JUNE 2021
It took me quite some time to write a new book recommendation post, not because I don’t read anymore because I am a mother now, but because I was let down by some highly anticipated books. I struggled through Sex & Vanity, the new book by Crazy, rich Asians writer Kevin Kwan and was also very disappointed by the widely applauded Ask again, yes by Mary Beth Keane. On this list you will find some typically me recommendations as well as a few unexpected ones. I will end this blog post with a flower picture round-up. As we are fully enjoying the flower season right now I went on lots of mini adventures to take pictures of the flowers. They didn’t always end up on a blogpost so therefore I have gathered them here.
Book recommendations
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee: This book was already published in 2017 and had been on my reading list for quite some time and I only recently got to reading it. This is a Korean family chronicle that spans from about 1930-1990. During this book a Korean family migrates to Japan, where they are treated like outcasts. I found it very interesting to read how they were discriminated against by the Japanese and I learned a lot about the Korean culture. I found it easy to connect to the characters and intensely sympathized with the family and their heartbreak.
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld: You might think: another Hilary Clinton biography? But this is a fiction book about how Hilary’s life could have been had she not married Bill. I went from loving to loathing Bill and loved reading about all of Hilary’s insecurities as well as her political rise. What makes this book really fun is that you already sort of know the characters, sometimes they behave like you expect and other times not at all. At times the book was very humorous and scandalous and it took me along a wild ride.
Sisters first by Jenna Bush: This is a memoir by the daughters of former president Bush: Jenna & Barbara Bush. I always love getting an inside look into the white house and I liked that this book was written from the “kid perspective”. The Bush daughters are only slightly older than I am and I found them surprisingly relatable. They share a very special bond with their father, even though they don’t share his political views. The book left me very jealous that the Bush daughters still have their father for support, but not in a bad way.
The end of her by Shari Lapena: I love everything written by Shari Lapena. She always writes thrilling books with twist and turns. This book is about a couple who are very sleep deprived with twins, when a woman from the husband’s past enters their life telling that he killed his first wife. It is up to the wife to figure out who is telling the truth to keep her babies safe.
Verliefd op Europa by Roell de Ram: If you are looking for travel inspiration for this summer, this is a very nice book with chapters about almost every European country. We are still hoping on an European getaway and this book definitely had some interesting recommendations. I must honestly admit that I preferred Verliefd op Nederland, which Roell released last year. She had very original recommendations for NL of which I have visited several because of her.
The last thing he told me by Laura Dave: This is a book from Reese Witherspoon’s bookclub. It is a thriller in which a husband disappears and leaves his wife Hannah a message “protect her”. Hannah now has to protect her stepdaughter who she does not have a good relationship with. It is best not to know too much before starting this book. I read it in very high speed, though I didn’t love the ending I did love the way the book got there.
De nieuwe rafelrand van Europa by Ivo van de Wijdeven: As always I have included at least one non-fiction informative book. This book describes the history of Great-Britain in the context of its relationship with the EU and explains how the UK got to (Br)exiting the EU. I am very interested in geopolitics and this book is no short of it, I definitely learnt many new things. Let’s keep the rest of Europe united!
Flower pictures
Daffodils: Daffodils are always one of the first bloomers of spring. In the park of GGzE you can yearly find whole stretches of daffodils, always a pretty sight! These daffodils were my first flower photoshoot after giving birth to Hugo, so it is perfect that I can find plenty near my home. This year I decided to generate a color contrast with my dresses and I chose my purple Faithfull the Brand and my pink Kitri Studio dress for the pictures.
These daffodil spots can also be found in my guide to Eindhoven’s blossoms. This year I also visited the daffodil fields of FAM Flower Farm, which had been on my wishlist for quite some time. Definitely great fun and I loved how the pictures turned out. You can read my blogpost about this visit here.
