Spending time with the Ihs family

This afternoon Moa, Lucas, Anders and Helena came over to visit and they also gave me a very nice birthday present. First the kids got to shovel some snow at the back of our house. Adam is trying to get rid of all the snow from the veranda, not an easy job so it was great with some help.

After that Moa and Jakob painted some really nice eggs. They did a great job even though they after only a few minutes started painting themselves instead of the eggs. Oh well, it was the first time for Jakob and I am sure it will be easier next year. At least we had a very fun time.

Moa and Jakob are getting ready for dinner.

Adam spent quite a lot of time with Lucas and Jakob also got to try to hold the baby.

Jakob and his new cousin

Jakob really enjoys being near Lucas and he is so gentle with him and wants to kiss, hug and pat him all the time. Here he is helping uncle Anders to look after little Lucas.

Jakob also wanted to be a part of it when I was feeding Lucas.

Playing with Moa

Jakob was so happy to have Moa here and they played together really well. They even invented their own games when we were in a different room.

Jakob and Moa got an Easter egg each filled with little toys and sultanas.

Jakob really looks up to Moa who is nearly 6 months older and he was so happy when Moa read him a book.

Easter!

It is so nice with a long weekend, 4 days in a row!! this is the first Easter that Adam doesn't have to work since we got together. Very exciting.

This morning we just stayed home and took it easy. Adam and Jakob played outside for a while, I made a blueberry pie, did a bit of cleaning and washing. Jakob has been sleeping really late all week, one morning he slept until 8!! I start work about 7 so I haven't seen him in the mornings since he is asleep when I leave. Today, when none of us is working and Jakob didn't have to go to childcare, he got up 6.15! why can't he sleep until 8 when we need a sleep in? anyway, he had a sleep around lunchtime and both Adam and I had a kip at the same time. Nice.

After we woke up mormor and morfar came for a quick visit to give Jakob an Easter egg with a little Pingu inside, and some Easter presents. Jakob loved getting present.

A baby boy!

Tuesday evening Maria gave birth to a healty baby boy and it all went really well. Last night we went to the hospital to meet them and Maria looked great, hard to believe she gave birth only 2 days ago.

Jakob was interested in the baby for about 5 seconds. We met in a corridor at the hospital where they have a big woodden boat that kids can play with. Jakob loved it.

Home again

It was great for me and Adam to have a night and a morning to ourselves but it also feels so nice to have Jakob home again. After a day in the snow Jakob helped Adam to put together a new bookcase, and afterJakob helped me to fill it up.

Jakob cuddling up in an armchair before bedtime

Daddy reading to Jakob before he went to bed tonight.

A day in on the ice!

Adam and I picked up Jakob from mormor and morfars around 11.30 today and went straight out to see Maria, Andreas and Alice at Maria's parents holiday house only 15 min drive outside Lulea. The cabin is in a beautiful spot right by the ocean, which is of course frozen over at the moment. In this picture you can see (apart from Jakob and Maria's dad) a small deer running on the ice in the distance and also the little wind shelter that Andreas has built up on the ice.

At first Jakob was a bit upset and tired I think but it didn't take long before him and Alice were playing together happily. A couple of small spades to play with and a bit (I mean a lot) of snow could keep at least Jakob happy for a long time.

Maria who only slept a few hours last night because of back pain battled along really well but took it quite easy. She is now probably only days away from giving birth. Very exciting!!

Andreas took care of the fire and he also cooked sausages for as all. Yummy!

Alice and Jakob went for a walk on the ice but stopped after a while and yelled out "carry". Adam picked up Jakob and I took Alice. She calls me mummy nowdays. I think she thinks mummy is my name since mummy in Swedish is mamma. I think it is really cute.

Cross country skiing again!

Adam had another go on his new cross contry skiis and he is looking more and more comfortable on them.

Proudly smiling after a little ski trip on the ice.

Play in the cabin!

After playing outside for a couple of hours we all went inside Maria's parents cabin. Jakob and Alice started playing with some Easter decorations.

After some playtime we all had some left over birthday cake.

And then Alice and Jakob went in to the bedroom. As we all know they both love spending time together in bed.

After a while Adam joined in before it was time to go home.

