Sinterklaas gifts and surprises!
Marrying into a Dutch family means getting to celebrate Sinterklaas every December. I love how much effort goes into writing poems and creating surprises for everyone! This year we celebrated at Barbara’s place in Tilburg to exchange gifts and surprises.
Arrived in Cadzand
For my birthday, I wanted to spend a quiet day with Koen in Zeeland. I know about Cadzand because of Sergio Herman. He has two 1 Michelin starred restaurants, Pure C and Air Republic, both located in Cadzand and I was curious to see the appeal!
Beyoncé ❤
So exciting to see Beyoncé now a third time! First in Antwerp, Belgium, second time in Düsseldorf, Germany and now a third time with Jay-Z in Amsterdam, Netherlands for their On the Run II Tour! And for all three times I was with my sister-in-law Barbara ❤
Colijnsplaat
Koen recently purchased a book on foraging, so we were ready to go on our first adventure! When we looked up possibilities in our area, we decided on oysters in Zeeland! Koen was especially excited to see that Colijnsplaat is a good place to go foraging. His grandparents had a house here when he was growing up, so it was very special being able to see the place Koen spent his summers.
This year was a special birthday for Koen’s mom, Els – she turned 60! So to celebrate it in a special way, we wanted to surprise her with a party! We were very sneaky, telling her that we planned a lunch with the children in Zeeland, but to her surprise we invited family and friends to surprise her at Sand & Pepper Beachbar in Burgh-Haamstede!
Dam Square
Koen and I were invited to the Animalia Amsterdam photo exhibition opening in Amsterdam. For over a year, Isabella Rozendaal photographed the pets of Amsterdam and they’re now on display in the Amsterdam City Archives from July 14th to September 3rd. Isabella is the sister-in-law of my best friend Christina and I’ve loved all the photos she’s posted on Facebook and Instagram, so Koen and I were excited to see the prints in person! We also bought her book!
Sofie and Jeroen at Timboektoe’s entrance
Sofie chose Timboektoe in Velsen-Noord, the Netherlands to celebrate her 30th birthday on the beach.
Exploring Sleep Mode: The Art of the Screensaver
When I found out our friend Rafaël had an exhibition in Rotterdam at Het Nieuwe Instituut, Koen and I planned a trip to see Chris and Hannah so we could all go together. Definitely worth visiting if you’re planning a trip to Rotterdam in the next months – we had so much fun!
Stedelijk Museum
Luckily I was able to see Christina one more time before she headed back to the States. It doesn’t matter where we are – America, the Netherlands, Belgium – nothing beats a girls’ day. This time we were in Amsterdam!
Group photo at the Loonse en Drunense Duinen
The past few years we’ve been taking turns hosting Easter. This year Barbara invited us out to Tilburg for a delicious brunch and a walk amongst the more than 10,000 year old dunes!
An American in Antwerp 