New Tires

 It was an expensive year at the car dealer - had to go twice to get all the work done. Traffic was really a drag, but nice that everything is finally as it should be. Happy to finally be able to get home early this week on Friday! Auntie Claire is coming for a visit so hopefully we can do something fun then.

They have been changing the rules quickly around here. Basically all of the guidelines have been dropped and it is business as usual. Our neighboring countries aren't too happy about that. The US has also dropped in threat level, so that should make our summer plans easier, and it is great that Claire can visit! I got my second injection so I have been tired this week.

Making progress on the prep work. Hope to be finished before the holiday. Also making progress on the knife blocks, although I messed something up yesterday. Hopefully I can redo it without too much trouble. 

Amélie seems to have a bit of an ear infection, and both girls have been getting these brown, rotten looking teeth called because of a condition called enamel hypoplasia. We are worried about it, but the dentist says there isn't anything we can do other than brush them well and add some fluoride. 

Hiding out under the tomatoes.

Progress on the knife blocks.

Fun with rollerblades.

Father's Day

 It was nice to enjoy a special breakfast and some presents this morning! We will head to a playground in the forest that I discovered while avoiding a traffic jam on Friday. Looks like a fun spot. This afternoon I get to start with a new student named Ocean. 

Unfortunately I will need to sit in the same traffic jam this Friday as well, because they weren't able to finish fixing our car. Very expensive repairs this year. 

I got back into the workshop this week. Working on making some knife blocks to accompany the cutting board sets I finished up earlier. Nice to be back after so many months!

Fun at the zoo last weekend.

We replaced a spiky bush with a new fern by the pond.

First ripe tomatoes! Delicious!!

Working hard at school.

Silly pictures.

First water lilies. 

Father's day breakfast and presents.

Butterflies

 We got to release the rest of the butterflies this week. Watching them change from little caterpillars to big caterpillars to pupae and then butterflies was a fun activity that the girls learned a lot from. Letting them go was a lot of fun!

Had some contact with my old friend from Mali, Secouba, this week. He is doing well. His voice really sounds older now. 

We also had a lot of fun last Sunday at the Open Air Museum in Arnhem (right next to the zoo). They relocated historic buildings from all over the Netherlands and they demonstrate how things were made in the past. It is a great spot! Today we get to go to the zoo again. Sure is nice that things are starting to open back up!

Would be cool to build one of these on our land someday!

Releasing the butterflies.

Secouba and his moped.

Even got to do some biking this week.

Heat Wave

 Overnight it went from a cold, rainy spring to hot summer weather. Strange not to have any transition time. Sure has been nice to see the sun again though! The tomatoes were confused. They got all wilty in the sun even though I gave them plenty of water. Must have been too much of a shock for them.

The girls had to stay home from school on Monday and Tuesday morning until their test results came back, which were negative. Wednesday was a study day for the teachers, so they were home then too and we had fun at the skate park.

The museums and things are opening up again, so we will go to one this morning. Can finally schedule a time to visit the zoo again too! Maybe next weekend. 

The rhododendrons are having a good year!

Examining beetles in the forest.

Strange prints all over our car...just smaller than a cat.

Nice walk in the woods.

Each girl got to have a friend over and Naomi made pancakes!