As they say, the third time is a charm, right? So, yes, this was our last visit to the Texel bungalow for a minor renovation, again, like in March, without Jaap. And this time it was a shorter stay, Monday to Thursday (May 6-9), for Astrid and me.
First of all, before even arriving on Texel island, we saw several tulip fields in various stages of bloom, giving us hope that we'd see some up close once at Texel:
[all photos are drive-by captures]
Also, this is the first time I caught 3 of the 5 floating/raft bridges on the North Holland Canal,
of which this is one, while passing by. There are approx. 20 such bridges
in the world and the Netherlands has 5 of them!
In that same area, along the North Holland Canal, are these fabulous thatched houses.
They make the drive one of my favorites of all in this delightful country.
Once at the bungalow, this was the renovation:
Installing a corner cabinet in the kitchen to better utilize the much-needed space!
A father-son team on Texel did the custom-made honors (which we ordered in March).
You can see the before and after on the bottom row above.
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
The main goal was to get cups and glassware off of living-room shelves
and provide empty space in the cabinets for Jaap to fill as he wants.
YAY. Mission accomplished!
That happened on Tuesday morning, the day after we arrived. The rest of the time was all play!
On Monday and Tuesday, as an unexpected plus, Jeroen and Hailey were able to stay over from their weekend with Marissa and Sem, while said M & S returned home for Sem's school. [It's a crazy Dutch system when schools in a district have different vacation times, meaning that if you have kids in 2 different schools, they can have different dates for vacation!!!]
Thus, we had quality time with Jeroen and Hailey, fully utilized, as you see below. The photos speak louder than a thousand words!
Fabulous walks are within walking distance from the bungalow.
And eating out on the beach at Paal 17 is always a must.
When you wait for food, you play games, of course,
for which Jeroen always comes prepared.
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
Hailey's menu choice is almost always a Dutch pannenkoek!
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
Hailey is a certified dare-devil, unafraid of just about anything.
She wants to do it herself, and Papa lets her, because she calculates her chances.
If she thinks she can't do it, she doesn't try.
[video credit: Astrid]
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
I have never seen a father more hands-on than Jeroen.
Or an oma more hands-on than Astrid!
[photo and collage credit: Astrid]
I'm usually watching and praising...and sometimes "contributing."
[Emulating my Mom's field-hockey prowess from Smith/Columbia days back in the late 1930s. HA!]
Once Jeroen and Hailey left on Tuesday afternoon, Astrid and I enjoyed "us" time.
The tulip fields on Texel were still in bloom, as we had hoped,
so we went to see them up close and personal.
And, yes, we enjoyed our daily latte macchiatos and 2 more meals out!
So, 3 times at Texel already in 2024! We have no idea when we'll be back but, for now, our thoughts are 100% on our upcoming 3-week drive to Brittany, France, from May 26-June 14, similar to our 3-week Denmark trip at this time last year.
As brother Nelson would say, onwards and upwards!
