(Photo Description: The British Lancaster bomber plane flies over Dronten)
Sunday May 1st
Jessica decided she would go swimming instead of walking. Though I knew she wouldn’t be away long, it’s still her free day. So I did my chores, edited last week’s blog and checked out social media.
After lunch, she asked if I wanted to go for a walk on wheels. That’s a question I’ll never say no to. She rolled me through parts of the town which I’ve never really seen before. Through some calm and quiet neighborhoods where people were enjoying their sunday. Eventually we came out onto a road I reconised, as it’s near to where I used to go with my buddies to walk Don and we entered the local woods.
I enjoyed listening to all the sounds as we rolled along. From the sounds of the wheels rolling over the sandy paths, to the sound of birds chirping in the trees. We passed a friend’s house on our way, but they weren’t home. So we rolled further.
When we got home, Jessica checked her watch and realised we had covered a 6 kilometer distance. What a great Sunday walk! And a privilidge to be able to spend time with her on her free day.
Monday May 2nd
The dishwasher wasn’t full enough for me to justify using water to turn it on. It also isn’t smelly, so I moved that chore to tomorrow.
After breakfast I skyped with Dad. He had some nice comments to share with me about a couple of my recent TikToks, which he really enjoyed. Told me about his week and I somehow ended up explaining how video doorbells work. The idea of not needing to move to answer the door really captured his attention.
After lunch I published a blog on Platform Zorg and Hart voor de Zorg and wrote another blog, which I will publish there at a later date.
Before dinner, I checked my social media and was pleased to see that there’s a local coalition agreement which includes the SP. The political party Jessica is a board member of. That’s a tweet worth retweeting!
In the evening while watching YouTube, Jessica and our brother made arrangements for us to celebrate Mother’s Day with Mom. At the time of writing this, Mom thinks she is coming together with our brother to watch the marching bands perform in the town square on Saturday. Which we will do but that’s not the whole truth. We have also planned to show her how dear she is to us with dinner and gifts. Don’t worry! By the time this blog is published, we’ll have already celebrated. No secrets spoiled here!
Tuesday may 3rd
Jessica had to work until 1pm, so I started my day off by doing some simple chores. Stopping to watch a couple youtube videos between each one. Sometimes that’s really hard. In rehab a couple years ago, I was taught to balance my chores out by adding periods of rest in between. Though I’m slowly learning to enjoy watching youtube between each chore, sometimes it’s still tempting to do everything at once. Today though, I succeeded at balancing the chores with the youtube.
Shortly after Jessica got home, she guided me to my medical fitness session. While I was busy working with the gym equipmeant, she went to pick up a few things at the shops.
Today I did leg stretches and knee bending. Worked my hips and back on the leg press and my arms on the handbike. I was also introduced to a balancing exercise. Which I’m not yet good at. But maybe over time I will get better. I enjoyed this fitness session and didn’t get that same sensory overload I had last week. The only difficulty I have, is that I can’t see to get the physio’s attention when he walks away to help someone else. But at the end of the session, we talked about that. He said if I stand up when I am done or if I need help, he’ll see me.
This evening I didn’t fall asleep in the lazy chair. We watched some youtube and a new show on Netflix. It’s called The Irregulars. A group of friends, one of which has visions in her nightmares, are called upon by Doctor Whatson to solve a series of strange and quite disturbing crimes.
Excuse me: but I can’t think of any words to describe this show, other than Bat Shit Crazy! And I love it! If you’re into crime investigation shows with a touch of horror and a twisted story plot, you need to watch this series.
Wednesday May 4th
Memorial Day in the Netherlands.
What I did today,
Or wanted to do,
Is not as important,
As thinkinking of you,
The bold and the brave,
Though you had no real choice,
You fought for our freedom,
You gave us a voice,
You fought for justice,
If you had not have won,
My life as it is,
Would have never begun,
That time is over,
I’m allowed to live,
For that I’m so thankful,
And I have so much to give,
But today there’s still fighting,
New times and new wars,
Once again brave soldiers,
Try to keep peace at our doors,
So many have fallen,
And so many may fall,
Thank you brave heroes,
I will remember you all.
Every year on may 4th, the British Lancaster flies over the Netherlands. The highlight of the day was being able to catch it on camera while it flew over our house.
Thursday May 5th
Liberation Day. A day in which we get to celebrate our freedom. This year with a new look on what freedom really means, as we have spent a majority of the past 2 years in lockdown. This year the freedom festivals once again open their doors so that the Netherlands can celebrate freedom with music once more.
Those festivals are too busy for us but it’s so nice to hear and read about them. Life finally feels like it’s getting back to normal.
Jessica started off her day with swimming. My start was a little slower. With some YouTube and TikTok.
After Jessica got home, we went to the shops to pick up a few things. Although we first stopped at the war monument to pay our respects and look at all the wreaths that had been laid during the memorial service.
Wondering why we were hungry and realising it was already lunch time, we were conveniently approaching the fish shop. They serve hot kibbeling, (chunks of fish in herby batter) so we ordered 2 portions and since they have a couple tables, we sat there to eat it. Freshly fried kibbeling is amazing!
We stopped at a few more shops and picked up some kippie (chicken meals from the chicken shop) before heading home.
Jessica helped me with the laundry. Putting it in and taking it out of the machine, so I could hang it. She also did a couple other chores. Including some weed removal outside of our garden fence. I sat in the yard while she worked, but started to feel like my face might burn from the sun. So went inside again.
We spent the evening watching YouTube and Netflix.
Friday May 6th
There really isn’t a lot to write about today. I did some chores in the morning and spent the rest of the day watching YouTube and TikTok. I needed the relaxing day. I knew I would need my energy for tomorrow. It will be a busy day but hopefully a fun one.
Saturday May 7th
We started our day with some chores. Both Jessica and I had several chores on our lists that needed doing before our visitors arrived.
The doorbell rang shortly after lunch and we were greeted by Mom, our brother and Bailey. Once everyone had drinks and was seated, the mother’s day presents started making their way to Mom. None of them super big or expensive. Just a few simple things that will keep her busy for many long hours.
Before we knew it, it was time for Mom and I to go to the Bevrijdings Taptoe. This is usually held every year in the village on the saturday after Liberation Day. A number of marching/show bands come to perform music in the village square to help us celebrate our freedom.
We left the house in plenty of time to find a good spot where we can stand and see the show. However, it was already very busy. The organisation had placed metal fencing around the square so that the public wouldn’t get in the way of the bands when performing. We always try to stand right against the fencing to get a good view. Mom walked around the square, towards the back so we could stand in the shade. We didn’t get that far though. A security guard was opening the fence to allow wheelchair users from the care home to sit on the other side. He asked if we were from the same care home and let us through before we could answer. Ok… for the next two hours only, I belong with the care home group. It meant we had a good spot where we could see everything and Mom was even given a chair.
The performance from the show bands was fantastic and put us all in a good mood. So nice to be able to celebrate freedom again in a normal way instead of in lockdown.
Jessica and our brother took Bailey for a long walk in the forrest while Mom and I were enjoying the Taptoe. All three of them enjoyed themselves while they were out.
In the evening, Bailey stayed at home while we went out to a restaurant to eat. The food was extremely tasty but the portions were huge. We were all super full and very happy by the time we went home.
It was a great day. I really enjoyed being with the family while celebrating how awesome our Mom is.
Now it’s that time of the week when I go check spelling mistakes and upload the blog. It’s also almost dinner time and all that talk of food has made me hungry! Thanks for reading. Have a great week.
CRS Life 