Frohe Ostern!

Happy Easter from Germany!  Our sweet neighbors gave us these Easter treats.  They wanted to make sure we got them before our "journey" (as they say) this weekend.  We will be in Portugal until Thursday!  Hope you all have a great Easter!

Learning Dressage with Santos

Its time for another posting by guest-blogger Colin...

Cara started horseback riding lessons in November.  At her first lesson her instructor Nicole informed her that she was a "natural," and put her on the fast track so she can start riding alone in the pastures of Germany this summer.  Now she is in group lessons with 4 other girls, whose ages range from 6-10.  One fellow student learning with Cara is 7 year old Eileen who greets Cara each class with, "Hallo Cara...How...are....YOU!"  Cara is friends with the other students and her riding partner, Santos.  This is the largest horse we have ever seen.  At first we thought he was too big for a first time rider, but once you meet Santos he is the perfect fit.  His relaxed attitude and aversion to moving swiftly makes him a great fit for a beginner.  Cara even uses the whip at times, but Santos still likes to go at his own pace.   

Cara's riding uniform (purse excluded!)

Continuing a pirouette as Santos begins to cantor

Beautiful wife and a giant horse

Cara and Santos posing.  The helmet is best part of the uniform.

Cara's German instructor barks orders to the other students in Deutsch and then transitions to English for a brief correction of Cara's technique.  Cara is very impressive as a rider and she is now learning much more than just riding.  The owner of the stable originally allowed Cara to show up for the lesson, ride and that was it.  After a couple months of this, Cara was informed that she now has more responsibility for Santos such as cleaning, saddlery and care.  She spends a little more time at LaPrell Stables and I look forward to watching Cara canter this summer in the fields behind our house.

The Keuk!!

Tulip Mania!

Last weekend Colin and I did a Netherlands tour to check out the gorgeous tulips at the Keukenhof.  As we now fondly call it, "the Keuk" is only open for a short window of time every spring to show off the flowers.  We chose this past weekend because there was also an amazing flower parade, with each float displaying a various musical to match this year's theme of "Music on Parade."  Of course, Kleine Maus came along and was quite popular with the throngs of tourists, many of whom snapped photos of her as they were watching the parade.  After the Keuk, we stayed in The Hague and then went to the quaint town of Delft on our way home.  Lots of pics below!

Sound of Music

Do Re Mi Fa So La Te Da!

Alice in Wonderland

Weird Dutch people on the floats... we couldn't resist taking some pics...

Phantom of the Opera

Singing in the Rain

Wicked

There were also a bunch of cars decorated with bouquets of flowers

Even dogs ride bikes in the Netherlands!

 Ready to conquer the Keuk...

Colin thought these were a little too big to buy... ;)

Colin loved this bench... probably could have stayed here with a beer...

The rows of tulip fields looked like a sunset from the distance - very pretty!

We plan to use Trusty for these purposes when she tuckers out.

the Dutch love their windmills!

 

Ok, we got a little bored and decided to try some jumping shots for a laugh...

Lets be honest, there are only so many flower shots you can take....

 

Den Haag 

and Delft - the hometown of that pretty blue and white pottery...

Since Delft was on the way home, we decided to give it a quick whirl.  We were totally surprised to find that Delft is a bit like a mini-Brugges, with canals and charming squares.  We enjoyed just walking through the little town and seeing all the pottery in the windows.  The town is just over 2 hours away, so now its on our list of good day trips for any visitors.  

Although we still need to see a lot more of the Netherlands (Amsterdam, etc), we learned on this little trip that the Netherlands is a nice change from Germany.  We decided it has all the efficiencies of Germany as far as transportation and cleanliness, but gives off a much more free-spirited and inviting vibe.  Obviously we love Germany, but a trip to the Netherlands has a nice relaxing feel that we'll probably have to do more often.  :) 

At this point Lola's dogs were barkin so we had to start carrying her...