As November draws to an end, most schoolchildren are practicing their St. Lucia songs so they can perform a Luciatåg on December 13^th. The children begin to meet the Jul Tomte at most outdoor Jul markets and anywhere else he might pop up! At home, we continue decorating, especially with some hand-made items.

During this time, we try always to make our way to a Julmarknad to pick up some special hand-made gifts and traditional foods and drinks. Of course there is always glögg, but this year we also tried ‘Svagdricka’ which is a sort of non-alcoholic malt beverage similar to root beer.

Then finally it is time for all of the birthdays: Christopher, (Jesus), Linnea!

Now the darkest day of the year has passed and we all look forward to another beautiful year together. Happy New Year!

Last year, Nora couldn't reach the trapeze without a step stool!

You might know we are preparing for a trip to USA this July.  Our first stop is Seattle/Bainbridge Island. We can’t wait to see the grandparents there. There are special sights and sounds we must partake in:  Pike Place Market and the rain forest!

Then we drive down the coast, an especially beautiful drive I hear, to Sacramento for more family visits.  I have never been in California, so this will be a new experience for me!

Next we must take a plane to the other coast, but not all the way to Philly.  All the rest of the family is in the Pittsburgh area, so we won’t get a chance to get back to our old home and friends in Philadelphia.  More grandparents, aunts, and uncles who probably keep it a little hidden just how much they long to see their little girls.

And those little girls are growing like a swedish dandelion left unchecked  (seriously, they can get quite tall)!  Today Linnea started an alphabet book I made for her. She is more than ready to learn to read and write in earnest now, i.e, she is already doing it but now just needs a little support, encouragement, and resources to take off!  She is preparing to go to förskoleklass in the Autumn term, sort of like Kindergarten in the US.  She will be going to a Swedish school.  All children in the community are entitled to get Mother Tongue language support (so long as there are at least 5 in the group), so hopefully she will get a little bit of English support at school, but mainly the responsibility lies on us to make sure she is learning to read and write in English.

Nora will continue at Swedish dagis.  She is so interested in flowers and insects, and she loves building things. She does have an interest in drawing, coloring, and painting, but seems more interested in building with blocks, play dough, making puzzles, etc.  Both girls are interested in earth and space science and how the body works.

Linnea's smurf house, photograph by special request (you know who you are!)

A little earlier in the Spring, Linnea’s ballet class culminated in her first dance recital.  Everything seemed to be going great, the rehearsal was fantastic and I watched Linnea do all her routines with zest.  Then came the real show and we got a big surprise! Linnea had stage fright!  But she says she would like to try again next year.  And of course Nora cannot wait until she is old enough to go to dance lessons.

Backstage before the recital. First time wearing makeup (sminkning)!

There was another special date in May, it was our 11th Wedding Anniversary! We went to Möckelsnäs for a splendid 5 course dinner. When we arrived, we had a drink on the terrace over- looking Möckeln lake. When it got a little chilly, they provided us with cozy fleecy blankets, which all restaurants seems to have on hand for chilly Spring and Summer evenings.

Now we must sprint to the finish line, so to say (end of school term) and it seems busier than normal. Perhaps because my school is moving to a new location and we need to organize and pack boxes for the move by the end of term.  And always at the end of a school term you must prepare for the next school term. Since I will be changing positions and moving into the ‘Middle Years Program’, I will need to become familiar with a new curriculum and new way of doing things.  Linnea, also, is preparing for the next school term.  She has already had one meeting with her class and teachers next year and the second one comes this week.  So far, so good! Her favorite part of the new school and class?  The special ‘kompisgunga’ in the playground! It is essentially a giant basket that allows lots of children to swing together.  It is awesome.  I think the best part of her new class is that one of her teachers from dagis will become one of her Kindergarten teachers and there are two other children from her dagis now that will be in her new class.  It will be nice for her to have that continuity as she moves into her new educational realm.  So here’s to continuity AND change!

I haven’t been keeping up with the news very well. This picture of the moon was taken the day after the famed eclipse. I would have taken a picture the day before too, but I just didn’t have the camera ready!  It must have been about 7.15 am and when the whole family was driving together in the car to work and school and I noticed the moon…it was a strange shape, like none I have ever seen, and quite yellow. It is still pitch black this early in the morning, so we were lucky to catch it!  Then the next day, I took that photo of the full moon against a clear blue sky just as it was starting to become light again.  I said to Christopher is must be a waxing moon since it was full this morning, but it wasn’t yesterday. Then later I read there the eclipse in North America, did some research and learned we had seen our version of the eclipse too!  So that’s why it looked so strange! 

Heading to town, we come up to the lakes. I love when you can see the little footprints of critters over the snow on the lake. 

