The first visitors from Holland have arrived. Lisette, Ronen and Danielle are in the Rocky Mountains at the moment. Oma is here as well and spends lots of time with her two grand children.
Oma and Mari
Danielle and Alex were instant friends!
TV appearance
One of the volunteers at work was showcased in a tv show on Shaw. I got interviewed as well. I like the part about Dave, the part with me is too boring!
Tofino Trails
The last couple of months I haven’t just been busy with Alex, together with Mike I worked on a new hiking website: Tofino Trails.
We went to Tofino and spent two days hiking the trails equipped with gps and camera. All the photos are mine!
Most of the Dutch people that have come to visit me have been there and know how beautiful it is.
Also on facebook: Facebook
It rained a lot, but that happens with rain forest. Alex had a cover for the rain that made him look like an astronaut.
$100,000 for Wildlife Rescue?
Pepsi is sponsoring charities and the Wildlife Rescue Association of BC (WRA) is in the running to win $100,000 to build a new digital radiology suite for injured wildlife. Vote every day: www.refresheverything.ca/wildliferescue
I love Halloween!
Halloween was a lot of fun!
We carved our pumpkin yesterday. It wasn’t as bad as I thought and I’m very proud of the result.
We toasted the seeds as well. They’re good, but a lot of work to eat.
We went to a birthday brunch this morning, nothing to do with Halloween, but I wanted to mention it anyway. We put Alex in his Halloween costume… what? Costume? Yes, we had a costume after all. Someone gave me a Winnie the Pooh costume at my baby shower last year and it fits. It looked very cute too!
Alex liked the pumpkin too!
Leaves are a lot of fun too!
We went to the mall where kids could go for trick or treat at the stores. I was embarrassed to go with a baby that can’t eat candy, but Mike thought that was nonsense. We walked around and went for candy here and there. I enjoyed seeing all the kids running around in their costumes. Some were very original and cute!
We put the pumpkin outside with a candle and we waited.
It took awhile, but we had 86 children come by! At the end we were worried we didn’t have enough candy, but we had enough for everybody (and some for us).
Halloween
October 31st is Halloween, a big deal here in North America. Now that I have a child of my own it’s about time to get into this holiday, it’s a fun tradition for kids I think. Last weekend we went to a Pumpkin Patch. Lots of farm animals to see and pet and we picked out our own pumpkin, very fun!
Let’s have a look at the animals.
What else is here to see?
Alex thought the tractors on the farm were way cooler than the animals, oh dear, it’s a boy already!
Mike with our very own pumpkin!
After carving the pumpkin and getting lots of candy we are almost ready for Halloween, although some people don’t seem to think so. The last couple of weeks I’m having this conversation with different people:
- What’s Alex going to be for Halloween?
- me: uuuhhhh, he’s not even a year old, he can’t walk yet, he can’t have candy yet, why would I dress him up?
- Because it’s fun and they have a lot of cute costumes for babies!
- me: I think those costumes are very sad and not cute (see next picture)
- But you have to dress him up and go trick or treating!
- me: But he can’t have the candy.
- You can eat the candy!
- me: isn’t that embarrassing? Everybody will know that I’m going to eat the candy!
- Who cares?
- me: Besides, he won’t remember anyway.
- There will be pictures, and if there aren’t any he’ll ask questions later and you’ll have to explain that you didn’t celebrate his first halloween properly.
- me: sigh
I don’t find this cute, but very sad (as well as the photography by Anne Geddes).
Apparently I’m the only one in Canada with this opinion so I’ll let you know what we’re doing. I am looking forward to getting all the kids at our door. In our old apartment we had nobody, but now we are in a kid-friendly neighbourhood so it could get busy.
Some people decorate their house with spiders, ghosts, skeletons etc. Just like Christmas some people take this very seriously.
At the top of the Mount Seymour Trail, Alex came along in the backpack.
At home he loves to play in his ‘play castle’
Looking back at our trip to Holland, we had a great time!
Barbeque at Richard & Wendy:
Wendy in the kitchen
Richard outside
Alex is being entertained by Janneke
Everybody is enjoying the day
Alex and Danielle, is this chemistry?
Mike on baby-duty
Elton took us to the flower auction in Aalsmeer where he works
Mike and Elton
The amount of flowers passing through is unbelievable
Chatting with my old ballet friends:
Linda, Esther, Marleen and Patricia (we are all mothers now!!!)
A day with Opa Rob first to the Canadian cemetary in Holten:
It’s always impressive when you read the personal wordt on the stones.
It was special to Mike to see all the Canadian names, perhaps a distant relative?
We had time for a castle too:
Linda, Rob and Alex
Alex loved all the water fountains in Rob and Linda’s garden:
Alex went in the swing, Mike and I went on a bike ride:
The beach at Zandvoort
The fish cart drives on the beach
Back in the garden: Rob with Jana, Mike with Alex
All the kids together
Alex is making friends with Jimi
A visit of Claire and WingF:
How do you hold a baby?
Linda, Claire, Alex and WingF
Ajax – Chelsea (Soccer) at the Arena:
A music festival in Den Haag (The Hague):
Alex loves his punk bands, but always uses hearing protection
Claire, Alex and Linda
Family Barbeque at Anita & Lex
Alex with Sadie and Elton
Everybody around the table
With Oma
Good food at De Radijs, just opened Amsterdam:
Good food with wine of beer
A day in Amsterdam with Claire and Christiaan
Claire’s broken knee ‘came in handy’, Alex could ride with her (poor Christiaan had to push themboth)
Alex has to eat as well
A day in Rotterdam with Rob:
Art in Rotterdam
A break in the park
Sleep-over at Carolien and Jacco:
We love cheese fondue!!!
Richard puts out a fire
Alex loved the ball park at Carolien
Diergaarde Blijdorp (Zoo):
Giraffe, giraffe, giraffe and giraffe
Linda, Claire and Alex
Lisette, Ronen and Danielle
With family De Veld at Landgoed De Olmenhorst:
Orvee and Rene
Gabry and Nikee
Boat ride on the poel:
We made a boat tour with the boat of Lia and Rinus. Tineke, Rob, Linda, Jan, Margriet, Rinus and Lia were there as well.
Oma and Alex
Captain Linda
Mike’s favorite palingroker (eel smoker)
Last evening:
Alex with Thomas
A big kiss from Anita
Alex was sleeping like a baby in his crib in Kudelstaart
Just awake!
We are in the Netherlands!
We have been on familiar Dutch soil since Tuesday. Well, familiar to me, it has been 4 years ago for Mike and it’s Alexanders first time. The flight went well, we flew at night so Alex fell asleep just before take off and slept for 6 hours (out of 9). The arrival committee at Schiphol airport only had eyes for Alex.
The arrival committee: Tineke, Anita en Linda
We’ve seen lots of family and friends, went walking in the beautiful Dutch landscape and enjoyed the Dutch cuisine: eel on bread for Mike, Waldkorn bread with cheese for Linda. Alex will stick with milk.
With oma.
In Bunnik with Dirk and Karin.
We met Danielle, the daughter of Lisette and Ronen.
A Dutch invention placed next to the road to avoid litter: a ‘can catcher’.
Out walking with daddy
and with mommy.
