Ninth Day of Ridvan...

Here are some photos of Enna-Marie and her friends taken on the Ninth Day of Ridvan in the gardens of the Shrine of the Bab:

before the programme starts with Nadim, Negar and Munis

hiding...

behaving well during the programme...

wants to walk now...

her friend Layla...

here with Shiori...

with Nadia and Alisha

family photo

Friends visiting...

Enna-Marie and Maarten with Vincent Afnan-Murray in the Bahji Visitor's Center. He is visiting the Holy Land with his wife Manijeh.
Nabil Ramirez is in town, he and his mom Mrs. Ramirez paid a short visit yesterday.
Nabil Beers and his wife were recently here for pilgrimage. Nabil used to serve at the World Centre, he was also Menchie's guitar teacher.

Pictures for Auntie Melonna...

"Nguso" is the Filipino word for what Enna-Marie is doing in these two pictures... When a typical Filipino is asked where something is, for example, where is such and such a street, he might point to it with his mouth and nose instead of using hands or just telling you...

As auntie Melonna is particularly fond of Enna-Marie's nguso, and as she is leaving the World Centre soon, these two pictures are specially for her :)!

Mother Goose Class with Oma...

We brought Oma to our Mother Goose class yesterday, we all had fun!

she joined us in the singing as well...

it was just a small group...

we welcomed Rumi and mommy Minoo in their first mother goose class
Shiori happily dropped Humpty dumpty on the floor...

Happy Ridvan!

"Arise, and proclaim unto the entire creation the tidings that He Who is the All-Merciful hath directed His steps towards the Ridvan and entered it. Guide, then, the people unto the garden of delight which God hath made the Throne of His Paradise. We have chosen thee to be our most mighty Trumpet, whose blast is to signalize the resurrection of all mankind." ~ Bahá’u’lláh

Having some drinks at the Ridvan Celebration in Bahji

Oma is also tall eh!

Saying hello to my friend Melody

Nice family photo

Enjoying the walk with Papa and Oma

Excited...!

and happy...! Thanks to Auntie Leila for sharing these two photos with us.

close-up shot

Oma is here...

Here are some photos with Oma Ineke:


Watering the plants together...

Just relaxing...

...and enjoying the warm weather

Another Holy Places Visit

Here are some photos of our staff visit to the former Western Pilgrim House at no. 4 Haparsim and the House of the Master.

In the garden at the Western Pilgrim House

The former Western Pilgrim House behind us...

This is Haparsim (Persian) Street. 'Abdu'l-Bahá walked and rode a donkey here in the early times.

The entrance to the Master's House. Enna-Marie is enjoying the warmth of the April sun...

What a bounty to be visiting this Holy Place with our dear daughter.

Family photo before we leave.

Mom's Gathering at Home...

Today some of the mothers with young children came to our house to watch the BBC series "Child of Our Time". This project started in 2000 and is recording the story of the lives of 25 babies born around the millenium, and who represent the widest possible range of genetic, social, geographical and ethnic backgrounds. It will take 20 years for this project to complete and during this time, experts will conduct numerous series of experiments.

We started watching the first episode which is about the introduction of the families and birth of the babies.

Enna-Marie with friends Lillian, Sheehan and Rumi

babies being entertained by their moms just for this photo to be taken

group photo with our happy faces (L-R: Menchie, Cllyv, Sheehan, Enna-Marie, Minoo and Rumi, Tiffani and Brennan, Selvi and Lillian, Carole and Naim)

Easter in the Philippines...

Last weekend was Easter in the Philippines... Easter is part of Holy Week. It is like a Christmas atmosphere. It's a time for family reunion. Some people take days off just to visit their families and relatives. Holy Thursday and Good Friday are holidays in this country where 80 percent of the population is Catholic. Easter traditions in the Philippines are focused on faith. Following the Stations of the Cross is among the rituals observed. The stations of the cross are 14 prayers said before a series of 14 images representing Jesus' path to his crucifixion and death. On Thursday people go and visit the church, they begin to meditate on this day. On Friday, the Passion play is re-enacted. In rural areas, some people use crowns of thorns and are beaten or "crucified" to show their devotion to Christ. It's crazy but it's true. This is not common though in the cities.

In my family, we are all Baha'is, and as such we don't participate in the Holy Week observance. But some non-Baha'i relatives do and also my friends and their families. One custom Filipinos do is the Easter egg hunt, the Americans influenced us with this. Some stores offer or sell sweets and goodies that come with an Easter Egg Hunt and Easter baskets. And the kids love these...See photos below of the Easter goodies.

More photos with George & Ria...

with Mrs. Ramirez

happy couple with Enna-Marie

picture with Oom George, we're both half Dutch!

the Dutchamacallit group photo...

Family Schoot with the Costants, when can I have a playmate oom and tante??

Persian dishes that Maarten prepared for all of us (10 points for you sweets!)...and yes they're yummy!

Upcoming Visits...

This month our dear Mama Ineke is coming for a visit. She came last year when Enna-Marie was just one month old. She has been following Enna-Marie's development through our blog, opens it regularly and always excited to see some pictures and updates about her grand-daughter. Now that Enna-Marie has grown so much in the last year, she is definitely excited to see her again. Here are two old photos of her and baby Enna...

















And guess who else are visiting the Holy Land soon?? see some more old photos...

the three little ones

uncle Santana with Enna-Marie and Rocco

two daddies (Santana & Shingo) with their babies (Rocco & Shiori) ready to go for a walk...








Yes our friends Evelin, Santana and Rocco Villa are coming in May for a three day visit, and we look forward to having them stay with us. The last time we saw Evelin and Rocco was during the July-August war of last year, and Santana came back after some months then. We are excited to see you guys!

Here's a recent picture of Rocco with mommy Evelin: