Our First Family Ski Trip

As a kid, I went skiing a lot.  I love to ski.  My friends from high school, especially Staci and Erica, know just how much fun we used to have on the slopes.  Steve too loves skiing.  So we knew living in Sweden, we would have to take our kids skiing, and we hoped they would love it as much as we do.  And...... they do!  We left Friday afternoon and drove two hours north to Kungsberget Ski Resort.  The drive was old school style, no DVD player for the kids.  It made me, once again, appreciate my parents.  How did they tolerate us for hours and hours in a car with no entertainment?   Thankfully our boys fell asleep....

Smith fell asleep just minutes later

When we arrived, we had a small hiccup, when I couldn't read the paperwork and forgot how to check in.  Thankfully, Åsa and Kattis met us in the parking lot and read our paperwork for us.  We were trying to get into the wrong flat.  We quickly found our place, unpacked, and headed to their flat where a delicious dinner awaited us.  We had a such a great time with all the couples, that we hung out until almost midnight.  The kids all played really well together as well.

The view from our kitchen

We woke the next morning very excited to get on the slopes.  What Steve and I didn't realize.... skiing with kids is A LOT of work!  First we had to make sure each of them had their thermals, clothes, wool socks, hats, gloves, ski pants, jacket and helmet on correctly.  Then for the boots.  Enough said! Then we had to carry all the skis and poles (while walking in the ski boots) from our door to the slopes.  It was not a far walk with shoes on.... ski boots on the boys... whole new ball game.  We all managed to get there in time for Chase's lesson.   Thankfully he was in a group with Nina and Felicia (the little girls we traveled with)... so all was good.  The instructor was very sweet, and spoke both english and swedish to the kids.  While Chase was in his lesson, the other two were getting acquainted with this new sport on the kids mountain.  By the time they went for their lesson, both of them were very comfortable with the lifts and the mountain.  By mid afternoon, after lunch in the lodge, and some U.S.A. vs Russia hockey, we were ready to tackle the slopes again.  Jake, Smith and I ventured on to some rougher terrain, while Åsa and Chase went to the kids mountain.  Chase was so thankful that Åsa volunteered to take him... he wasn't too keen on the bigger mountains just yet.  By this time the snow was really coming down.  Unfortunately, it was very wet snow... almost rain.  We were soaked from head to toe by the time we went inside.  Here are some pictures....

to the left of the red coat is Jake, just in front of another person

Jake under the arch

the snow was coming down

Smith, just before he ditched the poles for good

The cross country skiing for Mom and Dad was tremendous!  We spent many hours pulling and pushing one or more of these little guys around the resort.

Saturday night, Åsa and I were in charge of dinner.  With the help of the kids, we made a bunch of pizzas and it was another fabulous evening with all of our new friends.  Sunday morning we had to check out by 11:00, so Steve woke up early and was able to get a few runs in, alone, before taking all the boys to their final lessons.  At this point, all the boys graduated to the more advanced mountains, including Chase.  Jake was flying down the steep slopes with no problem at all.  Steve and I divided our time between all the boys and felt like they were all great little skiers.  Here's few pictures of Steve teaching Chase while going down one of the mountains.

Chase and Steve on the lift

Chase held our ski pole until he felt comfortable alone

Smith practicing his skills around these props

Sweet Nina.... taking a hot chocolate break

Smith cruising down the mountain

Jake during ski school... hence the shirt

Liam an Smith during their lesson

Chase 

Me and Chase 

The weekend came to a close on Sunday around 4:00.  None of the kids wanted to leave.  The parents.... well, we were wiped out!!  We are planning our next weekend of skiing, possibly around Smith's birthday in  March.  This mountain was perfect for new skiers, and the accommodations were great.   We are so fortunate to have met such amazing friends, Åsa and Jimmy.  They invited us to join them, and introduced us to some really great people.  The weekend was perfect!

The week leading up to the ski trip was full of excitement as well.  The boys went to their first Swedish dentist on Wednesday.  She was very nice and had a great way with the kids.  The experience is a little different than it is back in the U.S.  Their cleanings don't seem to be as detailed as ours, and they only go once a year.  Smith had his first cavity filled.  I was actually nervous for him, but he did fine.  She told us that he grinds his teeth (we knew that already) and when people grind, they are more susceptible to cavities.

