Sunday, August 26, 2012
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Benal Beach
Hi again! It's been a few days since my last post, but that's just because we've been out and about :-) Monday evening we checked into our hotel Benal Beach,. We had 3 nights booked at the hotel which has an awesome swimming pool complex complete with a pool bar, about 5 different swimming pools and 7 different water slides in varying heights. Yesterday we spent the day by the pool and thoroughly enjoyed the pool complex. It took a little convincing before Aislynn mustered up the courage to go down a few, but once she'd tried them, she couldn't get enough!! There were very short lines to the slides and the pool was not over crowded at all, the hotel itself was also quite nice and we would definitely stay there again.
We've also had a couple of lovely beach days, on Tuesday we took the train to nearby Fuengirola and walked through a big outdoor market, and last night we went to Tivoli World. I haven't been able to post any pictures, but I will as soon as we get home. Mats has also been filming some, so maybe I'll put up some video clips too :)
We've also had a couple of lovely beach days, on Tuesday we took the train to nearby Fuengirola and walked through a big outdoor market, and last night we went to Tivoli World. I haven't been able to post any pictures, but I will as soon as we get home. Mats has also been filming some, so maybe I'll put up some video clips too :)
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Sea Life
It`s been really nice and hot since we have been here, not unbearably hot like it was last year! It's also noticably calmer with less tourists and not as many people. Yesterday we took a nice long walk with M's parents, of course with the stops for a cold pint or three, and tapas. In the evening we had a big Bbq with sooo much food, sangria, and all the trimings :-)
Today we took a walk down to the harbour and went to Sea Life. As we were standing in line to pay I noticed 2 ladies in front of us with a discount coupon, which meant they were only paying 8€ / person instead of 14.5€ ( thanks to them, we paid 6 € for Ais instead of 12.5€). I asked them where they'd gotten it and they offered to let us use it as well since it was valid for 4 ppl. That was really nice of them and it felt good to not have spent more than necessary. We enjoyed looking at all the animals, I got to touch a starfish, sea cucumber and a big hermit crab. There were sharks, sea turtles, sea horses, and lots of very cool underwater creatures.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Hello from Spain!
We had a good flight,and arrived safely.We took the local train from the airport and listened to happy singing on the ride there:)Ill try and blog as much as I can and hopefully even be able to post pix
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Wednesday
Don't have too much planned today, just wanna take it easy since I've been so tired and get as much as possible organized in the house and get ready for our trip to Spain tomorrow! I'm so looking forward to heat, sun, good food, relaxing and lots of swimming! I'm a little bummed that I haven't managed to work out at all the last couple of weeks and I feel the difference. I might just go for a run later and explore the area a bit and hopefully find a nice route.
Yesterday me, Ais and Tuva ( Aislynn's friend who came with on moving day and spent 2 nights here) went back to Tyresö to bring Tuva home and then Ais and I did some basic cleaning in the apartment. Because the apartment is going to be completely renovated before anyone else moves in, we don't have to do any deep cleaning YAY! But I wanted to mop the floors, wipe down the surfaces and make sure things looked acceptable. The couple moving in after us had also called wondering if there was any way they could come and take a look at the apartment, so it worked out for them to come by yesterday as well.
I'm not feeling very energetic today, but the sun is shining now and we're making beef stroganoff for dinner :)
Idag har jag inte så mycket planerade, blir nog att ta det lite lungt, försök packa upp och göra i ordning så mycket som möjligt och förbredda lite inför Spanien resa imorgon! Ska bli så härligt med riktigt värme, god mat, sol, slappa o mycket bad. :) Måste dock erkänna att träningen har nästen helt o hållet inte blivt av de senaste veckorna, och det känns. Jag kanske tar ett springtur lite senare ikväll och utförskar området lite.
Igår åkte Aislynn, hennes kompis Tuva (som följde med på flyttdagen och sov över 2 nätter här) till Tyresö för att lämna Tuva. Jag passade även på att städa lite i lägenheten. Nu är det så att lägenheten kommer att helrenoveras, så vi behövde inte tänka på flyttstädning alls, men jag ville ändå torka golven och ytorna och rengör badrummet så att det ser acceptabelt ut. Paret som kommer att flytta in efter renoveringen hade tagit kontakt med mig och frågade om det fanns nån möjlighet att komma o titta på lägenheten, så det passade in för de att komma förbi igår oxå.
