Our visit to Holland...

This past weekend we drove to a lovely little town in Germany called Braunschweig. This is an area that Brock spent six months of his mission in. We got to stay with the Jobs family who are absolutely the most kind, loving, and practically perfect family! They had the most adorable kids and we just loved spending time with them. While we were there they took us to one of the coolest places we have ever been. It was a windmill park! There were giant windmills from all over the world in this one place. It was so beautiful! This was definitely one of our favorite places we have been this summer. We truly felt like we had stepped into Holland. The funny thing is that there were bus loads of people there from Holland because it is so rare to have this many windmills all in one place and they wanted to see it.

Us with the cute Jobs kids. The little one right in front of me held my hand all day and was reluctant to let go for pictures- it was really cute.

This is from the inside of the windmill looking up. It was so cool to be able to go inside all of them and walk up to the top.

This is the Spanish windmill.

This windmill is from Greece.

These are the water mills.

We were told it brings good luck to kiss across these tables so of course we wouldn't pass up a chance for some love and luck!

There is also a sentimental reason that the windmill park was so special to me. My mom absolutely loves windmills and tulips and anything about Holland. The reason is that when my cute sister Jayclyn was born with Downs Syndrome it was quite a shock for our family and especially my mom. This story called "Welcome to Holland" brought her great comfort throughout the many difficulties that come with raising a child with a disability.

WELCOME TO HOLLAND
by Emily Perl Kingsley

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this...

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome To Holland".

"Holland?!?" you say, "What do you mean "Holland"??? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy"

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around…and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills...Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy...and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned".

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away...because the loss of that dream is a very significant loss.

But...if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things...about Holland.

We are so grateful to have Jayclyn in our family and windmills are one sentimental reminder of the great blessing she is in our lives! Love you Jay!