Home Sweet Home- Back to St. Louis for Thanksgiving

Just got back from my 9 day trip back home to St. Louis, MO.  I brought my 4 year old with me, leaving behind (sadly) my husband and 2 year old.

Sophie with cousin Ashley at the St. Louis Zoo

We left our home in Sweden around 4:45 in the morning and headed out to the airport on November 19th.  Snow was falling as we drove to the airport and unfortunately, our flight to Stockholm was delayed 20 minutes, leaving my daughter and I only about 40 minutes to catch our flight to Chicago.  We ran like hell just so we could make it on the flight....but we made it!  Of course my daughter was dragging her feet so it made things a bit challenging.  Luckily, a couple of different woman helped my daughter and I get to our gate just in time.

Finally, after around 20 hours of total travel time (starting when we left for the airport), we were welcomed by my mom and dad at the airport.  It was good to be home again. That first night, we drove to Whole Foods to grab a quick bite, and my poor little girl Sophie ended up falling asleep in the car, and didn't wake up again until 2AM.  We were both awake for an hour or so and finally, we fell back asleep.



Sunday morning I met with my bosses at my favorite meeting place - Bread Co. on Ballas.

I came home around 1pm and headed straight out to the Zoo (a must when visiting St. Louis).  We had a great time checking out all the animals with my parents, sister, bro in law and my 1 year old niece. We shut down the zoo, and decided to grab a bite at Llewellyn's in the Central West End.  I got the Llewellyn's Chicken Sandwich (amazing).  As if the day wasn't complete enough, we headed out to Eureka to check out some light displays and meet Santa.  We were all exhausted and were happy to have a good night's sleep.  This was just my first day back.

The Girls..at Kobe

Monday, after some conference calls relating to my job, I went to my old place of work at ReachLocal to catch up with friends.  I was a bit surprised to see so many new faces, but luckily I was able to catch up with a few of my previous co-workers.  That night, my girlfriends and I went to Kobe's for some good Hibachi food and wonderful conversation....(unfortunately, that place is pretty noisy so we caught up in the bar instead), while my daughter slept on the chair.

Throughout the week, we did a ton of shopping, kid friendly activities, and catching up with friends and family.


My daughter had her hitlist of things to do:
The Zoo
Incredible Pizza Company

Planet Fun for a playdate with her BFF Sam

Magic House

Jumping with Bungee Cord and Trampoline at the Mall

Butterfly House, Carousel, Faust Park



Fun at the Magic House





Me and Sophie at the Butterfly House in Chesterfield



We did all these things AND MORE in about a week - this is more activity than we've had in the last 6 months combined!

My hitlist was a little different;

Target (why is there no Target in Sweden?)
The Mall- any mall will do just fine thank you....
Whole Foods
Oishi for Sushi
Hibachi at Kobe Steakhouse Westport
Dierdorf & Hart's for King Crab Legs
Pei Wei for Mandarin Kung Pao Chicken
Llewellyn's - Llewellyn's Chicken Sandwich

I took in as much of my favorite dishes as possible and it was awesome!  Although my mother in law is a great cook, nothing compares to some of my faves in St. Louis. Although I could have shopped MUCH MUCH more I contained myself (slightly) anyway.  I could have done some SERIOUS damage in the Macy's shoe department, however, I held back.  Generally, things cost more in Sweden, so I was happy to stock up on some clothes for my two girls at Children's Place and Target.

We had great time with friends and family as well! We stayed part time with my parents so we got in a lot of time there, and later in the week, we stayed with my sister.  It was wonderful catching up with my sister and bro in law, and of course, my little niece Ashley.  Thanksgiving allowed us time to spend time with my Aunt, Uncle and cousins.  We ate, played, and surfed the web together!

Thankful for the iPhone at Thanksgiving 2010

 My older brother Doug and his fiance' Heather also came in last weekend allowing (nearly) our whole family to be together..or course we missed Mikael and Maja.  I spent two nights out with my girlfriends, one night out with "the boys" and had a dessert date with Kels.

