The fortunate events of miss Hermelin

Good times

2012-02-08T21:13:00.003+01:00

Let me gloat a bit:

We are so happy in the new house, all settled in with only minor things to fix here and there. It really feels like home now, and with Bianca running around banging her toys in the floor, it is great having a whole house on our own. We are pretty much fully furnished, but really need to do something about B's room, which is just plain boring right now.

Being back at work is awsome! I am really enjoying it, and I am grateful for working in such a great place with good collegues and a working environment that still lets me be home at 4 pm every day and still have a carreer! But I have to adimit, I have been working a bit overtime, but mostly after B's bedtime.

Leaving B to go to work in the mornings is so much easier when she is not sad at all and waves happily good-bye. When I am at work, she is having great days with grandma Etelka. They go to the open daycare most of the days, meeting other kids and playing. And when I come home she is always a little sunshine, showing off what she has learned in daycare; a new song, or dancing around in a circle or something like that. And Etelka is not only spoiling Bianca, she is spoiling us as well; many times a week we come home to a prepared dinner.

Here are some photos from January:

Bianca reading about the monkey Fabian. Her favorite book right now

Quality test of the monster pants for cousin Isak

Kan själv!

January Iphone photos

2012-02-07T20:11:00.002+01:00

Friday! Bianca is celebrating with milk

Posing with the lamb costume that I made for the daycare carneval.

Stavanger covered in snow

Sunday outing with Oliver

Tittut!

The little lady

Less is more is not in Bianca's vocabulary yet

Bianca wanted to add some threads to the lamb dress

Sunday walk in the cold

Bianca in her kitchen in the kitchen

Bäbä!

2011 - The year I got a hobby

2012-01-08T20:45:00.000+01:00

Seriously, I would never have guess that the first proper hobby I got would be knitting. I guess it has something with turning 30 to do. I just gave in to being old and picked up a suitable hobby. But I do enjoy it, and I have been knitting a lot since I started, in September. Here are photos of allmost all stuff I knitted 2011. Only missing a beautiful little dress I knitted for Bianca's cousin Ida for Christmas, one like Bianca's blue dress, but in pretty pink instead, and two little baby scarves I knitted for B and her friend Cami, when I first started.

Know that I've started working it will probaby be a lot less knitting done this year. But the first knitting/wine-drinking/gossiping event is already schedules, so you never know!

Merry X-mas!

2011-12-27T09:24:00.000+01:00

A little belated Merry Christmas to all our friends and family and any other readers of this blog. We have had a lovely Christmas in countryside outside Stockholm with family. Bianca has played with her cousins Ida and Isak, and me and Ulf have relaxed and recharged our batteries with good food and great company. I've also had time for a bit of knitting and almost finished a sweater for Bianca. I'm just missing the buttons and need to do the boring work of securing all loose bits of yarn.

I've been out riding twice, on Mum's new horse Idun. A little bundle of energy. Now my muscles are quite sore, I have to admit.

Yesterday we where hit by Dagmar the Storm, which brought us the lovely gift of no electricity. Which is all very romantic for a while, but we also has no water, since the water pump did not work then either. Dad and Ulf had to go out and saw down some tree laying over the road, and Bianca had to adapt and play to the lights of candles and the fire place. She had really had it with dark in the afternoon, but luckily, by the time we got home from dinner (at Abbe's Pizzeria) the power was back on. We ended up with 15 hours without electricity and water.

Today we plan a quite day here at Bergholm. Only thing on the schedule is to go out and let Bianca try the swing!

Hope you all had a great and relaxing Christmas filled with friends and food!

Ulf reading during the black out

three cousins watching Donald Duck on Christmas Eve

Out riding

(I didn't bring the camera, so most pics are stolen from Dad's cellphone)

Sunday walk

2011-12-18T20:06:00.001+01:00

I love the hipstamatic app, and today I put it on randomise when we went for a lovely walk around godalen. Here is the output:

The glögg party

2011-12-13T20:18:00.000+01:00

Last weekend we hosted the annual Glögg party. We used to do this every year in Stavanger, so no that we are back we decided to bring the tradition back alive. This year we where lucky to get a delivery of Swedish awsome glögg from my parents when they where here earlier in November, so we didn't have to make any ourself. But I did make lussebullar myself.

This year was quite different from 2 years ago. Last time we hosted we had 2 kids at the party. This year we had 11 kids between the age of 3 weeks and 4 years old. Even with 23 adults to keep track of them, it was busy, and chaotic, but a good, coosy kind of chaos, that anyone with kids at least can appreciate! Bianca loved having the house so busy! I don't think she ever forgot about me for so long! We are very happy so many of our great friends in Stavanger could make it. We had a great time and we look forward to seeing more of them in the new year!

Bianca walking and reading

Adults hiding in the kitchen

Charming little Eliot

Trym and Oscar did not want to stad still for a photo

Bianca and Vegard

Work update

2011-12-06T20:19:00.000+01:00

Thought I give you an update and tell you have it has been to be back at work again. It has been great, and most of all, it has worked great with Bianca! Yesterday it had snowed in the morning, so when I was saying good-bye to her and walking out the door I handed her a snowball, and after that she couldn't care less that I was leaving. She had a great day with grandma Etelka and I had a good day in the office, mostly taking a lot of time getting into my email again. Not very surprising, but I couldn't remember a single password after 17 months off. When I came home in the evening she was happy to see me, but not more clingy then usual. And this morning I just kissed her good-bye and handed her over to grandma and she just seemed to wonder what the fuss was about. So mummy is going to work, big deal!

It is weird being back at work, especially since I am not perticularly busy at the moment. Being able to take some time to enjoy a coffee and eat my lunch seems like luxury. But now I am quite eager to get busy again!

Back to work

2011-12-04T20:56:00.000+01:00

The Friday before last Ulf's mom Etelka arrived in Stavanger. Since we haven't got a spot for Bianca in day-care we are very lucky to have a grand-mother who can come and look after Bianca so I can go back to work. Last week we had a week of hand-over where we showed Etelka around town and the open day-care where we have been going a lot, and Bianca and Etelka got a lot of time to really get to know each other. I got some time to my self, to catch up on sleep! It has all been working out great and Bianca is really happy to have her grandmother here, and I feel very comfortable about leaving her at home with grandma tomorrow when I go back to work.

Yes, tomorrow I go back to work, after almost 17 months of maternity leave. Yesterday I went to the company X-mas party and got to meet some of my old collegues and a lot of new ones, and I have to say, despite it being Sunday evening and all, I really look forward to Monday! I guess I just reached the point where I feel that both me and B are ready for me getting back to work, and I look forward to the change and to think about something else than Bianca all day, even though I know I will miss her alot during the day!

Besides the X-mas dinner we have had a nice relaxing weekend. We had a lovely lunch with friends on Saturday, and today we went on a long walk and then me and Bianca read about a hundred books in the afternoon. Seriously, there must be a little bibliophile hiding in her, just waiting to be able to read on her own. It is just books, books, books these days!

And I've been a slacker at taking photos. The camera has just been collecting dust I'm afraid. But looking though old photos from this summer I came over this that I just had to share. Taken my my friend Gunilla in Singapore. You can check out her work at Sugerlight Photography

Testing testing

2011-12-01T21:41:00.001+01:00

Visit from the grand parents

2011-11-25T13:38:00.000+01:00

Last Friday Mum and Dad loaded an beautiful old cabinet into the trunk and got in the car and drove all the way to Stavanger. Including a stop over at the border, it took them about 24 hours. 16 hours of driving. Talk about sacrifice to get that cabinet over to us. We are very greatful for it!

They stayed the whole weekend and a few days into the week as well. It was great having them here, catching up and getting a lot of help with stuff needed be fixed; visits to IKEA, some work on the house, babysitting etc. And Bianca thrived! With grandma preparing her lunch her tummy suddenly expended and fitted whole sandwishes, suddenly she should fall asleep after just 10 min walk in the pram, and all was fun with grandma and grandpa around!

