Spending Time with our Dutch Family

It was so nice for Rachel to spend time with her Great Grand Parents! We weren't sure if it was Great Opa and Great Oma (?) or what, but either way, Rachel had a wonderful time getting to know them and showing off her new walking skills!

Opa and Great Oma take Rachel for a walk...

Silly Great Opa! He made Rachel laugh constantly!!!

Rachel and her Aunt Ellis. They had a good time together, especially when she babysat Rachel one night at the cottage while the rest of the family went to a soccer match and mommy went out with her friends.

Rachel being passed to her Great Opa at the table...

Great Opa and Oma cutting a pretty cake in the honor of their 60th wedding anniversary and the fact that both the Dutch and American family members were there! The two flags symbolized that and it was a truly delicious cake!

Baarle-Nassau & Baarle-Hertog

After leaving Leiden, we arrived in Baarle-Nassau. It is a town that is on the border of Belgium and has its own town named Baarle-Hertog. Below is a picture of the sign as you enter the town showing the respective flag next to each city name.

We stayed in a cottage while in Baarle-Nassau and this is the drive to get to it. It was in the woods and absolutely beautiful!

When we arrived, some of our family was waiting there to greet us and to meet Rachel. Aunt Ellis made Rachel this adorable, very dutch Build-A-Bear. She loves it!!!
Below are some pictures of the cottage. It was so nice inside with a large kitchen and table, three bedrooms and lots of space for Rachel to play in the living room. Outside was a beautiful garden, a storage hut for bikes, a pond and gorgeous landscaping.


This is a view of the downtown area.
Here we are with my Dad (Rachel's Opa) where the two countries border. You can see the line signifying the separation. Here, they are in the Netherlands... Crossing into Belgium...

Now they are in Belgium!
Rachel seemed extremely excited to have visited two countries in such a short time!