Tuesday, December 12, 2006

November 20, 2006

Tipton's first day of school! I was very nervous, but Tipton seemed fine. I was able to find the school and find parking with no problem. The classroom I was less sure about... But there were several helpful teachers around and we found it. I stayed for a few minutes - helped Tipton into his 'inside' shoes and waited until some of the other kids arrived. I left when Tipon went into the other room to play. He didn't seem at all nervous or scared. He just wanted to play with the legos! Lilli and I spent the morning grocery shopping, then came home. I baked a chocolate cake to celebrate Tipton's first day of school. Then we left to go get Tipton. he was happy to see me and Lilli. He had a good day. He likes school. I met the mommy of one of the girls in his class, Samantha. Samantha speaks fluent english and is very excited to have someone to talk to. She is the same age as Tipton, in fact her birthday is April 13th (same as Lilli's!) We got McD's for lunch (more celbrating his first day.) I made lasagna for dinner (for me and Dave) and frech toast for Tipton and Lilli.

Day 18 : Things I've Learned
1) How to get to Tipton's classroom
2) It takes about 15-20 minutes to drive to Tipton's school from the apartment.
3) The cake mixes are smaller/less than I'm used to, but if I make them with milk instead of water and add an egg and butter - they taste pretty good. Also, I springled powedered sure on it because I didn't have any frosting (couldn't find any in the store).
4) The lasagna I made is yummy! Dave had seconds. He said it was teh first thing I've made over here that "tasted right."
5) I seem to be missing a page of the instructions for the felted slippers that I'm making for Tipton. Grrrrrr...

November 19, 2006

Sunday. We loaded the kids in the stroller and walked down to Folkets Park. Tipton was much more daring/confident on the playgound this time. (Probably because there weren't a lot of big kids running around.) He climbed almsot to the top of the smaller clmibing tower. From there we walked to Triangeln (a mall) and ate lunch at McDonald's. Then we looked for "playground pants" for Tipton. "Playground pants" (what I call them) are plastic/rubber/nylon type pants that you pull on over your regular pants. That way your 'good' pants don't get wet/muddy/ruined when you play on the playground (because the playground is pretty much always wet.) We found a pair with Spiderman on them and Tipton was thrilled. Then we walked home. Then we drove to Lund. Dave had set up ameeting with the volvo dealer to talk about leasing a car. They had a block table there and the kids were very well behaved. We came back to Malmo and Dave wanted to go to the Telia store. We parked by neat playground. The kids and I hung out there while Dave discovered that Telia is closed on Sundays. From there we drove to Ikea. We dropped Tipton at the play area and Dave, Lilli and I walked around the store. I got plastic bowls and forks/spoons/knives for the kids. Dave got lightbulbs for the light in the living room. It was a very busy day. A good day.

Day 17 Things I've learned
1) There si a 'short cut' through Folkets park to get to the playground in the back
2) Telia is closed on Sundays
3) Ikea stays open until 6:00 on Sundays
4) There is a really neat playground behind the pedestrian mall
5) There is a walking path on Kungsgatan that will take me to Amiralsgatan, and there is acool palyground along the path.

November 18, 2006

Saturday. Dave went upstairs to check the laundry we had hanging on the line to dry. It was all still pretty we. So he threw it into the dryer - we were up early enough that we had a few hours before the first scheduled laundry time. Oh, and the stuff we thought was cream of wheat is actually oatmeal. But the directions say to make it with mil. So I did. And sicne it was plain I added som syrup. It was pretty good. Lilli LOVED it! She ate the entire bowl. After breakfast we went to ICA Maxi. We found ricotta cheese! So I think this week I will make lasagna. Then we laoded the kids in the stroller and walked to the harbor. We saw a few swans! Lilli LOVED the 'birds.' Tipton liked th ewaves. Both kids ended up walking for a while. It was a good time and I wish I'd brought the camera. We came home and ate lunch. Then Dave and Lilli took a nap. Topton watched a video. Then we drove out and looked at a car that we might lease. For dinner we had french toast. Tipton ate 2 1/2 pieces! Then we had an early bedtime for the kiddos - all that sea air wore them out.

