Tom Tits - The Experiment

We are off to explore the Tom Tits The Experiment with the Pike Family.  It is about one hour outside of Stockholm, a commuter and bus ride away.  I was a little concerned that it would be too “old” for Ellie but she had an amazing time.  Most of the exhibits were not labeled.  You could get a book that gave more information about each exhibit but it really encouraged active participation.  One of Ellie’s favorite exhibits was the pulley chair.  The exhibit showed how using a pulley system you could lift your own weight.  She also loved the sand area, the four story slide, the swings and the water area.  Kerstin enjoyed sitting on the interactive fish screen trying to catch fish. 

Bubble time

This was Ellie's favorite activity - using a pully to lift herself off the floor.

Ellie and her friend Lacie with Mommy and Joanna





Kerstin loved the fish tank.



Kerstin and Lacie try to catch fish!



New Chairs

In Copenhagen the hotel had a special chair for Ellie that elevated her to table height.  She loved sitting in it and asked if they had them in Sweden. David and I liked them because they slide under the table like a regular chair and will sit an adult.  They also come with an attachment to transform it into a high chair.  After doing a little research, David found then here.  In order to get them home from the store we needed a dolly.  To save on space we didn’t take the stroller.  Ellie however had a great time using the dolly as a kiddo moving device.

More fun than a stroller!

Shopping is hard work

Got a chair now if I can only figure out how to eat!

Copenhage - Day 3

Our final day dawned clear and beautiful.  We set off first for the National museum.  Our main goal was to see the children’s museum.  It was still closed when we arrived so we wandered through the toy section.  Ellie enjoyed seeing the doll houses on display.  The Children’s museum was wonderful.  They had it divided into 5 sections: a medieval area, a Viking area, an old-fashioned dress up/cooking area, schoolroom and a section that focused on Pakistani culture.  Ellie and Kerstin both had a lot of fun playing at all of the exhibits.  Kerstin is starting to try to pull up.  She can’t make it yet but for the first time was able to stand up while holding on when I put her on her feet.

After grabbing a quick bite to eat we walked out toward the Mermaid Statute.  On the way, Ellie found some ducks to feed, a park to play at and other statues to see.  The statue of the Little Mermaid (based on the tale by Hans Christian Anderson) is in the Copenhagen Harbor.  It was much smaller than I expected at 1.25 meters high. 

Back at the airport the rain started falling.  For a weekend that was supposed to be rainy, we had amazing luck with the weather.  It never rained when we were out and about.  It was another great trip that ended too quickly. 

Toys at the National Museum

Kerstin's first time standing

Play time in the boat

Feeding the ducks

The mermaid statue

Boats, Theaters and Legos

We woke up to a rainy dreary day.  We were prepared with rain gear for everyone but by the time we were done with breakfast the sky was clear.  Ellie had a blast splashing in all the puddles as we wandered through the city.  Our first activity of the day was a canal tour.  We got a great history of the city and saw some impressive old and new buildings.  It was a great way to get a feel for the city.  We stopped for lunch at a bagel shop.  Ellie had seen it the night before as she has really missed bagels.  She ordered hers plain with cream cheese and we got sandwiches.  Because we had a little time before our next activity we stopped in the Lego Store.  Lego was originally designed in Denmark.  She had a great time playing with the Lego and seeing the large Lego creations.

Our next stop was the Littlest Theater.  Its target audience is small children.  The theater was tiny holding about 70 people.  The current production was  about Picasso and how his paintings made it onto canvas from his imagination.  The play was well scripted and helped bring art to life.  It was all in Danish but it was an amazing experience.

We then walked to Rundetaarn, the round tower.  It is Europe’s oldest functioning observatory.  From the top you get a great view of the city.  It was really windy so the girls and I didn’t stay out long.  Unlike most towers instead of circular stairs, it has a wide 209m ramp to the top with just one flight of stairs.  The ramp winds itself around 7.5 times.  Ellie and other children there had a great time running up and down the ramp and hiding in the niches.  It was then back to the Lego store to buy Ellie her first basic set of Lego’s. 

Ellie can turn any place into her personal playground.

The lego mural was amazing!

Posing with children's art at the theater

Observatory

Hide and Seek in the Tower

Copenhagen - The city of bikes

On our flight out of Stockholm, we ran into Paul, our old upstairs neighbor.  It was great to see him again.  Copenhagen was one of Ellie’s favorite airports.  There were Lego stations at the baggage claim.  She didn’t want to leave the airport to go see the city.  Copenhagen I think had the best mass transit from the airport – you don’t even have to leave the building.  The subway system isn’t massive but the trains and stations were extremely clean.  Exiting the station the first thing Ellie sees is McDonalds and she immediately starts negotiating for a McDonald’s dinner.  We decided to find the hotel and drop off the luggage first. 

Copenhagen will always stand out as the city of bikes to me.  Everywhere we looked there were bikes – fancy bikes, bikes with baby seats, bikes with trailers and my personal favorite the cargo trikes.  I think I saw more bikes in Copenhagen in two days than all the bikes I have seen in my entire life. 

Our hotel was really nice.  It was in a older building that had been remodeled and had very modern furnishings.  We were on the top floor and had a great view out under the eaves.  After a quick dinner at McDonalds we headed back for bed.  We never quite know what we are going to get for sleeping arrangements.  This time we had two single beds and a pack and play.  Ellie thought it was a perfect time to go back to sleeping in a crib.  Since she is still pretending to be a dog it made a perfect dog crate.  I can’t believe she is still little enough to fit in comfortably. 

Our hotel

Bikes, bikes and more bikes!

My favorite style - kids could ride in serious comfort

Skansen and Cotton Canddy

We had a beautiful weekend so we headed out to Skansen to enjoy the day.  We keep hearing that it is the last pretty weekend so we wanted to be sure and enjoy it.  Ellie enjoyed a train ride, playing with stilts, and getting to climb and jump.  She also had her first taste of cotton candy.  It was nearly as big as she was but she finished it all. 

Yea!  My tigers are 6-0!

Climbing and Jumping - Ellie's favorite.

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Ellie's first bite

Culture and a little play time

Ellie is in a phase of enjoying art.  In Durjarden, the Waldemarsudde Museum houses art mainly by Prince Eugens. He owned the house and after his death it was converted into a museum housing artwork including his own.  We did not get to see all of the exhibits, but enjoyed what we were able to see.  Much of his artwork was very dark.  After enjoying a hotdog, it was on to Junibacken for some playtime for the girls.  On the way back, we saw snowboarding at Sergles Torg.  There was some kind of competition and snow had been brought in for the competition.  Hopefully the real thing will be here soon!

Yes Grandma Daddy is holding me!

I've bought a boat, I'm going out to sea!

Dance time

A band that lost it's parade.

Snow!