Mar 25, 2012
Photo 366 challenge – week 12
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We’ve just arrived back from a very last-minute trip down to southern Sweden, which has been totally draining. So I am afraid that this week’s photos are accompanied by very brief captions only.
Day 79:
Little O demonstrates the new way to wear a bib
Day 80:
Reading nook
Day 81:
Wedding day memories found in a magazine
Day 82:
Look, no boots!
Day 83:
Just before attempting "the transfer"
Day 84: No photo this day, I’m afraid.
Day 85:
Now boarding at gate 2
So that has been this week… Head on over to The Boy & Me to check out what others have been up to this week
Mar 22, 2012
Brain drain
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I think the packing up of most of our possessions ahead of the photos being taken for the brochure to sell our apartment is getting to me… I just searched on Google for “home stagging”. Luckily, Google understood what I meant and directed me to sites on home staging, but I think it is a sign that I should take myself off to bed.
Today, I am just so happy that for the past three nights, Baby E has gone seven hours between night feeds – woo hoooooooo! Otherwise I think I would be curled up in a little ball in the corner, rocking backwards and forwards.
Mar 18, 2012
Photo 366 challenge – week 11
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Well, this has certainly been a big week for us. After waiting impatiently all last Sunday, biting my metaphorical nails to the quick, 10.30am on Monday rolled around and Husband and I headed off to the real estate agents to sign the papers – and the deal was done and we bought a new apartment! It’s actually only a couple of blocks from where we lived before, an area of the city that we really love, and so we’re very excited about the move. The place needs some work on it, so we’ll get the electrics, painting and plastering done after we get the keys in July, which means we should be able to move in mid-August. Now, we just have the small task of selling our current apartment…
Day 72:
Exciting times
Day 73:
I'm outta here!
On Tuesday, we checked our what will be our local little park when we move. Little O was less interested in the playground after we discovered that it is a dog walking park. He could not believe his luck, especially when he was taught how to throw a ball for the dogs to fetch. I think we’re going to be spending many happy hours there!
Day 74:
The view from above
Can you spot the difference between this photo and those last week? Yep, no more snowsuit! The weather has improved dramatically and so now we’re only in a vest, long-sleeved top, hoodie and padded jacket… Yes, that is an improvement!
Day 75:
Organised chaos?
I think I have a lot of work to do to get just my desk cleared so the real estate agent can take the photos of our apartment. It really is a daunting prospect.
Day 76:
Boys meets (poisonous) frog
Little O’s preschool was closed on Friday for a planning day, so we spent the morning at Fjärilshuset, the butterfly house in Haga Park. He was not so interested in the butterflies themselves but once he had managed to spot the brightly coloured little poisonous Amazonian frogs, he was fascinated. Luckily, there were a good few thick sheets of glass between them and us.
Day 77:
Day 1 and still a long way to go
Yesterday marked day one of Operation Get-The-Apartment-Tidy. It’s going to be a very big task!
Day 78:
Armed with a stor vanilj latte med laktos-fri mjölk
Today we visited Moderna Museet, the city’s modern art museum, for the first time. I would love to show you a picture of the wonderful view of the waterfront from the museum’s restaurant but unfortunately I had my hands flu trying to feed Baby, entertain Little O and keep him from pulling the shawl from my shoulder and reveal “Mimi” (his name for Baby E) to the world… Instead, here’s a photo from our trip out earlier in the day with our trusty (and beautiful) iCandy Peach Blossom stroller and my beloved “stor vanilj latte med laktos-fri mjölk” (large vanilla latte with lactose-free milk).
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Mar 13, 2012
Birthday meme
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Photo by 3liz4 (via Flickr Creative Commons)
Kate over at The Five Fs blog has started a birthday meme with the idea of collecting information on everyones’ birthdays. She has posed a few questions about your birthday that you can find the answers to on Wikipedia, among other sites. She hopes to be able to get at least one post for each day of the year – wouldn’t that be great?
So, here is my contribution. I actually found out quite a lot about my birthday, including that something I had always told people about the day (that Chairman Mao died on the same day that I was born) was not actually true.
When is your birthday? 18 June
Pick three people who share your birthday and share what you know about them. Until I looked at Wikipedia, I had not realised the Grand Duchess Anastasia, one of the daughters of the last tsar of Russia, was born on 18 June. She is one of the few on the extensive list that I know something about – she tragically died in 1918, shot in a basement by the Bolshevik secret police. Another was Paul Eddington, the actor who played next door neighbor Jerry Leadbetter in The Good Life and politician Jim Hacker in Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister. And a third was Paul McCartney, from the Beatles obviously. (In addition, Fabio Capello, Isabella Rossellini and Alison Moyet.)