The visit was over way to quickly, but we will see Mum and Dad again in just a month.

Playing with her new toy

Reading a book with grandpa

The cabinet in place!

;

Anything for my munchkin!

2011-11-17T13:14:00.000+01:00

Bianca said; "Please Mum, give me a room in the new house, filled with paper, for me to play with!" (She is quite articulate for such a young age)

And I said; "But of course sweetheart, if that is what you want, you will have have it!"

If I spoil her? Nonsense, of course the child should have a room filled with paper! It is her favourite food after all!

Weekend shopping

2011-11-13T21:16:00.000+01:00

This weekend we have done some shopping for the new house. On Saturday we walked all the way up the steep slope to Møbelgalleriet and bought a colourful drum for Bianca. It is not only a great drum, it works as a kitchen bin as well! Talk about multi-functioning!

Little impress dress

2011-11-12T09:55:00.001+01:00

Last night I had Emma and Michelle over for our first knitting/wine-drinking girls night! It was great to see them and we had a great evening, and think we all did better at the wine-drinking then then the knitting. But I did finally but the button in the Little Impress Dress that I've been knitting for Bianca. I finished the dress in a week a couple of weeks back, and it has taken me 2 or 3 weeks to get that little button in. And just about time! It fits perfectly now, but won't last her for very long. I loved knitting it and I'm very proud of the result, if I may say so, and already ordered yarn to make a new one. Next one I will make a size bigger (this one is for 1-2 years and it is tight on a small 1-year old like Bianca) and I will make next one a bit longer as well, as I think this was just a bit too short.

New friends

2011-11-12T00:00:00.000+01:00

These photos are a couple of weels old; but I want to show them anyway. This is from a playdate at Aud Trude and Oliver's just before Aud Trude went back to work again. We miss having her and Oliver on our playdates now! She spoiled us with a fantastic cheese cake, and Bianca got to play with her new friends; Oliver, Tiril and Cami.

Little buddies Bianca and Oliver

Our charming little host Oliver

Tiril getting a cuddle from Aud Trude

Book Worm

2011-11-10T12:16:00.000+01:00

Bianca has entered a new fun stage, where she turned into a little bibliophile, to her mother's delight! She has always been fond of books, but mostly for chewing on, but now she wants to be read to. We spend hours every day reading, and it usually start with her grabbing a book, crawling over to me or Ulf, handing the book over and then trying to crawl onto our laps. Very cute! And we read, and read and read. In the days she often has too much ants down her pants to finish one book, despite them being like 10 pages long, so before we finish one she is down on the floor again, finding another book, that might just be a little bit better. But in the evenings she calms down enough to read the same book over and over again. Mumin's little book of words is a favourite, and a book about monsters and gosts. I hope this stage lasts for long, because I absolutely love having a little cuddly 1-year-old who demands to be read to! We are running out of books in Swedish for her; a little subtle hint for anyone thinking of what to get her for Christmas!

Ok, so I know I promised photos. But the house isn't ready for a big photo shoot yet. All paintings are in the wrong place and there is boxes all over the place. But I will give you some snap shots for now.

The toys are unpacked of course!

The sofa has found it's place

Bianca likes great-grandmother's old chair next to the fire place

Busy busy!

2011-11-07T14:50:00.001+01:00

A week without an update, but it has been a busy week! Last Tuesday we got the keys for the new place, and on Wednesday we moved in. We used a moving company, and Ulf was home to sort out all the moving arrangements, while me and Bianca stayed away for the day, went to the open daycare and to the libary. After half a day the moving company had packed a lot, but not started moving out any furniture, so it looked like they wouldn't finish in a day for a while, but eventually, at about 6 pm, all our stuff was in the new place.

And the rest of the week we have been unpacking, and unpacking, and trying to organise the chaos. The moving company just went totally over-board with the packing! We have a room stuffed with paper from floor to celing, and we have been unwrapping random stuff like 2 plastic clippers, from a huge bundle of paper. Crazy!

For the first few days we didn't have any fridge, which was a bit of a hassle. We put all groceries outside, but the weather has not really been that cold so we had to throw a lot out. On Friday the fridge finally came, and then we had a big scare trying to get it in place. For a while it looked like it wouldn't go in and got kind of wedged stuck. It took Ulf pushing from the front and be dragging from the back to get it in, but finally we made it.

The bottom floor is pretty much done now, except all the paintings are hanging in random places and we are still waiting for a plumer to come and install the dish washer. The top floor is pretty much overflowing with boxes and random stuff we don't know where to put yet. But we are working on it a bit every evening and slowly getting there.

But most importantly, we are sooo happy with the place! No unwelcome surprises yet, and we just think it is really the perfect place for us now! Spacious living room, second living room, lovely fire place, good sized kitchen, big big bathroom, and it has so much soul, this old house. It has been waiting for us since 1890 and we are so happy we found it!

I should give you a lot of photos, I know, but the camera has been resting the last week while we have been unpacking, and we don't have wifi yet, so no Iphone photos to show you either. But, be assured, photos will come. I promise.

Little walker

2011-10-31T14:02:00.000+01:00

So Bianca is walking, and here is a video as proof! Silly me thinking that when she can walk on her own she will do so. No, now the world suddenly becomes much more big and scary, so she is holding on to me for dear life! This weekend she has taken my hand, agan and again, to show that now it is walk time, and I better take her both hands and walk with her very quickly then, or she will have a little tantrum. But even her little tantrums are very dear to us!

Back to normal

2011-10-26T20:57:00.000+02:00

So I think we got a hang of our days back in Norway now. At least it seems so since the days just fly by without much resistance. Ulf has been going to work at his new work place, Aker, and coming home between 3 and 4 in the afternoon, which I just find lovely. We have so much time in the evenings now! And me and Bianca have been catching up with some of my old friends that are also on maternity leave, especially Emma and lovely little Cami who we have been seing a lot. We have also been to the open daycare on Storhaug quite a lot. Bianca really enjoys it, and I get to have a coffee in peace and quite for a few minutes. We have also been going to the swimming hall, been on a lot of walks (the pram is quite ok now that Bianca has given in to the overall. She even sleeps in it sometime!), doing a lot of cooking and lately also a lot of preparations for the move. Next Wednesday we are moving in to the new house! Can't wait!

Bianca and dad taking a break

First steps!

2011-10-23T22:17:00.000+02:00

Yesterday evening Bianca took her first unsupported steps! To say we got a walker might be exaggerating, but she now can walk from mum to dad or the other way around, and we counted 11 steps at the most. She is very careful and gets very angry every time she looses her balance a bit. We tried to get it on film, but she refused to walk for the camera

Little artist

2011-10-22T19:03:00.001+02:00

Bianca made her first drawing today. Drawing was fun, but chewing on the crayons was even better!

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Getting creative

2011-10-18T13:54:00.001+02:00

My first knitted sweater ever! It is not perfect and it is a little big, and it took an eternity and a half to finish; but still, I am a little proud of myself!

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Big news!

2011-10-16T22:11:00.000+02:00

We have bought a house! It went a lot quicker to find a house we liked then we thought it would, and not only did we get it, we get the keys already on the 1st of November, so we are moving in less then 2 weeks! Can't wait! It was so great coming back to this apartment we love, but it is really not suitable for a 1-year old. Way to small, a major hassel to get out and in with the pram and just too many stairs. So it will be great moving. The place we bought is an single house on Storhaug, just a few minutes from where we live now, with 3 bed-rooms, 2 bathrooms and 2 living rooms, so it should last us for a while. And it has a great big garden! Here is a link to the ad with some photos.

Besides buying a house we have been busy with catching up with friends. Last weekend we had a lovely long lunch with Emma, Joel, Cami, Charles and Louise and this weekend we went out to dinner at Kjellands with a whole bunch of people, catched up with Håkon over coffee and met Elisabeth and Simon and their three kids at the playground.

Here are some photos from the last week:

Passed out on Emma and Joel's sofa after a walk around Mossvannet

Louise and Cami

Cute little Cami

Bianca in the sandpit

Bianca and Mari

Hello Gore-tex!

2011-10-07T22:02:00.001+02:00

A week since my last update and we are now on a different side of the planet. On Sunday we arrived in Stavanger, after a quite decent flight where all of us got a bit of sleep and Bianca didn't have any screaming fits. Very fortunate for us Ulf knew some people on the flight, and they helped us getting our quarter of a tonne of luggage out in the arrival hall, where Joel met us and helped us getting all those bags (9 checked in plus pram and hand luggage!) back to the apartment. We are very greatful for the help!

Felt very much like home, being back in the apartment. It looked just the same, and so nice we almost regret selling it. It if wasn't too small for a family we would have just stayed!

Ulf has had this week off so we have had quite a relaxing week despite the un-packing. We are quite settled in; have been to the storage to pick up all our boxes and we have unpacked everything. We have also had a shopping trip to town, and gotten Bianca all geared up for the weather.

Bianca has taken to her new home quite nicely. She has been sleeping really well in the nights, but the days are all a bit messed up. She is definitely still a bit jet-lagged, so I think it will just sort itself out eventually. Being in an overall every time we go out seems to be quite ok, but the real struggle is getting her into the overall. That is not popular at all. The pram is much more disliked when being in an overall as well, but back carry with the Manduca seems to be going down really well when all bundled up.

We have also had time to catch up with some friends. Been great seeing them again and we look forward to seeing some more of them this weekend!

Good-byes suck

2011-09-30T15:35:00.001+02:00

This week has been all about good-byes. And today, after saying good-bye to some of my closest friends here it really hit me. Last night in Singapore. Tomorrow evening we board the flight to Bangkok, then early early Sunday morning we board the long flight to Copenhagen, and on Sunday morning local time we are on Norwegian ground again.

Though we look forward to getting back to Norway, especially now that all our life here is packed up and we have left the apartment, there is so much here we are going to miss. And highest on that list is our fantastic friends here, that made this year and a half so great and filled with so much fun! You know who you are and we really are going to miss you! I hope we get to meet again and can keep in touch.

So, all our furniture is sold or given away. The apartment has been cleaned out and keys handed over. Bags are packed... How many you wonder? Well..... 9 bags a 23 kg = 207 kg! And counting the 2 bags mum brought home with her we way passed a quarter of a tonne!

Empty apartment

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3 generations

2011-09-26T07:36:00.000+02:00

My mum just left Singapore yesterday. It has been great having her here, and the week has just flown by. Not much sightseeing this time, but a lot of quality time for Bianca with her grandmother, while me and Ulf have been packing. Unfortunately I forgot to bring the batteries for the camera almost everywhere we went, but on Wednesday me, Mum and Bianca went out to East Coast and meet up with my very talented photographer friend Gunilla, and she took some great shots of the three of us on the beach. You can see some of her shots on her blog; Sugarlight Photography. I did remember to bring the camera to the Champagne Brunch we went to yesterday, so will post photos from that later.

Now we have 5 days left in Singapore. Hard to believe we will be in Norway in less the a week. We land on Sunday morning, and isn't the weather forcast just laughing us in the face?!

Bianca's first birthday party!

2011-09-20T08:34:00.000+02:00

On Sunday we decorated the cake, ordered pizza, made some finger food, opened a few bottles of champagne and had a lot of friends over up on the Sky Terrasse to celebrate Bianca turning 1 year old! We had a great time and are so happy so many of our friends could come and make Bianca's first Birthday party truly memorable! Here are some photos!

The cake

Waiting for her guests to arrive

Enjoying some vino and pizza

Getting 5 babies to pose for a photo....

...is not easy!

With grandma!

Nils checked out the facilities on the Sky Terrasse

Maia getting a cuddle

Nils helped out with opening the presents

The birthday girl!

Happy Birthday Bianca!

2011-09-17T03:16:00.000+02:00

Today is Bianca's Birthday! Can't believe it has already been a year since this fantastic little girl entered into the world! We are so happy and grateful for having her in our lives! It has been an amazing year, and so much have happened!

Happy Birthday Munchkin!

Isolation

2011-09-15T07:05:00.000+02:00

We have nothing fun to report, because this week me and Bianca have been home in isolation. Last week a friend of Bianca got diagnosed with Measles, or so we thought. We met him in the church on Wednesday, just before he got spots and fever. Before I knew nothing about measles, but I've been doing a lot of googleing and talking to doctors we been visiting lately, so now I know this; measles = not good. Super contagious. There are no measles in Singapore, as I've been told, since just like Sweden and Norway, Singapore vaccinate all kids against it. However, the vaccination is done when the children is between 1 and 2 years, so if you go abroad with a younger baby, they might pick it up. Needless to say Bianca hadn't had the vaccination.

So on Sunday we went to get Bianca vaccinated against Measles and our isolation started. Since it usually takes 7-11 days for measles to show, there is no way to know if she got it. All we can do is wait and stay away from other kids. So since Monday we have just been home. No playdates, no play centers etc. We have only been out for walks, and to get some other vaccination (why not just get it when you have nothing else to do?!) We are both quite bored right now, but it has been 8 days and no Measles has shown yet. Most of Bianca's friends are also in isolation, so tonight us mums are going out for dinner, to keep ourselfs sane.

Tomorrow though we are having a vaccinated friend over for a play date! Yeay! And on Saturday grandma arrives from Sweden and on Sunday we are thowing together a little first birthday party! Lots to look forward to in other words!

Messy times

2011-09-14T07:53:00.000+02:00

I tell you, getting Bianca to eat is very challenging. After not gaining anything, but loosing 10 g in a month, I have been feeding her while on the floor playing for the last couple of weeks. It works, suddenly she turned into a little Buddha again. But sometimes I get really tired of that and let her just eat and play with the food on her own. Usually it is all about throwing then and not about eating, but this is one a good time when she actually ate! Still, a messy affair!

I think she is one little artistic soul who makes art with her food instead of eating!

Turning 30 - part 2

2011-09-13T15:32:00.000+02:00

Ok, this is long overdue. My excuse is that things, and Bianca, have been pretty full on lately, and Mad Men has been prioritized over blogging in the evenings. Well, let me tell you, part 2 of my birthday extravaganza is definitely worth writing about!

So after recovering from the girls night on Friday the 2nd (I really did not get the hang-over I deserved) and taking it pretty easy in the morning on Saturday the 3rd, we packed our things and grabbed the cab and went to The Fullerton Hotel where Ulf had booked us a suite for the night! Fullerton Hotel is a beautiful old luxury hotel in Singapore, right by the bay, overlooking the river. Since we had to wait a bit for our room (while sipping free bellinis of course!) we got upgraded to a Loft Suite. The room was just absolutely incredible! It had two floors, was way bigger then our apartment and had high french doors leading out to a rediculously large balcony overlooking Marina Bay. We had a dining area, a living room area and a rounded staircase up to the bedroom on the second floor. I could go on and on about this room because it was just amazing!

After checking in we went down to the Courtyard, where we had a lovely high tea and Bianca had fun waiving to other tea-drinkers. After that we went to the beautiful pool area for a relaxing dip. In the evening we went to the Club Members Area and had champagne and canapees. In the evening we ordered room service and enjoyed a great dinner at our dining table for 7 people overlooking Marina Bay, while Bianca crawled around and explored the room.

On Sunday morning, after watching the sun rise from bed (we had a remote to open the curtains from bed!) we went down to the Town Restaurant where we enjoyed a champagne breakfast while overlooking the river.

