Where’s my pillow

Poor Cooper, this could not be confrontable.  I found him sleeping like this and I fist told Victoria to look at him, second I took a picture and third I finally moved him back into his bed.

Jelly Fish - Camping Part 3

This wasn’t the greatest end to a camping trip.  Before packing up, we all went to the beach for one last play in the water and sand castle building.  Cooper found a blue “bubble” and picked it up.  He brought it over to me to show me how it was sticking to his finger.  Then we noticed many, many more on the beach.  I told Cooper to put it down before I told him what it was.  They were blue jelly fish that could sting and told Cooper not to touch them.  Cooper, Ellie and their friend were very curious about them.  We made a swimming pool in the sand for the jellyfish so they could look at them without being to close.   We used shovels to bring the beached jelly fish to their pool.  Everything was going well until Cooper forgot to watch where he was walking and stepped on one (not anywhere by our jellyfish pool).  Poor Cooper, now he has another reason to not like the beach.  It took a while for him to calm down, good thing Victoria had packed some vinegar and the iPad.  Cooper stayed seated and relaxed while we packed up our camp site.

Waterfall – Camping part 2

With the weather not perfect for spending the day at the beach, we left camp with a short drive to a beautiful waterfall.  It took about 10 minutes walking along a stream to get to the waterfall.  This was Cooper and mummy’s first time seeing the waterfall.  Cooper spent his time racing sticks down the stream and throwing rocks. 

Camping

It was the perfect time of year to camp with some good friends.  You could lay in the tent and hear the waves crashing on the beach.  The kids seem to really enjoy camping and it take them no time to make the tent into their home.  Our tent was next to a small playground which was perfect to be able to watch Cooper while doing camping duties.  Plus, the beach and ocean were only over the sand dune.

Art Time

Who better to get art lessons from then Mummy!

Our First Hike

The kids were excited to go with some friends on a little bush walk.   We pack lots of snacks, water, sunscreen and first aid items.  They were all great, Cooper walked all the way out to the beach about 2K up and down hills with his trusty stick.  The girls all found special sticks to help them walk / hit things.  The beach was a great place to stop, cool our feet, and have a snack.  On the way back the girls led the whole time and Cooper and I were at the back.  He did ride on my shoulders most of the way back.

Showing Off at the Skate Park

Ellie, Cooper and I enjoying a morning out at the skate park.  We have found the best time to go to the skate park is in the morning before all the big kids come.  They all seem to respect the little kids but the park just gets crowded.  Cooper happily rides his balance bike trying to catch up to speedy Ellie.  Ellie is getting much braver, going much faster and also trying new obstacles.

Cat Challenge

Cooper and our cat Matilda have a strange relationship.  Most of the time they are scared of each other and sometimes they play together.  Cooper really wanted Matilda to play in her cat tunnel but she didn’t have any interest.  She was more interested in laying quietly in the sun.  Cooper wanted to try a cat treat and it being close to dinner time, I suggested her dinner instead.  Cooper set up the course, I closed the door so she couldn’t cheat and presto the Matilda Challenge had started.  It didn’t take her long to realize dinner was through the tunnel and Cooper was so excited, he was cheering as she came through and then laid down and watched her eat.  

Marble Track

Cooper absolutely loves this marble track that Aunt Cindy and family sent to us.  It took him a few days to figure out how all the pieces work together and now he is building his own tracks!  The second picture is taken by Cooper.

Melty Sand Man

It had been a few months since my parents left and Christmas past when the paper bag in my closet started to bother me.  It was taking up space and it was time to figure out what was in there.  Too my surprise, it was the funny Christmas project I had my parents bring out for me to give them.  With Christmas in the middle of the New Zealand summer, I thought this modelling sand snowman would be a fun project.  It was, the kids had a blast making many different types of snowman.  Cleaning up the sand mess, that’s another story.

Water Fun with Friends

It was hot day and Ellie had a friend over.  The kids choose to cool off by running, sipping, chasing, jumping over and squirting water on each other. Even Cooper was brave enough to get his head and hair wet.

All Dressed Up

Ellie and a very good friend were putting on a musical show for us staring an amazing twirling dancer, Cooper!

Ellie Swimming

Cooper is a very good sport when it comes to Ellie’s swimming.  For the longest time Cooper has watched Ellie swim and now he watches twice a week.  His lessons are now on the same day but earlier so he still sits through both lessons.  Sometimes he watches the tv with other kids and other times he plays games on my phone.  We also started bringing Legos to practice our counting and addiction.

Train Ride

Victoria surprised all of us with a short train ride while we were downtown.   Ellie and Cooper were very excited.  They couldn’t stop talking about the train ride, the underground train station and the fact that I put our tickets in Cooper’s shirt pocket and then lost them.  Good thing I still had the receipt!

Sprinkler

It was a hot day and Cooper liked the idea of playing in and with the sprinkler.  He isn’t too sure about getting his head wet yet, at least he is playing in the water.

Cooper Care

Ellie prepared Cooper a very confrontable bed along with his favorite toys for a nice afternoon rest.  Cooper simple loves getting attention from his sister.

Christmas Day

After a very busy morning of waking Mummy and Daddy as early as possible to opening presents and family Skype calls, the afternoon is always more relaxed.  Cooper decided to use the afternoon to tease the girls while they were swimming and eat all the yummy food he could!

Pez

Cooper was very excited to received his own Pez dispenser. He worked hard to fill it and didn’t want anyone to help him.  I do think that a few went in his mouth in the process.

Launching the Helicopter

Cooper’s friend has this exciting Hot Wheel set that launches a helicopter as the car drives through the tower and down the ramp.  Cooper played with it for a long time and showed everyone how he could make the helicopter take off. 

Feeding A Fish

There is one gold fish in this little pond, called Goldie.  When summer comes around, Goldie comes out of hiding and Cooper like to try to find her hiding among the plants.  This day after finding her, Cooper had the chance to feed her.

Baking with Grandma

The kids know when Grandma is around, there will always be a yummy baking project to help with!  They have learned the best part about baking is taste testing the ingredients before they are mixed in and after as long as the eggs haven’t been added.

Picture

After trying a few spots for a Grandparent and Grandkid photo, this one of them walking down the beach came out perfect!

A Few Quiet Minutes

These days, Cooper rarely slows down.  It was amazing to see him just hanging out with Grandma.

Showing Off

Ellie and Cooper were showing Grandma and Granddad how high they can swing.  This currently is Cooper’s favourite swing and he never wants to get out of it!  Ellie is now confident standing up and swinging it very high, too high for me to be comfortable.

Mummy Time

Cooper and Mummy are enjoying some fun floor time reading “Going on a Bear Hunt”.

West Coast Beach, Part 2 – Black sand

After a 15-minute hike from the waterfall to the incredible black sand beach, Ellie started running up this huge sand dune.  Cooper then noticed Ellie and started after her.  He only made it up half way before he started to slide down.  Ellie wanted to slide down from the tippy top!

West Coast Beach, Part 1 – Waterfall

After eating snacks and a 45-minute drive, we arrived at KareKare beach.  Our first activity was a short walk to a waterfall.  The weather was a little too cool for a swim at the base of the falls but that didn’t stop us from getting a little wet and Cooper to throw some rocks.  

Throwing Partner

For Cooper; throwing rocks, shells and sticks is the best part of any day. And to make it even better Granddad is collecting rocks for him to throw!