Men just nu skinner solen och vi ska knalla ner till centrum och köpa ingredienser till biff stroganoff :)
Yesterday me, Ais and Tuva ( Aislynn's friend who came with on moving day and spent 2 nights here) went back to Tyresö to bring Tuva home and then Ais and I did some basic cleaning in the apartment. Because the apartment is going to be completely renovated before anyone else moves in, we don't have to do any deep cleaning YAY! But I wanted to mop the floors, wipe down the surfaces and make sure things looked acceptable. The couple moving in after us had also called wondering if there was any way they could come and take a look at the apartment, so it worked out for them to come by yesterday as well.
I'm not feeling very energetic today, but the sun is shining now and we're making beef stroganoff for dinner :)
Idag har jag inte så mycket planerade, blir nog att ta det lite lungt, försök packa upp och göra i ordning så mycket som möjligt och förbredda lite inför Spanien resa imorgon! Ska bli så härligt med riktigt värme, god mat, sol, slappa o mycket bad. :) Måste dock erkänna att träningen har nästen helt o hållet inte blivt av de senaste veckorna, och det känns. Jag kanske tar ett springtur lite senare ikväll och utförskar området lite.
Igår åkte Aislynn, hennes kompis Tuva (som följde med på flyttdagen och sov över 2 nätter här) till Tyresö för att lämna Tuva. Jag passade även på att städa lite i lägenheten. Nu är det så att lägenheten kommer att helrenoveras, så vi behövde inte tänka på flyttstädning alls, men jag ville ändå torka golven och ytorna och rengör badrummet så att det ser acceptabelt ut. Paret som kommer att flytta in efter renoveringen hade tagit kontakt med mig och frågade om det fanns nån möjlighet att komma o titta på lägenheten, så det passade in för de att komma förbi igår oxå.
Men just nu skinner solen och vi ska knalla ner till centrum och köpa ingredienser till biff stroganoff :)
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Pix from Saturday's BBQ
Michael and Lanna hosted a BBQ for Lanna's birthday. It was really, really nice to see Lanna's sister Vicky again, after more than 8 years! Good food, good wine and great company! Too bad we were moving the next day, otherwise I'd have loved to stay much longer than we did :-)
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| Aislynn & her bästis Tuva |
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What's playing now:
Happy exhaustion
Good morning peeps! I'm sitting alone in the kitchen, it's totally quiet and I'm just looking around and enjoying the moment. It's still a mess here, with boxes and bags and stuff everywhere, but we managed to get everything from point A to point B on Sunday and MANY, MANY thanks to our friends who came and helped out.
We picked up the moving van at 10.00. Then 3 trips back and forth and about 10 hours later,(for the last one, the moving van, our car and one other car was packed to the gills) all of our stuff was at the new place! Yesterday I spent the entire day unpacking boxes and bags, and trying to get the kitchen and bathrooms in order. It's been like 4 days non-stop of moving and boxes and mess for me, and the apartment has been messy and dirty before that, so I'm really physically and mentally spent. But I'm really happy to be here, happy to experience a new chapter, happy to have the opportunity to meet the challenges that owning a house will present. And of course I'm really happy to have the space to invite people over and play hostess :D
God morgon! Just nu sitter jag i köket själv och njuter av tystnaden och stunden, tittar omkring och känner så mycket tacksamhet att detta är på riktigt. Det ligger flyttkartonger, säckar och annat överallt, men vi lyckades få med allt på flyttdagen. STORT j*vla tack till alla som hjälpte till!!!! Tomas, Claes, min kompis Tommy och hans bror Richard, Jojo och Mats och jag var flyttteamet. Flyttbilen hämtade vi kl. 10.00 på söndag. 3 turer fram o tillbaka och ca 10 timmar senare var allt på plats i det nya huset. Sista vändan var vi tre bilar som var smockfulla. M och jag har varit igång med flytten sen i fredags och allting både i lägenheten och nu i huset, har varit smutsigt och stökigt ett tag nu, så efter en full dag igår, där jag gjorde inget annat än att packa upp och ställa köket och badrummen i ordning, var jag helt slutkörd- både fysisk och psykiskt.
