Cooper's Summer Vacation

In August, Cooper took a summer vacation to Asheville, North Carolina. 


Cooper swam A LOT during the trip! The house we rented was on a lake and had an indoor pool, so Cooper spent most of his vacation wet. First, in the lake.

And in the indoor pool:

Then Cooper hiked to the top of the Chimney Rock State Park (he would have reached the top twice as fast if Jeff and I weren't with him!) -- elevation 2280 feet.

View of the top from the parking lot.

Cooper at the top of Chimney Rock!

Cooper and Jeff at the top of Chimney Rock.

Taking a break at the top of Chimney Rock.

At Chimney Rock State Park, we also hiked to the waterfall.

Taking a break with the waterfall in the background.

Cooper and Jeff set out to reach the bottom of the waterfall.

Almost there.

Playing in the bottom of the waterfall.

Playing in the waterfall.

Posing at the bottom of the waterfall.

Thanks to Grandma Vogel, Cooper had a new towel to dry off with after all the swimming he did!  SuperCooper!

And then after all the swimming and hiking, Cooper was worn out!

Cooper passed out on the couch.

Alan relaxing with Wee, Smooch and Cooper.

...except when there was food involved. (Notice who the well-behaved pup is.)

  

Summer vacation? Did you say summer vacation? Cooper's at the door ready to go again!

Cooper's Road Trip to Maryland

After my grandmother passed away last week, Cooper was treated to an impromptu road trip to Maryland for the funeral. For him, the trip was filled with fun times -- except for the 24+ hours he spent in the car.

Cooper loves visiting my parents! He gets homemade treats and there's always someone around ready to walk him -- what's not to love?


On Friday, my brother took Jeff, Cooper and me to Gilbert Run Park. We walked the two-mile hiking trail and Cooper swam a little bit in the 60-acre freshwater lake. We also tried to get Cooper to fetch a ball at the park, but he's definitely not the retriever type (more on that later). Here is a photo of Brian and Cooper relaxing after the long day.

On Saturday, Cooper spent the day with my aunt Lisa, uncle Alan, cousin Jennifer, and their springers, Smooch and Wee. Here are a couple great pictures of Cooper that Alan took.

Not only did Alan groom Cooper, but we also took all the pups swimming! Here's a video of Cooper following Smooch around the pond.

We learned that Cooper would not retrieve the water dummy, but he would retrieve any stick we threw in the water! Here are some photos from our swimming adventure.

Lisa and Jennifer

Alan and Jennifer with Wee

Smooch

Cooper with a stick

Jeff throwing a stick for Cooper

Cooper was sad to leave Maryland, but he gets to see everyone again next month. And we'll be vacationing in a cabin on a lake, so I guess we'll need to stock up on big sticks for Cooper!