And then we went home. Was quite sad to check out. I would have happily stayed there the rest of our weeks in Singapore! I felt soo spoiled and pampered and it really was an amazing birthday present!

Me and Bianca at the high tea

Champagne at the Club area

View from the balcony

French door into our little hotel suite

Another view from the balcony

Ulf relaxing in the "living room"

In room dining

Hohoho

2011-09-10T08:55:00.000+02:00

Turning 30 - part 1

2011-09-07T08:22:00.000+02:00

So last Friday, I turned the big 3 0 ! I knew Ulf had something in store for the weekend, but I had no plans for Friday, so in the afternoon I invited over some of my friends here and their babies for coffee, tea, cake and some champagne. I had a lovely afternoon!

In the evening after everone had left, Ulf came home with a big bunch of roses, and told me we where going out for dinner later. But I was in for a surprise!

Just after 7 I heard singing in the hallway (Swedish birthday song) and seconds later my lovely girlfriends come in, all looking sassy and with champagne and prensents and without babies! Some of them I've seen just an hour ago. Such a lovely surprise! Not only had they prepared this lovely surprise, they had also meet up in secret earlier in the week and taken lots of photos of them and the babies in Botanic Gardens. So I got a lovely framed photo and a photo album full of pictures, so we wont forget all the great friends we had here in Singpore, both Bianca's small friends and my big ones.

While the girls sipped champagne, ate organic strawberries and popcorn that they brought along, I got ready, and then I left Bianca home with Ulf and we all went to a fabulous Italian restaurant with amazing views over Marina Bay. There I was spoiled with this amazing three course meal and lots of lovely wine. It was so great to be out celebrating my birthday with these lovely friends, and very nice to meet all without babies!

After the lovely dinner we headed to the Ku Dé Ta nightclub on the top of Marina Bay Sands, where we enjoyed the view and drinks and kept up the girl talk.

All in all I had a fantastic evening! It was such a great surprise and I am so happy to have found such great friends in Singapore, and thinking about it, feel quite sad to be leaving them in just 4 weeks.

I don't have that much photos from the evening, but I can treat you with some crappy Iphone photos of the fantastic food.

A lovely carpaccio

Alaskan Cod that was just fabulous

A "small" cheese tray

My girls in the photo album they gave me.

The mouse in the house

2011-09-02T06:50:00.001+02:00

Once there was this rabbit named Flopsy who was a star chewer, and who manage to make quite a large chunk of a leather sofa just vanish. If Flopsy was still around she would have had a small but dedicated fan named Bianca. Here is just a small selection of chewed on items in the apartment. And they are not just chewed on, they are eaten. Chewed off pieces are never to be found again...

A case for glasses

A book

A cork base for pots

A box of table waters

Barbapapa

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Maddie's Birthday Party

2011-09-01T02:00:00.001+02:00

And on Tuesday (public holiday in Singapore) we went to Madeleine's first birthday party! We are getting a lot of practise for Bianca's upcoming birthday in just two weeks. A great afternoon with lots of singing for the babies and cake and wine and pizza for the adults. And Bianca loved the pizza too...

Abigail's Birthday Party

2011-08-31T07:09:00.000+02:00

We have been to loads of 1st birthday parties lately. On Saturday we went to Abigail's to celebrate her first birthday! We had a great afternoon of wine-drinking and cake-eating.

Countdown

2011-08-27T07:12:00.000+02:00

5 weeks on the day til we leave Singapore. Time flies! Feels like it was yesterday we got here, but at the same time, we are getting pretty ready to get back to Norway. Singapore is amazing, and we are really really going to miss it and especially all our friends we got here, but we also really really look forward to getting back together with our friends in Stavanger. And, even though I am sure I will regret saying this, I even look forward to a bit of Stavanger weather after this hot and humid summer.

We booked our flighs yesterday. On the 2st of October we will touch Norwegian ground again. But before then we have a lot of fun things happening here. My mum is coming for a week in September and Bianca is turning 1 year old in just 3 weeks. And we still have some sights to see before we pack up.

Oh, and I almost forgot, and I turn 22 next weekend!

Going through the trash

2011-08-23T07:03:00.001+02:00

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Crayfish party!

2011-08-21T06:27:00.001+02:00

Yesterday we had a lovely evening at Kerstin and Mark's, who had thrown together a traditional Swedish Crayfish Party! All the musts where there; crayfish, snaps and silly hats, as well as oh so much lovely food! Bianca choose to stay up most of the evening. It is not every day you go to your first crayfish party after all!

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Awsome afternoon

2011-08-19T15:30:00.000+02:00

I have had an awsome afternoon at Ketti's, with a whole bunch of other lovely mums and babies. Ah, if only all Fridays could involve happy kids, lovely company, home baked goodies and champagne!

11 months!

2011-08-17T08:05:00.001+02:00

Hard to believe how time flies! My little munchkin is 11 months old today! And in one month she will be a year old. Crazy...

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A day at the Zoo

2011-08-16T05:36:00.000+02:00

Singapore has a fantastic zoo, and this weekend we had a day there with Mike and Rikke and their kids. Not only does the zoo have loads of animals (epecially monkeys), it also has a water park for the kids! Bianca loves water, so she crawled around in water fountains and I walked after trying not to get soaked. I failed!

Turtles were very interesting

Bianca checking out the white tiger

If my mum carries my in a pouch on her front, must mean I am a baby kangaroo

With Mike, Sarah and Benjamin in the water play

Bianca's favourite activity...

2011-08-16T05:08:00.000+02:00

...tearing things down

Bianca throwing her breakfast on the floor

2011-08-14T10:19:00.000+02:00

Water play

2011-08-12T12:12:00.001+02:00

Today we went to Ketti and Nellie and had a wonderful afternoon by the pool. Bianca really enjoyed playing in the fountains!

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Location:Jalan Kelawar,,Singapore

And some more Chiang Mai photos

2011-08-11T12:11:00.001+02:00

Bianca on the balcony yelling at people in the pool

Bianca and a waitress

Nursing in a tuk-tuk, check!

Chiang Mai; where Bianca found her nosedrils

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Chiang Mai in pictures

2011-08-10T14:54:00.000+02:00

We are back after a great holiday in Chiang Mai. As I wrote before, Bianca unfortunately got sick on Friday just before we went and her fever sticked around for 2 days, but on Sunday she was better again and started to be her normal happy self.

We really liked Chiang Mai. It has a different atmosphere compared to south of Thailand, but a very nice one. It was a bit rainy but cool, and coming from Singapore we found the weather really plesant. The hotel we stayed at, U Hotel Chiang Mai, was a really nice small boutique hotel with some great services, like all day check-out and all day breakfast.

On Saturday we had a tuk-tuk driver/guide take us around town to some temples and in the evening we went down to the river for dinner. On Satuday we had a long walk around town and then spent a lot of time on the Sunday Walking Street Market, and on Monday we had our tuk-tuk driver take us to a tribe village and in the evening we went for a boat cruise. All in all a very nice holiday!

On a rare occation when Bianca agreed to have a sun hat one.Maybe because she was tired an feverish

A temple out tuk-tuk guide took us to

Dog-wearing

Aother temple out guide took us to

Golden Buddha

Me and B at a temple

Temple of the dog

Me and a tired Bianca at the Saturday Walking Street

Local bug snacks

Me and Bianca at the Riverside Restaurant

We had some great Thai food of course

Gods at the Sunday Walking Street market

Fellow baby wearer at hill-tribe village

She might have 5 kgs of metal around her neck, but she is still just a kid

Longneck woman

Bianca liked the girl in the reception

We took a river cruise

"Där"

A cosy cafe we went to in a student suburb

Chiang Mai update

2011-08-07T05:47:00.001+02:00

We didn't get of to a great start. Bianca came down with a fever on Friday before we left for Chiang Mai. But despite the fever staying put all Saturday we had a great day with a lot of sightseeing and cafe stops. Bianca was happy as long as she was carried and latched on, so thanks to the awsome Manduca that was possible.

