contract

Today Rick and I signed a contact for the garage. We found a contractor that we really liked, that has done a lot of other garages in our neighborhood, so we know that he does a good job. I am very excited to finally get started! On Monday they are pouring the concrete foundation.

en svensk klassiker

Rick's syster Jolene och deras mamma Darlene blev förtjusta i toast skagen när de var i Sverige på vårt bröllop for 2 år sedan. När de hälsade på oss förra veckan, för att fira Freya's och Darlene's födelsedag (båda fyller den 23e Maj), försökte jag mig på att tillaga denna svenska klassiker. Det blev riktigt lyckat!



Toast Skagen Recipe:
0.75 dl Hellmann's mayo (about 1/3 cup)
0.25 dl sour cream (about 2 tbs)
1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
hot sauce
1 pound cooked shrimp
1 bunch fresh dill, finely chopped
1 tbs finely chopped red onion
toast, butter and toast golden
finely shredded iceberg lettuce (optional)

Freya 1 år

I fredags, den 23e Maj, fyllde vår lilla tjej 1 år. Vi firade så klart med svensk gräddtårta och fina små presenter. Fast Freya lekte helst med allt inslagspapper och alla snören.

Nedan ser ni en GLAD Freya som mumsar på hemmagjord gräddtårta.


Svensk gräddtårta med färska hallon

almost 1 year old

Tomorrow Freya will turn 1 year. Time goes so fast! We started celebrating our little girl today by bringing in some cupcakes for Freya and her little friends at day care. As you can see from the pictures below, she really enjoyed her cup cake.

garage project is moving forward

Today we have workers replacing our clay (!) sewer pipe under our planned garage. I must say it is a relief to get rid of the old clay pipe, knowing that we won’t have any sewer breaking down on us once the garage is built.

great lights

Aren't these outdoor lights great? I fell in love with all of them.

Freya’s first words “titt-ut”

Yesterday Freya said her first words “titt-ut” (Swedish version of peek-a-boo”) as we were playing. First I was not sure that she actually said “titt-ut” but she kept repeating it as we were playing, so she definitely associates the game with the words. She was giggling, saying “titt-ut” and got really excited! It’s hilarious that "titt-ut" would be her first words…

cooking baby food

My husband and I both love to cook, so it was an easy choice for us to start making our own baby food when Freya got old enough to try solids. It is actually very easy and it doesn’t take that much time if you make a lot at once and freeze the food. We found great silicon ice cube trays that we freeze the food in.

We got this Williams-Sonoma cook book for babies from Freya’s grandma. It has some great recipes! My personal favorite so far is the quinoa recipe with sautéed squash.

backyard inspiration

We are moving forward with the garage. Tomorrow we are meeting with one of the contractors we contacted to go over our plans. I'll let you know how it goes...
Once we have the garage built we can finally finish our backyard with a new deck and landscaping. I am looking forward to having an outdoor room and inviting friends and family over for barbecue.


Picturs from Crateandbarrel.com

my first mother's day

What a great day (and a great year) this has been. The card I received today says it all: "Being a mother means loving more than you knew you could love, giving more than you knew you could give, it means receiving so much more in return...It means sharing a connection that keeps surprising you with its depth and strength. Being a mother means knowing that whatever else you did or didn't do, you gave the world something beautiful."

My husband Rick, Freya and I went to Snooze for brunch this morning. After that Rick and my mother-in-law Darlene surprised me with an afternoon at a luxurious spa. I had a facial, massage and a manicure - needless to say I felt like a princess! It was so relaxing and absolutely wonderful. What a great day this has been!

garden inspiration

I think I have found what I need to get started on our garden. Better Homes and Gardens on the web has free plans for easy-to-take care of gardens for sunny spots, hot weather etc - anything you can think of! I thought the "No-Fuss Sunny Garden Plan" (above) might work for us. The bhg.com website claims "This garden stays looking great, no matter how hot the weather gets." This plan also included Lavender - one of my favorite flowers...




All pictures from www.bhg.com

freya’s first steps

Today when I was visiting Freya at daycare over lunch I saw her take her first few steps on her own. What an exciting moment! All of a sudden you realize how quickly time flies by. My little girl is almost 1 year already and soon she’ll be running all over.

master bathroom

Sometimes I feel like we have so many project that we haven't gotten to yet, that I forget what we have actually done...

I am very happy with the way our master bathroom turned out.

finding a contractor

We sent our garage plans to several contractors yesterday, and now we are waiting for the estimates. Our 2-car garage will be 24' by 22', stucco, French glass doors and (if the budget allows) two windows facing the garden. Ideally we want the garage insulated and drywalled with a pull down ladder, so we can use the space in the attic for storage. We are in desperate need of storage. Can't wait to get skis, camping equipment, power tools etc out of the house.

garage

We have finally obtained the building permits for our planned garage. The design plans have been reviewed and approved by the city architect and we are eager to start our project. We only need to find a reliable contractor to do the work...easier said than done...

spring is here

Our apple tree is in full bloom and warmer weather is ahead of us. Spring is finally here! Getting motivated to finish our house projects and tidy up the backyard.

my first posting

I never thought I would start a blog - but here I am. Very excited!

For friends and family that live far away, I though this might be a good way of keeping everyone in the know what's going on in our lives. Our house is still under remodeling, but we are moving forward with our projects (although at a very slow pace...) I will track our progress and use this site for inspiration.

Thanks for visiting my blog!