In the car on the way to RTL Boulevard, she has time for me. In a week where she had recordings for The Voice Kids, The Voice of Holland, joined RTL Late Nightand also launched the autumn issue of her own magazine. “And then I’m also going to the U2 concert later, you can’t let that pass by either.”

When I have to leave for work again, I often think: “Máxima and Wendy do this too. And maybe even more often. No whining.”

“That’s sweet of you, but in my life, it’s always either running or standing still. I just had six weeks of vacation during which I really did almost nothing. Yes, that shoot with Marco (Borsato, MM), but that was so much fun, it doesn’t feel like work.”

Marco photographed you for this shoot and chose different archetypes of ‘his’ Wendy.

“Marco thought it would be a fun idea to do the photography himself for this report. He has been photographing for a long time, almost as long as he has been singing, and he is really very good. He portrayed me as his girlfriend Wendy, as Wendy the career woman, Wendy the loving mother, the girl Wendy, and so on. On his site, he wrote a tribute to me that made me blush. It’s very special to have such a dear friendship.”

You want to give something to people with each song, this time it’s about giving and taking. If you had to choose a feature from this Wendy, which one would it be?

“Besides that special shoot with Marco and the interview I got to have with my hero Deepak Chopra, I found the idea of the happiness suitcase very beautiful. It’s an educational method where children are trained in experiencing happiness. They literally look at certain things through a dark and a pink lens and see how you can turn something into a positive. You can see rain as something very annoying, but also think: we’re going to make it cozy inside, play a game, and besides, it’s good for the garden.”

I remember that Erland said in an interview about you that you also invited the little boy who was never invited to a party for Sem’s birthday.

“As parents, we often underestimate the impact our words can have. I remember wise words from my father and mother every day. We are so determining in their image formation. We can say that the bully is a stupid child, but also learn that this child may have been bullied before or is very insecure and therefore exhibits this behavior. We can make our children even better people and also happier people. Happiness can be trained, as this method shows, isn’t that great?”

And now it’s the weekend.

“Yes, nice. They are also very family-oriented with us. Mike (Wendy’s brother and manager, MM) is very careful about that because if you’re not careful, especially with TV, you’re working seven days a week. Sem plays football on Saturday, he’s in the D1 selection, and I’m so glad that he now, he’s 12 now, plays late in the day. Many people find that annoying because your whole day revolves around that football match, but I love it. I believe it’s well known that I don’t like getting up early.”

And Sunday, how does that look?

Then, strangely enough, the alarm goes off early because I do a bikram yoga class. Lizzy has a ‘craft morning’ at my mother’s and I’m going to enjoy some sports. My body and my mind need to be connected. I really have to exercise.”

How often do you exercise then?

“Preferably three times a week but not at the expense of everything. Today I could have squeezed in a yoga class, but I’d rather pick up Lizzy from school and take her to ballet class. That’s more important.”

And what encompasses your ultimate weekend feeling?

“You know what it is? I live very much in the moment. My work schedule has no rhythm at all, it’s different every time, so I often have no idea what day it is. Sometimes that works to my advantage; then I think it’s Tuesday and it’s already Friday, sometimes to my disadvantage.”

And what time does the alarm go off again on Monday?

“Just at 07:00, unless I have recordings for Moordvrouw, then earlier. But that’s no different from the weekend, you know. Lizzy really doesn’t think: now it’s Saturday and I’m going to sleep in.”

WENDY magazine autumn with the theme giving & receiving (which sounds so much cozier than ‘taking’) is now in stores. Besides Marco, you’ll also find Freek (yes, him from Vonk), Waldemar, Sophie, a bunch of GTST VIPs, and a very nice story about what horseback riding does for children with disabilities.