AJAX-VVV 7-0

Pieter is seasonal ticket holder for his favorite soccer club, VVV Venlo (his home town), which means he is present at every match played by VVV in Venlo. On April 11th, VVV played against AJAX, one of the best clubs in the Netherlands at the moment. Pieter, his brother and nephew travelled to Amsterdam to watch this game live. VVV lost 7 to 0 ... A bit embarrassing, but not too surprising. VVV got promoted to the eredivisie (major league) from the eerste divisie (minor league) this season and AJAX is candidate for the major league title. Still, the three men had a great afternoon :-)
Pieter cheering his club on from the 'box' for visiting supporters; too bad it has come to where visiting and home club fans have to be kept apart like this ...

Busy Easter

Sunday started out dry, so the girls could do their Easter egg hunt without raincoats.
Later on, it started raining, so we decided last minute to go to a theater performance. The musical Hans en Grietje was showing in Veldhoven and we went to see it. It was a very entertaining show, with great singing and lots of laughter. Especially the marshmallows JW and Veronica were very funny.
Emma and Janne's favorite character; marshmallow JW

Clear weather was forecasted for Easter Monday; we thought we'd risk it and drive to the beach in Zeeland. We had a wonderful time in Vlissingen, walking on the beach for almost two hours. On the way back, we paid Oma a visit in Hoogerheide.
Boelie joined us on the beach
Shell hunting

Swimming certificate A!

Yet another milestone happened for Emma today; she received her first swimming certificate (A)! After one year and nine months, she passed the test today. There were 44 children taking the test and the instructors turned it into quite a party. Nice to watch and less stressful for the kids.
Nervously waiting for the test to start

Breast stroke, clothed

Back stroke, looking pretty relaxed

We celebrated with a visit to the pancake restaurant 'de Pannenkoekenbakker' in Eersel. A guaranteed hit with the girls, also because of the face painting and the free gifts.
Painted faces

Got you!

Not real!
As you may have guessed, the broken arms were not real. We went to the Maximá Medisch Centrum (hospital), which had an open day on Saturday March 20. Many departments were open to the public and we were able to see several interesting demonstrations.

One of the demonstrations was how a cast was made; everyone who wanted it could have their arm put in a cast. Emma and Janne wanted it badly enough to wait 45 minutes for their turn. In the Maternity Department, we witnessed a 'baby' being born and the girls had a peek into a 'kijkbuik' (peeping belly) to see a baby inside a pregnant tummy. We had a tour of two operating rooms, both girls had an ultrasound done of the artery in their neck and they took their dolls to the doll-doctor.
Great fun and educational as well :-)
A bit worried, but she did it anyway

Operating on a box is pretty difficult

Ouch ...

Boelie

Boelie is now almost 7 months old, has grown quite a bit and continues to do so. Her back is higher than the coffee table and she can (and will if given half a chance ... ) put her paws on the kitchen counter. She still is a quick learner and a bit less of a biter (although we've been warned that we have to guard anything with wooden legs until she's at least 12 months old). Her energy and enthusiasm are still sky-high (comes with the breed) and very importantly; Emma (!!!) and Janne love her.

Emma totally lost her fear of Boelie and she now plays with her, gives her orders and cuddles with her; it is great to see that change. Emma is still cautious around other dogs, but as far as I'm concerned, that's okay. Better safe than sorry.
Darker than before, still beautiful

On skates

Even though spring is still a few degrees C away, the snow has melted and the pavement is dry enough to start practicing ... roller skating! Emma used her new wheels for the first time. I think the ice skating has helped to get started, because after half an hour, she was rolling on her own.
Her she goes, by herself!