This is Råshult, looking picturesque….sometimes there is a strange phenomenon when ice crystals form and stay frozen on the trees, not snow, but ice, it is so beautiful!

This is a typical small traditional Swedish “stuga” or cottage.

Älmhults Torget, or city centre.  As soon as it gets dark the big tree is lit up brightly.

7 hours later that day, the sun is setting, and the sunset is as beautiful as the sunrise.

Julafton, or Christmas Eve, aka Christopher’s Birthday, we have started a tradition of heading into city centre to listen to a little brass band play Christmas tunes.  Tomte, or Santa Claus, is there with a sleigh full of godis for the children.

Christmas Day, 2010

I love that the Smurfs are back “in”, or at least in our house they are!

Christmas Dinner, 2010, Turkey, Roasted Root Vegetables, Stuffing, Red Beet Salad.  Carrot Birthday  Cake.  Mums!

Happy Holidays and Best New Year from our Winter Wonderland to yours!  Now that we’ve shared a bit, we would love to hear from you, please drop us a line!

Friends, family, I am sorry it has taken me so long for this new installment of The Baker Family Loggbok.  I knew that it would become more difficult to keep the blog updated once I started working at the end of August, but I didn’t think it would take months for me to get to it!  I have to say one of the nice things about Facebook is how easy it is to upload photos and share them quickly with friends and family, no?

The last I wrote was after our trip to Norway! Since then I did start working. I am teaching again. This time as a second grade teacher at the International School in Älmhult (http://www.almhult.se/toppmeny/barnutbildning/grundskola/theinternationalschool.4.40681f1210df538087680005055.html).  It is a cozy, quaint, small community and I feel quite at home teaching there as it is filled with wonderful staff and students!

So, I thought I would pick up where I left off and try to give a quick summary of “our Swedish life” since the Norway trip.  You will see the things I write about here briefly reflected in the slide show! 

When we arrived, we were greeted by a pair of horses in our backyard! Our neighbors had indeed asked us earlier in the summer if they could use the space we have for their horses. They planned to trade off with our other neighbors.  I didn’t know how it was going to work, but when I got home, it was pretty clear! They had installed an electric fence and the horses all day and night back there, until it was time for them to go to the other yard and do the same thing!  I think it was even better than actually owning horses. We enjoyed visiting and feeding them when they were there. 

We have another cat now and the horses and cats were really interested in one another.  One horse liked Pandora so much and he tried to play with her but luckily she got away.  That horse ended up being quite agressive to the caretaker and she had to send the horse back to the owners and get a new one. Then we never had any danger with the cats and horses again.  Fairy and Pandora, our cats, love each other so much and we feel lucky to have such a nice pair that get along so well.

Over the summer we also attended our first outdoor barbeque.  The man who hosted it lives in the nearby neighborhood of Sågonäs and is an avid hunter. I took a photo of all of the antlers he has collected on one of his outbuildings.  All of the meat was from his hunting trips and we had to choose and cook our own meat.  There was a lovely sunset that evening over the lake, and it is hard to imagine that it was very late at night when the sun was just setting. Now it is pitch black by 5 pm!  And every day it gets darker earlier and earlier…. 

We also learned there is a little girl that lives near him who is similar in age to Linnea. In fact, Linnea attended her birthday party later in the fall!  Also as fall grew near, we harvested lots of potatos and enjoyed a really lavish garden. I loved how tall the sunflowers grew!  The girls and I went to Sågonäs to find and pick these tiny little blue berries (not actually blueberries, some other variety..), Christopher’s parents came for a visit, and slowly and more often the fog and frost crept in. 

Before the snow, we were able to get out to see the colorful leaves with some nice little hikes nearby, and of course, there was Halloween!  We loved going to Tivoli for Halloween.  Tivoli was a creepy splendor. We were lucky enough to stay until it got dark to get the full experience of it. 

Our version of Trick or Treat was much smaller scale then we were used to in USA.  Since the people in our neighborhood don’t celebrate Hallween, I didn’t want them to feel obligated to give us a treat! So, at the suggestion of a friend, we baked up some yummy pumpkin cookies, walked up to their house with our masks and lanterns, and when we said “trick or treat”, we offered them some of our delicious cookies!  Since the houses near us (there are 4 in our “neighborhood”) are so far away, that was the only house we visited that Halloween night, but it was enough to put us in the spooky spirit and I even felt that our neighbors enjoyed getting a little taste of the Halloween holiday. 