Day 16: Things I've Learned
1) We can get the yogurt that Tipton likes at Hemkop (a grocery store down the street.)
2) We can get instant oatmeal here - just not the kind we're used to.
3) There are swans in the harbor!

November 17, 2006

Laundry Day - Part 2
Had a much bette experience with the laundry today. Our time was 8-12. I was abl eto get everythign (that we needed) washed, and about 1/2 of it dried. Only 2 of the 3 washers were working. And only 1 of the 2 tumble dryers was working.I figured out how to use the 2 drying cabinets. And I hung up clothes on the clothesline in the room at the end of the hall. The kids were really good while I was doing laundry. Pretty much they watched videos for four hours. But I was able to leave them in the apartment while I ran upstairs to change the laundry. However, the afternoon did not go as well as I had planned.. I had wanted to laod the kids into the stroller and walk to the library (figuring Lilli would fall asleep on the way there and I would be able o check my email.) But we couldn't go because it was raining, hard. If it was just a light mist I would have gone. But it was just too long a distance to walk in that hard of a rain. (Dave had the car.) So we stayed home and I was grumpy. The evening was better. Dave brought Martin home for dinner. (Martin is a coworker who used to live in RTP but now lives in Atlanta and was working in Sweden this week.) I made spaghetti and meatballs. Got some really good rolls from the grocery store. The guy were late getting home (predictable) but we had a pleasant evening. Martin is thinking about moving to Sweden for 18 months. As soon as we get internet access he is going to give my email address to his wife.

Day 15: Things I've Learned
1) I CAN do laundry here without breaking down and crying!
2) How to use the drying cabinets.

Monday, December 11, 2006

November 16, 2006

This morning I loaded the kids into the stroller and we walked down to the pedestrian mall. To the Telia store. I put moreminues on my cell phone. I no longer feel quite so claustrophobic. Then we ate lunch at Burger King. Lilli had fallen asleep on the way downtown. She woke up as Tipton and I were finishing our lunch, so she ate hers in the stroller on the way home. We weren't home for long, though. Had to be somewehere by 1:30 to meet with a woamn about Tipton starting school. I thought it was going to be like a physical, but it wasn't. They wrote down his visa number, made a photo copy of his swedish ID number, made a copy of his sot record and asked if he had any helath problems. That was it. It took longer to find parking than it did for the actual meeting. When we got hom ewe watched Madagascar, then made more leaves for our Thankful tree. Also, I called my Mom during the video. Itw as great to talk to her. I don't think I've ever gone this long without being able to talk to my frinds and family. It's starting to get to me. i've cried at least once every day for the pst three days. Little thngs make me cry - both the kids being winey at the sam time, a song, thinking abou tthe last time I crie,d etc. I've been trying to stay positive and upbeat for Dave's sake. I know things will be better once Tipton starts school and our stuff arrives and we move into the house. I just have to hold it together for another couple of weeks.

Day 14: Things I've Learned
1) There's a long way and a short way to get to the pedestrian mall. I took the long way there and the short way back.
2) Where the Telia store is - important fo radding minues to my cell phone!
3) Tipton will start school on Monday!!!!

November 15, 2006

Tried to be less negative and more patient with Tipton. yeserday was stressfull for both of us becaue eh wasn't listening to me. Today we both tried harder. And while we weren't perfect, things were definitely better.

