Fabric and Claus Olsen

Off to do more shopping today.  We had heard about a store, Claus Olsen, that had a wide variety of items.  David heard they had tools so off we went.  On our way we found a fabric store.  I was so excited.  There was a wide selection of different types of fabric including so quilting cotton.  Ellie’s big find was material to make paci and bath baby a tutu so they could match her.  I feel so much better knowing where I can find fabric and sewing supplies. 

We wandered on and stumbled across a model of the city.  It included buildings that are planned for the future.  David has a really good feel for the city and was able to point out our building, Electrolux and various other landmarks.  I on the other hand could only see them after they were pointed out.

David loved our next stop.  Claus Olsen has a similar selection to a Wal-mart minus the clothing and food.  There was a small toy section, small household items, electronics, a camping section, and David’s favorite…tools.  We were able to pick up a few small items that we have needed and also a ladder so we don’t have to borrow one all the time (some of the storage in the apartment can only be reached with a ladder).  It is a store I am sure we will return to many times. 

Bus Adventure

The goal for today was to do a little baby shopping.  There is a large baby store, Babyland, out by IKEA so we headed back out to David’s favorite place.  Although we have been several times, we still don’t really understand the bus system.  Unfortunately for us, we picked the right bus…wrong direction.  Forty-five minutes later we found the end of the line.  We found a nice mall and since it was lunch time, we grabbed a quick hamburger lunch.  Ellie had a hotdog and we found the first onion rings we have had.  They were pretty good.  After we had lunch, we caught the bus back to our starting point and then on to IKEA. 

Once we had wandered over to Babyland, we were in for another shock: prices.  Our main goal was to look at double strollers.  The base strollers started at $1000 (US) dollars and went up from there. The other problem is that none of the double strollers will fit into our elevator.  Other prices we noticed included a basic bouncy seat for $100 and a small swing starting at $200.  After a quick wandering through IKEA to pick up a spatula and few other odds and ends, we decided to try and walk back to the train station.  Just a few missteps later we found the path.  It is a quick 15 minute walk from the IKEA entrance to the station.  It was so much easier than trying to find the right bus and squeeze on. 

Library and Girls night out

We hadn’t been to the library in a while and we decided it was time for new books.  It was our first time returning books to the library here and I had no clue how it worked.  Luckily the patron in front of me was also returning books.  You scan each book in and then insert it into the book drop where it is scanned again.  After all of the books are returned, you get a printout showing which books were returned.  I think it is a great system.  We found more books to checkout and Ellie loved checking them out herself.  While we were at the library, we got a call from David.  He was headed to lunch and wanted to know if we would like to join him.  Ellie was so excited to get to meet Daddy for lunch.  We were right around the corner from the McDonald’s that David and Brain were headed to so it was easy to get there in time.

Later that evening, I went out to dinner with two of the other ex-pat wives, Angie and Joannah.  We went to a Thai restaurant that Angie had found and loved.  I had never had Thai food before but it was really good.  I tried there spring rolls which were delicious and had a beef/vegetable dish that was labeled mild.  I tried Angie’s meal – a yellow chicken curry – that was a medium hot dish and it was also very good.  I hope we will be about to make “girls night out” a regular event. 

Wandering Lost

Ellie and I had not been to an open preschool in a while.  I had found one on the internet that was close to the “trampoline” park and wanted to try that since it is so close.  I looked up the address on Google maps and even programmed it into my phone’s GPS.  We went to the location that showed on the map and no sign of an open preschool.  I did however find the dentist office that Ellie will go to.  I have not had any luck on the phone or internet making her an appointment so we walked in to see if we could make it in person.  After looking up her personal number, they were able to give us an appointment for early December.  Dental care for children in Sweden is mandatory.  The letter we received in the mail said that we would continue to be contacted until we made an appointment.  However we are on our own for finding her a pediatrician.  Seems very strange to me. 

I asked the receptionist about the open preschool and she wasn’t familiar with it but said that the address we had was really in the middle of the park.  We walked back to the park and found that one of the little building surrounding the park was the preschool.  There were no other children playing in the preschool.  Ellie played for a while and then we went out to play in the park.  We will have to try again and see if another time is better for attendance.

at open preschool

Ultrasound

Ellie and I had an early morning.  We got bundled up and headed over to Angie’s apartment.  She stayed with Angie while David and I went to the anatomy scan.  The weather was really bad but I was impressed with how well Stockholm deals with snow.  All the roads and walkways had been scraped and graveled/salted.  On the way down into the subway station, Ellie took a tumble.  She was so bundled up that she couldn’t move but didn’t get hurt.  All I heard was, “Um Mommy, I am stuck.” I turned around to find her face down on the stairs. Thank goodness she wasn’t hurt and we were able to giggle about it.  Ellie thought being on the train early in the morning with all the commuters was quite fun. 

After dropping her off, I raced back to the station to try to catch my train.  Oh the frustration of being 30 seconds late and watching the train pull away.  I am beginning to understand the attitudes of the Swedes when it comes to public transportation.  Thank goodness the next train wasn’t far behind and then at T-Centralen the green line train was pulling up as the red train came into the station so all I had to do was run across the platform. 

The ultrasound tech that did our scan was so great.  She did a wonderful job of explaining everything she was looking at.  “April” looked healthy and is already developing a stubborn streak.  The baby didn’t want to get into an easy position for the tech to get all the necessary views.  It still feels so strange to leave an appointment without paying for service. 

Ellie wanted to go back to the mall because she "hadn't finished shopping yesterday".  So we wandered back to the mall with Angie and had lunch. 

Level Two Storm

Today the weather forecasters were calling for a level two storm.  The prediction was for 6cm of snow by the end of the day.  The sky looked clear so this South Carolina girl didn’t pay a whole lot of attention.  Note to self, snow predictions around here are serious.  We headed out to meet Angie at her apartment for lunch and to explore around her apartment.  By the time, we got off the train at her station, the sleet/snow mix had begun.  Poor Ellie was in a dress and tights.  Lucky we had put boots on that morning.  She was still pretty miserable with all the wind and sleet. 

After getting the grand tour of Angie’s apartment, we decided to head to her local mall to get out of the bad weather.  There was a McDonalds there which made Ellie very happy.  We explored quite a few shops and found some really good mittens for Ellie.  We also found a pet store.  Ellie had a great time looking at the fish, bunnies and birds.  The birds, especially the finches, were her favorite.  Thankfully the mall had a subway entrance so we only had to make it one block between our station and home in the weather. 

Why can't I put my arms by my side?

The park in front of Angie's apartment.

Why is Mommy taking pictures when we could walk inside and be warm?

Ellie loves the bunnies.

Angie and Ellie look at the hamsters together.

Preschool

Ellie got her preschool letter in the mail today.  She is scheduled to start preschool January 25 at a preschool in Odenplan.  Ellie is excited that she gets to ride the train every day to school.  There were four forms that needed to be filled out.  We filled them out the best we could and then David took them to work to verify that we had filled them out correctly.  If we are able to get the times we asked for she will go Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9-2.  She is eligible to go up to 25 hours a week, but we thought that was a little much since she hasn’t been in a preschool environment before.  We can always increase her hours at a later date if she wants to go more.