Men jag är även glad. Glad att vi är här, att jag får börja ett nytt kapitel i livet, glad att vi kommer att växa som individer och tillsammans, genom att få möta alla utmaningar som ett husägande kan innebära, och jag är riktigt lycklig att jag nu kan leka värdinna ordentligt och att vi har utrymmet så folk kan komma och hälsa på :D
We picked up the moving van at 10.00. Then 3 trips back and forth and about 10 hours later,(for the last one, the moving van, our car and one other car was packed to the gills) all of our stuff was at the new place! Yesterday I spent the entire day unpacking boxes and bags, and trying to get the kitchen and bathrooms in order. It's been like 4 days non-stop of moving and boxes and mess for me, and the apartment has been messy and dirty before that, so I'm really physically and mentally spent. But I'm really happy to be here, happy to experience a new chapter, happy to have the opportunity to meet the challenges that owning a house will present. And of course I'm really happy to have the space to invite people over and play hostess :D
God morgon! Just nu sitter jag i köket själv och njuter av tystnaden och stunden, tittar omkring och känner så mycket tacksamhet att detta är på riktigt. Det ligger flyttkartonger, säckar och annat överallt, men vi lyckades få med allt på flyttdagen. STORT j*vla tack till alla som hjälpte till!!!! Tomas, Claes, min kompis Tommy och hans bror Richard, Jojo och Mats och jag var flyttteamet. Flyttbilen hämtade vi kl. 10.00 på söndag. 3 turer fram o tillbaka och ca 10 timmar senare var allt på plats i det nya huset. Sista vändan var vi tre bilar som var smockfulla. M och jag har varit igång med flytten sen i fredags och allting både i lägenheten och nu i huset, har varit smutsigt och stökigt ett tag nu, så efter en full dag igår, där jag gjorde inget annat än att packa upp och ställa köket och badrummen i ordning, var jag helt slutkörd- både fysisk och psykiskt.
Men jag är även glad. Glad att vi är här, att jag får börja ett nytt kapitel i livet, glad att vi kommer att växa som individer och tillsammans, genom att få möta alla utmaningar som ett husägande kan innebära, och jag är riktigt lycklig att jag nu kan leka värdinna ordentligt och att vi har utrymmet så folk kan komma och hälsa på :D
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Moving Day
Friday, August 10, 2012
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Eternal life - a pretty good deal?
Yeeehaw! :) I'm now officially on vacation! I'm actually glad to have worked this summer, we were quite a few of us regulars who didn't take vacation early this year, so it was nice to have each other the whole summer at work. Plus the weather's been crap this summer, it's been rainy and cloudy, so I didn't miss much anyway :-P
I had an interesting little encounter yesterday evening on my way home from work : it was raining and so I decided to wait for the bus (I normally walk about 1km otherwise). So I get to the bus stop and there are already 2 older men sitting there, and as I approach, one of them very politely moves his bag so there's space for me to get by. Since they are already talking amongst themselves, I'm not really paying attention to them, until I realise one of them is trying to talk to me :-P " It's really raining isn't it?" says the one dude. I'm like . " huh what? Oh, yeh, it's really raining". Then he proceeds to get up and try to hand me a pamphlet of some sort, and says " have you heard about Jesus?". Ohhh I just had to laugh and say, " no thanks", then he says " no? well you can have eternal life! That's a pretty good deal! Aren't you interested?" Me: " no, I'm really not".
I was very polite and courteous and let them down nicely, but I couldn't help but laugh all too knowingly, and then feel quite sorry for them, because I know what it's like, having been there and walked in their shoes. I felt grateful that that is a closed chapter of my life and that I'm free to be as religious (or in my case NON-religious) as I choose. Hallelujah.
