Days 194-208 (July 13-27, 2013)

Day 194 - July 13, 2013

We headed off to Elim Lodge, a Christian campground near Peterborough...a time of refreshment both physically and spiritually. Here is a picture of the bridge that still makes me giddy every time I see it...it means we are getting close to Elim :) I love going to Elim as we get to spend time with family that we don't see every week.

Day 195 - July 14, 2013

It was sooooo hot and after morning church we cooled off at the beach for a bit before heading back to church in the evening.

Day 196 - July 15, 2013

With it being so hot, we spent a lot of time in the water...skiing, tubing, wakeboarding, swimming. Today's picture is of my dad...still skiing awesome.

Day 197 - July 16, 2013

This was quite the site when we went to go out in the boat and saw a huge line of Canadian geese swimming by.

Day 198 - July 17, 2013

Fishin' happened after supper when it wasn't so hot. Here's Savannah's first catch of the trip. Silly girl did not liking mushy, squiggly worms and slimy fish...she decided she wasn't really a fisher.

Day 199 - July 18, 2013

It was so hot that I didn't take many pictures at all today but here is Ava's first fish from tonight.

Day 200 - July 19, 2013

We had quite the storm roll in and we were left without hydro for quite a while. We jumped out of the pool minutes before it really came down. It actually frightened me with the wind gusts as we tried grabbing everything from outside. Some trees fell down but thankful no one was seriously injured. Part of the campground still had hydro so it was great that we could charge stuff at Brian and Rosemary's or Gerald and Sylvia's.The first picture is the storm rolling in and the second is us eating supper ... still no hydro.

Day 201 - July 20, 2013

The morning after the storm, Carsten helped me chase the geese off our grass by the lake. We only do this because they leave a lot of droppings behind and it's not so nice to step in. I love Carsten's method...water shooters :)

Day 202 - July 21, 2013

Savannah and Abby had a sleepover at Grandma's...they had a good time.

Day 203 - July 22, 2013

Here are a few pictures from Brian that he took when the boys went Tree Top Trekking with him. Abby stayed back with us while Dad, Brian R, Gerald, Brian K, Rosemary, Amy, Jessica, Scott, Alex, Carsten and Jono went trekking. They had a good time!

Day 204 - July 23, 2013

We went to the rope today. Here's Alex taking a turn. The kids all seem to love doing this.

Day 205 - July 24, 2013

Triathlon and Quadramarathon Day...

 Cailyn swam, Maya biked and Savannah ran...

Alex swam, Carsten canoed with Caleb, Amy ran and Matthew biked...

I love relaxing at the end of the day fishing as the sun sets.

Day 206 - July 25, 2013

Lots of tubing today...we ended the day with a Campfire supper of Pie Iron Creations...yum!

Day 207 - July 26, 2013

Chocolate Ice Cream Date :)

Day 208 - July 27, 2013

Getting up just before 6 to snap a sunrise picture on the last day of holidays is worth it. God paints such beautiful skies each morning.

Days 192-193 (July 11-12, 2013)

Day 192 - July 11, 2013

Can I just say I squealed when I saw Project Life in Michaels yesterday??? I ordered some from the Home Shopping Network in the USA to get my album underway. I have been saving up to buy some more but was just hoping it would come to Canada...well it's here!!! :) The greatest part is that it was all 50% off ... so glad I waited :)

Day 193 - July 12, 2013

The kids thought they could sneak up on the rabbit...they were definitely going to scare the rabbit good if it went to eat anything in the garden.

Days 185-191 (July 4-10, 2013)

Day 185 - July 4, 2013

We had some extra visitors from New Jersey today. Alex went to hang out with Hadassah at Oma & Opa's house while Josiah and Shifrah came to play at our house. Josiah, Carsten and Jared got right into sword fighting while Addison and Shifrah played with bubbles (or rubbed it on themselves as sunscreen).

Day 186 - July 5, 2013

A few of the Koopman families got together to have some fun at Fleetway.

Bowling (Wyatt is missing from picture)

 Glow in the Dark Mini Golf

Rock Climbing

Day 187 - July 6, 2013

This orchid was doing awesome until we went to Holland and it is now not doing so well. My kids congratulated me for keeping it alive as long as I did.

Day 188 - July 7, 2013

A devotional we are reading with the kids.

Day 189 - July 8, 2013

Summer is here and it's hard to get to the gym. I dusted off the treadmill in the basement and started using it.

Day 190 - July 9, 2013

I went to get something out of the freezer and my heart dropped when I saw water coming from the freezer. The door was open a bit and a lot of the food was thawed or partially thawed. Thankfully I only had to throw out a bit. Alex helped me out by starting the BBQ to do some meat cooking. The kids were thrilled to have turkey burgers and hotdogs for lunch :) It also gave me a chance to give the freezer a real good clean.

Day 191 - July 10, 2013

Here are the clouds that rolled in really quickly this afternoon. We got quite the downpour soon after.

Days 180-184 (June 29-July 3, 2013)

Day 180 - June 29, 2013

We made it home for the kids to play in the Ball Hockey Finals. They were tired but eager to get out there and play.