Yesterday we visited a lot if beautiful temples, walked up and down the charming Saturday Market street, took a tuk-tuk sifhtseeing tour and had dinner by the river.

We will see what today brings. Luckily the fever seems gone now.

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Fika!

2011-08-05T05:00:00.000+02:00

Fika is a great word. I think it only exists in Swedish, but it basically means to drink coffee or tea and eat cake with friends. Sometimes there is no cake, even though I think a proper fika should involve something sweet, but the most inportant part is "sitting down with friends". A fika never involves wine or other alcohol. Nothing wrong in that, but then it just isn't a fika anymore.

Yesterday we went to Maria for a fika with other Swedish mums and babies. We had a great time and was spoiled rutten with marängsviss (another Swedish institution, basically a Swedish version of Eton's mess) made on home-made merengues. We also got to meet tiny cute little Carl Henrik, who saw day-light only 4 weeks ago! Hars to believe Bianca was ever that tiny!

Marängsviss

Maria and Jacob

Annakarin and Meja

Maia

Maia and Bianca

Mia and little Carl Henrik

Bianca checking out Jacob's toys

Ingrid

Little Miss Trouble!

Pets

2011-08-04T02:00:00.001+02:00

This little fellow likes to hang out in our shower

Coffee and catching up

2011-08-03T13:42:00.000+02:00

This afternoon we had Rikke and her two kids Sara (2,5 years old) and Benjamin (6 months old) over for play, coffee and catching up. I know Rikke from Stavanger. Last time I say her was on my baby shower back in May last year. Then I moved here and she moved to Houston with her husband, and now her family has moved to Singapore for a year where her husband will work on the same project as Ulf. Such a small world it is, especially in the oil and gas industry.

It was great seeing her again, meeting her new little member of the family, Benjamin, and seeing Sara, who has grown so much. Last time I saw her she was a little baby. Bianca loves having people around so she was in a great mood, watching Sara, and trying to pat Benjamin on the head and smearing rasberries all over the floor. Too bad I didn't take any pictures.

This is from an hour before our guests arrived:

Little India

2011-07-31T14:48:00.001+02:00

Today we went to Little India for some sightseeing. Little India is a different world from our little corner of Singapore. Colours, kitsch, people in jeans designed in the 70ies, flowers everywhere, gold stores and temples together with the smell of exotic spices and durian. And the constant background beat of some Indian pop star. A different world from our River Valley Expat Singapore We had a pit stop at a local bar where me and Bianca where the only females and where we got to watch wrestling on TV while enjoying a large Tiger. Very exotic!

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Where we hang 2

2011-07-29T14:45:00.001+02:00

Once a month we go to the New Mother Support Group's social at Gymboree. It is a great way to meet other mums and babies, and for me to have some relaxing moments of sitting down while Bianca crawls and climbs around and tiers herself out.

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Coffee and non-coffee

2011-07-28T06:36:00.000+02:00

One thing I love about Singapore is that there are Starbuck's everywhere. I love Starbuck's. They are the only coffee-chain I found this far that can make soy latte taste good (had a period of not drinking milk just when Bianca was born, to see if that had any effect on her tummy ache) and they always have de-caf. I have suddenly become over-sensative to caffein, so only de-caf for me these days. Starbuck's here has a bit of an asian twist on some of their products. How about a Black Sesame Green Tea Cream Frappucino? Bet you can't get that in Norway! Oh, forgot, you can't even get a Tall Starbuck's Cappucino in Norway. That's one thing I will miss from Singapore...

Local flavour

The awsome coffee-free Strawberry and Cream Frappucino, with a petit cupcake

21st century

2011-07-27T05:53:00.001+02:00

So I joined the 21st century an finally got myself an iphone. I tell u, its addictive! Now I can blog from bed with Bianca taking a nap next to me. Isn't she the cutest thing u ever seen?

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Test

2011-07-27T03:36:00.001+02:00

Test

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Terracotta warriors

2011-07-26T02:00:00.001+02:00

Some guys from the Chinese Terracotta Army came to visit Singapore, and we went to see them. It was quite spectacular. Imagine that these well kept guys are over 2000 years old! The exhibition is held at the Asian Civilisation Museum, and we got time for a vietnamese lunch at Siem Reap II and to see some of the permanent exhibitions as well before Bianca totally lost her patience with us.

22.07.2011

2011-07-25T05:28:00.000+02:00

On Friday Norway experiences the worst terrorist attack in it's history. 93 people killed this far, and most of them are children and young adults, attacked while attending a youth camp on a remote island outside Oslo.

The whole weekend we have been in a state of shock. Being a parent myself now I can not stop thinking about all those parents who will never see there kids again. And there is so many of them... And at home I can not stop checking the news, searching for articles to give some hope in this tragedy, but they are not to be found.

But in all this devastation and sorrow, it is amazing watching Norwegians and the rest of the world as well for that matter, coming together to show support and unite, in Norway and on social media. I have never felt as Norwegian as I've have this last weekend.

My thought are with all the victims of this horrible act of terrorism, with all the people who have lost their lives and with all the people who's live will forever be changed by this.

I ♥ Norway

Video from the high tea

2011-07-22T12:31:00.002+02:00

High tea with lovely ladies

2011-07-22T11:25:00.000+02:00

This week I was treated to a lovely High Tea at the Knolls at Capella by Malene. We went for the Neo-modern tea set, which included fried quel eggs, goat cheese, lovely sandwiches, fab sea-salt and chocolate scones, mango-coconut foam and white chocolate truffles. And the presentation was stunning!

Besides the good food, we had no less then three people from the staff who seemed to be very happy to follow Bianca and Bertine's every move. They even went so far as to actually lift Bianca down to the floor, so they got to chase her around the place. So while me and Marlene enjoyed the excellent food and the tea, the girls got to crawl all over the place with a little entourage of staff after them. We had such a great time!

Our impressive tea set

Malene and Bertine

Run-away babies

The merlion

2011-07-19T06:24:00.000+02:00

We are leaving Singapore soon, only 2 months to go, and while we are really looking forward getting back to Stavanger and all our friends there, we are also trying to get as much out of Singapore and SE Asia while we are here. I know I tend to tell you a lot more about Bianca then about Singapore. No wonder when she is so much fun and fills my days. But anyhow, I thought it would be nice to tell you something about Singapore for a change.

So here it is, getting to know Singapore part I (I am not sure there will be another part, but let's be optimistic!)

The Merlion

The Merlion is the mascot of Singapore. It is a mytical creature with a lion head and a fish body. It's name comes from Mer (sea), representing Singapore's past as a fishing village (from which there is no trace what so ever to find today) and lion is from the meaning of Singapore (original name Singapura; lion-city). The whole lion-city thing is pretty wierd, since it's never been lions in Singapore, but the founder of ancient Singapore probably misstok a tiger for a lion, therefore there name. Anyhow, back to the Merlion. So to be a mytical creature you would assume the merlion symbol has been around for a while. But oh so wrong. It was invented as late as 1964 by the Singapore Souvernir Committee (you gotta love that they have a Souvernir Committee, right!) since there apprently was no good Souvernir to print of T-shirts and shape cookies into. After that several statues of the Merlion was places around town so that turists could take some photos of this mytical creature. One statue on Fullerton Bay, then a 37 meter tall replica on Sentosa (bigger is better on Sentosa, the Singapore version of lala-land), and then some small once in parks around town and one in Califonia, USA (!).

The Merlion by Fullerton Bay

The not so famous but so much cuter Merlion Girl!

Book worm

2011-07-18T11:54:00.000+02:00

Imagine coming to the end in a really really good book, just to realise half of the last page is missing! I think this is bound to happened in this household very soon... At least this one I've already finished!

Bianca loves books! She loves flicking though her books, but she loves my books even more. They are so yummy!

