Maastricht, Netherlands

We loved this little town in the Netherlands, about 1 hour from our house. We took a day trip here and enjoyed it like we had Aachen a few weeks before - by wandering and browsing and finding snacks along the way! We will try to make it back again (hopefully with visitors) because there are a couple of good museums and other worthwhile sites to see.

The Helpoort Gate, from Medieval times - apparently the oldest surviving town gate in Holland

Main square

I love street views like this

St. Servaasbrug bridge, from ~1280

View across the river

Griffin was a little more into the cannons than Ethan

Ethan Turns 10!

The blog title just about says it all! Our first baby hit double digits! The actual day of his birthday was during the week, but they happened to have the day off school for some holiday, so I took the boys to a small local amusement park on a beautiful day. Then Ethan had his friend party at an indoor soccer center with 8 of his (very nice) school friends. From friends & family he got tons of books, NBA gear, and treats from the States that you can't get here (Life cereal, Rice Krispie treats).






About a week after school let out we went to this great park about 30 minutes from us that we hadn't been to before, Gruggapark. It had multiple play areas for all ages, tons of beautiful green space, and garden paths that the boys loved exploring. June was a pretty fantastic month!

Grandma Hopson sent these cool, personalized aprons for the boys. Ethan will help in the kitchen occasionally, but Griffin really likes to help me bake and cut vegetables.

Aachen, Germany

We've been to a lot of places since our last post in May, including a great visit home to Michigan. I'll start where we left off, at the end of May, when we took a day trip to Aachen, Germany, less than an hour away. Aachen was actually a Roman city and grew mainly during the time of Charlemagne in the 8th century. When Charlemagne was crowned emperor, Aachen was the capital of the Holy Roman Empire.

We spent a really low-key day here in beautiful sunny weather, mostly walking the city, eating dinner & ice cream, and popping into the Cathedral and the Rathaus (town hall).

Front view of the cathedral

Back view

Inside

Horse statue beckoning you into the restaurant

View of Griffin on the Rathaus stairs

View from the Rathaus

Strange, movable doll sculpture

I liked this statue, but I also happened to get that couple in the background - aren't they cute :-)