Dinner at Jessi's

Besides for missing my hubbie and youngest daughter like crazy, we had a fabulous trip.  We definitely could have used another week or so there so we could have spent more time with everyone.  That old saying..."Time flies when you're having fun" definitely applies to my recent trip home to St. Louis.

Until next time...

Brandi











Maja Turns 2!

The week leading up to my youngest little girls birthday I had off of school because of a Swedish holiday called Alla Helgons Dag (All Saints).  I was able to spend time with both my girls; hanging out, watching TV, reading books and playing games.  This was probably the first time I wasn't at work for one of my girl's birthdays (assuming it didn't fall on a weekend).  It was a good feeling to spend time with my birthday girl, even if we didn't do anything too exciting.

Maja turned 2 on Tuesday the 9th of November, although we waited to celebrate until this past Sunday.  Of course, this just means she received nearly a week of tight squeezes and kisses and happy birthday messages from me all week. On Maja's actual birthday, we woke up to an incredible view.  Everything was covered in snow...it was beautiful.  We spent a good portion of time playing out in the snow!

This past Sunday we had family over to celebrate Maja turning 2 years old.  Unlike a celebration we would have likely had at home, I feel like the whole preparation part is much more relaxed here. No worrying about invitations or who to invite....because here, it's simple.  You have a simple smörgåstorta (literally translates to a sandwich cake), and tårta (cake), and your family and maybe a couple of close friends come over.

We had family over (all of whom live in the 2 houses next to our ours), and we had a smörgastårta made of bread, ham, tomatoes, eggs, mayo, shrimp and much more I'm sure.  I can't tell you if it's good or not, because I don't eat it....(but that's another blog).  My four year old and I made chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing (a recipe from a Swedish friend), and my mother-in-law made an amazing rice crispy and merengue cake with a sort of vanilla custard filling, and kiwi and whipped cream topping. YUM!!

The guests arrived, Maja opened a few gifts (an adorable top and cool rose printed pair of jeans, Hello Kitty (lego type) set. Maja also got some clay and one of those funny squeezable balloons - great for relieving the stress of having a two year old (I mean great for a 2 year old). Of course, this broke by the end of the night because my 4 year old stretched it too much.  Oh well!  Maja also received a fun keyboard, a doctors kit, a winter coat from grandma, some cash from her Gamla Farmor (Great Father's Mother) and Gamla Mormor (Great mother's mother).  Her favorite toy of the event- a toy baby stroller.  Two year old girls have this obsession with taking care of "babies".  It's adorable.

We ate dinner - the children and I had pizza instead of the sandwich cake.  Next we sang the Swedish version of happy birthday.  We chatted with my sister Lisa and my niece Ashley on Skype...my sister was a little embarasses since she was in her PJ's when she called us (not knowing a party was going on).   We had a lot of fun singing "happy birthday" with my sister and niece on Skype.
Later we talked to Maja's grandma and grandpa. 

I owe my mother-in-law a ton of credit for helping out with everything. From cleaning and making the table just perfect for my little girl's birthday, she takes care of virtually everything! Many Thanks!

Thanks to ALL who helped make this a special day for Maja.

Brandi

Catching Up

It's been a little while since I've checked in, so here's what's been going on for the last week or so.

1. Searching for a new car- Mission Accomplished!  After months of searching for the perfect automatic car for our family, we have finally settled on a Renault.  So last night, was my first time actually driving somewhere by myself in Sweden!  I drove up to the city of Kärna's Post Office/Goodies store only a few minutes from our home.  It felt great, although a bit strange with this French made car because it has a keycard and a Start/Stop button. Can't wait to get to know the city better.

2. Trying to get a phone- Hmm, this is a little harder than it may seem.  Let's put it this way, we had enough money to pay cash for our new car, yet when it came to getting credit for a new phone for a whopping $15.00 a month, we were denied.  I was able to get my Iphone unlocked, but when we took it to Telia this morning (equivalent of an AT&T) in the states, it was like I was standing in an AT&T store.  Meaning...of course there were problems.  The manager said there could be problems "Surfing" the net on my phone even though the phone had been unlocked (something to do with different programming of the phones in the States).  My father in law and I ran a couple of tests and we think we have things figured out, so I should be able to go ahead and get the service now. I guess the worst thing that will happen is that it won't work, and I'll "have" to buy the new Iphone 4 instead...(I have to admit I'm secretly hoping my old Iphone won't work so I'll "have to" get the new version.  Of course I'll be stuck on a 24 month agreement (just like home).