10 months

2011-07-17T14:27:00.000+02:00

Bianca is 10 months today! 10 months have passed since this little precious girl stepped out into the world and in 10 months we have watched her grow and develop and watched her personality emerge. She is such a happy girl and I feel so fortunate to spend my days with her, keeping her company while she discovers the world.

Right now she is saying "där" (there in Swedish) about a zillion times a day. She loves flicking to books quicker then I can read what's on the pages. She sometimes forgets that she lets go and stand on her own without support for a second or two before she realise what she is doing and sit down quickly. She laughs so much!

Where we hang

2011-07-16T07:16:00.000+02:00

We have been spending some time at Royce Kids Gym lately. It is an huge indoor air-conned play room, filled with soft stairs and sliders and toys of every sort and kind. It is not cheap; S$ 14 for an hour, but Bianca loves it and it is a great way to keep her activated. Now that she only sleeps once a day an afternoon at home can feel very long and we both get bored, so it is nice to get out of the house for an hour or two. And it is in a shopping center, which also has a Starbucks. Great for mums when the kids have played some steam off.

I would have loved Royce when I was a kid. There is a kitchen area with about 5-6 play-kitchens, and it is filled with fake food. There is plastic pizzas, wooden sushi-sets, plastic dougnuts that you can put different frosting on, mock espresso machines, mock cakes, canned food, wok-sets and brownies. The list goes on and on. There is also a wall filled with different toys suitable for Bianca's ages. Lots of colorful plastic thinks that makes sounds and blinks if you bang on then. And of course there is small cars for the kids to scoot around with. Hard to choose if you want a BMW or a Mercedes though. And there is a ramp on which you can slide down you BMW really fast, if you are a bit older then Bianca.

We have been coming to Royce at least once a week latey, and we are not even close to checking out all the toys yet. Definitely a place we will miss when we move back to Stavanger.

So many toys, so little time!

Vietnam in pictures

2011-07-13T14:35:00.002+02:00

So we went to Vietnam for a long weekend. We flew straight to Danang and took a cab (after some failed haggling) to Hoi An where we stayed at a lovely resort called Life Heritage Resort which really exceeded our expectations. We had a great weekend and took it pretty easy, enjoyed the cute town and the friendly people and the good food. We really liked Vietnam and hope to go back some day! Here are the pictures:

Inscent in a Pagoda

Ulf and Bianca at our lunch spot; the Vienna Cafe

Bianca playing with her lunch at Vienna Cafe

Typical Vietnam kiosk

Cone hats everywhere!

In the busy market where I almost stepped in a bowl of fish

Popular souverniers

View from the sun bed

Bianca in a rare still moment by the pool

Vietnamese family transportation

Bianca charmed the girls at A Dong Silk where we got some shorts made

Afternoon ice-cream at Vienna Cafe

Another view from the sun bed

Sandals where another popular souvernir

Bianca made friends everywhere

Bianca made some more friends

Riding a cyclo with Dad.

Ulf enjoyed a beer while Bianca took a nap

Having dinner at the Heritage Bar

We took a lovely sunset boat cruise

Me and Bianca

Ulf and Bianca by the pool

Some boats where a bit more crowded then ours

Ulf was kidnapped by a lady in the market. Only released for a dollar. I thought it was a pretty good price

Up, up and away

2011-07-05T15:40:00.000+02:00

Today we been to Royce Gym and Bianca has been climbing stairs, and climbing more stairs, and reached new hights (and up on the hights there is toys, Yay!).

Movie night

2011-07-04T08:00:00.000+02:00

This photo is to show you what we have to do to watch a very legaly downloaded movie here. Our computer doesn't like the heat in Singapore. Even our airconed living room is too hot. And a cooling plate underneat is not enough. So Ulf uses Bianca's old pram fan (with one blade missing after it was attacked by the little terrorist) to cool it. Also note how we have used Bianca's toy box to get the laptop up so that the fan will cool underneath.

Movie time!

Weekend of yummy delights

2011-07-03T13:45:00.000+02:00

We have been feasting this weekend! Feels like we haven't been doing much else then eating, and taking some dips in the pool.

On Friday Bertine and Malene came over and the girls ate strawberries with arms and legs and face. Us older girls ate macarons and drank coffee. On Saturday we went on a superquick visit to IKEA to buy a new iron board, and of course grabbed the opportunity to stock up on Swedish sweets, so Saturday evening we spent infront of the TV watching "An Inconveniant Truth" and munched on sweets and left-over macarons. And today, to top it all off, we went with Malene, Ole and Ole's brother and his girlfriend to the Champagne Brunch at Shangri-La. Excellent food as always, great company, good bubbly Champagne and well-behaved babies. Just a fabulous time! We are still stuffed, so for dinner we are having wine and cheese in front of a movie.

The Strawberry Girls

The macarons. Almost to beautiful to eat. Almost...

Lovely Swedish sweets

Ulf and Bianca at Shangri-La

Bertine enjoying the Sunday Brunch

We had a relaxing time when Bianca played under the table

Bertine and Bianca

The curse of google

2011-07-02T02:00:00.002+02:00

I have always been a pretty confindent person. I admit it, I have a tendency to always know best, and if you are not convinced, I will try my hardest to talk you over on my side. And I am very determined. If you ask my parents, they would probably tell you that has been the case since I was about 2 years old. Or maybe even earlier. And as a mum, I am still pretty confindent. But from time to time doubt creeps in, and I spend way to much time on google, trying to find the perfect answers or justyfing our parental style. And I am probably not alone in doing this.

Seems like a lot of us mums getting quite insecure when it comes to how to care for our little ones. Maybe because we love them so much we are terrified of doing the wrong thing. And maybe because there is sooo much advise and methods out there, and most of us probably get a lot of advise from well-meaning clueless others without asking for it. And maybe because there just isn't any right answer.

A couple of months ago I was googleing sleeping habits. Bianca has stopped sleeping through the night, and wanted a lot of night time nursing. After a lot of googleing, lots of advice from others and lots of reading, I realised that the solution that worked for us was not in the books, and definitely not in the advise. We have been co-sleeping ever since, and for us, it works great! It works so great that I now prefer her sleeping in our bed then in her own, and have no intention in getting her to sleep in her cot any time soon.

And now, I have a little determined girl who since about 2 weeks hates being spoon fed. She basically won't open her mouth to the spoon and even though finger food is very popular, it is not a lot going in. So her meals are so small you can hardly call them meals. And because of this I have been on google the last days. Even though she has been gaining weight just fine. Even though all that nursing surely must mean she is getting what she needs, and even though she is a happy little girl most of the time and even though I know she has a tooth on the way that probably hurts a lot.

I've decided to just let her have it her way, offer her finger food when she wants, and I have given up googeling. For now. I am sure that I will find something else to google in couple of months. And if google is still around in 15 years, will I be trying to find the ultimate answer on how to handle strong-minded teenagers there than, or will I have learned to trust my guts?

Apricot ice-cream for sore gums

B and mum

2011-07-01T02:00:00.001+02:00

Rainy day

2011-06-30T15:45:00.000+02:00

Rainy day in Singapore today. Feels a bit like autumn when you are inside in air con. I've been having a cold so me and B have been comfined to the apartment for the last couple of days. But today I am better so we are meeting some friends for a lunch. Will be nice to get out again. The aparment feels very small when you have a crawling 9 month old in it!

Portraits in Little India

2011-06-27T02:00:00.003+02:00

So for the last photo class we where shooting in Little India. I have only been to Little India once, and not seen much of it, but the streets we walked where really colourful and made me want to go back there and shoot some more!

As an assignment we where shooting in a hindu temple, for a theme we got to choose ourselfs. I chose to do portraits, which turned out to be really hard. The hardest part is not asking people if you can shoot them, it is actually getting a good shot when they are stading there smiling for you. If the light is bad you can not really ask them to move around and we couldn't use the flash in the temple. So a lot of my pictures turned out quite bad with lots of shadows or bad composition with the background, but I got some I am quite happy with. Anyhow, I really learned a lot. This course has been great, so if you are looking to do a photo course in Singapore, I really recommend Karen Lucas.