Dave took the car today. So the kids and I walked everywhere. I really love having a stroller and riding board! First we walked back to Babyproffsen. I bought a rain bonnet for the stroller and one of those little fleecy pouches to put Lilli in when it gets cold (colder.) Then we walked down to Folkets Park. We went into the bulding/lobby for the reptile house. It was hot and smelled like bird poop and insence. Tipton didn't want to go in to see the lizards, etc. I was kind of relieved - the smell was making me queasy. So we walked towards the back of the park. We saw the little ponies. And the giant playground There must have been a school group there, because there were a LOT of kids! We stayed for about an hour. Then it was too rainy to play and the kiddos were getting hungry. Before we left the park, I put the new rain bonnet on the stroller. It works great (and it's got reflective strips!) We spent a lazy afternoon watching a video and wrestling on the couch. (Lilli had napped in the stroller on the way to the park.) Then we colored. I drew and colored about two dozen leaves. And a big tree trunk. Tipton and I taped the tree trunk to the wall, then cut out the leaves.Before he taped the leaves onto the tree, I wrote down things that we were thankful for onto them. I'm hoping to make this a Thanksgiving tradition.

Day 13: Things I've Learned
1) How to get to Folkets Park, and that they have a really cool playground
2) That I have no more minutes left on my cell phone - waaaaaaaaaah!
3) That what I had though twas a little single serving of cottage cheese with fruit sauce was actually a single serving of rice pudding with fruit sauce. Really, really good rice pudding. Called Risifrutti. Must find more...

November 14, 2006

The morning started off rough. The kids were both whiney all morning, and I was feeling very homesick/cut off from the world. And I sat down on the couch and cried for about 10 minutes. But the kids were great - instead of being freaked out by it, they tried to cheer me up.

Then we went to Toys R Us. It was a treat for the kids and a chance to let them run through a toy store that I was (somewhat) familiar with. I followed along behind them and wrote down the things that they were interested in. I have no idea how we're going to do Christmas. I have no clue what we will do - will we spend it here alone? Or will we fly to VA? Anyway, then we came home for lunch and to give Lilli time for a short nap. We left at 1:30 to drive to Soderkulla to meet with the director. The meeting went well. On Thursday I take Tipton to meet with some sort of nurse. And if all goes well, he will start school on Monday! Tipton got to see his classroom (the students and teachers had already gone home.) There will only be 5 other kids in his class. From there we went to Coop Forum. I bought a laundry basket (among other things) Then home. Made beef tacos for dinner, and the spicey refried beans that I'd gotten at Gray's the other day. Very good!

Day 12: Things I've Learned
1) How to get to TRY - valuable info for cold, wet days (of which there are many here)
2) That Tipton will start school on MONDAY 8:15-11:15. he need sto bring a snack (preferably fruit) and "inside shoes."
3) Fajita seasoning is good in pretty much everything. It sure livened up beef tacos!

November 13, 2006

Got our Swedish ID#s today. Called Eva to let her know. She is going to print out the forms we need to get the IDs. Also, Eva mailed me some brochures of places to take the kids. Very cool.

This morning the kids and I walked down to the baby store (Babyproffsen). I bought a stroller for Lilli to ride in and got a board that attaches to the back for Tipton to stand and ride on. Spent way more money than I had planned to on the stroller, but the smaller/cheaper stollers can't have the riding board attached to them. But anyway, the stroller works great. We drove to Triangeln and walked down to Gray's. Found lots of good stuff at Grays! They have poptarts, but I didn't buy any. I did buy a bottle ofA1 sauce for Dave. And a package of Oreos for the kiddos (cost 95SEK - that's roughly $12 uSD!) And a bottle of pancake syrup and a can of refried beans. Then we went to the toys tore (a treat for the kids since they were being so good.) It rained on us on the way back to the car. Need to go back to Babyproffsen and buy a rain canopy for the stroller. We stopped at the "McDrive" on the way home and got lunch.

Clair Potter from Soderkulla called. I'm meetingwith her tomorrow at 2:00 to talk about when Tipton can start school. This afternoon we had some excitement when Tipton tripped and smacked his nose on the floor. When he stood up, crying, his nose was GUSHING blood! There was blood all over the floor, on the balloon he was holding, all over his face. It was a good 5 minutes before the bleeding stopped.

