The Netherlands.

The Netherlands is where our little family began. The boys were born there. We bought our first home there. Holland was the backdrop of our lives for a decade, so ending the trip here felt like going home…before going home.

Cycling, canals, visiting our old hangouts, and catching up with old friends truly felt like a homecoming. The city of Utrecht, where we lived, has gotten even more navigable and beautiful.

Holland was a cinch. We didn’t need any maps or reference guides. We even still had the Dutch train apps on our phones. The Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam was the BEST museum for kids, with an age-appropriate scavenger hunt (for prizes!), and clever questions to help them see more closely.

We snuck in a short visit to London to see friends, then returned to the Utrecht for the last week of our trip.

What a year we had.