Thursday was the second time with our "Cooking our Way Through Sweden" group.  This time Lori, Nancy and I hosted....  at Lori's apartment.    The menu consisted of: Dandelion Greens Salad with Gooseberries and Cilantro Vinaigrette, White Bean Salad with Roasted Red Peppers and Cherry Tomatoes, and Lime-Marinated Chicken Salad with Radicchio and Olives!  Dessert was  vanilla ice cream with blood orange preserves.  It was all delicious!!!

Swedish bread

Dandelion Greens Salad with Gooseberries and Cilantro Vinaigrette,

As usual, the company was fabulous and the food was delicious.  We are becoming pretty good Swedish chefs if I do say so myself.  To all my U.S. friends and family, the next time I have you over  for dinner, whether it be here in Sweden, or back in the states, I will cook Swedish style.

pretty table on Valentine's Day

While I was enjoying a lovely lunch with my friends, the boys were enjoying Sports Day with their friends.  The school celebrated Sports Day with each grade level partaking in various sporting activities.  Jake and Smith both went ice skating, while Chase was supposed to go sledding.  Since the weather did not cooperate, and there was no snow, they played at the park instead.  It actually poured rain all afternoon.  The older grades went skiing.  It was a fun day for everyone!  My friend Alex took a few pictures of Smith that day.

Smith is studying the five senses at school.  They had to do a project on secret agents and how they use their senses.  They all dressed up for school that day.  Since we don't have a ton of secret agent clothing hanging around our closets, we made do with what we had.  

Chase felt the need to partake in the action... check out his secret agent device he invented.....

Well... it's Tuesday and The loads of laundry that came home with us is finally complete.   It took me two straight days to do it all.  Remember, I don't have a dryer... so my apartment looked like a clothing tornado ran through it.  Chase caught a bug so he's been home sick for two days which helped me get it all folded and put away.  Speaking of laundry, before moving here, I went to Costco and loaded up on laundry detergent.  I just used the last of it.  I went to the store to buy more and a few observations came out of this outing.  1) the containers are MUCH smaller than than ours.  2) I have no idea what I bought.  There was a picture of clothes drying in the breeze on the front of the bag (yes, they come in bags.  Similar to what Method hand soap refill bags look like).  It washed my clothes just fine, but they don't smell nice like my Seventh Generation lavender scent left them.  3) I don't understand the measurements, so I guessed.

The weather this week has been amazing.  Too bad I spent most of it in the house.  The skies are blue, the sun is shining, and it's 35ºF.  My friends have been posting pictures on FB all morning so I'm swiping some of them for my blog.  Thanks Meg, Heidi and Alex.... you are all amazing photographers.

Alex captured this in the early morning

then took the same shot an hour later

Heidi took this one

Meg this is beautiful

Today is Lori's birthday and unfortunately the small lunch gathering I planned happened without me.  However, Thursday night 20 of us girls are going to Orangeriet to celebrate both Lori and Heidi's birthdays.  I will take lots of pictures and post them in my next blog.  I love the atmosphere in this place.  I am also looking forward to Saturday, when the boys and I will meet Aunt Dee Dee in Barcelona for a fun vacation.  Steve has a conference there, so he won't be having fun with us, but will still be there in spirit.  The following Friday, Steve takes the boys back to Sweden and Dee and I have a girls weekend in Barcelona.  Stay tuned for my next blog with lots and lots of pictures.

I will leave you with this funny story.....

The boys and I took the train home from school yesterday.  Upon entering, there was a very foul smell.  Of course the boys start giggling and in their "whisper voices" began saying, "someone farted mom".  Yes, I knew that... but was trying to not make a scene.  Smith gets it in his head that the lady sitting across from him is the culprit.  Why he chose her, I don't know.  But, if you've been around Smith, you know that he doesn't know how to whisper.  He turns to Jake and says, "that lady across from me is the one who farted".  Jake proceeds to laugh hysterically!  I was so mortified I wanted to crawl in a hole.