Not really a portrait but I loved the details on the dresses, so had a take a shot at that

Midsommer weekend

2011-06-26T10:19:00.000+02:00

We have had an awsome midsummer weekend full of activites. On Friday we went to our friends Ketti and Marcus for a traditional midsummer party with all the traditional Swedish midsummer food; herring and sour cream and strawberries (and not so traditional but absolutely divine lamb chops) plus snaps and the traditional songs. They really spoiled us and we had a great evening!

It sucked a bit to get up at 7 am on Saturday morning, but I had my last class for my photo course, which was a shooting session in Little India, so I had to drag myself out of bed. We did some intresting shooting in a temple there, and I will post some of my favourite shots later when I had a chance to go through them. In the afternoon me and Ulf and Bianca went to Haji Lane which is a little narrow street full of small cool design stores and cafes. We had a walk around and also had time to do a bit of sightseeing on Arab Street and the surrounding areas.

Today we went to SAM, Singapore Art Museum. They have a really cool exhibition for kids, which Bianca would have loved if she was a bit older. She got to do a bit of crawling around in one area, but spent most of the time in the Manduca while me and Ulf looks at some very cool and very odd art. Now we are relaxing at home and Bianca is taking a nap, and when she wakes up we are going down to the pool.

Hope you all had a lovely midsummer weekend!

Ulf at Haji Lane

Fabric on display on Arab Street

On Arab Street

Bianca at SAM

Weekend concert

2011-06-21T06:15:00.000+02:00

Wow, things are pretty intense with the little lady these days! She is a very fast crawler, a good stander and a climber in the making, and her arms seems to be longer than I think, cause she is constantly getting her hands on things she should not play with. Separation anxiety has gotten a lot better, now that Bianca realised that it is fun to crawl into another room and play with things on her own, like going through my underwear drawer or examining the changing table or something fun like that. So pretty full on here, and not much sleeping in daytime either, leave little time for blogging.

Besides the usual stuff (Monday play-date and lunch, Thursday play-date and lunch, Wednesday playdate, etc.) this weekend we went to an outdoor concert in the Botanic Gardens. It was a piano concert with pieces by Chopin and Liszt, and we brought picnic blankets and couscous salad and Pellegrino. We had a lovely time and Bianca seems to enjoy it as well, despite being stopped when trying to eat grass and dirt. Only downside, we didn't bring wine. Everyone else had wine. It sucked. And it was all my fault;

Earlier in the supermarket

Ulf : "should be buy a bottle of white for the picnic?".
Me: "no, let's buy a bottle of Pellegrino instead".

Seriously, what is wrong with me?

Homework

2011-06-16T15:21:00.001+02:00

This week has been a lot about homework. My photocourse homework; Portraits! Here is a little sneek preview.

This was taking yesterday when me and Angelica set up a little simple home studio and tried to act professional photographers with two wild babies. The picture below was taken by Angelica, and shows what a tricky working environment we had.

Chocolate mania!

2011-06-12T10:07:00.000+02:00

Yesterday I left Bianca at home with Ulf in the evening and met up with my Norwegian friends Malene and Ine and Malene's sister Hanne at Fullerton Hotel. We were excited like kids on Christmas Eve because we where there for their Chocolate Buffee!

For 2 hours we feasted on chocolate in all forms and shapes, while sipping tea and gossiping in the beautiful surroundings at Fullerton Hotel. So much chocolate and so little time! After trying our way through most of what was on offer, we all agreed that the Chocolate Soufflee was a favourite, as well as the chocolate fountain, and that the Chocolate coupe with wasabi really was as bad as it sounds. For next time I have to leave a little space for the Crepes as they did look very delicious too, but this time, it just didn't work after 3 plates of assorted chocolate cakes.

Afternoon by the pool

2011-06-09T13:59:00.000+02:00

We have had a lovely day today. We went to Annakarin and Meja for lunch, and she spoiled us with a delicious fish soup and rose wine. Wine for weekday lunch really make it feel like I am on a very very long vacation!

After lunch and coffee and cake we took the kids down to the pool. Bianca really enjoyed herself, and burned so much energy she eat really well for dinner for a change.

Revelation

2011-06-08T08:52:00.000+02:00

I just had a revelation:

It is not getting any less messy, it is me who is getting more tolerant.

Breakfast

2011-06-08T05:23:00.000+02:00

Why eat yogurt and fruit when you can eat toilet paper?

One thing is for sure, Bianca would make a lousy food critic!

Lunch and play

2011-06-06T09:35:00.000+02:00

As usual on Monday mornings some of us met for lunch and play at Rochester House, and as usual I brought the camera!

Early mornings and photography

2011-06-05T12:18:00.000+02:00

What a weekend! We have been so busy and soo sleep deprived! Bianca's sleep has been all messed up, so one night she woke at 3 and clapped her hands and jumped around in the bed for an hour, and the other night she decided it was morning at 5.30. I am sooo tired :)

But it has been a great weekend. I've signed up for a photo course so both Saturday and Sunday I've been at that in the mornings. It has been great! I have learned tons, and will hopefully learn even more on the next 4 lessons. Busy weekends ahead!

On Saturday we went engagement ring browsing. Who knew there was so much to know about diamonds? It's a djungle! We found a really beautiful one, but we will do some more looking around before we splurge.

Bianca has been in an excellent mood this weekend, despite the sleep trouble. I think her parents are a lot more bothered about that than her. She is standing up against everything now, keeps moving the chairs around and opening cabinets to take everything out and we have had to hid all our magazines since she not only rips the pages out, she eats them as well. And she crawls so fast now it is hard to keep up with her! But she is absolutely adorable doing all her mischief!

Haven't been taken much else photos then for my photocourse homework. So I treat you with that. Task; 3 pictures of shoes! :)

Have a good Sunday!

Mind reading

2011-06-02T11:25:00.000+02:00

Bianca has not been too happy the last days so I'm trying to read her mind but it is more of a guessing game; development period?, teething?, development period? etc. But like everything else it is just a fase and I'm sure it will pass pretty soon. Today we met up with some mums and babies for a poolside lunch and a swim. Great afternoon but unfortunately only a few of the kids got stuck on film.

Why wear a sun hat when you can take it off?

Nellie

Nils on the move

First time

2011-05-31T06:55:00.000+02:00

There is a first time for everything, and to witness someone crawl for the first time is truly special! Yesterday me and Bianca met up with some other Swedish mums and babies at Rochester House to let the kids play and then have lunch at Seb's Bistro. Nellie is only 3 days older then Bianca, and at Rochester House she decided that it was about time she started crawling! Very determined she had a little crawling marathon in the PlayHouse before we all went outside for a lovely lunch.

Crawler girl!

2011-05-31T05:43:00.002+02:00

Bertine's Birthday!

2011-05-30T13:55:00.000+02:00

Yesterday we went to our friends on Sentosa to celebrate Bertine who turned 1 year old! We had a great day with friends gourging in finger food, yummy cakes and drinking champagne (you only turn 1 once after all!) Hipp Hipp Hurra för Bertine!

The birthday girl

Needed some help blowing the candle

Bianca enjoyed sitting in Rachel's lap eating grissinis

Isabella eyeing out a birthday cake

Bertine liked the cup cakes!

Bianca and Steen

Bertine and Kristian making some noise

A weekend to remember

2011-05-30T09:10:00.000+02:00

What a weekend we have had! Busy and absolutely lovely!

