"Ilja growing up ("peutertje 1 to 2)" by Pavlik_NL

Across the street and the field in front of our house, is such a nice playground. My mom' often takes me there or to the even bigger playground at the children's farm (also very near). Especialy the slide is THE item that I love. Okay, once I went off from the wrong side and I absolutely didn't like that, but now I know better and can't get enough of it. When dad is there too, he has to come with me. He's always doing all the weird things.

The summer starts already in March, when the sun shows itself a lot and the temperatures are quickly rising. There's a small at the end of April and in beginning of May, but ... Ilja's paradise is outside and with the sunhine in summer 2003 it just can't make him stop laughing and being sunshine himself. In the garden daddy has installed my swing and when it's really hot he takes out the rubberboat, inflates it and fills it with water. This way I have my own privat swimmingpool. Mama adds still the Tuesday-swimming-lessons to this and so most of my week is filled with fun.

This picture is made during one of our many travels throughout Europe. In Germany - Aachen, some art project had glued a telephone to a park bench. Reason enough for Ilja to call home and tell that everything is great !

We travel a lot, but we also incvite friends and families to come over to the Netherlands and see as much as there can be seen in the always too short time. Irina's mom comes over for the second time in the summer of 2003. Ssummer, that of course means that we are having fun in the water too, which can be seen as Ilja's favourite element. Here we are splashing around in the "Veluwe"-lake near Harderwijk.

Indoor Ilja recreates with drawing and playing around with his toys. the house is always a huge pile of toys as we still didn;t teach him that after playing with one item, he has to clean it up before starting with the next. His drawing abilities are amazing in the beginning, when he shows a very precise look when he creates his pictures and views of his world.

From daddy to son the airborne-march must be run. This yearly event that commemorates the battle of Arnhem has been walked by myself since I was a teenager and now-a-days I have about twenty-something medailles. It was however for me an emotional moment when I walked this (for me so) important march together with Ilja for the first time. Even more proud I was that he managed to actually 5 out of the 10 kilometres (shortest march) completely himself. He was amazed about all the people and listened carefully to the children's variant that I made up for him about what happened here. Even more proud he was when he eventually got his forst medaille and stepped literally in the footsteps of his father. To everyone he was showing off his medaille.

"Well, daddy, I told you that if you'ld do that, I'ld run off to Mexico"

This asks for a celebration and the 23th of October the house is full of family and some friends. Irina makes a wonderful pie with - of course - two candles and ilja ... Ilja is spoiled with many presents and a lot of attention.