15 To Sebastian - May 2011

Dear Sebastian,

Sometimes when we are going along a river in our boat Joyeux, we come to a waterfall!

 Oh no!

 How will we get up, we ask ourselves. Joyeux can’t climb ladders.

So we go to the ladder and Jojo climbs up. We are in a special room on the river called a lock. French people call a lock and ecluse, can you say that? It sounds a bit like “ee-cloose”. Jojo is very brave and very careful when she is climbing. She holds on to a rope to keep us still, then starts to close a really big gate. Bigger than Daddy’s garage door even.

When the gate to the ecluse is closed, the water starts to fill up the ecluse, and we go for a ride.

UP and UP we go!

Then, when we are at the top, Jojo comes back onto the boat and we wait for the big gate to open.

Perhaps if the duck flies away it will open sooner!

Now we are at the very top, and the gate is open, and the waterfall is behind us.

Off we go to explore France.

We are waving to you.

Give yourself a big hug from us, and don’t forget to blow bubbles on Elliott’s tummy!

Love Papa and Jojo

14 - To Sebastian - May 2011

Dear Sebastian,  

Did you know it is spring time here in France?  Spring time is when all the flowers come out to play with the butterflies, and make all of the countryside beautiful.

There are all kinds of flowers here, and there is one in every colour you can think of.

Jojo likes to pick them and bring them back to our boat Joyeux.

Sometimes we have so many Papa thinks it is a flower shop.

Inside every flower is a little ball of yellow powder called pollen.  Perhaps Mummy will show you some pollen in a flower in your garden.

There are so many flowers here, and so much pollen, that it all falls out of the sky like dust.

There is so much on Joyeaux that sometimes when we get up it looks yellow not blue.

All the pollen makes Papa sneeze, great big scary noisy sneezes.

AA 

AAAA

AAAAAAAA

CHOO!

But all the honey bees really love the springtime.  They collect as much pollen as they can on their legs, and take it home to feed their children.

I wonder if it makes them happy.

Watching all the flowers and the bees makes US very happy.

Give yourself a big hig from us, and blow bubbles on Elliott’s tummy!

Love Papa and Jojo