Into The Woods

It is strange being alone in the house all day on the days Megan is in school- today is especially strange- they are having a teacher celebration day, so Megan doesn't come home for lunch today like she normally does. I look forward to our lunches together, it gives us time to talk about her morning (which is normally forgotten by the time school is out in the afternoon) and it gives us a chance to start the day over again on those days where the morning was unpleasant (which has been frequent over the last few weeks).



So I sat, sipping my coffee and eating some kind of spicy chicken soup (heavy with cumin and yogurt) and decided I need to sit down and catch everyone up on what's been happening the last 10 days. The weather has been so nice that I have just neglected blogging, and instead was out experiencing! This week should give me a chance to catch up- it rained most of the day yesterday, and has been pouring all day so far again. The camera should get a well-deserved rest for a few days.

The Woods
Heemstede has the most beautiful wooded public park I have ever seen. Since discovering how close and gorgeous it is I have hardly left, and Megan is falling in love with it, too. There is a stillness there you cannot find in Houston, and it has the advantage of not being infested with mosquitoes. In the hours I have walked there alone and with Megan I feel my creativity and spirit recharging, and a sudden re-belief in fairies.



There is a section of the park where dogs are permitted to run unleashed, and you all will be seeing much more of it in the weeks and months to come. There is a main pathway that is as wide as a neighborhood street, lined both sides with wonderfully tall trees that interlock branches stories above the path- it has a very cathedral feel.



Even Kip is not immune to the effects of the woods, his inner Boy Scout stretched his legs on Saturday as we made our way through the forest to the local pancake house, and Sunday as we gathered some fallen leaves, twigs and pinecones for Megan to get crafty with at home.



I Scream, You Scream, We ALL Scream For Pancakes!
I may have mentioned in the Harvest Festival entry about how Dutch pancakes are addictively delicious. That was just from the small taste I had at an outdoor festival. On Saturday we made our way to the pancake house, and let me tell you... there is only one phrase to describe the experience: hartstikke lekker. (Awesomely-absolutely-rediculously delicious in Dutch, bascially.)




(By the way, we didn't actually let her eat the entire bowl of powdered sugar.)

More soon, I promise... I am editing and uploading photos like crazy for y'all!