Not all Fun and Games

The Mommy and Daddy never realized quite how exhausting their offspring obviously are. Looking through the photos, a certain pattern seemed to emerge. The family visit included a number of lovely excursions and activities - all followed invariably by one particular, recurring scene. For instance, there was a beautiful boat ride...

 ...followed by a communal nap.

 There were delicious meals in beautiful restaurants...

 ...followed by a communal nap.

 There were dangerous dinosaurs and wild creatures...

 ...followed by a communal nap.

The Mommy and Daddy are fully sympathetic, by the way...

Family

Anneke and Lautje hugely enjoyed the recent visit of the Texas family, and they especially enjoyed meeting Uncle James - though Anneke initially was very confused why this Uncle James looked nothing at all like the Uncle James she had met in Texas, who used to try and steal her shoes! However, Uncle James had wisely anticipated this difficulty and had planned ahead... there is nothing like a UT-colored Mickey Mouse to win a little girl's heart!

 Lautje had a rather different reaction. Upon seeing Uncle James, he immediately concluded that his experience with Germany was obviously limited, and so took it upon himself to educate him on the ways of life in Germany. Starting with a VERY detailed explanation of the German tram system in general, before  proceeding to a description of color, number and destination of every individual trams passing the kitchen window in particular...

And since Uncle James proved such an avid (and quiet!) learner, something Lautje was not used to from his only other pupil ever (namely, Anneke), he then decided to cover a variety of other fields. Such as, for instance, the money transaction system in Germany and the way people actually carry cash money around in their wallets...

Had the visit lasted but a few days longer, he surely would have moved on to his other favorite topics - "How to Create Intricate Infrastructures using Lego Blocks and Wooden rails", and  "The Art of Procrastinating when Brushing Teeth."