Ivo & Burl Birthday Bash Bonanza!

Ivo and Burl on the verge of their big day. Yes, the cereal spilled. I think growing so fast might be messing with Ivo's coordination. We left the house about 10am. Ryan still feels crappy but has some meds and drove us to the closest thing we have to a "hometown" - Chung Hua, on the He Mei border!

We only have a few pics from Gwen's swimming party, cuz, water and camera. Much fun. As often is the case, Ivo took a long time to warm up - he didn't really go super nuts but definitely had fun. The kids closest to him in age are Olivia (03/04), Josie (07/04) and Dylan (03/05). I think if he'd had more time or a little more familiarity with the place, he'd have been more comfortable. Both Ivo and Burl loved the boat.

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We got home about 2pm and napped til 3:30 when the boys and I beat feet to Zoe's 2nd bday party. This crowd was much more Ivo's age, plus beautiful baby Emily just 2 months old! Of Olivia's brother, Ivo said "I like dat guy. Dat guy ok." Ivo ate his weight in a combination of gummy and sour gummy candies. He'd never seen them before - he couldn't control himself. He loved playing with the kids - and - skipping over to the treats table for more sugar.

And even more good news on the nursery school front. Isabel and Olivia had recommended us to the school their kids go to cuz it accepts part-time students, is play- not lesson-based, has an on-site nurse, takes babies, and it is overall a nice place owned and run by good folks. So now, rumor has it that there are gonna be as many as 10 foreign kids at the school. This is great! This is unheard of and wonderful! While still a minority, Ivo's not only not gonna be the only one, he'll almost blend! It's all well and good to be stand out in a crowd (more so if that's what yr going for) but it can wear on a guy... Also this school is SMALL, so 10 foreign kids might comprise a quarter to a third of attendees.

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On our way home we passed one of the newest ad-sound trucks - it's got video going on all sides but the front!