On Saturday afternoon we went to Marina Bay Sands for our staycation. We where upgraded, so we got a fabulous club room on the 37th floor with a fantastic view over the city. After checking in we went up to the pool where we took a dip, enjoyed the view and had something to drink. After a quick change we went to the KuDeTa bar and had some drinks while watching the sun set over Singapore. After drinks we went back to our room with the fantastic view and ordered room service and during dinner, while toasting in Champagne and looking out over Singapore, Ulf surprised me by asking THE question! Such a romantic moment and he ceased it and of course I said yes!

Here are some photos from our stay. It was truly memorable!

Gone swimming

2011-05-28T07:28:00.000+02:00

We are off to Marina Bay Sands for a little stay-cation! Bags are being packed as I write, and soon we will be swimming in the amazing infinity pool on the top. Pictures will be posted after the weekend, but for now, check out the pool pictures here!

The most beautiful girl in the world

2011-05-27T11:34:00.000+02:00

Summer is here!

2011-05-25T15:25:00.000+02:00

And unfotunately summer means that it is gretting pretty damn hot in Singapore, and that the Kids Group at the Swedish Seamen Church is taking a break. This morning we had the last session before everone goes on holiday to Sweden (except us, we are staying put in Singapore this summer). As it was the last time for a while a lot of people showed up and Bianca was totally excited by the whole thing. So many people to look at, and then singing as well! She crawled to the centre of the group and sat there and clapped her hands throughout most of the singing, and also got a cuddle from one of the older girls.

A day by the pool

2011-05-24T14:08:00.000+02:00

Today we went to Sentosa and spent the day with our friends Malene and Bertine. After lunch we went down to their lovely pool where we all went for a swim, and after the girls reluctantly fell alsleep us mums enjoyed the great weather, coffee and Malene's awsome cupcakes. Great day!

Bianca fell asleep in a sun chair

Our lovely hosts, Malene and Bertine

Trying to climb a sun chair

Great view!

Breakfast with mums and babes

2011-05-23T10:55:00.000+02:00

This morning we started off with breakfast with the Swedish mums group. It was a great morning and the babies where in a great mood, so all seven mums actually got to sit down to a set table and have a lovely breakfast while the babies played on the floor.

Afterwards a few of us when to Great World City for lunch and some shopping. Now we are back at home and Bianca is sleeping after spending the afternoon practising her new skill,crawling!

Almost but not quite

2011-05-21T17:23:00.000+02:00

Bianca is almost crawling. Actually she has already crawled a few steps, but she isn't aware of it herself and right now her legs won't co-operate with her. But she is very cute trying again and again and applauding herself inbetween!

Busy Thursday

2011-05-19T13:34:00.000+02:00

Today we've been on no less then 2 playdates. First we went to Angelica and Nils for a lovely sushi lunch and coffee and cakes and in the afternoon we went to Sentosa and visited Madlene and Nora. We hadn't seen them in a really long time so it was very nice to catch up again over a coffee at their lovely balcony while watching the boats go by!

Breakfast

2011-05-19T04:14:00.000+02:00

Why be spoon fed when you can eat your porrige with your hands?

Grandparents in Singapore

2011-05-18T14:43:00.000+02:00

So after Cambodia we had some lovely days in Singapore with Bianca's grandma and grandpa. We went on High Tea one afternoon and spent some lovely afternoons at the pool. We went to Marina Bay Sands and took in the view and we went down to the River for dinner at Merry Men and Wine Connection. We also went for a walk and breakfast in the Botanic Garden and the Orchid Garden.

On Saturday after a lovely breakfast at Jones the Grocer we went for a long walk down to Raffles Hotel where we had Singapore Slings in the Long Bar. In the evening we went to Dempsey and had dinner at the Thai-German microbrewery. On Sunday we went on Champange Brunch at Shangri-La. It was excellent at always. After recovering from the buffee by the pool we went to Sakae Sushi for dinner and then it was time for mum and dad to head back to Sweden. We miss them already and look forward to seeing mum again in September! It has been great having them here and Bianca has been so spoiled with attention, she has been all smiles all week. Thanks for coming and visiting us!

Me and dad at High Tea

At Orchid Garden

Me and mum at Marina Bay Sands

Mum and Dad at Marina Bay Sands

Bianca and granddad checking out the cakes at the Sands Shopping Centre

We had some lovely cakes

Bianca with grandma

Bianca and Grandma by the pool

At Raffles Hotel

Everyone except Ulf enjoying super-sweet Singapore Slings. Ulf went for a Dry Martini

Bianca enjoyed eating spagetti at the Champagne Brunch

Passed out on Grandpa's shoulder

At the Champagne Brunch

Nursing coma

2011-05-16T09:49:00.000+02:00

Mum and dad left last night and we already miss them! Think Bianca is a bit bored with just me around. I am going through photos of the days in Singapore, and will post them eventually, but for now, a photo from our visit to the Sky Terrasse at Marina Bay Sands. When taking in the beautiful view, mum looked at me and started laughing so hard she had trouble telling me what it was. Turned out I had made a little mistake when leaving the house in the morning and been walking around for hours with feet looking like this:

Cambodia part II

2011-05-14T11:25:00.000+02:00

Blogger has been down so it's taken longer then I planned to give you part II of the Cambodia report. After spending most of Monday sightseeing around the temples (awsome, awsome, awsome!) we went in to Siem Reap in the evening and enjoyed some khmer food. The cambodians are such child-friendly people! Everywhere we went people wanted to hold Bianca and pinch her cheeks. However, she is in such a separation anxiety period now that she would just have a melt down every time the cambodian ladies tried to give her a cuddle.

On Thuesday we went to visit a floating village which was just amazing. What a weird and hard way to live. Definitely worth a visit.

Mum in Seim Reap

We had beers at Angor What?

Bianca and granddad

More friendly cambodians

Bianca meet locals her age

On the way to the floating village

The little helper on the boat

Bianca found local friends everywhere!

The floating village

On his way to visit a friend maybe?

Residents of the floating village

Baby on boat

Snack time!

Friendly cambodian waitress

Cambodia; where Bianca discovered the wonders of the straw!

Cambodia part I

2011-05-11T12:43:00.001+02:00

Cambodia. What a great little country! After 2 days in Siem Reap and Angor Wat, we love the place and hope we will go back some day.

Here are some photos from the first day, when we visited the temples Angor Wat, Angor Thom and the jungle temple where Lara Croft kicked some ass. More photos will follow when I have chance to go though them.

Dinner in the hotel lobby

Khmer dinner

Monkey at Angor Wat

At Angor Wat

Nun at Angor Wat

Angor Wat

Bayon Temple

Small girl with big coconut

The jungle temple

Airport fun

2011-05-10T15:00:00.000+02:00

We are on our way home from Siem Reap and Angor Wat. Or, we should be on our way home, but we are not. Flight is 4 hours delayed and since we where here pretty early, we have already been her for 4 hours. It could have been worse. Siem Reap airport is really not that bad, and they have a lounge. It is way better then a lot of airports Ive seen elsewhere. But still.

Anyway, Angor Wat and Siem Reap has been absolutely awsome. My camera is full of great shots, so will post when Im back in Singers and have some time to spare.

Off to Cambodia

2011-05-08T05:21:00.001+02:00

Mum and dad arrived in Singers Saturday morning and Saturday was a day of a lot of walking and sightseeing and of course a big breakkie at Epicurious. We walked all the way to Marina Bay and then on to China Town, before we headed back home and spent the afternoon by the pool. Now we are packing for Cambodia and Angkor Wat. We leave as soon as Bianca wakes up from her nap.

Grandparents on they way!

2011-05-06T10:23:00.000+02:00

Mum and dad are on their way to Singapore and we are counting the hours! They arrive just after midnight tonight, and on Sunday we are of to Cambodja for 2 days. Yey!

Today me and Bianca have been at home, watching air-con technicians to their thing. To pass time Bianca has entertained herself and me with eating yogurt drops. What is that pincer grasp everyone says they should develope in Bianca's age? We are doing the vaccum method over here!