maandag 22 augustus 2011

Bike Ride

Today I took my bike out for a bike ride, together with my hubby. The sun was shining, and I was inspired! It amazes me what a little bit of sunshine does for good spirits. The gloomy weather has kept me in a funk for sure.

This area is filled with so called Rustpunten, or Restingplaces, where you can park your bike, have a cup of coffee or tea and admire someones garden. We stopped at Theetuin "ons joppe". This particular Rustpunt also had a tiny little store, not much more than a shed actually, which sold all kinds of odds and ends. And the garden was simply gorgeous. My pictures of it have disappeared, much to my dismay. But we did take home some plants.

After wandering around the garden we biked on to a new project that a friend of ours is working on. A vineyard, no less!! Landgoed Morren (Took a picture of that little castle as well, and it too disappeared)
Ended up our trip with a cup of coffee accompanied by the men at the next table loudly gossiping about everyone that they knew in the neighborhood. Oh, the village life......

32 kilometers later, we came home. It was a good day!

zondag 21 augustus 2011

What I'm reading

So I'm reading a ton of books right now, and most of them are somewhat intelligent.

Bedoeld Leven, otherwise known as Living a purposeful life: Written especially for women. Hoping to gain some insight out of this. As a life-long struggle seems to be a lack of purpose.

Disappointment with God: Because I am and maybe this will help me deal with it. My dad is a huge Philip Yancey fan. He bought this one when in India on one of his trips to give as gifts here in Holland. I claimed this one for myself.

De Bevrijder, otherwise known as The Bondage Breaker: Herman and I will be doing some counseling type things in the coming weeks, based on this book. Good look into the spiritual world and how I, as a Christian, can deal with it.

The Brain that Changes Itself: Another one of my Dad's. Fascinating look into the plasticity of the human brain through readable case studies.

Walking from East to West: A biography about someone I should know but don't. Glimpse into life in India and his conversion to christianity.

The Mind's Eye: Love me some Oliver Sacks! He always manages to make medical issues come to life. Another one of my Dads favorite authors.

Made to Crave: This one is getting a lot of my attention. The subtitle is satisfying your deepest desire with God, not food. I've read the book, am reading the guidebook, and am watching the video. Here's a one liner from her "If I feel lonely, unhappy and sad in my bigger pair of jeans, I can still feel lonely, unhappy and sad in my smaller pair of jeans".
Today I figured out one of my triggers, why I give in to my food cravings. It's the damaging thought "het maakt toch niets uit" or "it won't make a difference anyway". Which bring me back to the whole disappointed in God thing.

What are you reading, and why?





zaterdag 6 augustus 2011

Birthday

I turned forty this week, and these bicycle bags were my absolute favorite present. This picture was taken with my other present, my little red olympus, with which I hope to record more pretty pictures to post on this blog. These bicycle bags  are actually picnic bags. They have four wine glasses, plates and cutlery on one side and a freezer bag on the other side. Wonderful for taking spontaneous bike rides with a drink and a bite or two! My sister bought them for me in the hopes that they would help motivate me to do fun things. I hope to do so....