Foto (Photo) Friday is my show and tell of pictures from the last week, but this week I decided to change it up a little.  I do have a ton of pictures I could show from this past week, but am going to do a vacation recap of the week at my brother’s cottage.  The pictures are just too cute not to show.

Day 1

• We got up to the cottage late on Tuesday around 4 pm.  S had to get in his swim trunks right away so he could go play on the beach.  S pretended he was a beached whale and just flopped there in the sand and water.
• S had to bring his huge dump truck with him so he could load it up with sand and move the sand all over.  He was definitely the last kid on the beach playing all by himself.  He could have cared less that he was by himself.

Day 2

• It was pretty chilly on Wednesday and we did not venture down to the lake until about 1 pm and at that time it was only 65° outside, with a little sun.  So B and S went for a canoe ride until it got a little warmer.  S loved going on the canoe and could have spent all day out in the canoe.
• S was the only kid who got in the water and swam on Wednesday.  (My niece and nephew did but only when they fell off the tube.)  He was so happy to swim and pretended he was a dog playing fetch and I had to keep throwing a ball out for him to go and get.

• This was the day I saw the snake down in the water and took off for the cottage.  Since I didn’t want to go back down to the beach, S came up and played with me while we made dinner.  He loves to play with balloons and try to keep them in the air.  We probably played with that balloon for over an hour just that day.
• We went on a “slow boat” (that is what S calls the pontoon boat) ride after dinner.  I think the dogs loved it just as much as S did.  They were all staring out the front of the boat just watching everything.

Day 3

• I just couldn’t go back down on the beach because of seeing the snake yesterday so B went down and played with S making sand castles and moving sand around while I sat on the deck.
• Grandma finally broke down and went down on the beach to play with S.  Don’t you know when she went down there; a snake swam right in front of S when he was in the water.  I have to give grandma props because she pulled S out of the water and “saved” him before she freaked out and ran up on the deck with S.

• B was our savior and followed the snake until he finally caught it.  He wanted to show it to S, so that he would not be afraid of the snake.  S was using his bubble fan blowing bubbles on the snake.  He would not touch it but did go up to look at it.
• S went tubing for the first time ever.  We had always said he could go when he was able to swim by himself in the water (with a life jacket).  This year S was ready, and loved riding on the tube with S and me.  It was a true family affair.

• S got a little brave after a while and wanted to show Uncle J that he was not scared and wanted Uncle J to go faster.
• We took the pontoon boat over to a restaurant across the lake and S loved the idea of us all taking the boat to go and eat.  (He said just like we do on Dada’s boat.  Smart kid!)

• B made dinner for S and then forgot it, so this is the first time that S has really eaten food from a restaurant.  He has never had fast food and this is as close as I would like him to get anytime soon.  He loved the chicken tenders, but was not a fan of the fries (okay by me) and only ate like 5 of them.  I think he really loved the ketchup more than anything else.
• Later Papa was playing Euchre and S wanted to sit and play with him.  I thought it was funny when Papa called hearts and S said, “You got lots of that Papa.”  Well so much for everyone not knowing what was in Papa’s hand.

Day 4

• On the last morning, I just did not want to get in my swimsuit to go tubing with S, so my sweet niece said she would go with B and protect S.  I went on the boat and took pictures and video of them tubing.  Don’t you know they were tubing and saw a snake swimming right next to them in the water.  S did not see it, good thing!
• S loves to fish and was so cute when he sat down because the fish were not waiting and he said he would sit and wait for the fish to come.  Derby loves to fish and always tries to bite the fish when they are on the hook, in the water, or anywhere.  Derby has bit a few and killed them in her days, but not by our choice.

• S got his first fish of the day and Derby almost jumped in after the fish as S was reeling it in.
• S just stood there patiently waiting for more fish.  The fish practically jump on the hook at my brother’s.  Today, however, they were slow to eat the worms.  B was busy packing the truck so I had to put the meal worms on the hook and take the fish off the hook.  I had to put gloves on before I would touch the worm or the fish. UGH!

• We made a fish truck bed bowl, and put all the fish in the back of the truck we caught until the end when we dumped it out.  PJ was interested in what was in the back of the truck moving around, but got bored easily.
• Once Derby saw them PJ showed a little more interest.  Derby loves to watch the fish and stick her head in the water to try and catch them.  It is so much fun to watch.
• PJ got bored and went to lie down, but Derby sat there the entire time watching the fish.  The only time she went away from the truck was when S caught a fish to try and get the fish he had on the hook.

Overall, we had a great time up at the cottage.  The weather could have been a little warmer, actually a lot warmer.  Since I had seen the snake in the water I was so happy then that it was not hot outside.  I never felt like I needed to jump in the water to cool off and probably would not have even if I was on fire.  The nights were so comfortable to sleep in.  The cottage cooled down every night which created great sleeping weather.  S just loved being up at the cottage and I cannot wait to take him this weekend back to the cottage my grandparents built just so he can see it again.  We aren’t staying at the cottage or anything just stopping by to look at it and maybe put our feet in the water on the beach.