trip to the farm

Yesterday the boys and I drove about a half hour outside of Nampula to the farm of some friends from Zimbabwe. We met up with friends (also with toddlers and pre-schoolers) for a "sports day." The boys had fun throwing balls around, jumping on a trampoline, and figuring out the obstacle course. Cohen, however, was most interested in the horses. He is typically a cautious boy and judging by the way he was initially hesitant to join in the fun with the other sports, I was so surprised by his enthusiasm for the horses. But he absolutely loved it!

It was so fun to be out of the city for a few hours--and to be in the "country" (or Africa's version of it) and to be near animals again. And it was especially fun to watch Cohen enjoy horses the way he did.

Neighbor's yard: As seen from our Veranda

One of the neat things about our apartment is that it has breezy veranda that extends out from our living room. The boys love it out there and Christian is particularly entertained with the view we have of our neighbors and their yard.



And when I say "entertained," I mean he literally pulls up a chair and sits there watching all that is happening in their yard! Because our neighbor's yard is filled with:

Ducks and chickens and roosters and Guinea hens and...

turkeys! I think they fascinate him so much because at night he is so freaked out by them. They all make such a ruccous at night (especially when they get in fights with dogs) and since Cohen's and Christian's bedroom window opens up right into the neighbor's yard, they get an earful. Usually the first thing Christian does when we walk into his room in the morning is point toward the window animatedly trying to sound out "turkey" and "duck" and "chick chick" and "doggy."

So naturally he finds it interesting to actually watch these animals who make all the noise outside his window all day and night.