Netherlands--Keukenhof

Next up...Keukenhof!! I was lucky enough to visit these gardens on a girls trip last spring and fell in love! I decided I really wanted to bring the girls back while the tulips were blooming because I thought they would love it! The only problem? It's very difficult to pinpoint exactly when the tulips would be blooming. So I planned a trip for Easter but was a little worried that we'd be a bit late. It turns out that everything bloomed later than was predicted and we got very lucky! 2 years in a row I inadvertently timed it right somehow. For anyone planning a trip in the future, I HIGHLY recommend Tulips in Holland on facebook or checking out the website. There is a ton of information on the site about when the flowers are supposed to bloom, tips for planning a trip to the area and weekly updates as it gets closer. This tulip hunting is serious business! ( :

In addition to the GORGEOUS picture taking opportunities, there are a ton of events going on at Keukenhof, which is located in Lisse and is the second largest flower garden in the world! We visited the playgrounds, took a canal boat ride and watched a Birds of Prey show. The girls were also excited to get their faces painted and get free balloon animals! I highly recommend a visit for a day out with kids, provided the weather cooperates. We had a brief stretch of wind and rain in the morning (while we were on the canal boat...brrr) but it really warmed up when the sun came out. We spent the entire day there exploring the 7 million flower bulbs planted over 79 acres! The garden is only open from mid-March to mid-May but is definitely worth a trip! Here are some quick tips if you are planning a trip to Keukenhof.

• Follow the Tulips in Holland website. You can even find out what nearby tulip fields to visit after you leave Keukenhof.
• Get to the gardens when they open! This is a big deal because it was nearly empty in the morning which allows you to take photos without a million people in the background. Once the tour buses roll in, you won't be able to find a place to pose without interruption. This also made parking on site very easy.
• Buy tickets for the canal boat as soon as the stand opens. Tickets sold out very quickly.
• Bring warm clothes! I failed on this and got told off by some Asian tourists because Lyla's hands were freezing! The weather changed dramatically several times during the day while we were there. There are lockers for hire so I'd recommend bringing extra stuff and shoving it into a locker, just in case.
• I don't recommend prebooking tickets way in advance. Try to leave a 2-3 day window for your visit and book once you see the weather forecast. We originally wanted to visit Keukenhof on Easter day but changed our plans to visit on Saturday and see Amsterdam on Sunday because of the weather. Also, the lines didn't seem very long to buy tickets there, especially if you get there early.

Now...on to the good stuff....the photos! I took over 500 photos but I will try to whittle it down to my favorites!

Do you like my shoes?

All was quiet when Keukenhof first opened

Can they get any cuter?

How pretty is this place?

We love tulips!

Windmills and clogs! Who could ask for anything more?

Getting chilly

Enjoying the playground

Ignore Lyla's closed eyes and focus on the beautiful Amsterdam streetscape made of flowers!

Shivering on the canal boat

In case you forgot where we were...

So beautiful!

Surrounded by flowers

Taking a stroll through the garden

The flowers are nearly as tall as Lyla!

Lyla is trying to ride the cow while Riley gets a workout with the cheese!

Gorgeous smiles!

Pretty purples

Time for a quick rest!

And one more giggle

Navigating the bumpy path over the water. Daddy got all wet!

 After we left Keukenhof, we were on a mission to find a flower field to take photos in. Daddy was a sport and did something completely out of character, parking illegally along the highway and hopping a barrier to scurry down an embankment and please Mommy! The girls were much easier to convince and Mommy got her photos! Thanks guys!

Gorgeous rows of flowers!

My big girl

Wish we had gotten these photos before the facepaint!

Surrounded by flowers

A walk through the flowers. Don't worry...no flowers were harmed during the taking of these photos. There are thin paths between rows of flowers so you can walk through if you're careful.

Love these colors!

And to make Daddy feel better and like we were allowed to walk here...someone put up this handy dandy picture frame. A perfect day!

Netherlands: Kinderdijk

It was time to leave Belgium, but our adventure wasn't over! Next stop...the Netherlands! We were visiting over Easter and had trouble finding an affordable apartment in Amsterdam, so we decided to stay at a hotel in Leiden instead. It actually worked out really well because we were not far from the Keukenhof Gardens (just wait until you see those pics!) and close enough to Amsterdam to easily visit for the day. On the way to our hotel, we decided to stop in Kinderdijk, a UNESCO World Heritage Sight , where you can view 19 windmills that were built around 1740. Kinderdijk was a nice place to stop and stretch our legs, but did not live up to the hype for me. Maybe it was because it was cold and raining on and off? It was nice to walk along the water and go inside a working windmill where a family used to sleep but it was so crowded with tourists that it was a bit hard to appreciate. My advice? Stop at Kinderdijk if it is not far our of your way or if it's a beautiful day. It makes for some fun pictures! Enjoy!

The girls posing with two of the windmills

Daddy had to duck to get inside the windmill. 

Taking a rest on the bed under the rafters. Doesn't look very comfy!

Looks a little comfier

The sun came out for a little while.

But it was still very windy!

I love this picture...just strolling with her dad through Holland

Daddy and his girls

We spotted these adorable baby ducks on the way to find Lyla a toilet. Zoom in...there are so many of them!!

A History Lesson in Belgium

We were lucky to visit Belgium during the girls' term break and decided to explore the area outside of Bruges and learn about some of the history of the region. We started off with a visit to Ypres, a small city about 50 minutes from Bruges which was the center of a great deal of fighting during World War I. The city now houses the In Flanders Fields Museum, a wonderful museum that " tells the story of the invasion of Belgium and the first months of the mobilisation, the four year trench war in the Westhoek--from the beach of Nieuwpoort to the Leie in Armentieres-, of the end of the war and the permanent remembrance ever since." We found the museum to be very informative and moving, while still being appropriate and engaging for children. Our girls enjoyed the poppy bracelets that you are given when you enter, which you can customize based on your age, sex and nationality. As you walk through the museum, there are multiple kiosks (of varying heights) where you can scan your bracelet and the computer shows you a story that in relevant to you based on how old you are and where you're from. Riley loved reading her bracelet's stories and comparing them to Lyla's stories and even mine and Wayne's. 

In Flanders Field Museum

After a fun morning of learning, we stopped for some lunch and gelato...check out those colors! Then it was off to a quick visit to a cemetery and a trip to the Passchendaele Musuem, which had recreated bunkers and trenches that we could walk through. 

Brightly colored gelato!

Posing in an old uniform with her solider face 

Love the solider face

In the bunkers

Walking through the trenches

The next day we decided to visit the Flanders Field American Cemetery. It was a beautiful place where we enjoyed looking around and taking some pictures of the girls. 

Riley likes to sign the guestbook wherever we go!

Treehuggers

Overall, we found Belgium to be such a relaxing trip where we  learned alot about history without feeling at all rushed. We definitely plan to go back for another visit before we leave Europe! One of the best things about Belgium was just driving around and stopping to explore some of the cemeteries, monuments and museums along the road. What a beautiful country!

A small cemetery we found across from the Hooge Crater