Off to Summer Camp

All three of our children are off to summer camp. They stay at the island of Schiermonnikoog, one of the Waddensea Islands north of the Dutch provinces of Friesland and Groningen.
Robin, Sosha and Pasalle love to go there and they were really looking forward to meeting their friends again. They go to this Christian youth camp each year - which gives us time to do some projects in our house and spend some time together with 'just the two of us'.
Pics - Robin (16) is relaxed as always. He is looking forward to playing on his electric guitar with his friends... Sosha (14) never has a problem to 'fit in' - she will especially enjoy all the sports and games activities... It's easy to see that Pascalle (11) is very excited too - she was immediately reunited with a friend she got to know last year. She is a sensitive girl and the look in her eyes (picture above) tells you that she has some mixed emotions about leaving home for a week.


We are happy for them, but of course we can't wait to have them back home next Saturday!

Robin,
Sosha and
Pascalle

Baby Safe for Baby Dumping

Please take some time to read this article on Floyd & Sally McClung's blog. Thank you.

Sosha was baptised last Sunday!

Last Sunday our daughter Sosha (13) was baptised in our church. It was a great day for our family and we are all so proud of Sosha's personal decision and her public testimony of faith in Christ!

Just wanted to share this with you... I did try to upload a video clip here, but I'm afraid the file was too big. But believe me, it was great to watch the testimony of our daughter and the baptisms of 17 other brothers and sisters in Christ!

When did we unlearn to have some childish fun?

Hello again! Now you can also read the interesting answers to the 5 meme questions that I've asked my blog pals Luis and Jonboy - but don't forget to come back here, because I have something to share with you as well!

By the way, Carol is just too busy right now, but I will click on her name every day until she stops painting and starts answering my meme (I'm just kidding Carol, take your time!)

Now back to the initial idea of this very original post. What am I talking about? I liked one of Luis' answers so much that I decided to quote him and write this special blog entry. Are you ready? This is the quotation:

When being with my children I learn again I should laugh and smile much more.

Amen, brother Luis! Kids can make you laugh and if I look at them playing and having some uncomplicated fun, I sometimes ask myself: when did I UNLEARN to behave like that?

Do you know Adrian Plass' View from a Bouncy Castle story? Please take my advice: if you see a book written by Adrian Plass - grab it and read! (And don't forget to pay for it, because publishers and authors need to pay their rent too). Enough said. Let's quote Plass in order to convince you that you must buy and read all his books and please drop me a line in the comments segment to let me know what you think.

Many a frustrated half-hour had I spent watching my offspring ricocheting wildly around on their inflated playground, while I smiled benignly, concealing my fierce inner desire to join them. Always I was thwarted by the unrelenting presence of the proprietor, usually smoking one of those eternally dangling cigarettes, and occasionally coming out with professional phrases such as: 'Nobody over eight!' or 'This lot off - that lot on!'
The contrast between the dispassionate tone of these utterances and the tumbling joy of the kids used to depress me somewhat.
Now, for the first time, it was possible for fifteen years of frustration simply to disappear as I indulged my deep-felt need.
I have to confess that it took me a while to shake off my dignity and my shoes, but once I did it was wonderful. What the children thought about 18 stone of middle-aged man bouncing crazily from one side of their paradise to the other, I don't know. I wasn't too concerned at the time.

From View from a Bouncy Castle - Adrian Plass.