After what was clearly a long work week for Teia, and a big King's Day weekend, my mom and I had still saved enough energy to go to Justin Timberlake's show at the Ziggo Down. The show was incredible. So much respect for Timberlake's talent. Thanks for the awesome tickets, mom!
The following weekend we went to Luxembourg for three days - staying at an adorable townhouse situated on the Plateau du Rham. We had a beautiful panoramic view of the Grund, which is an UNESCO heritage site. Our townhouse was newly renovated and the owner definitely put a lot of thought into the unique design. The home was inspired by works of the American artist Roy Lichenstein while other parts reflect more of a mixture of French Provence and Japanese ryokan. For our first night we started on one of the many trails in our neighborhood taking us around the city.
The next day we started our walk around the Corniche - also known as the most beautiful balcony in Europe. These are ruins built by the Spaniards and eventually the French in the 17th century. The cobblestone path runs along steep and sloping sites. We really enjoyed the walk and beautiful views - we could even see our lovely townhouse from the distance. We then made our way back to the shopping area and across the newer side of the city. Here we enjoyed some snacks and wine. For dinner we popped down the hill for burgers, chips and beers!
A few days after Luxembourg we managed to get in some evening boating with Courtney and Michael's friends who were in town for their honeymoon. Always love getting out on the canal with my mom!
The next day we shopped around the Nine Straats and then Erica came over and made us yummy French Toast (an early Mother's Day gift), and for Mother's Day we spent the day at Fran and Colin's. It was sad to see my mom go - we had an absolute blast and can't wait for her next visit!
Finally a nice sunny day - we have had the worst weather lately but the sun decided to come out and Teia hit up Vondelpark kiddy pool - I was not prepared, but that didn't matter, Teia got right in and really had a ball!
Just as the weather got good, Kirk went to Prague for a week for a shoot. While he was there he found a little free time - getting out to a Schoolboy Q concert, a delicious dinner at La Degustation, and an evening boat ride.
From there, Kirk went to Milan for a couple nights for the Euroleague Final Four. For those of you not up to speed on European basketball, Euroleague is the premiere basketball league of Europe. Kirk got to watch Maccabi Tel Aviv put together an amazing last minute comeback against CSKA Moscow to win at the buzzer. Real Madrid ran circles around FC Barcelona in the 'El Clasico' of basketball, only to lose to Maccabi in the finals.
From Milan Kirk made his final stop in Cape Town for another shoot. It was Kirk's first trip to South Africa and he said it was beautiful. He and his co-workers stayed in Camps Bay - a beautiful community on the beach. And he managed to get out a bit in his free time. He went to the Cape of Good Hope and saw baboons, penguins and ostriches along the way; went for a run through the Cliftons neighbourhood; had some nice meals at The Potluck Club and The Grand; visited Stellenbosch for some light wine tasting; and went cage diving with great white sharks.
They arrived on my birthday and we celebrated the evening at Red for yummy steaks and lobster. Friday, we spent breakfast at Pancakes! cafe before heading out for a bike ride and picnic on the Amstel river out by the Ouderkerk. We capped off the day with dinner at Wilde Zwijnen and drinks at Roest. Wow, what a fun day - sitting in the sun, laughing and filling our bellies! Saturday we continued the festivities with a walk around the Jordaan, followed by a boat trip with friends and beers at the Saloon. Thanks for the wonderful birthday bash!
We are so beyond excited to introduce our darling nephew Peyton Paul Johnsen. He was born on May 30th bright and early. Mom and Dad are doing great. We all can't wait to hug and kiss him in person - especially Teia!
