In the evening mama and I often read my bed time book. It is about Zoe the frog and her friends: Nona the cow, Loes the Duck and Karel the Criket who plays the trumpet: too loud.
The sounds are funny - both from Mama and from the crispy book. I 'help' Mama turning the pages.
On the last page they all go to bed - and so do I.
You remember how sunny it was in the first weeks of my life? Well, these last weeks have been full of rain, rain and more rain. Warm, but rainy.
This weekend again. Saturday afternoon is kind of nice, and mama and I go to Vechtoever, where - you guessed it - the grass is long. Not only the grass loves this weather, the Hydrangea macrophylla or Hortensia are beautifully in flower too.
Sunday is wet again, but in the afternoon it is dry and we go for a cup of coffee to Hotel Arena. We sit on the couch and listen to the music: Someone loves you honey.
Mama forgot her camera (again!).
Day care is closed: it is getting painted. So I go to grandma and grandpa this week. Mama and I will sleep there too. Mama brings all my favourite toys: the red seahorse, my wasp, my snotty cloth and even the top around my bed. Here we stand with all our things.
The grandparents have bought a little babybed and a dressing table - they are definitely ready!
Grossmutti is very sweet and Grossvati keeps me entertained. And at night mama and I sleep in the little room.
It is time for my papa to go back to work. We bring him to Schiphol, even though that is very early in the morning, or so mama is complaining.
And horrible weather too.
The photo is a dry spell.
We drink a cup of coffee inside and I give a last chew on my papa's finger.
This is what I like now: holding on to a finger and then putting the finger in my mouth, my own finger, or better, my parents finger. And always my whole face and more becomes wet.
And if I don't have a finger? Well then I simply blow bubbles and my face still becomes wet!
Although, strangely, this is usually followed by me in bed - my mama says I do it when I am tired. I am nòt tired, mama!! I am not sleeeeee
p.
My grandmother Grossmuttie Hilde has had her birthday and we go out for lunch with all the neighbours.
My cousin Simon and I are the admiration of everybody. Here I am sitting with Aunt Hettie. You see it is a jolly mood.
And we can't withhold this picture of Simon playing with Grossvatie!
My Mama says that I am strong enough to keep my head up and to look ahead in the Baby Bjorn now. I love it, so many things to see! Although I have lost the green side to chew on, I am so taken with looking around, that I don't care.
With a wink of the eye at Karlijn and Boaz.
We go for lunch at the IJsbreker, Mama, Edmée and I.
Papa walks into town to buy the new Harry Potter book, although Edmée beat him to it; she bought it this morning!
It becomes a rather cool lunch and I may sleep in Mama's arms.
| And another week went by. Time goes so fast. Now that my papa is at home, mama works most days. Papa and I are together. Towards the evening we wait for Mama. I wait in the chair, a little bit bleary eyed from a day of play. |  |
 | Then when Mama is home she runs to me. We sit in the white chair and cuddle and I get to drink. It is relaxing time for both of us, mama with her alcohol free beer and I with my milk. |
| Then my bed time comes and I grow more and more tired. Come 7 o'clock Mama puts me to bed. I am ready for it too, although I don't want it, of course. So I cry a little and then fall into a sound and healthy sleep. |  |
Thursday morning on the guest bed - also the baby feed bed. In the background you see the elephant and hare: the elephant is my Papa's pyjama bag, the hare is my Mama's pyjama bag - when they were small, of course. Now the elephant and hare sleep in my room - they sleep a lot!!
We are walking through Amsterdam Oost. I fall asleep and Papa and Mama are drinking coffee at Kwekkeboom - it is early morning so the kroketten are not warm yet.
We make another pass photo. This time it is ok for me to smile, unlike the last time, my passport. But now I don't want to smile. The lady photographer is jumping up and down, but I know how to look serious.
Do you like me on the pedestal? Last time my Papa had to hold my head up, now I can do this myself!!
Come rain or shine, we go for a walk. This dutch Summer has four seasons in one day.
Today was a most strange day. First my daddy disappears in the early morning hours and I stay home with mama. She sleeps a lot - or at least she tries when I let her. She is obviously preparing herself. Then papa comes home - all black in his face and smelling of sweat. He says he was working on a horse stable for auntie Jacqueline's horse.
Then mama disappears, all dressed up. She is not at home when I go to bed - this has never happened! I am a big girl and behave very good. It is rather handy that I can drink from the bottle now.
When I wake up for my night drink, she is still not there. My papa has big blurry eyes - he did not dare going to bed for fear he would not hear me in the night! He makes my bottle again. Where is mama? But I behave very well again.
And then suddenly she is back home, I have just finished my bottle. Now she is smelling of sweat, but luckily not black in the face. She is still singing and dancing from a good night out. She has heard the papa of Boaz (one of the puffing babies) in the band VOER and thought he was excellent. And she heard the big boy Hans Dulfer and he was great! The whole tent was jumping and jelling. All the way at the North Sea Jazz. Mama was there together with Jim and Naomi, who walked around with a little girl in her belly - how good to be so strong!
Mama says she missed me very much, but now finally we all three can go to bed.
Do you want to hear Hans Dulfer? Music of Hans Dulfer, use a bit of imagination, the high tones are not recorded...
The world looks different from here. I like these belly excercises. Lying on my belly I can look around, on my back I only see the ceiling.
I smile at you!
Everyday mama and papa make me do gymnastics. It is quite nice, really. They make fun out of it. And I feel like a real big strong girl!
It was time to meet my cousin again. So long ago! And it promises to be a nice day amidst all the recent rains, so the Vechtoever is the place to be.
Our papa's deal with the important things of food and drinks, while our mama's chitchat about all things babies.
So relaxing not having to worry about conversation levels and keeping up appearances of parental control. Simon and I talk along with them, it is easy keeping up with the old folks.....
See those lovely dutch clouds in blue sky! Nearly one of those dutch famous paintings (and my strong papa as Admiraal De Ruyter!!).
If you want to read more about Simon, follow this link: http://sssimonnn.blogspot.com/
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We have a Summer Party at day care. All the children's parents come with food and drinks. It is a real Summer's day: storm wind and not warm. So we stay inside. Downstairs it is a chaos with the big children. We stay upstairs, in the baby room.
Saskia is sweet, isn't she. She is one of my regulars.
Now that my papa is at home, I only go once per week to day care. Unless there is a party of course!
Papa and mama talk with the other papa's and mama's and exchange stories. It is a merry afternoon, and then we go home, because I have to go to bed.
You haven't seen my papa yet with his hair cut. A fashionable hair cut, isn't it?
I don't care. He is my big strong papa anyway. He walks around with me from the parrot to the fishies and back and I like that. They hang so peacefully and sway gently up and down.
I have now found out that I can hold things in my hands. It is difficult to judge how far away things are. But once I hold them, I keep them. And the sensations I get putting the things in my mouth! Especially my papa's finger!
Jule, Daan and cousine Loes are visiting us. You see the big belly of Jule? Another cousin is nearly there, only 6 more weeks waiting! That is why mama gives back all the little baby things that I have out grown. I am a big girl, you know! And we get the clothes that Loes has outgrown. But they are mostly still a bit large for me.
Next week Loes will celebrate her birthday: three years old. You will see her picture next week.
Jule says I am a beautiful girl. Now you see why I like being held by her. Uncle Daan wanted to hold me too.
Jule does not wear a blue horn: on top of her head you see the tail of the blue plastic parrot. I like looking at the parrot. That is, when I don't look at the floor.