Äntligen på semester!!! :-) Det var faktiskt skönt att jobba denna sommar, vi var flera ordinarie personal som valde att ta semester sent i år, och då hade vi varann hela sommaren. Plus att vädret har varit rätt dåligt, mycket moln och regn och inga riktiga varma perioder, så jag missade inte så mycket iom att jag jobbade i princip hela sommaren.
På väg hem från jobbet igårkväll träffade jag ett par gubbar som ville berätta om jesus . Det regnade och jag stod o väntade på bussen (annars brukar jag gå ca 1 km upp till stationen) och så ställer jag mig i busskuren där det sitter 2 gubbar redan. De pratade med varandra, så jag hörde först inte när gubben försökte starta ett samtal : " det regnar väldigt eller hur?" Jag : " va? öh, ja, det regnar mycket" :-p. Han ställer sig upp och försöker ge mig en broschyr och frågar " har nån berättat för dig om jesus?" Jag småskrattar och säger " nej tack" han säger " men du kan få evigt liv! Det är en ganska bra deal va? Är du inte intresserade?" " nej, verkligen inte", säger jag. Jag var ju artigt mot dem, men kunde inte hjälpa att jag skrattade. Jag tyckte det hela var ganska löjligt och så tyckte jag faktiskt synd om de samtidigt som jag visste mycket väl hur det känns att stå där och försök tvinga ens religiössynpunkt på någon annan. Jag är så lättad och tacksam att det där är ett stängt kapitel i mitt liv som jag kommer aldrig få återuppleva. Nu får jag själv välja hur religös, eller i mitt fall, icke-religös jag vill vara. Punkt slut.
I had an interesting little encounter yesterday evening on my way home from work : it was raining and so I decided to wait for the bus (I normally walk about 1km otherwise). So I get to the bus stop and there are already 2 older men sitting there, and as I approach, one of them very politely moves his bag so there's space for me to get by. Since they are already talking amongst themselves, I'm not really paying attention to them, until I realise one of them is trying to talk to me :-P " It's really raining isn't it?" says the one dude. I'm like . " huh what? Oh, yeh, it's really raining". Then he proceeds to get up and try to hand me a pamphlet of some sort, and says " have you heard about Jesus?". Ohhh I just had to laugh and say, " no thanks", then he says " no? well you can have eternal life! That's a pretty good deal! Aren't you interested?" Me: " no, I'm really not".
I was very polite and courteous and let them down nicely, but I couldn't help but laugh all too knowingly, and then feel quite sorry for them, because I know what it's like, having been there and walked in their shoes. I felt grateful that that is a closed chapter of my life and that I'm free to be as religious (or in my case NON-religious) as I choose. Hallelujah.
Äntligen på semester!!! :-) Det var faktiskt skönt att jobba denna sommar, vi var flera ordinarie personal som valde att ta semester sent i år, och då hade vi varann hela sommaren. Plus att vädret har varit rätt dåligt, mycket moln och regn och inga riktiga varma perioder, så jag missade inte så mycket iom att jag jobbade i princip hela sommaren.
På väg hem från jobbet igårkväll träffade jag ett par gubbar som ville berätta om jesus . Det regnade och jag stod o väntade på bussen (annars brukar jag gå ca 1 km upp till stationen) och så ställer jag mig i busskuren där det sitter 2 gubbar redan. De pratade med varandra, så jag hörde först inte när gubben försökte starta ett samtal : " det regnar väldigt eller hur?" Jag : " va? öh, ja, det regnar mycket" :-p. Han ställer sig upp och försöker ge mig en broschyr och frågar " har nån berättat för dig om jesus?" Jag småskrattar och säger " nej tack" han säger " men du kan få evigt liv! Det är en ganska bra deal va? Är du inte intresserade?" " nej, verkligen inte", säger jag. Jag var ju artigt mot dem, men kunde inte hjälpa att jag skrattade. Jag tyckte det hela var ganska löjligt och så tyckte jag faktiskt synd om de samtidigt som jag visste mycket väl hur det känns att stå där och försök tvinga ens religiössynpunkt på någon annan. Jag är så lättad och tacksam att det där är ett stängt kapitel i mitt liv som jag kommer aldrig få återuppleva. Nu får jag själv välja hur religös, eller i mitt fall, icke-religös jag vill vara. Punkt slut.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Busy week ahead
The perfect mood music :)
Det kommer att vara en full vecka med mycket som händer. Jobbar Mån-Tors, här hemma packas det för fullt och på fredag så ska vi göra det sista med banken och huset. Vi börjar flytta på lör, och sen köra den stora flytten på sön.Vid den här tiden nästa vecka kommer jag sitta framför datorn i vårt nya hus. Helt overklig känsla.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Aislynn's 9th birthday party
Last minute pool party with a few friends. I'm really glad it worked out to have it before the move! One less thing to think about ;-) Cake baked by me and LPS decoration done by Jojo. The kids loved it.
