Blog
Have we forgotten what a Planetarium is?
I took a suggestion from a guide book to see “the BEST planetarium in Europe.”
Europe must have some horrible planetariums.
A week in Athens, Greece
A few interesting things to know if you are planning on visiting Athens for the first time.
Gingerbread contest
Every year at the Architecture Museum in Stockhom, they hold a gingerbread house making contest during the month of December.
Life is a Highway, but not on park trails
I got pulled over for the first time in Sweden this past weekend. Ok, I MAY have been driving on a bike trail, but I had a very good reason. (I had to load very heavy music equipment by the forest, because that’s what you do when your husband wants to make a music video … Read more
New pet… this one breathes!
We got a cat this week! The kids are overjoyed. They say it’s a lot more fun than their last pet, Rocky.
Climbing Clown
On our recent trip to Estonia, I left my family in a small shop filled mostly with Russian souvenirs and trinkets, which went along well with the very Russian man running the shop. While I was off trying to find cash so my son could buy a Russian hat, the proprietor started trying to sell … Read more
Smoked beaver? Anyone?
The menu at a Russian restaurant in Tallinn. Smoked beaver on the appetizers… Bear meat stroganoff on the main courses… Bear meat dumplings..
Booze Cruise
We took a short trip to Tallinn, Estonia this week on what some people call a “Booze cruise.” In Stockholm, there are several short trips you can take by ship to Helsinki, Tallinn and Riga. It’s 2 nights on the ship and one day in the city. The best part is that it’s insanely cheap! … Read more
Another tale of Swedish trick-or-treat
My son’s friend went trick-or-treating with his sister last weekend (because in Sweden, Halloween is 2 weeks for some reason). The Swedes are still learning how Halloween works, which leads to some strange things ending up in the treat bag. On this occasion, the boy and his sister knocked on a door belonging to an … Read more
Where’s my balloon?
Lots of people like to ask, “Hey, where’s my hoverboard?” in reference to what we thought our current lives would look like by the 2000s. I stumbled across an interesting article on Mashable with illustrations of what people living in 1900 thought the world would look like by the year 2000. Apparently, walking on water … Read more
Thanks for the image, son.
After eating a bit too much curry at lunch, my son had to spend a long time in the bathroom yesterday evening. When he finally came out, he said: “I thought I had dysentery! But not like Oregon Trail, more like Oregon ROAD!”
Cinnamon Bun Day
It’s Cinnamon Bun Day in Sweden. Why do we celebrate? I don’t know. It’s so depressing heading toward winter so this is about all we have to look forward to this week. Maybe we need to eat a bunch of cinnamon buns to build up our warm layer of fat to get through the next … Read more
Another insulting job hoop to jump through
When looking for jobs, I appreciate companies that can get to the point about what they want, ask for my résumé and a sample of my work and then an interview if they feel we match. What I do NOT appreciate are companies that make you jump through unnecessary hoops that have nothing to do … Read more
Well, that’s a relief
While looking through CNN headlines, I often notice articles sandwiched in between news of war and sickness, such as this one. Was this really a thing? Or was the reporter just out of ideas and repeated something someone said at a party? It seems you could write a lot of articles this way: Peanut Butter … Read more
Geography
We decided to book a trip for the winter. I asked the kids where they wanted to go. One of my suggestions was Barcelona and the other was Greece. One son said Greece and the other really wanted Barcelona. As he has never mentioned Barcelona, I wondered why he was so adamant about going. When … Read more
Italy observations
As we rode through yet another small Italian town, my oldest son asked, “How come all of these towns have groups of old men just sitting around together all day? What are they doing?” “What do you think they’re doing?” “Probably complaining about the modern world.”
How to defeat your kids on YouTube
The kids and I have been having a contest on for who can create the most watched video on YouTube. I need to crush them with my amazing video that I spent a whole 10 minutes making, so why not give it a view? It’s so very informative!