Touring the Dutch way

Zaanse Schans on a cold winter day.

Thanksgiving is no longer a holiday on our school calendar being at an international school. It does make me a little sad because Thanksgiving is one of the more family friendly and thankful holidays that Americans celebrate with less commercialism going on. Most years overseas we haven't had the traditional meal with turkey and trimmings because we are usually traveling so I guess in the end, not having the day off doesn't change much for our family.

Because of it being a school day, we actually stuck around and were able to celebrate with our chapel family at a very nice thanksgiving feast. Chaplain Hubbs shared a well thought-out mini-sermon that evening and the food was yummy.

The next morning we left for a trip to Volendam. We had been invited to join our good friends, the
Beardens, who are still stationed in Germany and were touring in that area for the holiday weekend. It was so fun to see them again! We had lived in the same village near Schweinfurt for a couple years and always rode together to Wednesday morning women's Bible study (PWOC).

Friday we drove up to Utrecht on the way to Volendam (about 2.5 hours total away) and stopped at a fantastic train museum that was perfect for kids. We spent most of the day there before finishing our drive to the hotel in Volendam. The lights and canals in Volendam were beautiful as we drove into the city after dark. Saturday morning we met up with the Beardens and toured for the whole day.

It was so cold out (about 40 degrees F) but we still walked around Volendam and then visited Zaanse Schans where we saw Dutch clogs being made, bought some for Loralynn and Tana, and did some yummy cheese tasting. Loralynn was right by our side and wanted to try each cheese except the green pesto flavor. Our lunch was super yummy eating Dutch pancakes with cheese and bacon. We watched them make it on a giant lazy-susan grill. After eating, we continued our walk around the windmills and just had a nice time being with friends in the freezing cold all afternoon.

We went back to the Bearden's rented farmhouse briefly to check it out and then headed to a local restaurant. Loralynn sat with the older Bearden girls, but Tana wanted to be at the adult table. It was sad to say goodbye after a fun day.

Sunday morning we woke up and drove into Amsterdam to visit a fabulous science museum called Nemo. The tickets were pricey but we spent the entire day there and the girls loved it. If we go again, we'll have to remember to bring a picnic lunch because the food for sale was limited, not great, and pricey.

Our Schweinfurt friends minus their oldest daughter.

It was cold but beautifully sunny!

I love the windmills in the Zaanse Schans area.

At the clog making shop, we saw many other uses for clogs.

The wedding clogs were my favorite.

I wondered how a violin clog would sound...?

This was the most expensive clog in the shop!

The clog wood was so green and wet that it dripped water when blown into.

Wall of clogs to buy. Most pairs were 20 euro or higher.

The giant clogs outside were fun to pose in.

The girls could actually fit down into the toe of this clog.

This is the restaurant where we bought our Dutch pancakes.

Dutch pancakes are often savory and super yummy!

You can go up inside the windmills to see how they work.

We all toured together for the day.

Most of the windmills are fully functioning still but are used now as tourist attractions.

The Beardens shared some of their licorice bark.

The licorice bark was literally a stick of wood.

Licorice sticks were used to freshen breath in the 1800s, I believe.

I just love the rows of Dutch houses.

Loralynn turns 5 years old

Loralynn and her best friend from German Kindergarten, Ida W., attempt to play miniature golf.

The weather was surprisingly splendid for Loralynn’s 5^th birthday. We had planned it for her birthday weekend, but she came down with a fever two days before. We cancelled it and had to reschedule for after our fall holiday break (AFNorth International School is out of session the last week of October each year) in November.

It turned out that the new date for her birthday allowed more of her friends to attend so we had a full house with Ida W., Siri W. and her sister, Benja and Elora H., Isabella G., and Addison and Scarlett B. The decoration theme was Disney princesses and a little bit of Hello Kitty. I decided ahead of time not to do formal games so instead Dan set out lawn games (bean bag toss, mini golf, bocce ball, etc.). The weather was so nice that everyone was able to play in the yard. The sandbox ended up being a big hit.

Chicken nuggets, tatertots, and water/apfel schorle were readily available on our covered patio. When it was time for cake and presents, the kids came inside to our large table and sang, scarfed the homemade cake I made and decorated the night before (success!), and sat to watch the gift-opening.

Our gifts to Loralynn were an umbrella (she had consistently been asking for one since Tana got one for her birthday two months earlier) and a Cinderella money bank. We decided the gift of the money bank would be the start of her allowance and formal chores around the house. She also got some really cool gifts from the attendees of her party!

This is the very first birthday cake I have ever frosted/decorated.

The guys and older kids played Bocce ball in the yard.

Cochem here we come!

It’s funny that the first vacation we decided to take from our new home in the Netherlands was to go back to our home of Germany. We’ve missed our Bavarian home of Schweinfurt terribly so perhaps this was a way to revisit the loveliness of our old life. The Rhine and Mosel river valleys have been one of our favorite places in Germany. It rivals the Garmisch area which also tops our list of must-see scenic places. There is so much to do in both of those places.

We stopped at Spangdahlem for the shopping bazaar and to finally get our money off the Germany Esso gas cards that we've had since our move from Germany. It's the closest German military base that would give us our money back since we can't use it anymore.

At Dan’s new school AFNorth International School, we now enjoy a week of vacation at the end of October instead of federal holiday Mondays and Thanksgiving break. So Dan decided a visit to the Mosel river valley was in order. It is beautiful in the fall with all the turning leaves and very festive with celebrations of Oktoberfest (beer) and Federweisser (new wine). The most fun part by far is visiting the countless fortress ruins along the river. The girls love the outdoor adventuring. We also went to an indoor pool one evening and an amusement park/wild animal park called Freizeitpark Klotten. The rides were so unique because of how old they were-- we've never seen such heavy-duty, old, one-of-a-kind rides before.

We met up with Dan great friend and coworker in Schweinfurt, Joel and his wife Sina in Trier for a day. It has been something like 7 years since our last trip to Trier. It was fun to see again and we really enjoyed hanging out with our friends.

Taking a rest and enjoying the view.

Hugging cuties outside of Burg Eltz

A unique horse ride that bobbed up and down.

Tana's turn on the castle potty.

Add caption

The condor landed right next to Loralynn during the bird show.

The Burg Eltz is so pretty inside its walls.

Burg Eltz is fantastic on the outside, too!

The Mosel river!

Bouncing with daddy.

Beautiful eagle wingspan.

Our little family in front of the Burg Eltz

The tasty "new wine" sold in the area and only in the fall.

Loralynn's depiction of carved pumpkins.

Loralynn on the castle potty.

Giant leaves and a lit up castle in the background.

Beautiful. Dan takes such great pictures.

More of the bird show.

Eating on the roof of a restaurant for dinner.

Taking a slide on large burlap mats.

Loralynn ready to explore her next fortress.

Beautiful palace in Trier.

Porta Negro in Trier

Pedestrian zone in Trier

The watches we bought the girls at the Spangdahlem PX.