Seeing Animals Close up at ARTIS Zoo

Dann and I both very much enjoy going to a zoo, with or without our children. While in Amsterdam, we decided to check out ARTIS Zoo, which is a fairly large zoo just outside the city centre. There actually is much more than just a zoo in this venue; you can also purchase tickets to the attached Museum or go inside the cafe, planetarium, aquarium (though this was under construction at the time of our visit) or go inside one of their many animal houses like their indoor bird houses or monkey houses. And, to be honest, Dann and I agreed this was the best zoo we have every been to.

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Highland Cows Cupcake Class with Sweet Designs by Jennie

Every month, Amelia and I go to a little cupcake decorating class, which is ran by Sweet Designs by Jennie! These classes follow different themes, many of which are new, and the latest (and current most popular one) is Highland Cows. Amelia and I were very excited by this new theme, as we both love sculpting in fondant and the cute designs were very interesting. We go together as a mother-daughter activity, which is so much fun, and we always end up with a bunch of lovely cakes to bring back home to the rest of our family to enjoy.

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Walking Around the Beautiful Flowers at De Hortus

Dann and I love walking around flower gardens, taking pictures of the different flowers and just hanging out with each other. Botanical gardens feel like such a nice way to slow down, so one afternoon while in Amsterdam, we figured we’d head over to De Hortus, which we saw on our canal tour. This huge botanical garden has a large outdoor area, which is where we started. There are a few different trails and maps for different walks, all featured just inside the entrance. There is also a meeting point for guided tours, which happen during specific events.

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NQ64 Arcade Gaming Bar – Night Life!

We have been known to like an arcade, especially Dann who has actually been ranked in pinball, so after our friend Quang’s birthday party, when he invited a bunch of us to NQ64, we were down to go. Dann and I had not been here before, so we were interested in seeing what they had to offer when it came to arcade machines. The whole exterior looks like a night club, with lots of neon colors, and the inside matches that.

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Panic Room Harlow – Return to the Tomb

This year is the year of Escape Rooms, as each year our children pick something that they want to explore more of. As with most things that start at the start of the year, we have gone all in using the winter days to explore new escape rooms. Previously, we have done the Sherlock Holmes Room at Panic Room Harlow, but we do want to try out their other rooms this year, so went with the Return to the Tomb.

The Return to the Tomb had been re-done, but we didn’t see the last version, so aren’t sure how different it is! At first, we were warned that there would be crawling and some darkness, before our host switched into acting mode and told us all about our exciting adventure. His friend had sent some information to him about a lost tomb, but he is unable to go check it out and his friend has been seemingly missing. We are being sent in to see if we can solve the mysteries of the tomb and find his friend – or at least make it out alive. The escape room does look extremely small at first, and you are given some knee and elbow pads if you want them, before being shut into a room that we all barely fit into.

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