3. Apartment search- Well, I can't say that we've really done any looking for own apartment yet, however, we were lucky enough through family connections to land an amazing apartment in Gothenburg (Göteborg).  This is an apartment in the center of everything in the 2nd largest city in Sweden.  The view is absolutely amazing and I can tell you that I wanted the apartment at the first sight of the view, before I even looked anywhere else in the apartment. We have been waiting all week to get the news, and this afternoon, we found out that we are approved to sign the second hand lease. Our plan is to move in early January. Getting an apartment is not easy here in Sweden, especially an amazing apartment like we've landed in the heart of the city.

4. Job Hunting- Although it's been relaxing all summer just spending time with my family, working on my jewelry designs (http://www.brandiu.etsy.com/) and getting to know Sweden, now that some months have passed, I'm very eager to get back to working again in my field of digital marketing and sales.  Through networking, I have been introduced to a couple of very good opportunities and I can't wait to get to work, and experience a "work life" in Sweden.  A steady income of my own would allow me get even more out of my Swedish life.

What do you think is the hardest thing about moving some place new?  Share your thoughts below.

Thanks for checking me out!
Brandi

GÖ Organic

This afternoon on my lunch break I enjoyed a wonderful lunch at an organic cafe' in Kungälv, Sweden, called L8s Schyssta Eko Cafe' & Butik. http://www.l8seko.se/  I'm not sure why I never noticed this place right next to my Swedish language course, but today, I did. When you walk on the sidewalk, there is a perfect view of the restaurant and it's lovely outdoor garden/patio.  There are several wooden tables and matching chairs in the frontyard patio with bright colored blankets resting on the chairs.

When you walk inside the cafe', it's rather quaint with a small butik in the left-hand corner displaying organic and fair trade products such as coffee, tea, drinking cocoa, dark chocolate, honey, special oils and spices, and other wonderful products.  To the right, there is a somewhat limited choice of lunch items, yet, the few items offered looked rather scrumptious!  Today's special was:  a yellow pea soup (called ärtsoppa) served with bread and (swedish) pancakes all for around $5.75 / 40 SEK.  My father-in-law informed me that this is a traditional offering for nearly all restaurants in Sweden on Thursdays.  --I've heard of restaurants in U.S. having similar beer specials, but I've never heard of a specific lunch special that is offered so consistently among restaurants. Have you?

I spotted a homemade fresh tomato and feta pie for 69 Kr (about $10.00) which included a side salad.  Since I've been practicing speaking swedish lately, I decided to try and order my meal in swedish.  I only got about 4 words in when the sweet woman behind the cash register started to speak English to answer my question.  I didn't mind, I just thought it was funny how quickly my efforts were cut off.  I went to pay with my bank card to find out they don't take cards there, only cash. Aha. (In swedish, jaså.)...so the kind woman said she'll just go ahead and warm up my pie (paj) while I go around the corner to the ATM.  I came back with my cash and my lunch was all ready for me.

I decided to sit outside- even though it was only about 42 F/ 6 C. I figure if I'm going to be living here, I had better get use to the cold weather. Nah, not just get use to it, try to embrace it.  So, I took my tray outside to the patio and sat down on one of the wooden chairs, and rested a soft, orange blanket over my lap.  I plugged in my Itunes and listened to some of my new favorite songs.   As I sat and ate my delicious meal, I was joined by the strange mix of Cee Lo Green's, "F**k You", Ingrid Michaelson's, "Parachute", Sarah Bareilles', " "Kaleidoscope Heart", and Kate Earl's "Melody". Music always seems to make my day more harmonious.

After my delicious meal, I decided to return to the "butik" area.  I treated myself to some delicious dark chocolate (just a little addiction I have, no big deal).  I received 100 grams for around $4.00, and it was worth it. It was absolutely divine! Actually, the brand name is DIVINE!  A london based company boasting the FAIRTRADE logo.  70% dark chocolate with raspberries--doesn't get much better than this!  