Is anyone listed as being born on the same day as you (ie the same year)? If so, what do you know about them? Three people in fact, but I have not heard of any of them: Alana de la Garza (who stared in Law & Order), Blake Shelton (an American country singer) and Witte Wartena (a Dutch artist).
List three people who died on your birthday and tell us what you know about them. My first choice is maybe not totally accurate as 18 June is listed as the day that Roald Amundsen went missing – nobody knows for sure when he actually died. All I know about him is that he was the first to the North Pole and that he also went on an expedition to the South Pole (here I got a bit confused when reading Wikipedia – I had thought he beat Captain Scott there, but it does not say that – am I mistaken?). The airplane he was in disappeared on a rescue mission in 1928. Second, Ethel Barrymore died on 18 June 1959. She was part of the Barrymore acting family and would have been great aunt to Drew Barrymore. And third, Nancy Marchand who died in 2000. Something made me click on the link to her page on Wikipedia and I am glad that I did because it turns out that she played Livia Soprano, Tony’s mother, in The Sopranos. Have a look at her Wikipedia page as there is a lovely picture of her there when younger.
List three notable events that took place on your birthday. On 18 June 1965, the government announced that a drink-drive alcohol limit was to be introduced in the UK. In 1999, the anti-capitalist demonstrations in London turned violent – I remember this as I worked in the City at the time and we were all asked to come into work wearing very casual clothing so that we would not be targeted by protesters. And one of the most famous battles of the 19th century was fought on 18 June: the Battle of Waterloo when General Wellington defeated Napoleon.
Tell us about a holiday that falls on your birthday. 18 June is Autistic Pride Day as well as National Day in the Seychelles.
So, there you go: a little snapshot of 18 June. Let’s hope that Kate can collect at least one for every day of the year – join in and give her a helping hand!
Mar 11, 2012
Photo 366 challenge – week 10
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Into double figures with the weeks now – and spring seems to be on its way in Stockholm. We’ve had some lovely sunny days this week and the temperature has even reached 9 degrees. Bliss! However, this week has been about real life getting in the way and I’ve not been able to concentrate so much on taking photos. We’re waiting for some big news and I am counting down the hours until mid-morning on Monday…
Day 65:
The latest issue of Gurgle magazine
Gurgle magazine arrived! I got very excited and read half of it within the first hour after opening the plastic. I love this magazine and turn down the corners of so many pages – filled with lovely things and great ideas.
Day 66:
A wall just crying out for a picture
This wall has been, literally, a blank canvas for the past three and a half years. But no more! We’ve bought a picture for it at last. I marked its potential position with some masking tape to give us an idea of how much space we’re filling. Cannot wait for it to arrive now.
Day 67:
Polishusparken, Stockholm
On Wednesday, after collecting Little O from preschool, we headed to the main city police station with Baby E to pick up his brand spanking new passport. Since the beginning of March, if you live in Stockholm, you have been able to book a time to order a passport online on the police website. We booked a time for last Saturday and on Tuesday I received an sms informing me that it was ready for collection. Really great service!
Day 68:
Seems we just missed the wolves' feeding time...
Little O was a bit under the weather on Wednesday evening, so we decided to keep him home from preschool on Thursday. In the morning, we visited our favourite playground and in the afternoon we took the tram to Djurgården to visit Skansen, the open air museum. Skansen has a zoo of animals native to the Nordic countries, including wolves. Apparently, the wolves had been fed earlier in the day and this was a little of their leftovers…
Day 69:
Learning to hold the spade properly
A big day for Little O as he learned how to hold a spade properly. Now he is far more efficient at moving the sand from bucket to bucket!
Day 70:
Concentration
On Saturday, Little O got a crash course in using the iPhone from Husband. I am not sure how wise a move this really is…
Day 71:
The last snow of the year (hopefully!)
Little O, Baby E and I went for a long walk in the sunshine this afternoon and Little O managed to find the last patch of (filthy-looking) snow to play on. We also had fun picking up the melting ice from the ice skating rink in the city centre and watching it melt in our hands. And then Little O had his photo taken by a group of Chinese tourists, who declared him “cute” – yes, of course he is!
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So that was the week that was. As I said, a little bit boring this week as there were too many other things going on with real life… Now head over to The Boy and Me and check out what others have been up to this week!
In brief: English, living in Sweden, with my Swedish/Hungarian husband and our sons, Little O and Baby E, and trying to juggle all the different aspects of my new life - the me I was before, the me I am now and the me that I would like to be... 
