Boys at the park

Even if the weather is not the best, having a park nearby always ends up being a total  life saver! There is nothing  better than being able to burn off some energy, kick a ball, throw some sand and get dirty... well, not for me because I can never have a holiday from laundry ;)

Wishing you all a great rest of the day.... xox

Rainy holiday

Today was rainy but, honestly, I was fine with it (OK.. not so much the boys). We had the chance to be cosy at my inlaws', without the need to rush around. In the morning, Alexander, Andreas and I went to a local mall. Andreas and Alexander got to check out Swedish candies while I had 45 minutes of shopping. I ended up buying some clothes from a Swedish brand that I like (Lindex) and got some good deals (pictures to come). That was a real treat :) Bigger treat was that I fit into some kids' pants that I really liked ;) Nothing like that to boost my 45 year old ego ;)
Later in the day, my sister in law came by with her husband and 2 children. Oliver is in total bro-mance mode with his cousin Isak because, finally, he has a family member who is his size ;) My sister's boys are closer in age to Alexander and Nicklas so he feels a bit left out, I guess. They are so cute together because they have absolutely no idea what the other is saying but it doesn't matter at all- they figure it out :) The older boys thought that it would be fun to entertain the little kids by drawing mustaches on their faces with pen. Part of me hopes that the mustaches will come off while the other part of me hopes that they will not- serves them right after I told them not to do it ;) Mean mother ;)
Alexander is now doing a sun-dance so that the weather is nicer tomorrow. He is on a mission to go crabbing again. I think that he is out of luck but I won't tell him because the dance is pretty good!

Good evening to all! xox

Cheesy mustache

Nicklas with his pensive look

Cosy time (yes, I am bugging his tablet watching)

Boys and fish

We took the boys fishing today at the same lake that Andreas used to fish in when he was a young boy. There is nothing like water, mud and dead fish to activate their imaginations. It was a blast: BEST day ever... except for crabbing yesterday... and the cake that farmor (grandmother) gave them... and the candies on the airplane ;)
Ahh... what a life!

Wishing you all a great evening xox

In Sweden

Our first full day in Sweden started off quietly: we managed to sleep in a bit (OK... maybe not Alexander..... he woke me up at 4am because he was bored) and get in the rhythm of Swedish time. After our breakfast/lunch, we went crab fishing in the sea.... don't worry, we returned them at the end so no crabs were harmed in the making of this post ;) We had fika with Andreas' sister and her children and are now back, taking it easy before dinner... ahhhhh! I think that I can get used to this vacation routine (or lack of) :)

Happy upcoming weekend to all! xox

Leaving on a jet plane

I will only de-stress when we arrive.... or when the kids fall asleep.... whichever comes first ;)

See you on the other side of the pond :)

Ottawa

Yesterday I drove to Ottawa to attend a conference. Man, that is one CLEAN city! I guess that, because it is the nation's capital, people must really put effort into cleaning it up but- still- I was amazed not to see any graffiti or garbage on the streets anywhere! Nothing! Or maybe, compared to Montreal, the quantities were so small that it wasn't worth noting ;)

I don't know about anyone else but the time before holidays is always the craziest. I honestly feel like I am going through the motions of getting ready to leave but my head is already having a beer in Copenhagen ;) Actually, multiple beers ;) Today, I will be cleaning the house, organizing the packing and getting the house/dog/cat sitter settled in (yes, potential robbers, someone will be staying at our house so don't get any ideas!). I will also have to buy the last minute emergency stuff.... like electrical plug converters for the beloved tablets.... one for each boy, otherwise there will be a crisis ;)

Hope you are all doing well! Sorry for being such a bad blogger lately! I hope to make it up with some cool Euro pictures soon :) xox

A very clean building!

Our Parliament building

The National Arts Building.... enjoy it before the government cuts it!

My tourist shot

Yes, I play soccer.... maybe I shouldn't have worn a skirt? ;)

Houseboats on the Rideau Canal

One thing that will make me very happy this summer....

... is not having to make SCHOOL LUNCHES!!! Besides homework time, making lunches has to be one of the most dreaded things that I have do as a mom. If I make them too healthy, the boys don't like them. If I put a piece of crappy food in the lunch box, then I feel guilty. Alexander and Nicka have such different tastes that both of them end up complaining about their lunches. UGH!!! THERE IS NO WINNING....  just lots of whining ;) I won't even get into my daily ventures into the Land of Mismatched Tupperwares and the Missing Lids!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Missing water bottles drive me nuts!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahh... the thought of being "school lunch free" for most of the summer is heaven... only until Oliver starts kindergarten in the fall and then I will have THREE lunches to make.... argh!

*This post has been brought to you by Venting International and Mamma Celena ;)

Am I the only one who feels this way??? Wishing you all a good day!

The dreaded lunch box ;)

Morning in Montreal

I took the train in again today. Actually, I have decided to make this a regular routine in order to save gas money.... and my sanity ;)

I also get a chance to take some pictures on my walk into work! Bonus!

Weekend referee

No, I am not an official referee. I just spend about 95% of the weekend refereeing my sons' arguments (the other 5%, when I am not refereeing, is when they are sleeping... or on their tablets... but, even then, they argue). I was just going to post about how nice it was to sit outside while they played but, alas, that peace-and-quiet didn't last very long ;) I had to blow my ref whistle ;)

Our weekend was filled with soccer, soccer, soccer... and sun! It is tough to have the overlap between school and summer sports but the boys are now catching up on their reading (= kind of quiet... except for complaining about reading... but this time, the boys are in agreement) ;)

Wishing you all a happy week ahead! xox

Sometimes my husband still likes me ;)

Action man

I had to take a picture of this... I have a soft spot for balloons...

My soccer game.... ahhhh... my sanity!

Oliver, pretend sleeping, on the soccer field

Well deserved coffee at the end of the day!

Weekend and getting excited...

We had only one soccer game today so it has been a fairly relaxed day. This morning, I had to go and pick up my NEW computer because my last one finally died (with a little help from the last Windows update... ugh!). So, this is my first blog post coming from this new computer (reason to celebrate?). Anyway, we are taking it easy before tomorrow's crazy soccer schedule and I am dreaming of the start of our holidays.... ahhhh.... Oliver used his birthday money to buy some sunglasses (in the pictures below) so I know that he is also in the same frame of mind as me ;) The boys are wrapping up their school year in ten days from now so they are all getting excited... woo hoo! Now, just to survive the routine for the next few days..... wish me/us luck ;)

Hope you are having a great weekend so far!

Getting used to the principal's office at school ;)

Hello Mr. Principal ;)

Nicka with his Nivea mustache

Looking good ;)

Games in the school ground

Can't wait until summer time!