Day 11 Things I've Learned
1) Need to get a rain bonnet for the stroller
2) I can buy poptarts at Gray's (for a small fortune)
3) Having a stroller with a riding board opens up a whole new world of things to do/places to go with the kids!

November 12, 2006

Slept much better last night - not having to worry about waking the kids. We took the kids back to the park beside the library. Brought the soccer ball and ran Tipton around. Lilli really likes the big slide but it's really hard to get her up there. Need to find a park with a slide that Lilli can go down! Then we went to he library. Dave took Tipton back to the kids books. He trie dto take Lilli too, but she went nuts so she stayed with me. I got on the internet. Sweet, sweet internet. The library has computers that you can use for free, for up to 10 minutes. I checked my gmail and sent Mom and Kay emails. then I logged onto SuperMommies and posted a "hello" to the group. I couldn't really do much esle because Lilli was going nuts. But it was really, REALLY nice to get onto the internet! I felt connected again! We came home for lunch and Lilli an Dave took naps. Tikpton and I watched a video and played phonics bingo. Oh and it rained. Then it sleeted - for like an hour. Man, if it were any colder we'd have about 3 feet of snow. Lilli hasn't been eating well/much the past few days. Dave is very concerned. So I had him look into her mouth this evening. I swear she is getting all the rest of her teeth - all at once! It's no wonder she just wants to drink milk and eat yogurt - the cold feels good.

Day 10: Things I've Learned
1) I can get on the internet at the library!
2) There is a store called Gray's that sells "American foods" down on the pedestrian mall. Need to go check that out.

Sunday, December 10, 2006

November 11, 2006

Cold and rainy! We drove to Lund for lunch - we went to the pizza place across from the train station. Tipton ate a great lunch. Lilli was NOT happy. Her teeth were bothering her. The pizza was excellent, though. We walked by a toy store taht I would like to go back to and check out. When we got home Dave went out to run a few errands. Then we drove to the grocery store - the one that had corn tortillas. We found lasagna noodles, but not ricotta cheese. I am so close to being able to make lasagna... just need to find some ricotta cheese. Oh, we moved our bed into the living room. MUCH better! Didn't have to worry abou twaking the kids every time we rolled over or got up to use the bathroom...

Day 9: Things I've Learned
1) Where to get lasagna noodles
2) How to get to downtown Lund, the pizza place
3) That my "space boots" (as Dave calls them) keep my feet warm and dry
4) That the ICA wieth the corn tortillas and lasagna noodles is close to where we will be living, and there is a post office inside it.

November 10, 2006

The kids and I drove down to the main library. We played at the big playground next to the library. Then we went to the library and found where the english books are, and where the english books are for kids. Also found out what we need to borrow books (a swedish ID # or a passport.) Then we went back to the playground. Then home for lunch. Lilli fell asleep in the car on the way home, and slept for over 2 1/2 hours! We went to the grocery store after she woke up and it was VERY crowded! I was all prepared when I walked in, but quickly abandoned my list and just started grabbing random stuff. It was a madhouse! I guess the thing to do on Friday afternoons, around 4:30, is to take off work early and go grocery shopping!! I made frozen pizza for dinner. (We sure do seem to be eating that a lot...) Both kids ate well. Tipton ate good all day - he's an eating machine! Must be hitting a growth spurt. Even with the chaos of the grocery store, the afternoon/evening was much less stressful than yesterday! We were all in bed by 10:00.

Day 8: Things I've Learned
1) Where the english books are in the main library. And where to park for the library.
2) To never go to teh grocery store late on a Friday afternoon.
3) What mozzerella cheese is called in Swedish: riven ost
4) Jasmin rice tastes more like the rice that we're used to. So from now on I'll be buying only jasmin rice.