Paris.... an amazing city

It's Monday afternoon, and I'm finally sitting down after a full day of catching up.  It's so hard to return from holiday (do you like my European terminology).  Although returning from this trip wasn't so terrible after opening my apartment door to three smiling little boys and lots and lots of hugs and kisses.  Sometimes it takes a little time apart to realize how much you really love someone.  I soaked it all in and enjoyed the affection.  Steve did more than hold down the fort while I was away.  He gave the little guys a fun weekend, and also managed to have all their homework complete, showers finished Sunday night, AND a clean house for me to come home to.  I'm a lucky girl!  When Chase's teacher asked him on Monday morning how his boys weekend was, Chase gave her a thumbs up.

Lori and I arrived in Paris on Thursday, January 30th as a gift from our wonderful husbands.  We didn’t have a set agenda other than to soak up the wonderful city of Paris…. and that we did.  We slept in, strolled the streets, snapped pictures of the sites, and enjoyed many glasses of champagne and wine.  Each day led us in a new direction, while stumbling across some amazing cafes and neighborhoods.  The highlight of our trip, Laduree, the most amazing macaroons in the world.  I spoke to my sister Diane the night before and she made me promise to go to Laduree.  Once we realized that our hotel was only a few blocks from this little piece of heaven, we returned many times.  My favorite, pistachio, with vanilla a close second.  

We landed Thursday evening around 6:00.  We were surprised to hear that we could only have an hour of wifi in our rooms a day... but the hotel lobby had free wifi all day and night.  We freshened up, changed our clothes, and headed down to the hotel bar for the best drinks of the weekend,  champagne mojitos.  It was there that we pulled out our iPads and maps and tried to make a plan.  

Since both of us seemed to be on the same page regarding having a set agenda, we somehow turned our "planning" session into a "chatting" session.... and pushed our maps to the side.  We were both quite hungry and craving something other than airplane food.  We decided to ask the concierge to recommend a restaurant with good food, but not a tourist trap.  He immediately told us about Le Zagá á Vin.  We walked, following the map, and arrived unsure of whether to trust his judgement.  Walking into an empty room that appeared to be a lounge, we wondered if they were even open.  Soon after, a hostess came down the steps, greeted us, and showed us to our table.  The restaurant upstairs had a good crowd and very friendly service.  We decided since we were in Paris, we would order the duck foie gras as an appetizer.  Despite the fact that it looked and tasted like cat food, we stayed, and enjoyed the most delicious meal of the weekend.  The only good meal of the weekend, actually.

We stayed at the Hilton in the heart of Vendome on Rue De Rivoli, across from the Tuileries Garden.  It was the perfect location.  We were in walking distance to everything we wanted to see and do.  

View of our hotel standing at Tuileries Garden

Front entrance to hotel

courtyard in our hotel

Friday we set out in search of the Eifel Tower.  Both of us had been to Paris before, so we planned on shopping, eating, and enjoying the feel of the neighborhoods rather than the tourist attractions.  We left the hotel, a bit hungry, but very confident that we would stumble across a cafe where we could grab breakfast and tea.  Whenever you're looking for food, you can never find it.  We walked in circles for a while and then decided to wing it because we were both starving.  We walked into unknown territory and literally bumped into Cafe Maison Richard.  Lori asked the man for directions to a restaurant that would serve eggs and he led us inside, to the most amazing breakfast.  We raised our blood sugar up to normal, became civilized human beings again, and were ready to tackle the city.  We headed to the Eifel Tower where we took a boat tour down the Seine River.  We both needed to get a lay of the land and get our bearings.  The tour wasn't quite what we expected, but we looked at it like a ride from one end of the city to the other.  

Seine River 

Beautiful skies for a perfect view of the tour

Looking up at the Tower

Our boat tour

 One of Lori's favorite

The bridge with locks

We spent the day doing everything we set out to do.  Of course our daily stops for champagne were the highlights.