Cherry blossoms
At the end of March I also had my annual trip to the cherry blossom park in Amsterdam/Amstelveen. The soft pastel dress from Tulle & Batiste matched the colors of the park perfectly. I was a bit too early for full bloom, but I wasn’t able to plan it differently with a little baby and due to the popularity of the park during full bloom. After having visited many times I am still able to find new interesting angles to take pictures of the trees.
The super lush version of the cherry blossoms always blooms a little later, and luckily I spotted plenty in Eindhoven. You can also find these in my Eindhoven blossom guide. When we visited Goeree-Overflakkee we also spotted many perfect cherry blossoms, one of my favorite pictures is the one below in the H&M skirt that I was finally able to buy from Vinted.
The most beautiful sighting of cherry blossoms this year goes to Almere where you can find a cherry blossom street. To read about how to get here check out this blogpost. In the picture below I am wearing my pink Chicwish twirling skirt.
Magnolia
Probably my absolute favorite: the magnolia tree. Unfortunately the one in our garden didn’t bloom yet, so I went all over Eindhoven again to spot these beautiful trees! My pink dress is a new favorite by Tulle & Batiste and I bought the blue dress in a boutique in Rome during our honeymoon.
Hyacinths
A new find this year: hyacinth fields. These usually bloom a little bit before the tulips. Jan van der Slot has the most beautiful fields so of course I had to bring a visit. We even were able to take out the drone generating the most colorful images. In the last picture I am wearing the perfect French broderie dress by one of my favorite sustainable fashion labels Pink City Prints.
Tulips
This year was a good year for tulips and as we weren’t able to travel abroad I frequently traveled to the tulip fields instead. During mother’s day we took these pictures in the fields of Jan van der Slot in my Vinted Rove Byron Bay dress.
Another great spot for tulips is Biddinghuizen. In my pics from Biddinghuizen below you can see that we didn’t have the best weather, but I think my yellow sweater by Label and favorite skirt from Chicwish did very well in the pictures.
Huug and I made the national news when we visited the Keukenhof, check out our pictures here! I also wrote a blogpost about cycling in Lisse with my most recent pictures from this area. I also visited tulip fields in Goeree-Overflakkee which you can find in this blogpost. I took some of the pictures that I am most proud of in this area, so I have highlighted a few below. My hot pink dress is another find on Vinted and so is the mint Tulle & Batiste dress from my last picture.
Bluebells
Last year I planned to visit a bluebell (also known as wild hyacinths) forest in the UK, but COVID blocked that plan. This year, COVID got in the way again, but I did discover a bluebell forest in The Hague. It might not have been England, but it was still pretty good. Read all about our experience here. In the picture below I am wearing a linen Faithfull the brand dress, which I got on sale last year.
Wisteria
Due to the late spring weather the wisteria arrived pretty late in the season. Not every wisteria bloomed as abundantly as last year, but I still had some good sights. I had some perfect Faithfull dresses ready for wisteria hysteria. You can read about the best Eindhoven wisteria spots in my blossom guide.
Rapeseed
In the Netherland you can find enormous fields of yellow rapeseed, mainly in the Eastern part but also in Goeree-Overflakkee. You can often spot these fields from the highway, so we made a quick pit stop for some pictures.
Rhododendrons
At the end of May you can usually find enormous walls of rhododendrons. I took some new pictures at my favorite spot in Eindhoven, which you can read about in the earlier mentioned blossom guide. In the picture below I am wearing my ice blue dress from the Caitlin Covington collection of Pink Lily, which I think created a super dreamy contrast with the vibrant pink wall. Another great rhododendron spot is at the Sallandse Heuvelrug, you can read about how to get here in this blogpost.
Wildflowers
Currently we are fully experiencing the wild flower season. Crazily enough, you can find the most beautiful wildflowers on the roadside. In the pictures below I am wearing the same Faithfull dress in the poppies in Veghel. Over the next few weeks we can expect to see many other sorts of wildflowers bloom, so I will for sure keep my eyes open when driving around.