Novembet 9, 2006

Dave took Jenni to the train station early this moring. The kids were sad when they woke up - they missed Aunt Jenni. We had a quiet morning at home - played cars and colored. Then Dave came and picked us up. We met Eva at the tax office to apply for Swedish IDs. Then we went to look at a house. It has 3 bedrooms, ahuge living room, a huge bonus/playroom, a laundry room/hall a long kitchen with room for a table, a bathroom with a shower and separate tub and two sinks, and a half bath. It has a smallish back yard and a driveway and a garage. (The garage isn't really big enough for a car, but we can keep bikes and outside toys in it.) We drove around the neighborhood and then Dave dropped me and the kids back at the apartment.

At 4:00 the kids and I went up to the top floor to start the laundry. Have I mentioned that in the apartment building we're in, you have to sign up for a time to do laundry? M-F you can choose between 8-12, 12-4 or 4-8. Only one person can do laundry at a time. S/S you can choose between 9:30-12 or 12-3:30. Anyway... I was feeling pretty good that I figured out how to work the washing machines (very different than what I'm used to. Also, the washing machines here only hold about 1/3 of what I would consider a normal load.) Then I got totally stressed out when I couldn't get the dryers to work. Ended up calling Dave and askin ghim to come home and help. I was freaking out because our laundry time was only from 4-8, and it was already 5:30 and I didn't even have 1/2 the clothes washed! Dave came home and was able to get the dryers working. But when we went back to check on the clothes they were still really wet. And hot. It seems there is a sign on two of the washers saying that you will need to put the clothes into a separate machine to spin the water out of them before putting them into the dryer. So we did. By the time we figured taht out it was almost 8:00 - and we were just starting to dry our first load of laundry! Fortunately there was no one scheduled after us (because no one is supposed to do laundry after 8:00.) So we just continued with our laundry. Only we couldn't get one of the washers to work, so now we were down to just two washing machines. And there were only two dryers. It was after midnight by the time we were finished. And we still had to hang up some of our clothes to dry, and we didn't get everything washed! It was a very stressful evening. And Tipton didn't go to bed until 9:30 because he didn't have any clean/dry jammies!! The next available time slot to do laundry was the 17th from 8-12. Hopefully things will go much smoother (especially since there's someone scheduled right after us!)

Day 7: Things I've Learned
1) How to work the washing machines
2) The washing machines (and dryers) are much smaller thatn what I'm used to
3) How to work the dryers
4) That I have to run the clothes through a separate machine befoer I can put them into the dryer
5) That there is a room next to the laundry room that I can use to hang up wet clothes to dry
6) I NEED to have access to the internet - so that I can feel connected to the rest of the world. It would also be nice to have access to weather reports and a translator...

November 8, 2006

Jenni and the kids and I went exploring. We piled into the car and drove around town. Drove all over the area that Dave wants us to live in. Then we drove to Lund, to the mall. Ate lunch at McDonald's. Then let the kids run free in the toy store. After a while we went in search of a "treat." Walked around the mall until we found a food court. Ate our treat, then got back in the car and headed home. The kids wateched a video while Jenni walked down to the internet cafe (She had to check on her flight out.) When she got back, she and Tipton walked to the grocery store and I got dinner started. I made chicken tacos, and they were really good! Tim (Dave's friend from work) was in town, so he came over. We all played Uno with Tipton.

Day 6: Things I've learned
1) Where to find corn tortillas (at the ICA Malmborgs in the area that we hope to be living.) The texture is off (too slick) but the flavor is almost right.
2) Realized that any toys/books I buy for the kids here will be in Swedish.
3) Also realized that we ahve done NO Christmas shopping. Yikes!
4) Identified the can opener in the kitchen AND figured out how to use it! (It's just this little piece of metal.)

November 11, 2006

My second day 'solo.' Got the kids up and dressed early because Jennifer E. was supposed to arrive around 8:00. Dave checked her flight status - her flight had been diverted to Ireland! A man on the flight (in her row!) had a heart attack and they had to get him off the plane. While waiting for her to arrive, the kids and I went to ICA Maxi (a grocery store.) Then we went to the train station to pick up Jenni (she took the train from Copenhagen.) Then back to the apartment. I fed the kids lunch. Jenni napped on the couch while they watched a video. Then we all walked down to the park. We played on the playground. There were some other kids, which was nice for Tipton and Lilli. Then we walked to the grocery store (AG's.) Then home. I made "swedish enchiladas" for dinner. Had to use flour tortillas, but they were still pretty good (the texture was a little off.)