That evening we went on recommendation to Chez André, 12 Rue Marbeuf.  The experience was quite different for us than it was for the friends that sent us there.  From the minute we walked in, everyone stared at us.  Of course, we are used to this in Stockholm, so we took it in stride and walked to our table.  The waitress spoke very little english and did not give us a warm and fuzzy vibe, to say the least.  We didn't care, we were in Paris, without children, and we refused to let anything spoil our fun.  She rushed us through the meal, wanting to take our drink, appetizer, and entree order all in the first five minutes we were seated.  Not our style of dining, so we slowed her down by only giving her our drink order.  She returned every five minutes for the next fifteen wanting our order.  We finally caved and ordered, just to get her off of our backs.  Within five minutes our meals were in front of us.  We decided right then that we were not moving off of this table.  We would order more wine and just sit and relax.  The two of us got caught up in deep conversation and an hour later, a different waitress comes to our table explaining that the man at the next table bought us an after-dinner drink.  We glanced over to a man in his mid to late sixties and thanked him for the drink.  We made small talk for a few minutes and realized that he too was from Texas.  Before long, he and at the table of people next to him were in conversation discussing their trips to the U.S.  Lori and I went back to chatting, and before long we were talking to the couple next to us.  This couple was very interesting, and they showed us all their favorite places in Paris leading us to their favorite nighttime hangouts.  So even though the restaurant was not one we would recommend, the experience with our "new friends" was worth it.  

We woke up Saturday morning and glanced out our window where we saw a small cafe, and decided to go for breakfast.  It was perfect!  

 After breakfast we walked to the Champs Elysees and had a great time people watching.  There were many street performers out, until the cops on giant horses came through and broke them up.  We were both surprised that street performers were not allowed on the street.  

putting an end to the street shows

We walked over to Anglina's for the best hot chocolate in Paris.  It was so delicious... but the mistake we made, was eating macaroons at the same time.  Not only was it too much sugar at once, but the macaroons didn't come close to Laduree.  It's a good thing we walked a lot that day, or we would have gone back to the hotel for a nap from our sugar crash.

The sugar high didn't stop us from our daily champagne stop.  This time we went to... 

and ate....

cheers

The boys wanted me to have french fries from France.... you don't have to twist my arm to eat french fries.

My favorite area of Paris is St. Germaine.  It has a charm to it that is like no other.  We decided to eat dinner in this neighborhood on Saturday night.  Of course, we walked all the way back to the hotel to turn around and come back for dinner that night.  We chose a restaurant that we thought was recommended by a friend.  She had the address wrong, so we ended up at what we called the "nameless" restaurant.  We could not figure out what the actual name was.  This is me right after we made a reservation for that evening.

standing in front of "nameless"

The next street over was my favorite street in St. Germaine, Rue Cannettes.  I'm not sure why, other than that it had a very comforting feel to it.  I'm wondering if my sister April and I ventured on this street almost fifteen years earlier, and that's why there was a sense of familiarity to it.  

A, does it look familiar to you?  

That evening, the meal was good, but not great.  The service and atmosphere was fabulous though.  We sat next to a couple that were from NY, and quite interesting, to say the least.  Our appetizer was different, we had pork feet and pork confit come a savonnieres.  When in Rome......

Some comments about Paris.  Cars drive a lot faster than in Stockholm.  The drivers also don't seem as aware of pedestrians like they do here.  The crosswalks are NOT an automatic stop sign for drivers, which they are in Stockholm.  Lori and I were almost killed a few times.  The city also has a very touristy feel.  I didn't feel as out of place for that reason.  However, there is a lot less english spoken there.  Many have told me it's because the French don't want to speak english... but I also got the impression that they aren't as fluent as some of the other countries in Europe.  The food is NOT as good as the dessert.  

The desserts in this window were beautiful

And finally, the sun shines!    Look at the beautiful sky in some of these pictures.  I haven't seen blue skies like this in months.

Our last day, Sunday, the weather was perfect.  It was sunny and the temperatures in the forties.   The two of us couldn't get enough of the sun.  We actually ate breakfast outside of a cafe (the only people sitting outside by the way) just so we could soak up some sun before we flew home.  It's not until I saw the sun, that I realized how it NEVER shines in Stockholm.  I also didn't realize how the sun affects my mood.  Nothing could have upset me that last day..... seeing and feeling the sun, made everything okay.

eating breakfast outside

I needed sunglasses

Back in Stockholm, the weather is warm.  Yes, I have changed my perspective on temperature since I've moved here.  High 30's to mid 40's is now warm for me.  Here's another shocker, I don't want it to be warm.  I prefer the freezing temperatures, because at least then it doesn't rain all the time.  I want the snow to return.  It not only brightens up the city, but it's also more fun, and believe it or not, much easier to get around in.  The rain is dark, gloomy, wet, and depressing.  It rained all weekend.  Chase and I had to walk a lot on Sunday and it poured on us the entire time.  You feel and look like a drowned rat when you arrive at your destination.  Here's a picture of the boys at the playground on Saturday afternoon.  Like I said, the rain doesn't stop anyone from playing outside and moving around the city.  

