New colour! :)

It wasn't the walls that changed colour this time, but my hair. :) It's been this difuse copper browny shade since tha autumn when I decided I wanted it in this colour. Unfortunately my hair dresser had to start from black and had to tell me to be patient, and to use a semi-permanent colour rather than colouring it and then she'd be able to get there, eventually... *sigh* The copper colour that I was craving has not be available as a 'home colour kit' ;) and I was sooo bummed about having to wait...but...I wanted it! :)

The other day I finally had enough of this dodgy shade of copperbrownness so I thought f**k it I'll just colour it brown again so that I'll at least get an even hair colour again. The sales person in the store was an enormous help and steered me away from the mousy brown shades (which is my natural colour and where I sort of wanted to start again) and showed me this new shade theyd'd just gotten in Préférence Féria 7.40 - Pure Paprika, Intense Copper. But she warned me, 'its VERY copper, kinda carrot-orange colour...' :) :) :) :) PERFECT just what I want! :)

Before

After

I LOVE it. :) Now I have to rush, time to go to work...! (which is still going well, if you're curious).

xx

"1st" day of work

:) I've had a few 1st days at Å. :) The actual 1st day way back in 2002, then the 1st day at a new departments, 1st day back after maternityleave, 1st day at my 'summer job' when I had started studying...and now...back, again... :) AND you know the greatest thing, for me at least, is that I've been employed at Å all through my leaves of absence...(?!) That's Sweden for ya! ;)

My '1st' day was good. :) I'd lie if I told you I wasn't feeling somewhat ambivalent about the whole work vs. uni decision but...I had a good day. :) The weather was beautiful (and has been for about a week) so the customer flow was kinda slow which gave me time to get aquainted with the clothes and routines (again).

I think, know, feel, that this was the 'right' decision...despite my ambivalence... Working was the turning on and then off feeling I need at the moment. Thankfully this change came about when it is light in the evenings...sun was just setting as I came home. I would have been much more bummed about the late evenings if it was dark outside too.

Easter?!

Oh my...another score to be added to my Terrible Mum scorecard... I've 'missed' easter. Or...to be honest - I've not given a *bliiip* about it this year. No decorations, egg painting or special anything planned. They haven't even gotten dressed up in the usual påskkärring (easter witchy) outfits... I'm a little bit bummed about that 'cause they do make the cutest little witches but...nah, it's not the end of the world...for me at least.

I sometimes wonder what the kids will think of me when they grow up... :/ Will they go 'We never did anything growing up...' or 'Thank heavens she didn't torture us with all these things when we were little' ...? I do feel a bit guilty though (does that make me a little less horrible?), I loved easter growing up. We had a great time going round wishing people a Happy Easter and getting a little treat in return... :) It was fun! Yet, now it feels like such an effort... *sigh*

Perhaps we can write this year off as a 'bad (or worse than normal?) year'?? :/ The kiddies don't seem too scarred sitting at the kitchen table drawing and playing with the play dough. ♥

Order is restored.

...or chaos! ;) The kiddies are back home! :) :) Auntie Anna brought them home just after lunch, she seemed somewhat releaved to have done her share of child-minding for a while. ;) ♥

They've got their dinner in them and they are now soaking in the bath tub - its early season for it but (since we've already found one on Charlie-cat) a tick control is required after a few days in the woods. *fingers crossed* I don't find any of the nasty buggers!



...(later)...

:D Ah! Got interrupted! :) No ticks *phew!* and we've been sorting stuff out in the garden. I'm so stiff right now I doubt I'll be able to get out of bed tomorrow morning... *ouch!* Wish we'd done something amazing to the garden but we're probably the only ones that can notice the difference...! Tidying, sorting and clearing...a start at least. :)

Now I need to get kiddies to bed!

A few days of 'solitude'

Mister and MissE Munchkin have been 'kidnapped' by my dearest darling sisters! :) Big cousin Julia's on Easter Hols and rather than just hanging about at home with her girls big sis decided to go to the 'cabin' and offered to take our two too, with lil' sis as the usual on-the-verge-of-sainthood helper! ♥ A lovely break for everyone in the H family!

The little ones were SO happy to go! I think a visit to the cabin is just about the best thing imaginable for Anton and it was even better than usual since (boring?) mum and dad weren't going. ;p

So we're getting three days and two nights of 'solitude'...bliss...! Tomorrow night I'll miss them like cRaZy but it's nice to have some grown up time too. Not for romance, necessarily :p, but for peace and quiet to try and get stuff done. :) :) :)

Our sad, sorry excuse for a garden is desperate for a good seeing to, its looking like no-man's-land after the diggers had a bash at it when sorting the drainage out last autumn... :/ Not a pretty sight!

