Last day in Amsterdam - Zandvoort Beach & Haarlem

Since we were able to see all of the sites we wanted to experience and visit during our time in Amsterdam, we decided to take a day trip on our last day to visit a small beach town called Zandvoort on the coast of the North Sea. We also stopped off in Haarlem, a cute, well-preserved suburb of Amsterdam. It was a gorgeous sunny day and we had a blast exploring these new places!

Amsterdam pics from Thursday- we LOVE this city! : )

Pretty Dutch bikes

I love my silly husband!

The Red Light District

Sunny day at the Artis Zoo

Biking in Vondelpark

Day 4 in Amsterdam....I'm a little behind w/blogging!

Being on vacation ROCKS - not only because I feel more relaxed and carefree than I have in months, but because I've been living in the moment, soaking up all the amazing sites and culture of Amsterdam, enjoying lots of QT with David and my friend Torrey, and just living LIFE w/o stress or worries! So therefore I've been much more interested in having fun, taking pictures, seeing the sites, eating yummy food, and enjoying every minute of my European adventure.

Today we went to the Artis Zoo here in Amsterdam, which was awesome! We saw so many cool species that I've never seen at zoo's in the USA. We also explored more of the city by tram, went shopping at a cute maternity store called Noppies, one of the top producers of quality maternity clothes in Europe, and now we're chillin in our B&B "The Collector" waiting to head out for dinner.

Ahhh I just love Amsterdam...this city makes me smile!! : )

Amsterdam Highlights!

Belgium - Brugge, Brussels & Train Rides

We landed in Amsterdam in the early evening on Thursday, May 21st after a long yet smooth day of air travel. After settling into our friend Torrey & Dave's apartment, we walked to a local yummy Thai restaurant for dinner. We left the next morning for our train ride to Brugge....so our initial stay in Amsterdam was quite short! But starting our European adventure with a train ride through the Dutch/Flemish countryside was fine by me. : ) We made it to Brugge in the late afternoon on Friday, just in time to check-in to our AMAZING B&B called I-Room. We were greeted with wonderful hospitality and got settled into our cozy, private room with a Garden view. And the breakfast in our room was so traditional and tasty! In short, our weekend in Brugge included lots of sight-seeing, picture taking, window shopping, sandwich eating, chocolate sampling, Belgian beer tasting (I had non-alcoholic, don't worry), canal cruising, swan watching, and waffle eating. : )





Today on our way back to Amsterdam, we stopped in Brussels to check out the town and eat lunch. While it could not compare to Brugge, it was unique and picturesque in it's own right, and we got to taste more delicious Belgian chocolates...yum! Oh, and who can forget the Manneken Pis, aka the fountain of "The Little Man Piss".




More pics and stories to come from the rest of our time in Amsterdam! Tomorrow we're going to check out the Albert Cuyp market, possibly head up to the Center Canal Ring for some shopping, wandering, and picture taking, and have a yummy meal at Torrey & Dave's favorite local Indonesian place. Fun!

And We're OFF! : )

After months and months of planning and waiting, we leave TONIGHT for Amsterdam! We're staying with our friends Torrey & Dave when we arrive tomorrow evening, then the 4 of us are taking a train trip to Brugge, Belgium for the weekend!
Then we'll have 6 more nights in Amsterdam once we return, including 4 nights on our own at The Collector Bed & Breakfast. I am so excited! We'll be taking the laptop with us, so I'll try to post a few blogs here and there with some of my fave pics along the way. We'll be back on Saturday, May 30th.

My weekend involved....

...quality time with my favorite ladies,

and my favorite kitties! : )


And a new hair cut & color!

This Summer girl loves Summer time!

Yes, I'm a summer girl at heart. Summer is my favorite season, hands down. The warm weather, longer days w/more sunlight, a slower pace of life and work, bbq's and street fairs, swimming and sunshine....who doesn't love summer!? I also have so many amazing childhood memories tied to my summers growing up in Manteca. My sister Leah and I had so much fun playing outside in our kiddie pool, riding bikes, going to the river with Dad, regular family camping trips, and just enjoying the long, carefree days of our youth.



So even though summers as an adult aren't quite as care-free as they were back then, I still feel so much more alive and happy during these summer months. And even though it isn't "officially" summer quite yet, you could have fooled me with the beautiful weather this weekend. Yesterday I had a great brunch date with my dear friend Dani, followed by a warm, relaxing walk along Alameda Beach.



Then yesterday afternoon David and I headed out to San Mateo for a visit with Mom, Dad, Leah, Lukasz, & Hayden. It was HOT out in San Mateo, but that didn't stop us from having a great time catching up. And little Miss Hayden stayed cool by playing with the hose and her water tray. What a great day! : )