Simon's cat Tommie

Hay, what is Simon's cat Tommie doing at grandmama's house? Simon is on holiday and Tommie is staying at grandmama's house. My bed is taken, and I cannot stay overnight at grandma's house. But I like Tommie.

Elswout with grandma

I want to see my grandmama again. And on this warm day, what better than to go to a forest with tall trees? Elswout. It is so beautiful when we walk in. And cool. We lie on the grassfields and pretend we are nature women with leaves in our hair. Haha. No we're not!! And then we walk over the bridge. Mama and grandmama are acting a bit nervous.

Peeling potatoes

A warm weekend, hot even at times. But we still have to eat and we still have to peel potatoes. I like doing what mama does: I peel potatoes on my little bench.

The slide

I forgot to post this last Sunday. With grandpa we went to the animal farm and I went down the slide. I love the slide!! When I am at the top, it is a bit scary, but Granpa held my hand and then it is great fun. Feiw, and down we go with the speed of wing.

Again, and again I want to go down the slide.

Tea garden 't Wout

Let's see how long it is to cycle to Hazerswoude, my mama suggests. So, off we go, past the borders of my little town, past some farms, through a field where they are mowing the garden flowers, and then we get to a long road with plant growers. But before we get to Hazerswoude there is a sign: Tea Garden. That sounds interesting. We follow the signs and it is still quite a long way, but there it is? Would it be open, would there be anybody else? We haven't seen many people on the road besides tractors.

But it is open and there are some kids. It is beautiful! There are chickens and little chickens and lots of toys! A trampoline. This is the first time I am on a trampoline. It is a bit scary in the beginning, but then mama starts to throw me on the trampoline. Yeah, more more more! I clamber up and ask her: throw me again! You see it in my face in the picture?

And then we have to hurry home before the rain gets us. But we'll be back, it was only 20 minutes to get there.

Clothes shopping

This morning my mama and I are looking for a nice dress for me. The shop is selling lots of nice kids things: little cars, dolls and I touch everything. I think the lady of the shop is not so happy with us. But then she points me to the little cooking stove that is between the clothesracks. Wow!!

This is good fun: a stove with pots and slices of pizza and little chairs. Do we really have to leave, mama? At day care there is a mini stove too. All the children love it.

New plants

Hey, what is that?! New plants in front of my house. So cheerfull! Brian has planted them, remember Brian? We have now four little apple trees and lots of hydrangeas, both pink and white (Annabella's).

Grandpa

Hello! Are you doing anything this afternoon?

It is grandpa ringing us. No, we are not doing anything this afternoon. Grandpa wants to come to play with me. I take him for a bicycle ride through Alphen and to my animal farm.

But when he says goodbye, I am busy inspecting the rain drain on my street. I like rain drains very much. Intrigueing things they are.

A slow Sunday morning

	It is Sunday morning and we start the day slow. We have a boiled egg for breakfast and drink our tea. I don't like tea yet, so I drink juice.
	But I like sitting on mama's lap after breakfast and pretend that I drink tea. I like doing what mama does. I do pretend tea drinking and pretend plants cutting, and pretend talking.
	But my drawings are for real. Although I like better to do pencil management. This means I put my pencils in the box, and out of hte box, and in the box and out of the box. And I can do pretend pencil sharpening very well. Today I like tearing paper best. And the scotch tape. Papa has made special bench for me. The chair is too difficult with my brace. And the added advantage: mama can just sit on it too!

Barbeque

Today is a nice day amidst all the drool that we have had. Papa wants to barbeque. He bought a nice barbeque, but has hardly had a chance to use it. Now is the time!

I help mama in the kitchen, as us girls should do. We wash the potatoes and wrap them in alufoil. I like everything in the kitchen, but the best is washing the vegetables: I get to splash my hands and put things in and out of the tub.

Later, we wait for the things to cook, I take a look in our pond. There are all the waterplants that have overtaken the pond. My papa got fed up with 'm and removed half of them.

And now what??!! I see orange fish!!! How is that possible? I haven't seen them for months after the heron visited us? But look, mama, are these our gold fish? Wow! My mama counts fifteen of them all. They are the small ones that got left behind!

Ruling the world

I am getting to understand the world better and better. And I now also know how the world runs. Shoes belong on feet, and socks too. There are papa socks and mama socks. And papa socks belong on papa feet. Mama has those funny large house shoes, those shoes belong on mama feet.

Sometimes papa and mama forget all that. I will point it out to them. I point my finger to the feet and say 'Da da'. I sometimes have to put on a real insisting tone to make them really understand.

When we eat breakfast, mama sits on mama chair and papa sits on papa chair. I point with my finger to mama's seat and say 'da da', very insistingly so that she will sit.

In the morning I always find papa's watch on his bedside table. 'Da da' and holding the watch on papa's wrist will solve that problem too.

What would those old folks do without me?

Big hug

There was another little girl in the play ground. We played together. How we met? The girl was sitting on the slide. I went to her and started to smile. Then she smiled back!

Later she gave me a real tight hug! Umph!

Grandpa helped us playing. We could hardly stop him when it got dark!

Papa's Birthday

It is my papa's birthday, and look what comes in the mail? A chocogram! Of course I knew: I sent it to my papa, with mama's help. The last line said: 'Je Meisjes', which means your girls, that is us.

