Tuesday, September 18
We started the day by heading over to my grandfather's flat and posing for some photos.
Theo enjoyed the piano.
After a good pillow fight -- mostly throwing the pillows -- we headed out to the farm again.
Vivian's outfit coordinated really well with the paint on the side of the hut/house/cabana.
Once again, Theo enjoyed collecting apples.
In the afternoon we headed over to meet some more relatives. They ended up giving Theo a train (there's a four-year old granddaughter who no longer played with it).
Wednesday, September 19
I took Theo to a playground near our rented flat in the morning. Because the sandbox was fenced in, I managed to convince him adults weren't allowed inside the fence.
Since we had the morning to ourselves, we went to a children's superstore. We bought a lot of books and a couple of Polish-speaking toys, and when we coaxed Theo out of the upper-level toy store, we went downstairs to what Sarah described as a stroller Mecca, with more strollers in a single store than you could find anywhere in the US.
In the afternoon we went back to the farm yet again, where we proceeded to collect all of the walnuts off the tree. Every single one. Theo helped for a long time with the stick, and for a few lower-hanging nuts he picked them off by hand (sometimes we picked him up to help him reach). He took most of them and put them in the bottom of the stroller, often transporting them in groups of 2-3 in a tin cup. We had only perhaps a quarter left to pick up off the ground ourselves.
A post-dinner shot of Vivian and her great-grandfather.
Theo playing with his newly acquired train just before bedtime. In case it isn't obvious, he's forming a bridge for the train to pass underneath.
Thursday, September 20
We took Theo to the train station in Lublin to see the trains, and hopefully ride one. The schedules didn't work out for a short out-and-back jaunt, so we ended up not riding one (believing -- mistakenly as it would turn out -- that we'd definitely take a train ride back in Germany to get from Kassel to Frankfurt, but that's for a later time.)
There was even a huge locomotive from the 1800s on display. Surprisingly, Theo had very little interest in it. A sign said "entry into the locomotive at your own risk" but sadly the doors seemed welded shut.
Traditionally in Poland the main meal (technically lunch) always starts with soup. Theo doesn't eat a lot of soup at home (because it's messy) but he did surprisingly well with it.
After dinner Theo got swung around in a bedsheet, while Vivian was carefully and gently held.
Friday, September 21
We started the day off by heading to the Lublin castle with my aunt.
While most of the castle is a museum which likely holds little interest for Theo, the watchtower was recently opened to visitors so we paid the entrance fee and headed up. Theo loved the stairs, and he loved running in circles on top.
The view from the top of the tower was incredible.
We also spent some time walking around the old town.
My other aunt drove down from Warsaw just before naptime, and much to Theo's delight, she brought her dog Rusty with her.
Asia came over as well, and we took a group photo. (Theo is missing as he was napping.)
Saturday, September 22
Theo wanted Vivian to lay on him while he laid on her changing mat.
Theo shows off his soup-eating skills.
My mom arrived in Poland for her own trip on Friday, so we went out on a bus ride to the Plac Litewski again, this time armed with stale bread to feed some pigeons.
Theo loved it when I "threw" pigeons. I would allow them to land on my arm, then wave them off. (He's signing for "more" in this photo.)
Theo had a great time crawling through this piece of art.
Riding the bus back to the flat.
Sunday, September 23
Vivian sits with her great grandfather.
New toys brought by visitors from Warsaw!
Art on Ola's desk.
Group photo.
I honestly don't know how we started this, but someone wanted to make Theo a paper airplane, but didn't really know how. So the adults ended up making three airplanes (each one a successive attempt to fly better). Theo liked throwing the planes, but realized if he threw them from a higher starting point, they would fly further, so he started rounding up all three airplanes, somehow got Ola to keeping picking him up, and throwing them.
We tried to take a ladies portrait, but Vivian didn't care much for the idea.
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