Thursday, July 27, 2017

Daily Jamie


July 17th
July 18th 
July 21st
July 23rd
July 25th
July 27th

Vacay Week Two

Our second week of vacation started on an awesome note when we discovered that a KFC was opening about an hour from our house! The Swede kindly pulled off the highway for an unplanned, early lunch as soon as we saw the sign. We ordered a bucket and decided just a few pieces into it that we didn't need to do that again for awhile.
We continued on toward Skara Sommarland amusement park, where we met up with Erin and Svante and the kids. It was fun, but very crowded and exhausting, as evidenced by these images.  


The week since we got home from Skara Sommarland has been a blur of sixth birthday preparation and celebration, with a trip to Parken Zoo and an overnight at the summer cabin thrown in.  
Jamie had a great birthday, got lots of presents, ate a ton of cake and candy, and spent lots of time with his friends.
His Pokémon-themed party was a huge success, with bingo and a piñata being the high points.

We had the pleasure of The Johansson's company again yesterday when they came over to our place for dinner. The Swede took us all fishing and made sure that each of the boys caught something. It's been a nice, relaxing week around the house, which was necessary because on Saturday Jamie and I are heading off for a week in a tiny cabin with Sarianne, Elin, Julia, and Elin's boyfriend. It promises to be intense. You'll hear from me again soon!  

Sunday, July 23, 2017

Six Years Old

This kid, you guys. Obviously I love him more than life itself, but I also really, really like him. He is a true pleasure to be around. He's clever and funny, making jokes (in both Swedish and English) that are so spot-on it sometimes blows The Swede and me away. The way Jamie sees the world is endlessly fascinating and I'm trying to learn as much about it - about him - as I can. I love to fika with this kid and to put him to bed; this is when he does all his best talking and I find out so much about what's on his mind, what he's curious about, what he cares about. (The Swede wrote this while Mara was away, i Love Mara sooo much. Best mom and best wife ever.)  He has an incredible memory and our family loves reminding each other of things that we've done and Jamie often brings up events that we had forgotten about or can't believe that he can remember because he was so little. He's also incredibly good at math, adding and subtracting two and three digit numbers easily in his head, stuff The Swede and I couldn't do until we were much older than he is. We're both useless with numbers, so this ability and enthusiasm is particularly surprising. If you don't know him, I wish you did. He's cuddly, loud, and open with us, a bit more careful with everybody else, but his sweet soul shines through wherever he goes. I feel so lucky that we got this particular kid, that he's our family. I daresay this is the coolest six-year-old alive.

Sunday, July 16, 2017

Daily Jamie

July 9th
July 10th

July 11th
July 15th
July 16th

Vacay Week One

Here we are on Sunday evening, just finishing up the laundry before we head out on the next leg of our   summer break. It began last Sunday when we drove up to the ski village of Sälen where we had rented a cabin for four nights. It was very cold and rainy up there, so much so that we were forced to buy new jackets. We spent a lot of time chilling in the cabin, playing cards and video games, but also swam a ton  and spent some time bundled up out in nature.
Jamie and I painted dalahästar, which was basically a dream come true. The best activity with the best company.
One day, we took a short drive to the Norwegian border and stood in two places at once. 
The Swede finally got to break in his fly fishing gear and I'm pretty sure it was his good-time equivalent of my painting dalahästar.
We also took a hike to Sweden's highest waterfall, the majestic Njupeskär, and it was the highlight of the week.

On the way home, we spent a night in Tällberg, per tradition, and it was as lovely as ever.
And no trip to Dalarna is complete without a stop at the knäckebröd factory.
Yesterday, back home and in the thick of unpacking and repacking, we took a break and headed into the city to catch some Pokémon. The day before was the crown princess's 40th birthday so the castle was decked out in fresh flowers. Also, there were people EVERYWHERE. Somehow I had forgotten how packed with tourists Stockholm becomes in the summer. In some spots it was difficult to even get around, but we enjoyed it regardless.
Stay tuned later in the week for a report from our next adventure!