A little info about Divine Chocolate LTD. from their website:

At the heart of Divine’s heavenly tasting chocolate there is a unique story. Not only do the Kuapa Kokoo farmers’ receive a Fairtrade price for their cocoa, but they also own 45% of the company, and therefore have a direct influence over how the company is run and share in the profits from the chocolate. Watch farmer films. 

Learn more about Divine Chocolate: http://www.divinechocolate.com/
Learn more about FairTrade: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/what_is_fairtrade/default.aspx

My overall experience at the cafe' today was a good one, and I hope to stumble upon other cafe's like this one in Sweden.  I find that organic foods are more readily accessible here in Sweden, and at lower costs than in the States.  These organic items in Sweden are marked with the logo "KRAV", and are available nationally at "regular" grocery stores, not just specialty shops.  I expect that with the growing popularity of organic foods, the availabilty should grow even more in coming years and prices hopefully will come down a bit more so that more people can partake in healthier food options.  Read more about Organic Foods in the Swedish Market at: http://www.grolink.se/Resources/studies/swemarkets.PDF




I'd love to hear from you...yes YOU! 

 Do you buy organic?  If yes, why? What are the best places to buy organic foods where YOU live?
If not, what keeps you from buying organic food items? Cost? Lack of availability?

Thanks for checking in!
Brandi

Wanna Know Who's Got The Lamest Job In Sweden?

First, let's just all get over the fact that I used a version of "lame" in my title.  I grew up with Saved By The Bell and 90210.  Are we good, are we ok? Can we move forward?

Now then....

The person with the lamest job in Sweden is...

The girl or guy who collects 5 SEK from people so they can go to the bathroom.  That's right, they not only do the majority of places take 5 SEK (equivalent to about $0.71), some places even have a special little window (imagine a bank teller behind a glass door), where some poor soul will collect your change and then unlock the bathroom door.  This is by far, one of the dumbest things I have ever seen....ever.

Recently, I took a train from Borås, Sweden back home to Göteborg, Sweden after a job interview.  I decided to take the entire afternoon to go shopping at Nordstan (largest shopping center in Göteborg/Gothenburg).  I had to go to the restroom, so I follow the bathroom signs only to find myself in a long line..not for the bathroom, oh no, that would be way to simple.  I had to first wait in line to pay this girl (maybe 17 years old or so) a damn 5 SEK so I could then wait in another line to use the restroom.  How ridiculous is this? More importantly, how embarassing is it for this girl to have this job?

I can just imagine the conversation she has when she meets up with her friend.

Friend: Hey, what are you up to these days?

Girl With Lame Job: Oh, things are great!  I spend 8 hours a day collecting dirty coins from people so they can go to the bathroom.

Friend: That's lame.

Girl With Lame Job: Don't tell anyone from school, alright?

One possible rationale I've heard for this ridiculousness is that it helps deter the "wrong kind of crowd" and possible drug users away from the restrooms. When I studied abroad in Sydney, Australia, I noticed many bathrooms had black lights to help detur drug-users from coming in just to shoot-up.  I bet the black lights work a whole lot better than charging $0.71.   Another explanation is that it helps keep the bathrooms cleaner since less people are using them--Ok, I'll give you that one!

I have to say, this policy just pisses me off.  I remember early on this Summer, recently after moving to Sweden, I went shopping with my four year old and my mother in law.  After spending around $150.00 at the grocery store, my daughter decides to tell us she has to go the bathroom....and no she can't wait 10 minutes until we get home.  In fact, she needs to go to the bathroom right then.  So, I have to dig around in my purse to see if I can find this 5 SEK coin. Nope, I don't have one.  So, I track down my mother in law, who luckily has this coin, so that I can take my 4 year old who's about to pee in her pants to the bathroom.  I'll just go ahead and repeat, that I was a customer at this grocery store who just spent a decent amount of money. Do they really need my 5 SEK coin so badly, they are OK, with angering me so much that I don't want to shop there anymore? Hmm, let' see, should I take her 5 SEK one time, or get her $150.00 weekly? Tough one!

