My grandma's neck

This is a dialogue between my little cousin A 4 years old and our grandma:

-Grandma, what do you have on your neck?
-What, oh this, well this is a birthmark!

My cousin A is quietly thinking before saying:

-Grandma, do you need a birthmark to be born?

I think it's such a cute comment. Julie got a birthmark on her left hand so she had a "ticket" to be born!

Picture: A picture of Julie's left hand! (Soon to be published)

Julie 6 months

Date: 2009-05-28
Weight: 7720 g
Length: 70 cm
Head: 42,5 cm

Recipe for a perfect day

We (and Julie) are getting better routines. Many consecutive hours of sleep. Just came home from the gym, had a thai lunch with G and now Julie and I are on the balcony. I'm in the sun studying for my theory test tomorrow and Julie's playing in the shadow next to me. We've planned to run this evening and then visit the place where we migt have our wedding party next year.

I just want to stop the time for a moment. Take a deep breath, enjoy and reflect.

Aaah, LA VIE EST TRÉS BELLE!!

Picture: Julie on her way to university with mommy (month of may)
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Footnote: In the evening we ran in the drizzling warm rain and visited The place but we think it was too small and much better for a baptism. Now we'll continue our hunt for The Wedding Party Place ;-)! Any ideas?

Our little sunshine

This little film shows Julie 2 months old and full of happiness!

Our stolen sign is now FOUND!

I feel really good driving and I hope to get my driver's license now in June. Please keep your fingers (and toes) crossed! It'd be so great for the daily life as well as for the wonderful vacations that we've planned in France. I'll do the theory next week and some weeks later the practical test.

Now to my little dilemma. Yesterday, however, I forgot the sign "Test driving" (Övningskör) on the car and this morning it was stolen. According to the Swedish law I'm not allowed to drive at all without it and I'm too economical to buy a new one when I'm so close to my goal. Little annoying!

Question: Does any of you have a spare one that I can borrow for a short while?

Footnote: My husband later found the sign in the car ;-). It's good with a confirmation that I'm not loosing my memory totally! The end is good everything's good... (Slutet gott allting gott...)

Courious Julie explores the world

Julie is sooo curious and moves to eveeerything she finds on the floor. Usually it's toys that we've put around her but now she finds things that we've forgotten to take away. It's definately time to child proof our apartment and we've learnt alot this spring while we've had visitors with young children over.

This time, however, daddy planted his favourite Belgian chocolate (Bouchée Cart d'Or) in front of Julie. That was very brave of him! She headed right for it and tried to find a way to open it. She was so focused that she didn't even blink when I said her name. Daddy got a little nervous that she'd finish it before him so he had to step in ;-)!

Julie 6 months old goes to university

In February this year Julie and I started a course called The professional conversation (Det professionella samtalet) at the Stockholm university. Julie was only 3 months old during our first day of class and she ate, slept and charmed our classmates when she was awake. I really wanted to take this class because I have many individual conversations with the participants at my work and I wanted to develope a better structure and get new tools to lead the conversation forward. It was, however, Julie who decided if it was possible or not. Now we've attended all the obligatory days and are about to finish the last homeworks and the home exam so we're almost in goooal!

To be able to take this course during my maternity leave means sooo much to me both personally and professionally. It has given me so many new thoughts (surely have keep my braincells alive) and I have met many wonderful people (nice to see the world outside ;-)).

Thank you my little one, my big love and my classmates for making this possible!

Pictures: Top: Julie with mommy's glasses (6 months old) Bottom: Julie on the way home from at day at the university (PS. her mother looked more tired ;-) DS.)

Aaatschooo!

No comment.

Fun things to do for children in the city

For us with children under the age of 1 in Stockholm I can recommend the site: Barn i Stan.

This week they offer Stroller opera (barnvagnsopera), baby salsa, baby massage, a special visit to the Art museum and much more!

On this site you can also navigate and find fun activities to do for older children (and parents too!) Please let me know if you're going and write to me if you have done something fun that you'd like to share with other parents!

An entire day full of rhythm and music

On Thursday my friend Å and I went to the Dance museum in Stockholm to try the rhythmic class with our children. We went to the early class at 9:15 AM which probably was the earliest we have been out the door for quite a while. It was well worth it for several reasons:

1. Always fun to meet a friend!
2. The sun was shining!
3. We saw the city wake up (and we eventually did too) ;-)!
4. The rhythmic class had a creative and pedagogic instructor -Charlotte Wihk!
5. And we went for a nice long walk afterwards and had a little picnic in the Old Town!

In the afternoon Julie and I were invited to my mom's kindergarten in Sollentuna where they'd have music and rhythm for their children. Little did I know that it was Maria Llerena who was going to sing Swedish songs for children with salsa beats! She had brought a big drum, maracas for all the children, funny animal hats and two cool turtles (Pedro and Panchito). The children bubbled with happiness and happily sang the songs out loud while they went wild dancing around. They had such a great time! After this energetic hour with Maria it was fascinating to see how calm and well behaved the children were when they were asked to put back the maracas in a bag one by one.

Julie (and I) slept really good after such a fun and intensive day and since this day Julie has started to babble more and has increase her vocabulary to: Daw-daw and Awda-daw! She says it with such an intensity that I think that she believes that she can talk!

Julie said Ma-ma!

My husband and I heard her say it clearly and we were both surprised... ok, it was most likely a coincidece of sounds and it will probably take some more months until she says it consciously but she said did it at least: Ma-ma!

Now I'll proudly write in her book that her first word was Ma-ma...or shall I wait until she actually means it?

To hear her say Ma-ma makes me all happy inside and reminds me of my new and wonderful title, responsibility and lifelong love(s)!

For now everything is: Arreu, arreu ;-)!

Picture: Julie (4 months old) and I are shopping in Luleå!

Yesterday we celebrated

Yesterday we celebrated our 2,5 year anniversary! Time surely flies when you're having fun! During this time we've got engaged in the Maldives, married in Stadshuset, had our daughter Julie, moved three times, travelled alot (together we've visited Paris (4 times), Lille (3 times), Lyon, Bordeaux (2 times), London (2 times), Dublin, Maldives...), both got permanent job contracts and we've had several parties and dinners for friends and family.

On our anniversary I surprised my husband with gifts and made his favorite dishes moussaka och chocolate fudge cake with ice cream. I got a beautiful bouquet with big red roses and other big white flowers. I became so happy because I looove flowers!

Picture: On our marriage day in Stadshuset 2008-10-11.

Sleepless in...Stockholm!

Just as we thought that we've got better routines for Julie and us ALL CHANGES! It's not a surprise because our friends that have children have happily informed us of the first fun but difficult year in the baby's life. We feel that we've been very realistic and thought that there wouldn't be so many routines around Julie for several months... but since we're both analytical minds we tried to see a pattern and make sense of what we found. And we thought we'd found routines! Ehrm, noot!

My friend Å divides up her child's devlopement in phases. It's very smart because when it's difficult you at least have a name for it and it feels a little better to say: It's a PHAAASE! Before we had Julie the word phase had little meaning but now it's part of my (almost) daily vocabulary. I think it's like a mantra that makes you feel that's it's just a distinct stage of development and that there will be an end... before the next phase begins ;-)!

No wonder that all parents understand the significance of the word phase!

The ironic thing is that we're about to send out a card to family and friends that happily says: Now we found our rhythm. I'm glad that we added or almost at least!

In order to get more and better sleep we put our hopes to the book my friend S recommended: On becoming babywise. The classic sleep reference guide by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam!

Photo: Julie 2 days old!