It seems like just a blink of an eye after Halloween that the jul (yule/Christmas!) season is upon us.  Starting November 28th or so, the julmarkets open up!  And as soon as it gets dark, the candles and lanterns are lit up every night, everywhere you go.  We went to a traditional julmarket in Huseby Bruk and got some fantastic foods that only seem to come out this time of year.  Special sausages, smoked fish, amazing mustard, and hand-made candies. All the craftspeople come out with stalls for the julmarkets to sell their wares.  At another Christmas market in Växjö, I picked up some lovely Waldorf-inspired dolls for the girls (shhhh…don’t tell, it is a secret until Christmas!) and some other fantastic hand-made goods. 

The next holiday in the lineup that is quite big in Sweden is St. Lucia day, coming December 13.  Linnea is practicing songs at school, and there is a group of students at my school practicing as well.  Lussekatter (a kind of special Lucia bread) is in all the bakeries. 

We will continue to keep track of everything this holiday season with the camera and I hope for another installment to come in less time that it took for this one!

Playing at the water fountain in Sandefjord, Norway after just getting off the long ferry ride!

 Soon after my parents left Sweden, we got ourselves ready for a big road trip to Norway.  This would be the first road trip of this sort that we’ve had with the children.  Before the girls, Christopher and I would travel by car and with tent as often as we could.  We’ve camped in Pennsylvania, Maine, Utah, and Washington to name a few.  We’ve always enjoyed hiking, particularly mountain climbing, and rockclimbing.  Linnea definitely seems to love it also. With Nora, it’s a bit early to tell. She was asking to go home around our first day away from home, and pretty much said she wanted to go home just about every day we were gone.  On all of the bigger hikes, she got a shoulder ride.  But she’ll certainly boulder any good- looking rock she sees.   

A moment of self-determination for Nora.

 I loved Norway immediately because I missed the hills and valleys of Pennsylvania.  Of course, the hills and valleys in Norway are quite a bit steeper, deeper and more dramatic, and have the added feature of fast rushing glacial waters nearly everywhere you look.  We actually hiked to a glacier on one of our day trips!   

This is about as close to the glacier as we could get, safely, with the girls. Linnea walked this hike entirely herself-about 3 hrs round trip!

The trip was more about the journey and less about a destination. We took several days and snaked our way up to Strind Farm in Lom, an adorable little mountain town quite close to the largest peak in Norway.  We stayed in a perfect little log cabin with grass roof.  Linnea immediately mades friends with a little boy who was the grandson to the owners of the farm.  (http://www.strind-gard.no/index.php?sg=aktiviteter)  

After our stay in Lom, we began the long trek back home, stopping each night to camp or stay in a small cabin.  The first night we stayed at a spectacular spot outside of Bergen called Skogtun (http://www.skogtun-camping.no/indexENG.html)  

The campsite at Skogtun

On Saturday July 17, we pulled into Sandefjord for the last leg of the trip, only to find we had just missed the afternoon ferry to Strömstad and it was completely filled up.  We had to wait until the 5 pm ferry, so we enjoyed an American style pizza at a restaurant on the dock and wandered about the town until it was time for us to drive onto the ferry boat.  The later ferry meant we got home to Duvelycke during the dark hours of Sunday morning. We woke up in the morning to the realization that our home isn’t so far from the dramatic landscapes of Norway but it’s natural beauty and open wilderness certainly rivals Norway to the extent that we continue to feel we are on vacation at our own home!   

Click to view slideshow.

Our experience of Sweden in the summer, so far, has been nothing short of spectacular.  Ever since summer solstice, we have mainly had sunny days, blue skies, and that sort of perfect warmth that comes from regions close to the sea.  Breezy, really warm in the sun, sometimes chilly in the shade or evening.  Never humid.  This is where the kids have really come to experience the kind of life I hoped for them to have.  Immediate access to safe spaces outdoors, plenty of room to explore and let their imaginations run wild. Of course, if you’ve ever met Linnea or Nora, you’d know they are not lacking in imagination!  Nonetheless, the open spaces give them more fuel for their dramas to play out.

Right in time for the Swedish celebration of midsummer, my parents arrived.  Their main goal was to see our way of life.  Where we live, how we shop, what we do….

Click to view slideshow.

