ben's dad ('dede') spent just over two weeks with us. he was so helpful with the kids, and he and i kept quite busy while ben was working with lots of fun activities. we all miss him & are already planning our next visit!
dede's first morning: getting lots of love from the boys
playing 'doctor' with the kit from dede's flight (the chapstick is the medicine)
watching one of the many turkish movies dede brought in his suitcase
dede was happy to take the boys whenever i needed to get something done (the only rule was that i had to be quiet & stay out of sight - or else kaan would freak out). he kept them busy for me & one day, emre documented it all one camera!
bros, out to dinner
we decided to take a little road trip one of the weekends & ended up in philadelphia. we stayed right next to the reading terminal market - which is amazing. we ate breakfast there every day (incredible local coffee!) and will definitely be back. we chose philly because of the kids activities - so we headed to the 'please touch museum.' we were NOT disappointed - this place is awesome, with more than enough to keep emre busy for days. a total success! we're definitely going back once kaan's big enough to enjoy it with his brother.
operating a crane with daddy as dede supervises
driving us all on the city bus
probably emre's favorite part (along with the ambulance): somebody give this kid a job, because he could not get enough of the heavy labor.
shoveling coal
before heading home we hit the aquarium, where the coolest part (in my opinion) was the hippo theater. you could stand right next to them - pretty cool!
after all that excitement, it was not surprising that he crashed on the way home
back home & chilling with dede
adding to the excitement of dede's visit, emre has started pre-school! we found a small school that we absolutely love, conveniently close to our home. i love picking him up to find all the children playing outside.
movie night with dede
introducing dede to his favorite things at the discovery center
playing ambulance
giving dede a break!
we took a drive one afternoon to ithaca, where we met my mom at the science center. i'm not sure who had more fun - dede or emre? he loved putting his architectural expertise to use.
he was fascinated by the ball drop!
another favorite: building a dam
toward the end of his stay, we had a visit from fusun & fazil can, who came from boston to celebrate emre's birthday (a little early).
balkayas out to dinner
birthday party fun!
loving his cake (mostly just the frosting though)
still digging the trains
all partied out
