Graham

A couple of weekends ago Julien went to Graham's birthday party. We had planned to bring Sebastian as well so he could play with William (they are in the same class together at BDLC) but he had a fever.

Julien had a blast. They played basketball and soccer and several other games. They also did a long jump competition. Julien was the last one to be disqualified in his age group. After jumping farther than a couple big kids, he finally lost to two older kids (I think one was 8 and the other 10). When he realized he had lost, he ran over to me and burst out crying. I tried to tell him that he was an amazing jumper for his age, but it was hard for him to understand. He is so competitive!

After the party Julien said "Mom, I think soccer is my game."

We recently found out that John Paul got a job in Ohio, so they will be moving this summer. We will miss them!

Animal soccer

Yesterday Julien was out in the yard playing soccer with his imaginary animal friends. This is what he reported:
J: Mom guess what? My team won!
A: That's great, congratulations!
J: I was team captain. But Wing (the cobra) played today for the first time and he is really good. He is such a good player that now he is team captain. But he won't play until next week. He's fast and can hit the ball so hard.
A: How does he hit the ball if he is a snake?
J: He uses his tail. Polly (the cockatoo) got a red card because she knocked me down. Polly slapped Wing and he had a mark on his hood. He was taken out on a snake stretcher. Stripe and Siberia (the tigers) didn't play because they were injured.

Good bye

Last weekend Nesrin came over to say her last good byes. We will miss her!

Eating peas and corn

Sebastian is getting to be a much better eater. He is taking a sippy cup of breast milk very well, so I am no longer giving milk to the twins. I miss seeing them! The last few weeks we have been battling illnesses, fevers, ear infections etc. It has been exhausting!

Getting Ready for Kindergarten

We went to an open house for Julien's kindergarten at University Elementary School. He is very excited. Also a bit nervous. He said "I'm a litle bit scared about Kindergarten, but everyone is a bit scared when they move to a new school."

During the open house Richard over heard this conversation:
A little girl and a little boy introduced themselves to Julien.
He responded, "I'm Julien"
"Julien?" They look puzzled as if they have never heard the name.
He explains, "It's Roman like Julius as in Julius Caesar. You can tell because they have the same...ummm...they sound the same. Julien, Julius."

He was trying to explain that they have the same root!

Standing

Sebastian loves to stand holding on to the edges of tables or chairs or anything else he can hang on to. He also enjoys typing on Julien's computer and playing with the mouse. He is a very active little boy!

Fencing

I forgot to post these photos earlier. During the recent visit Julien enjoyed fencing with his Grandad. Grandad was a real sport. And no one got injured.

Learns to blow a horn

This is the same green horn my sister and I used to love to play. Julien and Sebastian laughed and laughed when Sebastian first learned to blow the horn.

Grandad

Sebastian enjoyed being held by Grandad Rick. Grandad enjoyed it too.

Hanging out

On one of the nicest days we hung out on the deck and grilled pork chops. Julien was very busy playing soccer and running around the yard. Sebastian crawled around on the deck and drank his grandmum's water.

Swing

Touching Dandelions

Oliver Winery

Since the weather was beautiful, we went to the Oliver Winery for a wine tasting and a picnic. Julien fed the koi swimming in the small lake. He also found frog eggs (or at least I believe they were frog eggs!) on the edge of the lake.

Sebastian was excited to crawl in the grass.

Brown County State Park

We went for a hike in Brown County State Park. The spring flowers were lovely, although they have now probably all died of frost. There were lots of turtles sunning on downed trees.

French Lick

Richard's parents, Kathy and Rick, were in town this last week. On their first day in town we drove down to French Lick, Indiana to take a train ride. The train ride, although nice, was a little long (3 1/2 hours) and a bit surreal. At the half way point the train stops at a gravel lot in Cuzco Indiana, a very tiny town. It was announced in the train that we shouldn't even bother heading towards the general store because the proprietor locks it up as soon as the train heads in to town!

But we enjoyed the view of rural Indiana, Sebastian enjoyed being held and Julien enjoyed his ring pop.