sliding down the gravel on their bums.

Running back up to do it again!

Look at those dirty bums!

King of the rock pile!

Showing off how dirty he is!

It may have been messy, but they sure did have fun!

Practicing

One weekend at the cottage Cohen decided he was afraid to go into the canoe, so he and Daddy had some "practice" time in the canoe on the dock.  Unfortunately it didn't convince him that going into the water was a good idea.  Oddly enough, he had forgotten his fear the next time Daddy wanted to take him out :)

Sprinkler Fun in the Back Yard

Cohen got a cool wiggly caterpillar sprinkler for his birthday from Auntie Lindsay.  He loved playing in it over the summer on hot days.

Enjoying the New Patio

We spent the end of the summer enjoying the new patio at the cottage, where we now have a proper space for a fire pit!  The bigger girls loved roasting marshmallows and cooking hot dogs over the fire.  I also insisted on introducing them (and apparently several of the adults) to banana boats**, which everyone LOVED! I love this beautiful new outdoor space.  Nothing like an outdoor fire on a summer evening!

**For those of you not privileged enough to have experienced banana boats, they are made by slicing lengthwise down the centre of an unpeeled banana, stuffing chocolate chips and marshmallows in it, then wrapping it up in aluminum foil and placing it the fire until it's warm and gooey (can also be done on the BBQ for those who want to try it tonight). Mmmmm!