•  One of our first excursions was a nearby lakeside beach in Diö.  
• A 2 year old can pretend to be a train on the tracks or a 4 year old can, you know, plant a tree. 
• A visit to Råshult’s ecologically minded café was rewarded with the experience of walking back into time to see how Carl Linnaeus had lived in the 1700s. 
• We made it back to Råshult for their annual Midsommarfest-a display of traditional Swedish dress and folk dancing, songs, and dancing around the maypole.
• My mother is a church musician so I wanted to show her a typical Swedish “kyrka”, or church.  It was my first visit to the village of Stenbrohult’s kyrka.  It is in a beautiful setting. Here one can see pastures with cows grazing, a view of Lake Möckeln, and an amazing variety of wildflowers in the meadows. 
• Our next adventure took us East to Kalmar and then Öland.  We visited historic Kalmar slott, or castle and then continued to the place we were to stay in Öland, called Svalgården.  We had a lovely stay in the old granary that was converted to two little apartments. The area is close to a World Heritage site and is well-known for the great bird-watching opportunities. There we took day trips to a nearby lighthouse and beach.  
• On our way back home, we stopped at Kosta Boda for a guided tour. We learned that Kosta is the oldest glassblowing business in Sweden.  We were able to go to the hot shop, to see a few pieces being created by the skilled artisans from beginning to end. 
• The final Swedish adventure was at Stenshuvud National Park.  At the café outside the park we had the best cookies and cinnamon rolls and lunch ever.  We were looking for the famed “all you can eat cookie buffet” but instead ended up at a different café which was far more quaint, charming, and delicious (I think). Then there was a short walk through the woods to the beautiful white sand beach where we spent the rest of the day. 
• To wrap up my parents’ visit, we all took to Copenhagen, Denmark for a visit to Tivoli.  Along the way, we stopped at the Catholic church to see the pipe organ. The organist was playing when we walked in, and I don’t think I can find the words to explain the music and the way it filled the space.  At Tivoli, we enjoyed the usual child-friendly rides and special once-a year treats like candy-floss.  On the walk back to the subway, we stopped by Nyhavn where the view of the canal was spectacular at sunset. My parents flew out of Copenhagen the next day and made it home safely.  Now we must prepare ourselves for the next family adventure where we plan to explore the glacial valleys, mountains, and fjords of Norway. 

 When it’s nice, it’s really nice. 

And when we deicide to go out to eat in Sweden, this is what we mean:

First, there’s the April showers.  I don’t mean rain showers though, they are more a snow and hail variety that come and go quickly.  Yet  it was officially time to start a garden. I can’t think of a time that (Christopher) didn’t have a garden since I’ve known him.  Other than my grandfather, Christopher is mainly the one who’s taught me about gardening.  My involvement with the garden has ebbed and flowed, more at an ebb though usually.  I started with indoor seedlings that didn’t take root.  I’m pretty sure it’s my fault, as I managed to get cactus soil instead of regular soil.  Now we can see why I haven’t been in charge of the gardening.  Christopher took over, planted more and took the seedlings outside.  They are currently growing and doing just fine! 

Then the patch of ground for the garden was chosen.  Christopher dismantled the old, metal swingset that was there and saved only the slides. He made a new deck for the slide and attached it to the wooden swingset we have.  We debating setting the plot of land to fire for the garden, but settled on mowing it.  In the pictures, you can see what the land looked like-just losts of tall and mangled old grass and weeds. 

Now we’re still in the process of turning the soil. It’s taking awhile-it’s a big plot, but also the ground is tough.  Very rocky.  Now we know why it’s mostly potatos and carrots here! 

In the meantime, we get these occassional days of perfect weather. Sunny, blue skies, but still a Spring chill to the air.  Today we made the most of it by biking, barnvagn in tow, to a little spot I found with a nice trail across the mire.  Linnea immediately remembered being at another mire last summer and picking blueberries there.  We found a sunny spot to have a picnic and then rode home to get back to all that garden work! 

Friday was Walpurgis.  To get a history of Walpurgis see: http://www.graphicgarden.com/files17/eng/sweden/walp1e.php , it gives a nice little summar.  We cycled up to Råshult around 8:30 pm. It still wasn’t dark yet and we knew we had to wait until 9:00 or so until it got darker and the fire would begin.  As soon as we arrived, Linnea saw one of her teachers who sings in the choir at the village church. She was there to sing with her choir for the ceremony!  After the songs, there were some speeches.  I could tell that there were some jokes about “When is the train going to come” (because the train line was right behind us) and of course the train passed at least twice while we were there.  I couldn’t get much more of the speech, mainly because I was focusing on Linnea who was getting scared of the dark and was feeling unsettled. 

Even with the dousing of some lighter fluid, the fire never really took off. In fact, by the end, after they sang some closing songs, there was no fire to be seen at all in the giant pile of dried wood and branches.  But then Linnea’s teacher reminded us that it was time to go to see fireworks (saved)! We ran in to some friends and walked up to see the fireworks together, which were really great.  Linnea loved them and Nora did not!  We cycled home in the dark, managed to not run over the neighbors who were walking home across the bridge,  and got a good sleep.Click to view slideshow.

The photos posted range from a shot at our (old) Philadelphia home, on our way to visit Sweden, riding horses at Christopher’s colleague’s house, and Tivoli.  Basically, it was right around the time we had our “look and see” visit to Sweden to see if we liked it and could really see ourselves living here!