Savannah's Team

 Carsten scoring one of his goals

Alex scored his second goal of the season and it was a beauty shot!

Day 181 - June 30, 2013

Looking through our mail and excited when I came across this...an invite to my sister's wedding

Day 182 - July 1, 2013

Canada Day fireworks with my mom and dad

Day 183 - July 2, 2013

One of my favourite souvenirs from Holland...magnets that you can move around and make my own map so I never get lost :)

Day 184 - July 3, 2013

Here are the cool duvet covers that we got for the boys.

Carsten's suit duvet

Alex's bike duvet

Days 167-179 (June 16-28) ~ Our Holland Trip ~

Mark travels a lot for work and the opportunity for our whole family to join him on his latest trip. We are very thankful for Phoenix to have given us this wonderful opportunity. I am also very thankful that Kim was able to make the trip with us :)

Day 167 - June 16, 2013

Our flight (DL4025 YYZ to BOS) to Boston was on a small airplane. Flying into Boston was quite beautiful with the water, boats, etc. The captain of this flight was super kind to allow Carsten and Savannah to check out the cockpit. They each had a chance to sit in the seats and handle the controls. Carsten had a quick crash course on what things did.

We then flew from Boston to Amsterdam (DL266 BOS to AMS). During this flight, Savannah pulls out a big Tim Hortons peach juice bottle on the flight and says, I’m thirsty, I think I’ll have a drink.”…Ummm, how did you get that through security?? 

Savannah and Emma had a great time taking off and landing.

Day 168 - June 17, 2013

We landed in Amsterdam earlier than scheduled at 5:05 am. The bad thing was we had a lot of time to kill at the airport waiting for the apartment rental place to open. After missing a night’s sleep, it proved quite difficult to stay awake. We had a bite to eat in the airport, walked around and explored. Then sat around, some of decided to explore some more and eventually some of us dozed in the airport while we waited. 

Alex's journal entry

We got train tickets to travel from the airport to Amsterdam. After getting off the train, we started on our way to find our apartment. 

Wijttenbachstraat 30

We crashed at our apartment and had a 2 hour nap before we set out to explore Amsterdam a little. 

 

We had lunch/supper at Rembrandt Corner and quickly we remembered that when you order water you get a small bottle that costs quite a bit..not free like in Canada. 

 Day 169 - June 18, 2013

The kids really slept in! I woke up the kids at 10:45am after 15 hours of sleep!! We headed out to explore and see a little bit of sights. 

Oosterpark

Carsten made the first purchase of stroopwafels at Waterlooplein Market

…he was very very happy. 

At 2:15 we were able to take in the Anne Frank House. Since you are unable to take pictures at this place, I bought a bunch of postcards…that began my obsession of buying postcards ;)

We had an early supper at O’Reilly’s Irish Pub. Everyone liked the food there J

Day 170 - June 19, 2013

We started the day with a trip to the Royal Artis Zoo. While we all had a good time here…Savannah had a great time! She made a song about her trip to the zoo, zoo, zoo that we heard for the rest of the time we were in Amsterdam.

We made our way down to the Nemo Science Center in the afternoon!

 Carsten's Spy Glasses

Day 171 - June 20, 2013

Today was Alex’s 13^th Birthday! We toured a real working Windmill (VanSloten). The best part of the day for Alex was that he got to help turn the windmill. The other kids got to join in to lock it back in place. 

When we got back into the middle of Amsterdam we visited Dam Sqaure.

 We also visited three churches today, De Nieuwe Kerk, De Oude Kerk and Museum Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder (Our Lord in the Attic). During our time in Amsterdam, we spent A LOT of time looking at maps to figure out where we were and where we wanted to go.

 It was raining on and off in the afternoon so we hopped on the Holland International Canal Tour for an hour and a bit to get out of the wet weather. 

UPDATE:

Today is Alex's 13ths Birthday. We are grateful for how Alex is maturing and often is a huge help.He loves hard and has a special relationship with Rowan. He almost always is willing to share a hug with me still for which I am thankful. He are a few of his favourite things...

Activity: Playing iPod

Animal: Cats

Book: Dragons of Starlight series

Colour: Orange

Food: Pizza or Mac & Cheese

Game: Minecraft

Movie: How to Train Your Dragon

Music: Christian

Person: My parents

School Subject: Math

Sport: Soccer

Toy: iPod

TV Show: Family channel shows 

Alex likes to play his iPod a lot and would play all day if we let him. He also likes to read when he finds a series that interests him. He loves games like Catan, Monopoly and Risk.

When Alex grows up he would like to be chiropractor or Computer programmer. 

 Day 172 - June 21, 2013

We visited the long awaited Muiderslot Castle and it was sooooo much fun. Since the kids have been into medieval time stuff, it was a hit by all. Unfortunately it was raining so we didn’t explore the grounds outside the castle much but we still had a great time!

