It's been a sad today today. I found out this morning that my Great-Uncle J.P died this week. His funeral was this afternoon. He was 82.

I also found out that Diana's sister, who has been battling breast cancer for several years (many of you may remember that I walked a breast cancer walk in her honor a few years ago), is in the process of losing that battle and has been told she has a few, final days. Diana is on her way to be with her sister.

Finally, we spent a day bidding farewell to Kim and Zoe. Troy is getting out of the Air Force and they are heading back to the United States to find their fortunes there. They've been good friends and will be sorely missed. Katy and Zoe have always squealed with delight when they've caught sight of each other and Kim has been a great friend to me. She was my "partner in crime" in exploring Europe and together we mustered the courage to go a lot of places that I probably never would have taken Katy alone. We decided to "celebrate" their last day in Germany with a play date. I didn't get a picture of it, but Katy started off the visit by giving Zoe a HUGE hug. I've never seen her do that to anyone before, so I know that she knows that Zoe is really her friend. Unfortunately, toddler hugs aren't always graceful and Katy ended up pinching Zoe by the neck and making her cry, but the attempt was there.

Kim, Zoe and Zach.



Gregory and Aly (Katy's twin - they were born on the same day and they look remarkably similar).



Here are the two "twins." I actually couldn't get a picture where they looked similar, so you'll just have to humor me. Katy's still not feeling well and doesn't look completely well.



Hurricane Zoe and Gregory hit the kitchen.



Katy actually ended up sleeping a lot of the play date (I wasn't about to stop that, babies with pneumonia get to do whatever they want - within reason) but when she got up Zoe was still here to play with. Clapping games are a favorite.









Kim brought in Zoe's car seat to wash the cover and Katy and Zoe both wanted to be in it at the same time.



Katy and Zoe playing on the couch. You'll have to excuse the abundance of pictures but this was my last chance to catch these two together.









Katy and Zoe in the laundry basket together.

















After everyone went home it was cleanup time. Ryan decided to teach Katy how to ride a broom like a horse. She thought it was hysterical!







We thought the smaller broom might be better but the game was more fun with the big one.... Does this look like a child with pneumonia? I think the antibiotics are finally kicking in.

On Saturday morning we packed up the car and headed out to Dijon, France. I'm sure you realize that Dijon is famous for its.... gingerbread. Ok, so you can also insert your own mustard joke here too. Actually, Dijon was a large part of the French spice trade, which helps explain both.

We do have to disclose that our trip was cut short. On Saturday morning Katy woke up with a slight fever. We debated for a while but decided that since we were driving and would only be 4 hours from home it would be ok. We ended up checking out of the hotel on Sunday morning (a day earlier than planned) and heading back home. We took Katy to the Emergency Room on Sunday evening (our home away from home, it seems). We thought that she possibly had another ear infection. By the time we got there her fever was 104.2 and we never saw the inside of the waiting room. Her oxygen levels were a little low so we were whisked into a room and given oxygen to hold near her (she wouldn't allow the mask to be placed over her face). Her ears were fine but a chest x-ray and two nebulizer treatments later we were told that Katy had pneumonia. So, we're enjoying our Memorial Day in front of the television while guzzling fever reducers and antibiotics. In case anyone is wondering, Elmo is the greatest character in the world!

So, back to the actual part of the trip we did get in. Dijon has its own Notre Dame. Here's what I could get in the frame.

There were so many beautiful timbered buildings.



We found a nice pedestrian courtyard and let Katy chase the birds (which she calls "gat" - we figured out that all animals, dogs, cats and birds are now "gat.")







More views of the courtyard.



There was another pretty side courtyard with an art museum (we didn't make it into the museum with Katy along)






Here's another pretty church.



A lot of the buildings here had these colorful roofs.





There were so many different types of architecture here. It was a neat mix but hard to take it all in.





This church had that pretty roof too.















The church pictured above had a nice park to the side. There were a lot of kids playing so we decided to add to the mix.

















Ryan is trying to entice Katy to chase pigeons.





Could our trip be complete without us encouraging Katy to play in an ancient sarcophagus?





The hotel had a pool so we had to give it a try. This is the part where people rinse off before heading back into the hotel but it was just Katy-sized.









The big pool was fun too, especially with a waterfall, but it was a bit too big and cold.



Bye-bye swimming pool!



We don't want anyone to worry. Katy's doing just fine. She doesn't feel good but we caught everything pretty early so she's home and playing. I'm sure we'll lay low for a few days and be all better. Ryan and I are both relieved that this is happening before we get on a flight to the US instead of on the way or once we get there....