Day 5 Things I've learned
1) How to get to the train station

Saturday, December 09, 2006

November 6, 2006

My first day 'solo.' Lilli slept through the night and woke up around 7:30!!! Woo-hoo! I woke Tipton up around 8:45. Our first adventure of the day was figuring out the parking meter. Dave had said that it would take coins and credit cards. I tried my credit card but it wasn't working. I stopped someone and asked them what the machine was saying (because of course it's in swedish) and they said that it wouldn't take the credit card. D'oh! Our next adventure was to find Ikea. I was a little off on our location and we almost ended up off the map. I discovered another shopping center, though (if I can ever find my way back there again.) After pulling over twice to check the map we found Ikea! Got what we needed there. Let Tipton play in the kids area for 1/2 an hour, then headed home for lunch. Lilli napped in the car while I was trying to find Ikea, so she wouldn't take a nap after lunch. We watched a movie, then walekd over to the grocery store. The wind was so strong that it kept knocking Lilli over. Very funny. (I would catch her, of course.) Dave got home early because he wanted to get me a SIM card/swedish number for my cell phone. I made nuggets and fries for the kids and "swedish salsa chicken" for me and Dave. (Had to tweak the recipe a bit...ended up using cream of asparagus soup, milk, white cheddar and salsa for the sauce. The sauce was pretty good but the rice was strange - the texture was off. I'll have to try different rice... After dinner we played and wrestled with the kids.. Then we colored/finger painted to calm down. Had Lilli in bed by 8:00. Tipton took longer to go to bed. He kept saying he was hungry and thirsty. Dave and I went to bed at 11:00. It took us a while to fall asleep. I guess we're all still getting used to the time change. Then Tipton had to pee. Then Lilli was "restless" so Dave kept getting up to check on her. And she woke up and wanted me. Grrrrrrrrrr. Finally got back to sleep a little after 1:00am zzzzzzzzzzz

Day 4 things I've learned:
1) The parking meter won't take my credit card, but I'm not sure why
2) I can drop Tipton at the play area at Ikea and then do my shopping! They won't take Lilli, though, because she's not old enough (have to be at least three.)
3) My exact location on the map
4) Uncle Ben's rice has a very strange texture - very un-rice-like.
5) Cheddar cheese in Sweden is pretty good - when you can find it. You have to peel the rind of off it!

Still haven't found apple sauce, canned/jarred fruit or seedless grapes.

November 5, 2006

Another late morning. Ate a quick breakfast then got dressed and headed to the park with the kids and the new soccer ball. The park is just one block down. Nice big open spaces - we played soccer. There is also a nice playground there. Tipton's favorite thing was a kind of see-saw that spins around. Lilli liked it, too. After the playground we played some more soccer. Then home for lunch. Fed the kids nuggets. Tipton wouldn't eat his until I told him there were like the ones from Wendy's - then he loved them. Lilli didn't eat. Dave and I had frozen pizza. After lunch we drove to Nova Lund (a big mall in Lund.) Found 2 winter suits/coats for Lilli. One is really cute and warm. The other is waterproof and has reflective strips. Then I drove home - my first time driving in Sweden!) made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Pretty good - used swedish meatballs, ha ha! Conviced/threatened Tipton to eat his buttered noodles and two bites of meatball. Lilli wouldn't eat anything. Made her a grilled cheese, but she wouldn't eat that either. We've decided to "back" the kids into the time change. So tonight we're not going to put them to bed until 10:00. Then hopefully Lilli won't keep me up for hours in the middle of the night. (Especially since Dave has to go to work tomorrow!) It's only 6:30 now - it's going to be a long evening. But hopefully the fresh air at the park and the later bedtime will help them to sleep.

