Enjoying the Tulips, the windmills, the Rembrandts...

Well, I've been storing up "entries" in my mind over this busy summer, and I still find myself so far behind! How does that happen? At some point I'll still go back and put them in, if for no one else, for my mom and for myself. :) I decided to start fresh, though, right where we are. We're on vacation!!

We are in Texas right now, visiting my dad (Grandpa to Matthew and Maddie), and we're having a great time. Matthew has been enthralled with the wildlife (complete with blue herons, egrets, deer, a turtle, some ducks and geese - including ducklings. We looked hard for alligators during our drive through southern Louisiana, especially the Creole Nature Trail, but didn't see any. It was a beautiful drive anyway, especially after the craziness that is New Orleans. We spent two nights in New Orleans, and the high lights were swimming in the hotel pool and eating at Bubba Gump's. Sad, I know. Little did we know that they would be celebrating Bastille Day on the second (and main) day of our visit, so after a quick stroll around Jackson Square and a beignet at Cafe Du Monde, we retreated to safer ground and drove a scenic route through some fishing villages. We saw some CNN clips of the Bastille Day festivities and were glad we followed our instincts. :)

We've been in Texas since Sunday evening. Yesterday Dad took us out on his boat, and BOTH kids went tubing and LOVED it... so much so that they are both asking to go again before we leave! We tried to go swimming first, but the pool was closed, so after an impromptu feeding of the ducks, Dad asked if we wanted to go out on the boat, and we didn't hesitate to take him up on the offer.

Today we went to Johnson Space Center in Houston, and we had such a great time! We saw some really cool movies and did some interactive attractions... we learned a lot and had a lot of fun! They had the biggest kids play area (climbing, slides, etc) that I'd ever seen, and Maddie spent some time in there while the boys were "experiencing" a Blast Off (supposedly). Our favorite activities included the tram ride that takes you on a tour of the working areas of the space center. We were able to see the area where the astronauts and engineers train and test using mock-ups of the various components. VERY cool. We also really enjoyed a presentation called "Life in Space". The highlight for me was at the end of the day when we did their "Indiana Jones" themed mini-version of Sky Hike (a ropes course). Matthew and Maddie did so great, and the best part was how proud of themselves they were when they were finished. It was scary, and tough -- I was intimidated a couple of times myself, but they never gave up.

So if you're confused about my title, it's from "Welcome to Holland". Today I realized once again that one thing I'm so thankful for on this journey is my heightened sense of appreciation for what BOTH of my kids do and say. To see Matthew get off that ropes course grinning from ear to ear and say "I did soooo awesome!!" made ME grin ear to ear. To see Maddie nearly in tears at one point on the course and then to hear her say at the bottom "Let's do it AGAIN!! made me swell with pride for her. The fact that Matthew wants to tube again, and go a little faster this time, is an accomplishment few people can grasp the significance of... but I've been given that gift of being one of those people , and it's one of those things that makes Holland such a beautiful place... a place that I'm no longer trying to escape... but instead one that I find myself enjoying more and more as I enjoy the tulips and look for those beautiful windmills that are waiting just around the bend...