Whoever made up this policy surely has never had to potty-train a toddler before, because they would know, when a kid's gotta go, a kid's gotta go.

I've only witnessed a couple of smart manuevers by Swedes to get out of this stupid policy.
1.  A group of 5 girls pile into the bathroom on that one 5 SEK coin.
2. At McDonald's I noticed that people, when feeling generous, will just hold the door open for the next person in the line so they don't have to pay.

That's my rant!
STORE OWNERS: Let people use your friggin' bathrooms! Keep your customers happy, and they will come back!
POOR GIRL COLLECTING COINS SO PEOPLE CAN GO POTTY: Go get a new job. Do anything but what you are doing now.

Alright people, what's the lamest job you have heard of?  Dumb policy you want to rant about? Please leave your comments below.

Peace!

photo credit Suat Eman

Attempted Murder at Swedish School

Unfortunately, this blog is not devoted to the (sweet) side of Sweden.  Today, my classmates and I experienced something terrible and shocking.

At 11 am this morning in Kungälav, Sweden (where I take my Swedish language course 5 days a week), my class was told we could go on a quick 10 minute break.  Around 11:08, the majority of the classroom had made it's way back to the classroom.  I sit down at my desk in the front, and turn around to see a young woman in my class (from Tunisia) totally broken down in tears.  With her face down in her hands and tears streaming down her face, she could only mutter the name of one of our classmates.  I implored her to tell us what had happened, but she just couldn't say more than the girl's name.  The majority of my classmates ran out to see what had happened. I couldn't get out of my chair.  Sometimes you just know in your heart what you'll find is awful and I didn't want to see what had happened.

A few minutes later we all find out that one of our young, sweet, Thai classmates has been the victim of a knife attack in the bathroom just 10 meters or so from our classroom.  I will tell you right away, that my classmate has survived the attack.

We don't know ALL of the details yet, but since my brave teacher is the one that literally saved her, I do know many of the details.  Apparently, earlier this morning, a young woman with golden skin, dark eyes and dark hair had asked a girl in our class if she knew this Thai girl who's name I will leave out of this story.  My classmate said that yes she knew the girl and that she was in our classroom.  This was just about an hour or so before the incident.

Apparently, the attacker had gotten totally liquored up before the incident. A little past 11AM this morning, while we were on break, my Thai classmate went in to the restroom, just before coming back to our class.  Somehow, the attacker went into the bathroom and locked them both inside the private bathroom.  As I'm told, the attacker said to our classmate something to the effect of- "Take this pill or I'll kill you".  Our classmate bravely refused to down this unknown pill.  The attacker tried to take the knife to our classmates neck (this knife was a full-out butcher knife, well over 1 foot long by the way).  Our classmate held out her hand to stop the knife and she was struck in her hand (a true defense wound).  The attacker had our classmate on the floor and just then, our classmate screamed "HELP!!! SHE'S TRYING TO KILL ME!".  In perfect timing, my amazingly brave teacher and another teacher from the school, used their keycards to unlock the door.  My teacher grabbed the attacker and pulled her off our helpless classmate.  I'm told the attacker didn't fight back, at that point she realized that she was caught and it was over.

After the attack, my classmate asked the girl why she was doing this to her.  My classmate didn't even know the attacker, but it seems apparent her attacker knew exactly who she was.  Something about my classmates "man" was repeated.  Possibly it was a jealous rage that led to this heinous crime?

I asked my teacher if the police had been called, and because I didn't get a definite answer, I rang the police for the first time in Sweden and informed them of the attack.  I was the 2nd caller and the police came about 7 minutes after my call.  I should also note here, that among all of us (immigrants) in the classroom, only a couple people even knew how to dial the police in Sweden, which I now know is (112).

The attacker was captured by the police and will hopefully be put away and/or deported.  We do not yet know where the attacker is from.  I was able to talk with the victim for a brief second as her boyfriend walked with her to leave to give our support to her from our classroom.

There are many witnesses to the attack, the knife is being held by the police, and they were even able to get the pill that the attacker tried to force our classmate to take and they are running tests on the pill. Luckily, there is an unsurmountable amount of evidence against the attacker. 

