Last week, the boys had Fall break. They went to holiday care for two days, the rest of the week I was at home. Which meant we had time to do some fun stuff together. Our boys are fairly enthusiastic dinosaur fans. It has almost become a tradition to visit a beautiful park, Dinosaurierpark Teufelsschlucht, when we’re on holiday in the Eifel. But we have quite a few cool parks and museums in the Netherlands as well, like the Oertijdmuseum (prehistoric museum) in Boxtel.
Halloween Treats
Tomorrow is Halloween night. Whether you celebrate it or not, it’s hard to ignore all the Halloween-accessories, costumes and candy that’s available in the stores. Now that it’s almost Halloween night, they sell everything at high discounts, as they won’t be able to sell anything after the 31st. Very tempting to buy all that stuff. But you can also make cute Halloween treats yourself. If you’re looking for some last-minute inspiration, I have a few nice ideas for you.
How to throw a Pirate’s Party
Last week, our youngest had his 7th birthday. I had asked him several times already, what kind of theme he wanted for his birthday party and the list was long. Basically anything boys his age like. Currently, that’s mainly Pokémon, he’s still into dinosaurs, Star Wars, Skylanders, dragons and many more.
But as you could read two weeks ago, I was on a small shopping spree at Søstrene Grene in Eindhoven. And there, I found the cutest pirate stuff. As the little guy still could not decide which way to go, I decided then and there that it had to be a pirate’s party. With loads of fun and cool accessories, like skulls and stuff.
De Plateaux-Hageven – Transboundary Nature Reserve
De Plateaux-Hageven
De Plateaux-Hageven is a beautiful transboundary nature reserve, that partly lies in the Netherlands (de Plateaux) and partly in Belgium (Hageven), just under the town of Valkenswaard. Natuurmonumenten (the Dutch society for the preservation of nature, landscape and cultural history) and Natuurpunt (the Belgian equivalent) have worked closely together over the past years to extensively restore the nature in this area.
Summer camp… and now we’re alone
Alone…
The house is so quiet. After we’ve brought the boys to summer camp, we’re coming home to an empty house. Well, not entirely empty, of course. We’re greeted happily by a dog and a cat. But it feels different. Of course it’s not the first time that I’m coming home to an empty house. When the boys are at school, at a friend’s house or at the sports club. It’s quiet then as well. But this silence feels different. Normally, I can enjoy the silence, having some peace and quiet. Because I know it will be over soon and there will be a lot of noise again. But not this time. There will be no noise. Not today. Not tomorrow. We’re alone.