Day 3: Things I've learned
1) Lilli wears a size 80 (or the next size down) in snow suits.
2) ugn = oven in swedish
3) How to get to/from the mall in Lund

No Mr. Clean Magic Erasers

November 4 2006

Day two of our adventure - the first full day in Sweden. Started last night... Lilli woke up at 9:30 adn would not go back to sleep. I took the first shift. We watched Madagascar on the laptop and she ate cheerios and drank milk. Then Dave took the second shift. Lilli went to sleep around 1:00am. Tipton got up around 10:00. Dave got up with him. I got up shortly thereafter. We woke Lilli around 10:45 - do NOT want a repeat of last night. We ate breakfast and got dressed. Left the house around noon. Drove to a mall. Took forever to find a parking space. Looked for a coat for Lilli. Checked several places. Coats were either too big or too small. Ate lunch at McDonalds in the mall. Dave bought something from the electronics store. Came back to the apartment briefly to use the potty and take some headache medicine. Then drove to Lund. Saw the building where Dave works. Went to another grocery store (Willy's.) Then drove back to Malmo. Went to Coop Forum (a super walmart-type store.) Again, the coats were either too big or too small. Bought a nightlight and a step for Tipton (so he can reach the bathroom sink.) And some food storage containers. Then came home. had anoother gormet dinner of grilled cheeese sandwiches. I'm hoping to actually cook tomorrow.) Put Lilli to bed at 8:00. She cried for a few minutes but settled down. Read Tipton several books. Put him to bed around 9:00. He came right back out because he was hungry. He ate yogurt, 1/2 a banana and an instant breakfast. Brushed his teeth and he was back in bed by 9:30. He came back out at 9:45. So now he is practicing his reading/spelling/writing. It's after 10:00. Dave adn I are going to bed soon. We bought a soccer ball at Coop Forum, too. There is a park down the street that we plan on taking the kids to tomorrow. Gonna have them run around. It has been too long since they've gotten to play outside. Hopefully that will help with the jet lag. Lilli has been very cranky. She wants only me (will have nothing to do with Dave!) And she wants me to hold her ALL the time.

November 5, 2006 2:30am
Just put Lilli back to bed... Tipton was awake until 11:30. Lilli woke up around 12:30. I've been up with her ever since. Held/swayed/sang to her the entire time. She wanted milk. She didn't want milk. She just wanted to hold her sippy cup. Finally put her to bed with the almost empty sippy cup. (I'm a bad mommy, but a very sleep deprived mommy!)

Day two: Things I've learned
1) Street signs over here SUCK. They are small, off to the side (usually on a building) but not always on the same side. They are not lit and do not have reflective paint. Most are impossible to read (if you can even find them!)
2) I haven't found any boxes of tissues. They come in little pocket packs/travel packs. But you can get a sleeve of 10 of them. Very strange.
3) Lilli should wear about a size 70/74 coat. Infant coats go up to 68. Then the coats seem to skip to size 86. Amazing. Frustrating. If we ever get internet connection I am going to order her a coat from LL Bean or Land's End!
4) I have not knitted since we got here, but you can buy yarn and knitting needles in the grocery store across the street from our apartment!

No clorox wipes, very small selection of lotions/hand creams, can't find boxes of tissues or ziplock bags.

November 3, 2006

We're here! We're in Malmo, Sweden. Our flight was good. It took the kids a while to fall asleep, but once they did, theyslept pretty well. The flight attendant brought a little sleeping bag that we put on the floor for Lilli to sleep in. Very cute. There was a taxi waiting for us, but it was a station wagon. We ended up riding in two taxis. Dave rode in one and I rode in the other one with the kids. We had too much luggage for one taxi! Our temporary apartment is nice. Small, but once. One large bedroom - big enough for a queen bed, twin bed, pack-n-play, dresser, chair and 2 end tables. Once we got settled in we walked to the grocery store. Got the essentials - milk, toilet paper, frozen pizza. Then wecame homeand ate lunch. Then Dave went in to work, to pick up the rental car. Lilli went down for a nap. Tipton played with the sticker book that Grama Kay got him. Finally convinced Tipton to take a nap. The 3 of us slept for about two hours. Then Dave came home and we went to another (large) grocery store. Bought food for the week (planned a few dinner meals) and then came home. Made teh kids grilled cheese and us tuna sandwiches. Then bathed the kids and put them to bed. Dave and I showered and checked in with our parents. Now off to bed!

