Since coming back from the States this summer we jumped right back into Amsterdam life - biking, school, work, our house project, violin, and all things Dutch. The girls are handling the between homes chaos like champs and are counting down the days to move into our new home.
Our dear friend Brock was in town on an off for a couple weeks - spending time in France for work, and with us in Amsterdam. It was perfect timing since Kirk was turning 40. We managed to get out for a small celebration on Kirk's birthday - just the three of us. I also presented a little surprise video for Kirk - a collection of birthday shoutouts from loved ones - it was awesome to watch. The next day Brock was supposed to fly back to the USA, but was able to change his flight at the last minute so he could join Kirk on his boys trip to Dublin. Kirk flew out to meet Kai, Dave, Jake, and Matt, and little did he they Brock was joining - such an awesome surprise. In Dublin the guys golfed, toured the pubs and restaurants, and just generally caught up with each other.
My friend Pablo from Los Angeles recently got a job at Netflix and came out for some meetings in the Dam. He was able to come by our place to finally meet the girls and we met up for drinks. It was really great seeing you Pablo!
This year is Kinderen voor Kinderen's 40th Anniversary. This is a Dutch children's choir that puts out an album every year. The children love it and I have to admit I do too. I took Teia and Coco to the show along with their friends Nooa and Noelia (and Tiina). It was non-stop fun and we had amazing seats!
After almost 10 years of living in Amsterdam my father finally came out with my mom for a European trip. He started his adventure in London, and their cruise ship took them everywhere from Spain, Italy, France, Greece, Croatia and eventually to the Netherlands. We loved hosting my father here (also with their friends Bill and Barb). They explored the city's museums and canals, and even had a chance to see our home which was deep in renovations.
My parents got to participate in our expat Halloween (nothing close to how it is in the USA but we try our best). And we trained it to Cologne for a day so my father could visit the Cathedral where his Great Uncle is buried in the crypt. The girls loved spending time with Grandma and Grandpa and are looking forward to their next trip out to see our new home.
Shortly after my parents left, the kids celebrated Sint Maarten with their lanterns and songs. The girls typically would go from house to house to sing for treats but the weather was AWFUL so we opted to stay in where it was warm and have our own little celebration.
This year for Thanksgiving we celebrated on the Saturday before the actual holiday with 8 other couples/families. Thank you Melissa and Grant for hosting an amazing feast. Friendsgiving is the best!!! On the actual Thanksgiving day Kristina and Erik had us over - can't get enough of good eats and time with our lovely friends! Thanks Kristina and Erik!
During the winter, Amsterdam hosts the Amsterdam Light Festival (which consists of multiple light exhibitions lighting up the city. This year Kirk's work—72andSunny—put together one of the exhibitions. They had children come in for a coding workshop to animate lurking animal eyes placed on the canal outside the zoo. Teia participated in the workshop and had her eyes feature in the exhibition. 72andSunny hosted a boat ride and invited all the kids who participated so they can see their artwork displayed. Teia was super proud!
Sinterklaas arrived in Amsterdam - on his new horse Ozosnel. It seems that his horse Amerigo died at 30 years old. We planted ourselves by the Muntplein to see Sinterklaas arrive in all his glory. This time of year is always a bit strange. Zwarte Piet is changing each year but definitely has a ways to go. Our family can't stand the fact that people continue to parade themselves in blackface around the country sticking to "tradition." Luckily this year Teia caught on that Sinterklaas is not real and we could explain in more detail why the Zwarte Piet tradition is wrong.
Teia and Colette both had lovely Winter Dinners at their schools. The classrooms were beautifully decorated and the parents brought in dishes to share. It was a darling affair! I had my own special evening with friends to listen to Christmas carols at the Bigenhof. We followed up the night at De Dokter for drinks and nibbles!
Winter break begins and first off we have Colette's 4th birthday! We had a small gathering at our home with some of her classmates. Turning 4 not only means her last day at Mona Liesje Voorschool but it also means she starts Groep 1 at DENISE with big sister Teia! We will miss Jamila and Bina so much. Both teachers had each one of my girls in their class - they are the absolute sweetest and loving humans who helped my girls dive into their Dutch language!
Shortly after Colette's birthday we started to pack up our apartment for our big move to our new home. Somehow we still managed to have a Christmas tree and some decor to make it a bit merry. On Christmas eve we did our annual gathering with the Keyrouse's.
For Christmas day we spent it with the Obando's for a German/Finnish dinner. First time having goose for Christmas, and it was delicious. The kids had the best time spending the past few days with their Amsterdam fam!
A special certain someone deserves a major shoutout around this time - my mom! She turned 70 on the 26th of December! We would of love to have been there in person but luckily you had some amazing friends and family treat you to a night out! Looking forward to celebrating with you when you come out next!
We managed to pack up everything, go through a grueling process of moving with the biggest jerks of a moving company, and start to unpack and make our new place feel like home. Kirk recruited Christian to help assemble our closet and some furniture - you are the best Christian! Once we got into our home finally that evening we realized that the water heater had an issue - so no heat in the winter equals us going back to our old apartment for one more night!
After the winter break Colette started her first day at DENISE with Juf Saskia and Miss
Amaya. Can't believe our little one is in Groep 1! She loves heading into school with her big sis!
I managed to get away for the weekend with my friends for a one night trip to Maastricht. We walked around the quaint city center and shopped around a bit before devouring some tasty food and drinks! It felt so good to just lounge a bit too - went to bed early and slept in (not being disturbed by any children was a treat).
Our house is finally finishing up. We've been in it for about 2 months now and getting the last bits done with the top floor and terrace. We are really enjoying our quiet neighborhood - so peaceful at night, and you can even see the stars. Teia is now biking to school when the weather allows it, and it's nice exploring a new part of Amsterdam especially the Baarsjes (neighborhood).
