Every other summer for the past 8 years we've trekked to Sweden to visit family and bask in the northern summer sun. In addition to bringing Alvin, this year was extra special as we made good on a plan to have the Cody family join us. After some nail-biting traffic drama we all made it on time, and decompressed together on the 11 hour flight to Stockholm.
We head straight to the apartment in Örebro to all fight jetlag together. Amy and I agreed that the men could stay at a nearby hostel while we handled the 5 kids in the apartment. Little did we know they would hit the pub every night...
Despite being in a small space our kids got along really well and played most of the time. Our boys had fun telling their friends all about their favorite Swedish treats, games, and TV shows.
In between a bout of tiredness we mustered up the energy to walk to Wadkoöping, the city's living history village. It happens to have one of the best bakeries around for bullar and we never turn down a dark cup of coffee.
The following day my parents joined us after a 10 day cruise around the Baltic Sea. This was my dad's first time in Sweden, and we were so excited to show him the boy's "home" in Sweden. Here's our big fat Swedipino family:
We spent the day at Stadsparken, wandering the gardens and taking a "ferry" (i.e. large rowboat staffed by high schoolers) to the children's island.
On the island there is a sweet little petting zoo, a small steam train, and a mini-village complete with pedal cars for rent.
Afterwards we took a nature stroll along the water to
Naturens Hus, a wonderful little restaurant surrounded by forest and streams.
On another afternoon we wandered downtown, where the kids fooled around the castle and had fun with all the
Open Art installations.
No summer stroll is complete without a stop for mjukglass. Even the big kids (Mattias and Magnus) joined in.
With the perfect weather we had plenty of opportunities to play at the park across the street. There we introduced the Cody's to the classic Swedish lawn game, Kubb.
On our final day together we hopped on a bus to explore
Karlslunds Herrgård, a manor house built in the 16th century.
We all loved being in the country, just 15 minutes outside of the city center. A nice stroll through the grounds, we found the manor cat, a single chanterelle that sparked an obsessive hunt for mushrooms, cows, and wild raspberries.
After getting our fill of berries we stopped into the Tekniska Kvarnen, an Exploratorium-like museum housed in a historic mill house.
The favorite exhibit was the one that explained the water cycle, including how municipal water systems work. We delighted in flushing fake turds down the toilet and watching them travel down the sewage pipes.
The best part of the manor house was the surrounding gardens. They were magnificent-- from manicured English style gardens to the expansive kitchen garden, all of us were amazed by its beauty.
This is a European peacock butterfly amongst the herb garden. We also got to talk with some of the gardeners, my mom even convincing one to let us sample their currents and gooseberries.
No visit to Sweden is complete without a visit to a lösgodis store. Sadly the Cody family had to leave to continue on their Scandinavian adventure.
That evening I made good on a promise and continued the tradition of the shrimp boat. We joked that these people didn't know what they had coming. I think we ate 3 full bowls of shrimp.
The perfect weather pattern continued, and with the sun setting around 10PM we enjoyed the beautiful cruise on Hjälmaren. We certainly took advantage of those golden hours for picture taking.
Full of shrimp, wine, and happiness. It was not lost on us, the value of our time together, sharing cultures and making lifelong memories.