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| Littlest Pet Shop Fox- by special request |
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| Birthday girl |
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| Fika time |
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| Opening presents |
Friday, August 3, 2012
Thursday, August 2, 2012
9 years old, going on 15
What I'm about to write about is highly personal, and I've gone back and forth in my mind debating about whether or not I should even bother to put it into words, but at the same time, what is a blog if not highly personal? And if someone else can relate to what I've gone through, or has some good advice for me, then I'm missing out by not sharing.... so here goes:
I was all prepared to write a happy post yesterday, about how happy Aislynn was to come home. Oh brother was I ever wrong! First the flight was delayed over an hour, so I ended up waiting at the airport, bored. Then Aislynn comes out and I find out she hasn't eaten anything all day besides a couple mini-bags of chips. It's now 18.45. Right. So we get on the airport bus, get to town and I buy her a hotdog because she's really hungry. So far so good. Once we get home (after 20.00) I say something about bedtime, going to school the next day and then it starts: she starts saying she wants to go back to London. She says her dad is better than me - at brushing her hair, at solving her problems, at not making her eat more than she is able, at watching movies together, and of course, that he doesn't get upset with her as often as I do. She gets into bed crying and saying that sometimes she feels M and I don't care about her - her dad is the only one who really cares about her. Living in Sweden is horrible and she wants to live in London from now on.
All I could do was feel like shit and cry. I mean, how are you supposed to react when your almost 9-year old says she doesn't want to live with you anymore? Her absentee father who hasn't lifted a finger to help, financially or otherwise for the last 9 years, is now all of a sudden a freaking hero. I could only think about all the things I have sacrificed, the things that I have done and try to do to give her all the opportunities to have a wonderful life. I thought about how much I've worried and cried and all the guilt I've felt at not being good enough, not being enough for my daughter. And here he comes along and in 9 days manages to upstage me completely. I thought about the choices I've made that have affected both of us immensely since moving to Sweden and all the choices I've made taking her into consideration, when I might not have made the same choices had it just been me. I felt so shocked and sad, and upset that she was saying she didn't need me anymore and basically having my worst fears realised - I haven't been enough.
We have needed some time to get adjusted and to feel like a family, and we were starting to get there. I don't take for granted the fact that M does all the things that a dad does and should do (and he's a brilliant step-father!), all year round, every day. It's not an easy thing, it takes someone with a really big heart, I'm not sure I could manage it if the roles were reversed. He's there for us, he takes care of us and he shows me every day just how committed he is to our family. So it was really not easy for him especially to hear all that from her yesterday and to hear that she takes it all for granted and doesn't appreciate the magnitude of what he does. Likewise, it was hard for me to see her so sad, but also not feel like any of her reasons for being sad were right or fair. These things are never easy, I am more than aware of that, and we have had our ups and downs getting to really know each other and adapting to being a family in the really meaning of the word, and things were really good. This is only the 2nd time she has visited her dad, and the first time was so-so, so this came really out of the blue and feels like such a step backwards and just a slap in the face really.