First Day: Things I've learned in Sweden
1) 1 carton of milk is about 1/2 a gallon. Milk comes in paper cartons, in 1 1/2 liters.
2) You have to buy bags to put your groceries in at the checkout, or bring in your own bags.
3) You have to 'rent' grocery carts. You put in either a 5 kronar or 10 kronar coin. You get it back when you're done and you've returned your cart. That's one way to make sure people return their carts!
4) You have to pay to use toilets. Not all of them, but some of them. Like at the large grocery store we went to. 5 kronar.
5) You buy juice in syrup form. What a shock! Like, it's one part 'juice' to 7 parts water!
6) The bread here is different, more dense.

No corn tortillas. :(

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Farewell Wilbur

Wilbur died. It came on suddenly and hit him very hard. He was very sick. It was a rare disease called Sclerosing Encapsulating Peritonitis.

Wilbur was a great kitty. The kids loved him, and he loved them. He never scratched or hissed at them, even though they pulled his tail, poked him in the ears and sat on him.

We miss him.

Click here for pictures of Wilbur.
http://www.dropshots.com/jmiddleton5

Sunday, August 27, 2006

A Little Bit About Lilli...

Lilli loves her Daddy's bean bag chair






Our little daredevil has recently discovered the joys of "rocking chair surfing"








And Lilli loves her kitty, Wilbur






She is going to be an engineer when she grows up










But for now she's just a little girl. She likes wearing the pink flip flops she got at the beach on vacation, and talking on her Daddy's cell phone.

Friday, August 18, 2006

Too much of a bad thing

It's been a really difficult week. We had to take Lilli to the emergency room Monday night/Tuesday morning because she couldn't stop vomiting - like she was vomiting every five minutes. Lilli and I ended up staying there all night/morning. Dave came home to relieve the sitter we'd called to come stay with Tipton. Dave stayed home from work Tuesday morning so that I could get a couple of hours sleep while Lilli napped, and he took Tipton to his swim lesson. Wednesday seemed to be going fine. Lilli was almost back to normal (she had progressed onto the diarreah stage of the stomach virus.) But Wednesday evening I started feeling queasy. Later that evening Tipton threw up. Then he did it again a few mintues later. This seemed all too familiar, so we called our neighbor to come stay with Lilli while Dave drove me and Tipton to the urgent care. I "got sick" on the way there. Later that night Dave, being the wonderful father and husband that he is, drove all the way to the other side of Raleigh to go to the only drug store that was opened 24 hours so that he could get the prescriptions filled for me and Tipton. On the way home he started feeling sick. Thursday was just one big slugfest. I don't think our tv has ever been on for that long of a stretch of time. Pretty much we came downstairs and just started playing dvds for the kids. Not that Tipton saw many of them. He spent most of the day passed out on the floor. Dave and I took sort of a tag-team approach to caring for Lilli. It wasn't a good day to be in our house.(Did I mention that even the cat threw up Wednesday evening?)

Today was better. Tipton had more energy. Lilli had fewer nasty diapers. Dave was able to eat. And I haven't vomited all day. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Monday, August 14, 2006

This is only a test...



So I just started this blog and I don't really know what I'm doing. But I want to start a blog so that we can keep in touch with friends and family when we move to Sweden in a couple of months. These are my crazy kids, Tipton and Lilli. No one will want to see pictures of me. They'll just want to see the kids.