Lydia does say the most profound things sometimes. Tage has been driving her crazy for quite a while, wanting to get in her stuff all the time and to do the same things she’s doing. I was trying to help her feel better, saying, “he just wants to be like you because he thinks you’re… Read More Things a Mother Hopes

I took Tage to öppna förskolan for the first time this morning. For those who aren’t familiar with all things Swedish, öppna förskolan is “open pre-school,” where parents can go with their kids and hang out with other moms (or dads) while the kids play. I think it’s as much or more for the parents… Read More Fun and Games

I’m participating in a year-long “secret sister” exchange with some friends on another website, and I’m so afraid I’m going to inadvertantly reveal myself. I really want to be able to keep the secret until Christmas (the agreed-upon reveal date), but it’s so hard not to make a mistake that will give me away. I’m… Read More This and That

It’s another gorgeous day in northern Sweden. Blue skies, sunshine, the works. If it weren’t for the mountains of snow outside, I might actually be fooled into thinking spring was on the way. We made a quick trip out to Överskottsbolaget (an over-stock store) late this morning. We usually go there once or twice a… Read More Saturday

In an hour or so, Olof’s mom is coming over to stay with the kids while Olof and I drive to town to go to a movie. I think this will be only the second time that the two of us have seen a movie by ourselves. We’ll be seeing Scary Movie 3, which I… Read More Date night

Oh my god, Tage just gave me a total heart attack. He was sitting in his high chair eating supper and I was sitting here at the computer, less than six feet from him but with my back to him. Suddenly it struck me that he was being unusually quiet, so I turned to look… Read More A little fright

Did anybody ever see that show that was on last season, John Doe? The one about the guy who woke up on an island off the coast of Washington with no memory whatsoever of anything but somehow knowing everything? If not, it was just your basic cop drama with a not-tremendously-compelling twist, so it was… Read More Makin’ bacon

First, I’m pleased to report that the second issue of Mosaic Minds came out today, and if I do say so myself, it’s even better than the first one. No sophomore slump here! Now, on to the news of the day, such as it is. We had Olof’s parents over for dinner last night, and… Read More Family matters

Wow, yesterday was a long day. What we thought would be a leisurely one-hour drive to Umeå with plenty of time for lunch and maybe even a bit of shopping before our appointment turned into a two-and-a-half hour trip through a blizzard, with so little visibility that at times we were creeping along at 30… Read More Snow day

I booked tickets this morning to go to Stockholm in April! It will be a short trip–I’ll be there the afternoon of April 2 (a Friday), spend the night at my friend, Helene’s, then fly back to Skellefteå the next afternoon–but at least I’ll have the chance to catch up with my Stockholm friends! The… Read More Wednesday