Camping Adventures

Our month long vacation in New York included a three night camping stint. Saying it was great is an understatement. We had a blast! The only thing we regret was not making our camping trip even longer. 

Rainbow Falls on the Gorge Trail in Watkins Glen

Hanging with cousin Joey

My first thought when planning this trip was that it could be really great or the worst idea ever. Turns out, Flora's a nature lover! She was happy as a clam anytime we were outdoors, hiking, roasting marshmallows (WAY past her bedtime), or hanging out in the campsite. She loved it. I'm glad that she is turning into one happy little traveler.

Breakfast at the campsite

I have so many great childhood memories of camping in Watkins Glen. I got a little nostalgic on our picnic lunch break while hiking the gorge trail. My father said it best, "Well, you've come full circle." So true. It's time to share these fun family traditions with our daughter. I already have ideas for next summer's camping adventure...

Wonderful Weekend in Den Haag

Scheveningense bosje

Den Haag

A return to blogging...I was reading through my Croatia posts and started to think about how much I miss this blog. As I reread the posts, I realized there is so much from that trip I forgot about. It got me thinking about how much I miss documenting our lives and adventures. There is so much missing from this blog and I'm sad that I can't go back and read about it again. So enough of that. Back to the blog and Adventures with Jaap.

Binnenhof

Now that we are traveling with little Flora, our family weekend getaways and vacations are slightly less exotic, but just as fun. I knew that once we started a family we would be spending more time exploring The Netherlands and that's what we have been doing a lot this year. We went to Den Haag for the long Pinksteren wekend. I was once briefly in Den Haag for my immigration paperwork, but I have never spent a good amount of time here. This city is great. Very international, full of greenery, and a 20 minute bus ride to the beach. What's not to love?

Fun at the Escher Museum

We had lots of fun at the Escher Museum. (Thanks for the tip, Mom). Here's Flora having some fun with modern art. 

Saturday was our beach day and we went to Kijkduin for the morning. Flora got to touch/feel and explore sand for the first time and we got to stick our feet in the freezing cold water. I love watching her face when she experiences something for the first time...the silent pause and questioning look. Of course she then proceeded to try and eat the sand.

Peace Palace

My favorite part of Den Haag is all the nature. The city is full of parks, "forests", and tiny squares with greenery. It's truly unique and refreshing for city life. We had some beautiful walks with Flora through the Scheveningse Forest and the Clingendael.

A delicious dinner at ZOT!

The Japanese Garden in the Clingendael was a nice treat. It's only open a few weeks every year, so we were lucky to catch the last weekend. 

Our happy little traveler

Traveling is a little different now with a baby. Dinner at 5:00 (!) and some early wake up calls, but these little smiles are worth it. I could just eat these chubby cheeks. 

Hikes in Hoge Kempen

Maastricht is very close to Hoge Kempen, a large National Park in Belgium with tons of hiking and bike trails. A few weeks ago we drove to Maasmechelen and had our first hike with Flora as a family.

As you can see, she loves sleeping on Papa in her baby carrier.

My mountain man hiking the trail

It was a weekend of firsts for Flora. Jeker Jazz was also in Maastricht with different jazz concerts throughout the city all weekend long. Flora enjoyed sleepig through her first jazz quartet at Cafe Falstaff while Papa enjoyed a beer. See... we can have a baby and still have a life. Yay for us!

 I had to include this picture. I'm just in love with this cute little face. Flora too. :)

Weekend in Terschelling

Adventures with Jaap has taken yet another hiatus. It's been long enough and it's time to get back to the blog. I miss this creative outlet even if Jaap is the only one who reads it. :) Love you babe. Our lives have been busy the past couple of months. Busy time of year at work, traveling to the U.S., and preparing for our biggest life change, Baby Jansen. In a few short (but feels very long) weeks, Jaap and I will soon become Adventures with Jaap +1! Our household is growing and if all goes smoothly, we'll be adding another little Jansen-Pardo baby to the mix. It's not necessarily an excuse for why the blog has been neglected (yet again) because I wonder how much I will blog once the baby comes. :) As I enjoy my maternity leave and the benefits of being a pregnant woman in the Netherlands,  here's a little bit about  one of our latest adventures up north to one of the West Frisian islands. 

Making our way to the beach

My first trip to the North sea

The Jansen family gave us a weekend getaway to Terschelling as part of our wedding gift. We had the most relaxing weekend I can remember and I enjoyed my first trip to Friesland.

Terschelling via Wikipedia

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Traveling by car and then ferry forced us to get around the island by bike. A healthy choice for my 7 month pregnant self. I felt a sense of accomplishment that weekend riding around on that bike in those chilly temps. It was quite beautiful though.

Enjoying a beer at the beach

And since there's really not much to do in Terschelling except visit the beach, ride bikes, and apparently eat cranberries, the greatest sense of calm and relaxation came over me. Our hotel had this very cozy lounge area with a bar and fireplace. We spent one evening drinking tea and playing games by the fire. Can you feel the gezelligheid? 

Brandaris 

navigating through the "forest"

With Jaap as our navigator we had a lovely bike ride from our hotel to West Terschelling on the other side of the island. Riding through sand dunes and the "forest" brought me into a sense of calm before the last few busy weeks of work before maternity leave. It was so peaceful and quiet there. 

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. When in Terschelling, eat cranberries. We discovered the island is famous for their cranberry production. We found a "cranberry cafe" and enjoyed a hot cup of tea and some delicious desserts. This slice of cranberry cheesecake was lekker!

We ended our stay in Terschelling with a great concert on Saturday. Only my husband could find a brass ensemble concert in the middle of nowhere. The music was top notch.

Thank you to the Jansens for this gift and thank you to my husband for a great "babymoon" weekend together before our little one arrives. :)

Autumn in New York

"Autumn in New York". Does life get any better than this? Fall is my favorite season and we could not have asked for a better day walking through Central Park in NYC. Sunshine, fall foilage in full bloom, and family. It was a nice relaxing day leading up to our wedding the following weekend. 

Beautiful sunshine behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Pop & Joey

Making a wish

Me & Mom at the Bethesda Fountain

Strolling the Mall in Central Park. I felt like we were walking through a painting. What's better than this? Okay- perhaps Paris in Fall is a close second. :)