Don't you worry, I plan on getting some good ol' fashioned me-time too after all the tidying, sorting, clearing. planning both in- and outside the house...! :) I've even got a nice bottle of red wine waiting for me... That, with a nice, quiet book reading session should go a long way to restore this worn out mommy... :)

B-day party today!

Walking home from nursery

with little miss 4-year old. :)

Those of you who know me know that in earning the title 'Bad Mom'-award I've shown a great deal of torment when it comes to the little peoples b-day partys. I'm sorry kiddies but I'm not a fan of all the planning and organising and stuff that comes along with these sorts of things. :/ It's lovely when it's time, but I like it best when it's over and the kids have this 'happy glow'-thing going on... :) :) :) Party are OK, just not my favourite thing alright. ;)

Any hoot, today it's time for little Es b-day party and she's invited 6 little girls over for her very first friend-party...her cousins Julia and Elsa are coming too with Mommo and aunt/Saint Anna who are helping me with the feeding and entertaining the girlies. :)

To make thing less (more?) stressing Family will be dropping in just as the little girls party is over...best to get all the partying over and done with in one go! That's my theory at least. ;P

Now it's time to get on with the final tidying and balloonblowing!
Wish me luck! ;)

A person's a person no matter how small.

This is one of my favourite of all of our 'Friday Features'. :) We try to mix it up a bit with the movies that we watch but inevitalbly we come back to things we've seen before, not only once but maybe ten times! ;) But! When it's time for Horton again I don't mind at all! It's such a sweet story with a beautiful message and the kids see, understand more each time we see it... :)

I really should read of more of dr. Seuss's stories. I don't know if I'm not old enough or if he just didn't catch on here in Sweden or what...but yeah...Horton's it, when it comes to my experience of dr. Seuss...and it's the movie, not the actual book (do you know if it differs?). :) But, the snippets that I've read online makes me think he's worth 'hunting down'... :)

Committed

The blurb:
Having been effectively sentenced to wed, Gilbert tackled her fears of marriage by delving completely into this topic, trying with all her might to discover (through historical research, interviews and much personal reflection) what this stubbornly enduring old institution actually is. The result is "Committed" - a witty and intelligent contemplation of marriage that debunks myths, unthreads fears and suggests that sometimes even the most romantic of souls must trade in her amorous fantasies for the humbling responsibility of adulthood. Gilbert's memoir - destined to become a cherished handbook for any thinking person hovering on the verge of marriage - is ultimately a clear-eyed celebration of love, with all the complexity and consequence that real love, in the real world, actually entails.


I agree with what's been highlighted.
I don't necessarily agree that Liz ever comes to the conclusion that marriage is a 'humbling responsibility of adulthood' or that it's 'destined to become a ... handbook' or that marriage is an actual consequence of real love, in the real world...which is the conclusion that I feel the blurb-author has come to. ;P I don't believe that Liz and 'Felipe' would have ever gotten married if they hadn't been forced to. This doesn't make their (or any other unmarried couples) love any more 'unreal' or 'irresponsible'... But! That's me being critical not of Ms. Gilbert's book but of the blurb-author! :) ;P :)

Now, here's the book review! ;)
So...even those who've haven't read Eat, Pray, Love knows it ends in Love. ;)  Committed is the 'epilogue' of that love and Liz's...reconciliation of marriage. :) The Swedish title (which is the version I've read) 'I nöd och lust: en tvivlare försonas med äktenskapet' (i.e. 'for better or worse; a skeptic makes peace with marriage') sort of says it all :D and the ending is no surprise! ;)

Despite knowing where the book will end it is a good book! Just like in Eat, Pray, Love we're taken on Liz's journey, although now a more internal one (despite the fact that there is a great deal of actual journeying in the book too) on her 'quest' to 'get' the ancient institution of marriage. She shares with us what she's found about the subject, which is a lot and mostly very interesting. We follow her through her contemplations about what she's seen, heard and experienced of her own previous one and the marriages of her female relations. It's an interesting journey, her journey, but also one that other 'doubters', whether 'committed' or not, can/will enjoy.