Muiderslot Castle

 Alex on his Quest

 Fair maiden Savannah

En Guard

Pancake Bakery for an early supper as we expected a busier day on Saturday. Savannah ordered the animal pancake…expecting a pancake in the shape of an animal…boy was she surprised when she got a stuffed snake on top of her pancake. She named her snake, Mr. Snakey and he was a prized stuffy.

Kim's Yummy Pancake

Day 173 - June 22, 2013

We went to Noah’s Ark!! It was so awesome to see a real life size replica of the ark Noah built. It was a long train ride to get there…we were planning to go to Maduradam but it was raining. So we headed back for supper at O’Reilly’s again.

Day 174 - June 23, 2013

We started the day by going to Hillsong Live Church and it was very different from our regular church that we attend. It was very loud and like a concert but the people were very welcoming.

We also had a ferry ride to the Pannakoekenboot. A boat cruise with all you can eat pancakes and an icecream bar at the end. There was also a ball pit for the kids…Savannah and Carsten loved it! There people manning our boat gestured and gave away the leftover pancakes to another boat J 

Day 175 - June 24, 2013

The kids weren't too thrilled when we said we were going shopping today…they changed their minds though when we hit the Albert Cuyp Market. From trying on glasses, to seeing lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and cheeses, to picking out magnets, checking out toys, etc…it was the “best shopping day ever”.  Carsten got a remote control car and a pocket watch. Savannah got a guitar and fresh lemons while Alex got two helicopters. Add in fresh king size stroop waffles and it was a good day by all. We all picked out a lot of souvenirs.

 Pee Pennies (it often costs to use the facilities)

Picking out magnets

Trying on Glasses

 Flowers

Fresh Stroopwafel

Alex at a toy vendor

Buying some art at Rembrandtplein

We tried out a new restaurant called 3 Sisters Pub. The food was delicious and we accidentally ordered fingerfood (we have no idea what the appetizers were but they were all good). The kids wanted to eat there again the next day. 

3 Sisters Pub

We were right at Rembrandtplein and there were artists selling their work by the statutes…we picked up a couple pieces. The kids enjoyed checking out the statutes (of the Night Watch). We picked up dessert at a little bakery...it was quite the experience ;)

Day 176 - June 25, 2013

Waterlooplein Market again. We got some neat souvenirs here...Croc Klompen, rings, klompen slippers, pocket watch, musical instruments and more. We also did a tour of Delft, Den Hague and Madurodam. Supper tonight was fries from the #1 Fries in Holland. We couldn't take them on the bus so we walked towards home until we were done eating and then caught a tram the rest of the way.
  

Delft

Den Hague

 Madurodam - Miniature Netherlands

Day 177 – June 26, 2013

After a little frustration, we found the MacBike Rental place and we rented bikes to ride around. We made our way to Vondelpark and biked in and around it having the kids taking turns leading. It is a really nice park mixed with nature and playgrounds. We really enjoyed feeding the ducks and the kids climbing trees.

The tram we always needed to find...Tram #9 Diemen Sniep

We stopped at an Apple Store just to say we were in one in Amsterdam ;) We bought some tickets for our return trip to Schipol airport and we finally got a chance to play chess outside the TropenMuseum. I think that was a major highlight of our trip and the kids likely would have stayed there for hours if we let them. 

Raising her piece after she won

We had supper at Marco Polo Pizzeria and Steakhouse, it was good. We also bought a lot of candy at Jamin today for the people who begged us to bring some back ;) 

Day 178 - June 27, 2013

We did a tour of Volendam and Marken. We started with a visit to the Cheese Factory…it was really neat to see how it is made and then get to sample some with different jams and mustards.

My favourite part of the day was the kids getting 

pictures in traditional costumes in Volendam.

Then we hopped on the Marken Express ferry. I loved going through the fishing village and all their small houses. We had a tour of the klompenmakerij (Wooden shoe factory). Our guide was awesome!! It’s amazing how quickly he could make a shoe. The kids loved learning about the smuggler klompen. 

We hopped back on the bus to go to Zaanse Schans where we picked up the last bunch of our souvenirs and saw a few more windmills. Savannah picked up some seashells and coins. Carsten got collector coins and I got more postcards, traditional hats and magnets. 

 We headed back to Rembrandtplein to spend the last of our euros on artwork from the artist we met earlier in the week. We also had a last chance to hang out with the Night watch soldiers. Took in some street musicians as we waited for Mark. We had supper with Mark for the first time this week and we chose 3 Sisters Pub.

Kim did a great job packing up our suitcases so they wouldn't be over the weight limit. Early to bed because we had to be up really early to begin our journey back home.

Day 179 - June 28, 2013

We left for the tram at 6:10 am and we made it to the train station in good time for the train to not show up. So we waited for the next one to come. We all got on and arrived at the airport a short while later. We headed home on KLM691 AMS to YYZ landing at 11:44 am.

Inside Central Station

 Waiting to board our plane home

 Flying home

We got through the airport no problem, got our luggage and then waited for the bus to take us to our parking lot which didn’t come. After a detour ride on a Park & Fly bus, she brought us back to where we could get picked up by the right bus.  We made it home by 4:35pm.

THE END :)