I help him eat the chocolate, because I love chocolate. One in each hand!

Papa celebrates his birthday. You know, my uncle Dick, papa's brother has his birthday on the same day? So, they celebrate together! We are having drinks at the Mauritshoeve in Bilthoven. That is close to my great-grandmother and so she can come too. She is sitting behind the plant. Next to uncle Dick.

I got special children's menu with apple-sauce.


But I liked the playground best!

Very hungry

At night, when I get home from day care, I am hungry! My mood isn't too good. I hang off mama's legs and won't let go. Food comes from mama. Papa is cooking, but mama is more important in times of hunger.

I decide to play with the rabbits. I collect a blade of gras and push it through the fence. And then another one. The pushing is the excercise. Walking through the garden takes my mind off food.

Untill dinner is ready!!

My papa and I go shopping

My papa and I go shopping. We go on the bicycle. First my papa pumps up the tyres. I sit ready in my bicycle seat.


Then we go to my favourite shops. The shopping carts are there, and the butcher where I get a piece of a sausage. And I walk all by myself, these days I know I have to walk ahead: when I was little, I would just walk here and there and stand still all the time. But now I understand it when my papa says: Come on, Ces! We go here!

I like going for shopping.

Koen is one!

You know what? My cousin Koen is turning one! So quick! It was only yesterday that he was born, wasn't it?

But he is bla, bla, bla-ing and standing and moving around on his knees, with the speed of light! Just like me he likes eating cake. My papa has a plate with cake on his knees and now he is the best friend of all the little children.

I liked what I did yesterday: sit on my auntie's lap. So, today I sit on Auntie Jule's lap. That is good too! The other children are Koen's cousins from Friesland. We see them twice per year too!

To the Beach with Simon

Simon wants to go to the beach. Of course we want to come along! Funny, we both sit in a backpack?

It is a beautiful calm morning and we enjoy the water, the sand, the seagulls, the balls, the sandwiches with sand.










I climb on Auntie Hannie's lap for a cuddle and I laugh because Uncle Frank makes jokes with me. I always enjoy his jokes.

Simon loves the beach too.

Madurodam

There is a little village town and Bert and Ernie are there too! I get to shake the hand of life-size Bert and I am very impressed by him, but then we continue to look at the displays.

Do you see Ernie on the market square too?

For other kids: there is a gigantic playground under the restaurant, so it is never boring to go there!

But you know what was the best of the whole day? The outdoor playground with the slide and the rocking chicken!

Helping Papa

This weekend my papa was very busy. He has removed all the bamboo and all the roots of the bambooo. Now he is putting back our pavement. He is very good at it, but that is because I am helping him! This is how you hammer the bricks, Papa!

More climbing matters

Anything I can climb over, in, through, I want to try it. Sometimes I work myself into real tight spaces.

This was quite some excercise to get in! And to get out required the help of two parents. But a lot of fun in between. You like my boat?

Today is a lousy day. I stare out the window, but I can't go outside. Tropical rains is what the global warming has given us in the Summer.

But the pond is full again! As full as in spring.

Climbing matters

Climbing is the best! The higher the better. Just my papa and mama react so nervous???

A day in Amsterdam and on the beach

Today we had a big day: in the morning we had to go to my doctor for the hip brace. Would I be able to shed the thing? The doctor is close to my old house and in my old neighbourhood. This is fun! We drink a coffee on our old coffee hangout. My old grocery man from Irak waves at us.

Unfortunately my hip brace cannot yet be removed. My hips look reasonably good, but it is better while it still can, to wear it. After 18 months it is no use to wear a brace because then the bones are hardened. So after that it is wait and see. We are happy to wear the brace just for a couple of months more.

After the doctor it is fun time! We go to Amsterdam downtown. We have lunch in the old boys orphanage, now a museum. I have a sandwich with salmon. Yummie!!

After lunch we go to our curtain man in Haarlem, close to my grandparents. And then we want to go to the beach! It is warm and sticky. Grandpa and Grandma want to come too, that is great!

I am just with my feet in the sea, and then the rain starts! A tropical rain. We run inside the beach tent and order our fish for dinner. It is fries and mayonaise time for me! Beach tents are the best thing!

Eating spinach

Today we eat spinach. I get spinach with potatoes mixed. Yummie!

Eating is fun, playing with my fork and spoon, and sometimes good food too. The food I like best now is carrots. Apart from chocolate of course.

Nice African bib I am wearing, from Ardo from my Amsterdam day care, he brought it from Africa. Children in Africa wear bibs too!

Paper hat

Eén, twee, drie, vier, hoedje van, hoedje van, één, twee, drie, vier, hoedje van papier! Hahaha.

The trolley at grandma and grandpa

I am for the afternoon at grandma and grandpa. It nice to be here after such a long time again. My papa and mama go out for a long lunch.

My mama keeps forgetting her camera, but in the picture you can see my shopping trolley, also my visiting trolley, with my toys. We bought this on the Summermarket and I like walking around with it. Pushing it, but it is still quite difficult for me: sometimes it goes sideways and then I have to steer it back, and this is heavy work. And this thing called pulling? No idea what that is!

Table

My papa has made me a table. Now I can sit properly and puzzle or draw my drawings.



I like sitting at my table. But my chair needs to be turned around (not in the picture). That is the way it sits best.