Boys' morning out

This blog has become kind of quiet over the past two years because 1) the boys are not into having their pictures taken anymore and 2) they usually hide out in the basement with their headphones on ;) Not an interesting blog post ;)

Oliver, being eleven years old and not quite teenager yet, can still be lured out to do things (sometimes) and, today, he was into going fishing with Andreas. Lucky me, I got to stay home and clean. I wonder who got the better morning activity? ;)

Happy Sunday xox

Next best thing

Andreas loves camping.. I mean, really loves camping. While I won't complain if we are out, I have to say that I prefer a place with a bed and bathtub ;) I guess the bigger boys like it too but are not so fond of hanging out with their parents anymore ;) Oliver, on the other hand, enjoys camping and doesn't seem to mind us so much either. So, last night, Andreas set up a tent in our backyard and the two of them did the next best thing to actual camping and slept outside.... and I got to watch my cheesy tv shows without anyone else complaining ;) 

Guess it will be another backyard summer 😉

The glow of the tablets. Good thing about backyard camping: internet access ;)

More postcards from a pandemic

Day seemingly 1,234,567 of this pandemic: Andreas and I are still going for our walks. The energy in the air seems to be changing though and, even though the government still has a lot of aspects of our society closed up, there is a definite trend towards a re-opening. The stillness on the streets is disappearing and we're seeing more and more traffic again. Shops (besides grocery/pharmacy) are starting to open up, as long as they are not in a mall. More of my friends are returning to work. Summer sports activities are planning for a return. While I am excited for a return to "normal", I really hope that we can hang on to a bit of the non-scheduling, a bit more of the calmness and a bit less of the stress. 

Happy weekend to you all xox

More Postcards From a Pandemic

Today, we went walking in Pointe Claire Village. For those of you who do not live near me, it is a suburb just west of Montreal. By North American standards, it is pretty old. It used to be its own village (ie: not part of the westward sprawl of Montreal), ideal for being situated along the St Lawrence Seaway. A bit of history can be read here. Walking by the water on such a beautiful day is really fantastic.

We are going on lots of walks so beware of the postcard spam  xox

A bit of love from Pointe Claire Village

Celebrating 15 years

And this time the celebration is not for Alexander's birthday but for our wedding anniversary! Fifteen years brings a lot of history and water under the bridge. I couldn't think of anyone else who I would have preferred to have as a partner on this life voyage. Here is to many, many more! xox

Yes, this is a long time ago and, no, he is not trying to bite my face ;)

Happy anniversary to us :)

On December 4, 2004, Andreas and I were married. It is 14 years today..... wow- 14 years filled with PhD work, having son #1, living in Copenhagen, getting used to Danish way of life, moving to Montreal, getting used to Canadian way of life (or re-acquainted with Canadian way of life), buying a house, having son #2, finding work, having son #3, hitting our 40s, growing into our jobs, growing with each other, travels, ups, downs, more ups.... and many more life experiences to come. I can't think of anyone else that I would rather be with on this ride of life... xox

Our first Christmas together, 3 weeks after our wedding day... and 6 weeks after Alexander was born.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the best man I could think of to be the father of our boys. You give them attention, love, respect and teach them to be the best jokers in the world ;) They will be good men because of you. xox

Happy Father's Day to all those who step up to the plate...

With Alexander

With Nicklas

With Oliver

Really outnumbered!

Yesterday, Andreas left for 2 weeks of work (??) in Copenhagen. Am I jealous? No, not at all. I am happy to be at home with the kids, just enjoying our regular day to day... AND IF YOU BELIEVE THAT I HAVE A BRIDGE TO SELL TO YOU!!! Better believe I am jealous ;) It is not that I would prefer to be away from the boys but, heck, it was 8 degrees C when Andreas landed in CPH (yes, it was the first thing that he said when we Skyped earlier today. Skyped? Is that a word?). Anyway, he was warmer weather... he has good black lakrids (liquorice) whenever he wants. He has my favourite kind of pizza. He has 2 weeks of being able to read in bed and enjoy quiet breakfasts. He gets to drink Schweps Lemon.  He gets to walk the streets that I love people watching on. He gets to drink good Tuborg beer. He gets to bike. He gets to go to my favourite clothing store (although he probably would not appreciate it at all!). Oh yeah- he also gets to visit with MY friends (By the way, Ola, if you read this, I will be giving Andreas your email address ;)

Today, I cleaned the house. Drove boys to soccer and basketball. Drove another boy to a play date. Folded laundry. Wrote out permission slips and cheques for seemingly thousands of upcoming field trips. I did part of the homework shift (the rest is still coming). Took the dogs out for a walk. Bought some emergency new boots for Nicka because I noticed his were falling apart and he needed proper ones for one of said upcoming field trips. Started preparing dinner...

He better be bringing me something nice ;)

Happy week ahead! xox

Just to rub it in: no snow... at all!

This is just torture ;)

Another 13 year celebration...

First it was Alexander who turned 13... now our marriage is also a teenager ;) Happy 13th anniversary to my darling husband. May we have many, many more xox

Happy birthday, Andreas!

Today, it is Andreas' birthday. I am happy because he is no longer 4 years younger than me but, now, only 3 ;) Hey! That year counts ;)

We went to celebrate at a local pizza restaurant... that has awesome antipasto... nutella deserts.. good coffee... and bring your own wine ;) It was awesome ;)

Happy birthday to my better half ;) xox

Show off ;)

Yesterday, Andreas sent me a picture... a picture of a calm and beautiful table. A table with crayfish (Swedes are nuts for those things) and wine. A table in the garden, with proper glasses and a WHITE table cloth (real cloth)....

To put things into perspective: We had meatballs. I think that Fanny the dog stole some of Oliver's. The boys had ketchup (the 2 big ones... not Oliver because he is like me and does not like the stuff). I think the conversation included who farted the loudest and where their high score was on the BEST video game ever. The table cloth is plastic... and definitely not white. Dishes were plastic and courtesy of Ikea.... Water was spilled and someone stormed off in a huff....

To my beloved husband: Show off! ;)

(For those of you who didn't know about it, Andreas is on sabbatical in Denmark and is now hanging out with his parents in Sweden. We are leaving to meet up with him in a week... a very long week) ;)

xox

Christmas shopping

I do the Christmas present shopping. Actually, I do ALL present shopping... for every birthday-other holiday-other kid birthday- good report card- every other event that we may encounter during the year. I guess that it was on the mother contract and I just didn't read the fine print ;) Andreas is very talented because he swoops in at the last second, just as the WRAPPED (not by him, just saying!) present is being handed over, and says "A present.... from PAPPA!" and then he sits there trying to figure out what is in the package. Guess this part is in the father contract... and he negotiated the better deal ;)

Happy Wednesday! xox

The end to the weekend

To mark the end of the weekend, Andreas and I decided to enjoy a cosy moment on our back balcony. We had both played soccer games today and it felt nice to ease the muscle pains with a beer, cheese and chorizo. We had a good weekend and are now looking forward to a "hopefully" calm week...

Wishing you all a good Sunday night and a great week ahead xox