Sleepover

Last night Jakob had his first sleepover at mormor and morfars place. I started preparing him in the morning by explaining what was going to happen and we talked about what he could bring to their place. The plan was that he would leave with my parents after my birthday party. It all went really well. When it was time to leave we packed his bag together, and after that he was almost panicing beacuse for some reason he thought he would have to stay with me and Adam. After they all left Adam and I had a few hours on our own in the house, that has never happened before! In the evening dad picked us up and took us to a restaurant in town where we had a really nice dinner together. After we went to a bar for another drink before we decided to go home. We had a great night and it was wonderful to wake up in the morning not having to think about anyone else.
Jakob's sleepover went very well. He had a bath, played, ate lots of food and when it was bedtime he just run to bed on his own and was asleep within 5 minutes. He woke up 6.15 this morning and was very happy. Adam and I just stayed home and relaxed in the morning. I think Jakob thought it was a little adventure to sleep at mormor and morfars place. Hope it goes this well next time he does it too.

This is our house! the photo was taken today when the sun was shining and it was quite warm. We still have lots of snow around the house and it is hard to imagine that it will all be gone in only about a month.

More birthday celebrations!

Yesterday I had invited the rest of the family over for cake. Birthdays are always a nice opportunity to get people together.

My birthday!

Thursday this week was my birthday. It started very early with Jakob waking up 4 in the morning. I think he had a nightmare but he refused to go back to sleep. He was in a very good mood though and after a couple of hours he and Adam gave me some really nice birthday presents and Jakob said Happy Birthday mummy, something he and daddy had practiced to say all week.

I left work at about 2 and had a really nice sleep. Mormor and morfar picked Jakob up from child care and after that they all came to our place and spent some time with me and Jakob. Jakob helped mormor with some baking as well.

Adam had to work late so I had a few girlfriends over for cake. I had a great birthday!

Alice and Jakob

Since Adam is now so in to skiing he decided to go again this morning. Today him and Andreas went to Måttsund, the bigger slope here in Luleå and Jakob and I went to see Maria and Alice instead.

This is how I found Jakob and Alice when they both had run upstairs and suddenly got really quiet. I am starting to get a bit worried... Jakob is only 2 and Alice not even 3...

Downhill skiing

Earlier in the week Adam shocked me by coming home with slalom skiis one day. I thought it would be one of those things that just sits in the garage and never gets used. I was wrong. Yesterday he had his first try with his "instructor" Andreas who is kindly helping Adam to learn. They went to a small family slope only a few minutes from where we live and Adam really liked it! Unfortunatley I wasn't there with the camera...

Sigrid and Elvin

Yesterday afternoon Sigrid and Elvin came to visit. Jakob really likes and looks up to Elvin who is 2 years older than him. He wants to do everything Elvin does.

Cross country skiing!

Yesterday the weather was really amazing, warm sunny and no wind at all. We went to see Maria, Andreas and Alice and brought our new ski's and also Moa's ski's for Jakob to try. Both Jakob and Adam did really really well even though Jakob gave up after about 5 min.

Maria is 38 weeks pregnant so she took it easy and so did I. We just took care of the kids and played in the snow when the boys went out in the forest for a bit of cross country skiing.

After a few hours in the snow we had home made pizza at Maria's place and the kids played for a bit before we left to let Jakob have a sleep in the car.

Earlier in the week I got my parents to buy some proper covers for the windows that will keep Jakob's room dark even when it is light outside. It is working pretty well and since they put it up Jakob has been sleeping until between 6-6.40 in the morning. A lot better than 4.30-5...

A day in Ale!

Today was a really beautiful sunny spring day here in Luleå. The temperature was around 0 degrees with a lot warmer in the sun. We spent most of the day in Ale by the Ale river together with mormor and morfar, Anders, Helena, Moa and Lucas, Åsa and Mikael and Åke. Mormor and morfar got there before everyone else to start the fire and get everything ready and they also brought the food for the day, sausages and hamburgers that we cooked on the open fire and the bbq. Åsa and Mikael also brought some home made dough so that we could make "stick bread" that you grill yourself in the fire. So good!

The place where we were looked stunning with the blue sky and the white snow. When we first got there Jakob was in a pretty bad mood but luckily it turned around after he had some yummy sausages to eat.

Cooking sausages on a wooden stick is a very Swedish thing and here Jakob tries it for the first time ever.

Jakob and Moa had a show singing and dancing together. Every now and then Jakob put his arm around Moa. He really likes her.

Shoveling snow is still one of Jakob's favourite things to do. I wish his dad felt the same...

Family photo

Since I am the one almost always behind the camera we don't have many photos of the 3 of us. Here is one with Jakob screaming and wanting to get down.