"Saucy"

Just outside our camper was a ride on horse. Kees called it "Saucy." He was enjoying his ride with lollipop in hand.

Biking

Kees is riding his bike now! He has been practicing in the backyard at our house. When we were camping he was able to try out his bike skills on the open bike path...he loved it! He thought it was really great to bike along side Papa. You can see in the picture that Kees' beloved "dog" went along for a ride on the bike.

Easter Break

We are back home from our Easter break trip. We had a fun time at a family camping site. They had organized activities for the kids so that was a lot of fun for Kees. The weather was so wonderful! We even got to BBQ on Easter day because it was so warm! Here is Kees painting his Easter egg. It is hard to find white eggs here in Holland...that is why Kees is painting a brown egg! :)
Taking his painting seriously...
Here is Steve and Kees doing crafts at one of the organized events.
Kees having a picture taken with the Easter bunny. Kees called him, "Dog." :)
Kees not sure what to be looking for. They hid the eggs at the playground so he only wanted to go on the slide. He is the one in the blue hat. Once he saw one of the eggs he got a little more interest in looking for one.
Mama and Kees doing a egg craft.
Love the egg trees that they have here. This one was really beautiful. They even added a chicken.

Keeping Cool

Kees discovering the joy of a cool popsicle on a hot day. The weather has been so nice here. We survived winter! Kees has been going outside at 8 in the morning because it has been so nice. Our living room gets that wonderful warm morning sunshine! Kees has been getting over pink eye and now mommy has it...bummer. I'm looking forward to no more winter colds and sickness!
Just hanging out at the sandbox.

Spring!

Tulips growing along the canal by our house. Mooi!

Teapot

Today when I picked Kees up from school he was holding a special gift he had made for me. He had colored a teapot then filled it with tea bags. It made my heart melt and my eyes tear up! This was the first piece of art that Kees has ever made at school and just for his mommy. I felt overwhelmingly blessed today to be a mom! Love you baby Kees!

Boat Cafe

Kees had preschool today so Steve and I went to our favorite cafe. It was a beautiful sunny day so we ate on the boat outside the restaurant.

My sandwich with strawberries...lekker!
View from our table on the boat.
View from the boat.

Apenheul! (Monkey Zoo!)

We have been waiting for nice weather to take Kees to see the monkeys at Apenheul. When I was a kid I had a video about Holland and the Apenheul Zoo was on the video. Steve took me to Apenheul for my birthday our first year in Holland. We also had a great time taking our nephews Darren and Justin. It is pretty amazing but most of the monkeys run free in the park! This morning on the way to the zoo Kees said, "monkeys today" about 100 times! He was excited!
Kees riding on the Gorilla. The Gorillas are one of the monkeys that are not roaming free... :)
Here is one of the free roaming ones! They will get into your pockets, bags, and take anything they can get their little hands on. They make you put your belongings into a monkey proof bag before entering the zoo.
Kees wasn't sure about this monkey trying to grab his shirt!
Hmmm...Kees wondering if he should try to touch it.
We had a great day! On the way home Kees cuddled with his stuffed animal monkey he got from the gift shop.

Tired?

Tonight I went into Kees' room to turn his music off after he had gone to sleep. To my surprise there was a little face looking out at me from the bed smiling. Kees looked at me and said, "Kees not tired." I couldn't help but laugh and pick him up out of bed. He had fun getting to stay up later tonight. I think he was still excited from his day at school!

Shooting

This Saturday there was a shooting in Alphen aan de Rijn. It is a place that is very close to where we are living. Saturday morning I went to our local grocery store called C-1000 and then headed home to Steve and Kees. Shortly after I arrived home we heard about the shooting that had happened at the shopping center and C-1000 in Alphen aan de Rijn. I was brought to tears when I started to hear about the lives that were lost in the shooting. I couldn't help to think of all the times Kees and I go shopping at a similar shopping center and couldn't even imagine what it would be like to have to go through this. This shooting has really shaken me up. It makes me want to take extra time to stop and tell Steve and Kees how much I love them everyday. My prayers are with the families that have lost those precious to them.

Preschool!

Tuesday was Kees' first day of preschool! He goes one day a week for 4 hours. Kees is very social and one active little guy so we decided he was ready. It is also good for his Dutch learning. Here we are headed to school on the bike.
One excited little boy! He jumped right in and started playing. They have play time, singing, prayer and snack. It is really great that it is a Christian school and they teach them about the Bible. Each child brings a piece of fruit and then they cut them all up and everyone shares for snack time.
Kees liked seeing his name tag and very own place to hang up his backpack.
Here is Kees giving Papa a hug goodbye. Steve and I went out to coffee after and then went back to our house. It was strange to be at the house without our little guy. It is hard to believe that my baby is now going to school!

Date Night!

Last Friday night Steve and I were able to go on a date night! Kees goes to bed at 6pm so two student gals from our bible study group came over to watch over little Kees after he went to bed.
We went to a Easter concert in the city of Gouda. Michael Card was playing at the church in the center of the city. The city is know for the cheese so it was funny to us that they served cheese at the concert...and stroopwafels. Gouda is where stroopwafels were first made.
Just Beautiful!
The perfect place to see a Easter concert!
Steve and Michael Card.