Jake joined right in with the Swedish boys

This past week had many different experiences.  Wednesday night Smith, Jake and I headed to Solna for practice.  We left with plenty of time, and actually enjoyed our walk together.... until......
We got to Solna and realize that Smith left his soccer bag in the train station somewhere.  The "plenty of time" quickly disappeared as we sprinted through the stations, jumping on and off trains, only to find the bag was GONE.  All lost items can be claimed in the lost and found at T-Centralen about two weeks after they're lost.  I was in that area on Monday so I popped in.  No bag yet.  Either someone stole the bag, or it hasn't been processed yet.  It looks like we'll be buying a new ball, cleats, shin guards, bag, and jacket if it's still not there in a week.

For about a month,  I've been feeling really old and wrinkly looking.  I know this sounds funny to some of you... but here in Sweden, the dry air takes a toll on your skin.  My skin feels so dry, very pale, and more wrinkly than ever before.  I decided that my hair was too dark for this pale face.  I made an appointment to put highlights back in, hoping it would brighten up my skin a bit.  The morning of my appointment, Jake wasn't feel well.  Personally, I think he needed a mental health day, so I let him stay home, but told him he had to go to my hair appointment with me.  Here's a picture....

 The appointment was three hours.  Here's Jake after 2 1/2 hours......

I like the color of my hair a lot better, but then it was time to change my make-up.  I went to the Laura Mercier counter, while Lori was at Mac, and we both had the girls give us makeovers.  She led me to a few new items that brought some life back into my dull looking face.  I have to say, I feel a lot better!  Thanks to my friend Nancy for sharing this fact about Sweden this year,  The month of January only saw six hours of sunlight.   I'm not the only one person going for makeovers.

Steve and I managed to get Sam Saturday night so we could go out to dinner with Åsa and Jimmy.  We went to one of my favorite places, Grill.  We always have a great time when we're out with them. We will be hitting the slopes this weekend with their family, as all of our children ski for the very first time.

Me at Grill waiting for our friends to arrive

Smith had a birthday party Sunday in Nacka so Steve reserved our Sunfleet car and managed to get all boys to practice and parties as planned, while Chase and I had a day together.  We walked all over the city in the pouring rain.  Smith had a great time at the party and came home excited that Andy's Lekland was Monkey Joes, Catch Air, and Ski Zone combined.  Atlanta friends, you know... that is a kid's dream!

Smith and Jorge at the party

This week marked our six month anniversary of living in Sweden.  The days and weeks are flying by and before we know it, this journey will be a distant memory.  In honor of our anniversary, I thought I would share some ONLY IN SWEDEN facts.

Only in Sweden.....
Would I be having lunch with friends and see Smith's class walk by on a field trip.

Only in Sweden.....
Would Chase, at four years old, be talking to his classmate about subways and the ins and outs of the train system.

Only in Sweden.....
Would I start calling my friends to look out the window so they don't miss the sun shining for a few minutes.

Only in Sweden.....
Would the boys and I be standing like sardines in a city bus at 5:00pm, trying to get home from school.

Only in Sweden....
Would it take two hours to fly to Paris for a girls weekend away.

Only in Sweden...
Would I pass a bibliotek over and over thinking it's a book store, only to find out six months later that it's my public library.

Only in Sweden....
Would I receive a text from my husband in the middle of the day that says, "bummed... thought I met a new friend in Stockholm but he just picked his nose and ate it".

Only in Sweden....
Do we rig our t.v. to computers with wires running in every which direction, with a quality so poor you can barely make out the characters' faces,  for the small pleasure of watching our U.S. shows.

I will end this blog with this short story.  I went to pick up a package today, after receiving the slip in the mail.  When I handed it to the lady, she said that the slip was missing one of the numbers in order for them to locate it.  So, I have no clue where the package is coming from, nor who the sender is.  If you sent me a package, let me know so I can give them more details to help them locate it.  FYI.. if you are sending packages overseas, always put the local phone number of the person you're sending it to.  We receive a text message, which makes it easier to retrieve.