Nice to have my family from the Philippines visit us this spring. My brother and family started their European tour with us. It was really special to be with my nephew and nieces who are visiting Europe for the first time. Whenever I visit the Philippines every year, I am always surprised how much they have grown. I used to babysit a lot these kids and would even drag them along my friends' children's parties. And now they are just so grown up. Despite the age difference, my daughter bonded very well with them.
My cousins from the U.S. also visited us for a week together with a friend who is now based in Finland. We used to hang out a lot when I was based in Boston. It was nice to catch up and goofy around.
I had several "mommy" night outs as well with my friends here in the Netherlands. These are the girls I met while learning the Dutch language. We (8 of us) shared our struggle with the language, finding our way in this flatland, the Dutch culture and just re-establishing our own career. We even all had the same driving instructor! As soon as they learned about my brother's death, the girls just immediately planned to see me. Sometimes it is very difficult to even find time to be all together with work, kids and family. But yes, we try to manage to find time to have a mommy day off or plan some kids playdate. This network of mommy friends has also been my support group especially whenever we need some help in babysitting.
In two weeks time, we're expecting another family visit, this time all the way from Australia.