It's a book about marriage, the history and sometimes consquences of marriages both today and 'yesterday'...the book is well worth reading for anyone interested in the subject. :)

Erin's 4 ! :)

MissE on her 1st birthday. ♥

Not momma's baby anymore!

Erin 3 years 363 days 'old'.  ;)

♥

I keep coming back to this topic, where in the world did time fly to? It has gone waaay to fast for me! :´) I can't believe she's grown into this big girl madam. :) This morning, after opening her pressies, getting ready for nursery she said 'Now I'm almost 5!' ;p 'Oh, no, you're not! :D You'll have to be four for another few days. I need time to get used to you being a big girl before you grow even bigger!' :) :) :)

She got a 'Merliah' Barbie doll from us, a Hello Kitty pen&pad from Anton and a soft toy TinkerBelle doll from Granny and Granddad this morning. I was a little bit 'worried' since Miss'Picky' ;) had wished for a specific blonde Barbie doll which I couldn't find so we had our fingers crossed to not repeat last years 'blunder' when Erin had wanted one thing and told us another. No worries! :D Merliah (as well as the other things) was immidiately accepted and Barbie even got to join her at nursery today! :)

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET HEART!!

♥

We love you so much!

♥ ♥ ♥

Retail therapy?

I've been on a quest! Ever since the slim fit/legging/jegging was deemed 'fashionable' and quickly turned into the only existing option trouserwise everywhere a few years back. Being a big, tall, fat chick the 'fashionable' option is rarely and most definately currently far from flattering to my body type. The options available in the regular stores over here (i.e. Sweden) are ridiculous...
I need high rise, boot cut, long jeans/trousers! In my opinion this, as well as 'short' and 'regular' length as well as straight leg, should be a part of the all-year-round stock in any and all clothes stores! ...but... No! It's not...?!

Although!! :D I have finally found jeans that are long enough after a search that has only taken me (and my equally, although shorter, BBW-big sis)  forever! :P Online, at bonprix, my dearest darling sis initially found a dress (I think) which made her dare to order more stuff, which included long jeans that she in turn recommended me to get. Not only did they fit well, in the right places, they were long enough and really well priced (bordering on cheap!). So I got me a pair (stone wash blue) and I love them so today I ordered two more, 'black' and 'used grey'...I added a few tops as well to the 'basket' as my work wardrobe is empty/uninspiring. :) *fingers crossed they all fit as well as the jeans have!*

And since I was sorta bored I made me a polyvore set too of the stuff I bought! ;)

Here's the set! :D

April 2011 - Simple Woman's Daybook

Outside my window... Sunshine! ☼ Not a cloud in the sky...! :) Mild, slightly breezy, beautiful spring weather. ♥

I am thinking... Why did I start writing this while I'm making lunch? :)

I am thankful for... April sunshine! ♥

From the learning rooms... I miss it.

From the kitchen... Pasta and Swedish meatballs for lunch. :) Served with green peas and ketchup! :)

I am wearing... White/green tee with green 70s style flowerpattern and black capri sweats.

I am creating... an unfabulous lunch? ;P

I am going... nowhere. Not even forward at the mo, bu maybe that's ok...(?)

I am reading... 'Committed' by Elizabeth Gilbert.

I am hoping... We'll get our garden looking decent soon.

I am hearing... MisterMan and his friend C playing with lego, the meatballs frying in the pan and birds chirping outside.

Around the house... Sound of children enjoying ice cream. (yeah, lunch is already in them! ;))

One of my favorite things... Spring! ♥ Seasonwise it's 'only' beaten by Autumn.

A few plans for the rest of the week... The week is over tomorrow but its Little Miss's birthday next week (she'll be 4?!) so we'll be organising something for The Day as well as plan her 1st b-day party for friends next weekend. :)

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
- Marianne Williamson

To read other womens daybook entries go to The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Spring?

Well, it's nowhere near green yet (mainly misty, damp and kinda dreary) but the snow is goooone and the kiddies are done with wearing their winter overalls! :)

Spring is here!

On with the rain-/windproof Spring gear! ;) They'll be well worn for the next month or so 'til its time for shorts, scraped knees and sunscreen! :) :) :)

Here's a few pics from yesterday's walk. Erin was on her very first no-mama-play-date! It took her half an hour to let me go, but then (of course) she didn't wanna come home when the time came for that. :P

MisterMan, don't think they come any cuter than this! ;)

MissE poser in her pigtails. ♥

Running!! :D

Me and the Munchkins.

♥