Last Thursday we excitedly packed our suitcases into the car, the sun was already shining, bringing with it promises of an awesome couple of days. We were heading off to Holland to attend the wedding of the year and visit dear friends and family, perfect I hear you cry! The plane journey passed without a worry and before we could blink we’d touched down in Amsterdam. Glorious sunshine met us as the plane door opened and we relished that holiday feeling.

5 minutes into the car journey there were signs of trouble in paradise. Yes my lovely followers we had brought the tummy bug with us. A heavy night of vomiting and “melty poo” as Littlelish fondly calls it, followed. By 6am the following morning we were traipsing to the emergency doctors. Poor little mite couldn’t keep anything down, she was floppy, weak and miserable.  She was rushed to hospital where they took blood from her several times (attempt 1 (fail) in arm, attempt 2 (fail) in other arm, attempt 3 (successful) in hand plus from her finger tips 3 times! Bless) before giving her fluids through a tube in her nose (awful!). It was honestly one of the worst days of my life. Daddylish and I reassured her everything was going to be ok but the way she looked at us as if to say “Why are you letting them do this to me”? was truly heartbreaking. We tried our very hardest to stay strong for her, I even tried to take her away from the hospital room by talking her through a visualisation which actually worked really well. We weren’t in the hospital having every last bit of blood squeezed from our finger, we were in our sunny garden, picking buttercups and hunting for ladybirds… if only. Littlelish has a fantastic imagination and she was momentarily transported which it made it a little more bearable.  She spent the rest of the day sleeping in her hospital bed with Daddylish and I watching over her nervously. Once her sugar levels were stable and she was rehydrated (9pm) we were free to go. We breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Littlelish bounced back at record speed and by the next morning she was bright enough for us to attempt the wedding…. and what a wedding! Bright sunshine, picturesque church on a hill, beautiful shining bride, ultra cool groom, cute flowergirls throwing petals (Littlelishs very important job), gospel choir belting out “if I ain’t got you”. Then back to an outdoor festival themed party in the most stunning garden complete with open air dance floor, outside food areas where you could pick up your own homemade pizza or wok creation, chill out area with bean bags and hammocks. It was a perfectly cool wedding where every last detail had been thought out with style. We enjoyed the informality and despite our set back the previous day we had lots of fun celebrating!

The next day it was time to catch up with friends. By this time Daddylish had fallen ill and was bedridden so Littlelish and I ventured off to the famous Vondelpark on bikes with our friends and their children. We picnicked in the sunshine, we blew bubbles, we used a magnifying glass to write the children’s names in wood. We soaked up Amsterdam’s unique cosmopolitan, relaxed, creative vibe. The evening was spent sharing a glass of wine and a pizza with some more close friends. The perfect end to a perfect summers day.

So really a weekend of two halves, on one hand it was amazing to be at the wedding of the year, soak up the Amsterdam vibe, spend time with friends and family but we could have done without the detour to the hospital and Daddlylish being in bed ill all weekend…. and now to top it all off. Yup you’ve guess it, hellooooooo tummy bug.