I have to say that the wound is still sore today. Last night ended with her coming into our bed, falling asleep late and me crying myself to sleep. The bed isn't big enough for the 3 of us to sleep comfortably, M moved to the sofa sometime in the middle of the night and I didn't sleep very well. Aislynn came to work with me today, and then we went into town and I got her an early birthday present, we had a nice fika and looked for some new shoes for her. I think it's been good for me to spend time with her today, to give her lots of attention and if nothing else, make sure she knows she is loved. But I'm not okay...I'm not sure what the next step is, I'm not sure if it was just the fact that she was on vacation (her dad was too), had a good time and that her reaction was not based on what everyday life would be like, if she lived there, but only based on holiday life. I'm not sure exactly how deep it goes, if she is really miserable here and if there's something else I should/could be doing or if this is just a build up of feelings and emotions. I really don't know. Maybe it's time for a therapist, or a shrink. I'm not sure I'm qualified to handle this one.
I was all prepared to write a happy post yesterday, about how happy Aislynn was to come home. Oh brother was I ever wrong! First the flight was delayed over an hour, so I ended up waiting at the airport, bored. Then Aislynn comes out and I find out she hasn't eaten anything all day besides a couple mini-bags of chips. It's now 18.45. Right. So we get on the airport bus, get to town and I buy her a hotdog because she's really hungry. So far so good. Once we get home (after 20.00) I say something about bedtime, going to school the next day and then it starts: she starts saying she wants to go back to London. She says her dad is better than me - at brushing her hair, at solving her problems, at not making her eat more than she is able, at watching movies together, and of course, that he doesn't get upset with her as often as I do. She gets into bed crying and saying that sometimes she feels M and I don't care about her - her dad is the only one who really cares about her. Living in Sweden is horrible and she wants to live in London from now on.
All I could do was feel like shit and cry. I mean, how are you supposed to react when your almost 9-year old says she doesn't want to live with you anymore? Her absentee father who hasn't lifted a finger to help, financially or otherwise for the last 9 years, is now all of a sudden a freaking hero. I could only think about all the things I have sacrificed, the things that I have done and try to do to give her all the opportunities to have a wonderful life. I thought about how much I've worried and cried and all the guilt I've felt at not being good enough, not being enough for my daughter. And here he comes along and in 9 days manages to upstage me completely. I thought about the choices I've made that have affected both of us immensely since moving to Sweden and all the choices I've made taking her into consideration, when I might not have made the same choices had it just been me. I felt so shocked and sad, and upset that she was saying she didn't need me anymore and basically having my worst fears realised - I haven't been enough.
We have needed some time to get adjusted and to feel like a family, and we were starting to get there. I don't take for granted the fact that M does all the things that a dad does and should do (and he's a brilliant step-father!), all year round, every day. It's not an easy thing, it takes someone with a really big heart, I'm not sure I could manage it if the roles were reversed. He's there for us, he takes care of us and he shows me every day just how committed he is to our family. So it was really not easy for him especially to hear all that from her yesterday and to hear that she takes it all for granted and doesn't appreciate the magnitude of what he does. Likewise, it was hard for me to see her so sad, but also not feel like any of her reasons for being sad were right or fair. These things are never easy, I am more than aware of that, and we have had our ups and downs getting to really know each other and adapting to being a family in the really meaning of the word, and things were really good. This is only the 2nd time she has visited her dad, and the first time was so-so, so this came really out of the blue and feels like such a step backwards and just a slap in the face really.
I have to say that the wound is still sore today. Last night ended with her coming into our bed, falling asleep late and me crying myself to sleep. The bed isn't big enough for the 3 of us to sleep comfortably, M moved to the sofa sometime in the middle of the night and I didn't sleep very well. Aislynn came to work with me today, and then we went into town and I got her an early birthday present, we had a nice fika and looked for some new shoes for her. I think it's been good for me to spend time with her today, to give her lots of attention and if nothing else, make sure she knows she is loved. But I'm not okay...I'm not sure what the next step is, I'm not sure if it was just the fact that she was on vacation (her dad was too), had a good time and that her reaction was not based on what everyday life would be like, if she lived there, but only based on holiday life. I'm not sure exactly how deep it goes, if she is really miserable here and if there's something else I should/could be doing or if this is just a build up of feelings and emotions. I really don't know. Maybe it's time for a therapist, or a shrink. I'm not sure I'm qualified to handle this one.
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