Thankfully, the cut she received physically was not life threatening, although I suppose this experience will cut deeply emotionally forever.  The entire school felt the pain of this attack and our thoughts and prayers are with our classmate.

Brandi

Weekend Shopping With My Girls

This weekend I was on a mission to get my two little girls set up for their first "Swedish" Fall and Winter.

According to my sister,  back home in St. Louis they are experiencing record high's for October (in the upper 80's).  This weekend my sister and my niece went to the pumpkin patch wearing sandals, jeans and tank tops!  While here in the Göteborg area, I'm already wearing my new winter coat -  (Didriksons -Sophie model).

Ok, so while I'm missing out on some amazing weather back home, I'll still take any opportunity I can get to buy new clothes (whether the clothes are for me or my kids).  Saturday, my mother in law, me and my 4 year old Sophie headed out to Nordstan (largest shopping center in Gothenburg) to get Sophie and her little sister Maja new clothes. 

It feels like out of the blue, my 4 year old has outgrown all her clothes- incredible how fast they grow! 
We rounded out our trip with new winter coats for each girl, (both from a store called KappÅhl), a couple of cute Hello Kitty tunics from H&M, pink tights, a purple velour sweatsuit with little holes in the sleeves for your thumbs (which my 4 year old went GAGA over), some ridiculously expensive Gore-tex like winter boots from EuroSko (ranked Best In Test 2009), velour pants with elastic bottoms, new socks, and some pastel my little pony-esq fake hair braids for Sophie---I refused to buy this for her, but my mother in law bought it for her anyway.  My poor daughter was so worn out from all our shopping she fell asleep in the stroller we brought (just in case) and I ended up having to get her feet measured while she was sleeping and even brought up shoes from another level of the store, tried on and purchased her boots all while she was fast asleep.

We got everything home, tried the coat on my almost 2 year old- Maja, and of course...the coat was too big. So, yesterday (Sunday), me, my 2 year old, my mother and father in law piled into the family's red Saab and headed out to some place called "Kläder __________" something..I don't remember the name.  Basically, it's like a low-end warehouse of clothes and home goods, and to be perfectly honest, it just wasn't for me...it wasn't for any of us.  I'd much rather pay more for something and have a good quality item, than to run the risk of it falling part and having to buy something new with better quality later on.

"Next store please", I begged of my in-laws, and they agreed.  We headed out finally to "Backaplan".  A kind of shopping center split up into different parts. Shops like H&M, Gina Tricot, Lindex, KappÅhl, MQ, and much more.  I found a little children's shop in "Backaplan 2" that offered Didriksons jackets at 100 Kr (about $14.00) less than any other store I've visited in Sweden thus far.  So, my youngest ended up with a nice purple Didrikson jacket, and I ended up buying a hot pink Didriksons jacket for my older daughter Sophie at a different store that carried her size.

After much research online about all the children's winter coats, and comparing their ("Best In Test" scores), I was very happy with my purchases. 

According to MinBebis.se, here are the results from the 2010 BEST IN TEST/ Bäst I Test results:
*Please note- I have added in the approximate costs in dollars.

"Didriksons - Best in Test

The cheapest overall in the test costs 499 SEK(Approx $71.00), the most expensive nearly four times that. But the most expensive is not necessarily best.

Winners in this year's test is: Didriksons with 4.7 points out of a possible 5. After the follow Name It (4.5) and last year's test winner Coop (4.0). All three will cost between $70-$90 dollars.


In the mainstream, with total scores between 3.5 and 3.9, intermingled test's most expensive candidates Polar bear of Sweden (1895 SEK) (approx. $270.00), Reima (1695 SEK ($242.00) and the Dude and Pyret (1295 SEK), (approx $185.00) by far the cheapest overall HM (499 SEK) (approx $71.00)."


So now, the girls are all set, and of course, I've been shopping for myself since I arrived here basically, so I'm in pretty good shape for Fall and Winter now too....hopefully.

Shop till you drop!

Brandi
Best In Test Overalls 2010 http://www.minbebis.com/overall-test-2010?vote=2
Best In Test -Overalls and Boots 2009 http://www.viforaldrar.se/Overaller-och-vinterstovlar.pdf