Fair Family Fun

It's that time of the year again when the kids have 2 weeks off school (I heard that this is the last year it'll be two weeks, only one from now on?) and the string of events/national holidays is endless. There's Queen's Day on April 30th, Rememberance Day on May 4th, Liberation Day on May 5th, Mother's Day on May 8th, Ascension Day on June 2nd, Pentacost on June 12th&13th, and finally Father's Day on June 19th. Traditionally each year Den Haag hosts a big Fun Fair called the Koninginnedag Kermis which lasts the entire school vacation (April 25th - May 8th). It's also a special time for Sander and I since the first time we met was April 28th, 2000. To celebrate, Sander found us a babysitter and we had a lovely evening strolling down the fair.

The next day, when Sander was back at work, I loaded the kids in The Beast and met up with Liz&Jim, Jolanda&Devon and Terry&George (who were visiting from the UK) at the Kermis. Main reason: Liz and I have a yearly tradition to go on the scariest ride in the fair. This year was the same as last so we knew what to expect. It's basically this huge robotic arm with 4 seats at either end of it that are able to do a full 360 flip, and the arm then spins and spins and spins at ludicrous speeds. 

Doesnt look too bad you say? Did I mention the thing is sky-scraper tall? And that we were left dangling at the very top for a good 2-3 minutes waiting for other people to get on, while tilted to face the ground far, far below us? Check us out:

We screamed so much our throats were sore, it was the best. Leave it to me to somehow sustain some sort of leg injury while sitting in a machine that spins me around. It gave me leg cramps and I had trouble walking for days...  (insert your age-related joke here). More fun is yet to come as we prepare for dinner with Lauren Sharp and her parents tonight (she was a missionary in our ward for a loooong time), a sleepover for Julia at Oma Marianne's from Friday thru Sunday, Laura Prosman coming to spend the night with us tomorrow, Graciella's Birthday Barbecue in the park, and a day at the Efteling for Mother's Day with Sander's entire family. We just never stop here at the Koot residence!