Dining Al Fresco

We've had more nice weather in the last few weeks. And I've had a ton of travel. Three days in Nashville last weekend, two days home, and then three more days in Denver. Busy but fun work events to kick off the month of May. Now I'm ready for a little downtime, hoping the next few weeks are completely uneventful.

We celebrated the nice weather by replacing our old grill with a new, smaller version. We have dined on the deck every night that we possibly can and it has been glorious. Warm temps and a little rain is bringing out the green and the flowers, and we can't wait to start really working in the garden.

We finally hit 80!

New grill

Dinner on the deck is the best

Chicken paillards, yum

Lots of walks to the playground makes Henry very happy

 

A little sunshower

Spring-ish

We have had a few small stretches of nice days around here. Hooray!

Welcome back iced drinks and sitting outside at Nokomis Beach!

Throwing sand and twigs into Lake Nokomis

Happy together

There was still ice when we took this photo but it's gone now.

Collecting pine cones

Playing at the playground. He's so happy when there are other kids to play with!

Rainbow slide!

Totally tuckered out after a long walk and lots of playing. 

Keeping Busy

Despite all the snow April was a fun and busy month. Grinny and Bopa came to visit, Henry met his favorite tv characters, we went to the science museum, hung out with lots of friends (kid friends and adult friends). The beginning of May is going to be even busier. I have two work trips in the first 10 days of the month. Busy, but fun.

Waiting (a little nervously) in line to meet his favorite tv characters.

Team Umizoomi! Milli and Geo.

Having fun at the mall.

Dusting off the wiimotes to bowl with Henry.

We celebrated Molly's fourth birthday at a gymnastics birthday party.

Bubble Beard Boy

Hanging out with friends at Midtown.

Mama, Is It Summer Yet?

I love Nikki McClure. I have had several of her calendars and I loved her First 1000 Days baby journal. We picked up one of her books at the library last month, and now I feel like the book is mocking us.

The answer, in case you are wondering is NOT YET.

Remember in February when I was complaining about snow? And then again in March? I had no idea I would still be complaining about all the way through April. We've honestly had shovelable snow every week this month. Including last week when we also hit 80 in the same week.

Oh yeah, and after a stretch of perfectly perfect beautiful weather for the past 5 days . . . more snow tomorrow and Thursday!

Here's a nostalgic look back at the past month and all the freaking snow we've had.

April 11 2013

April 12 2013

April 18 2013

April 18 2013

 The spring Severe Weather Awareness Tornado Siren drills happening during a snowstorm on April 18th, 2013. Surreal.

April 19 2013

April 19 2013

April 23 2013: The prettiest of all the April snowstorms. And this snow melted by the end of the day and it didn't disrupt any of my commutes. This one wins for the best snow of the month!

April 23 2013

April 23 2013

April 23 2013

April 23 2013: 8 am

April 23 2013: 5 pm 

Over the Ocean to Sweden

Last month I went on a business trip to Stockholm, Sweden. I left on a Friday evening and came home at dinner time the following Thursday. I had a few hours for sightseeing on Sunday morning before work kicked off Sunday evening and stayed hectic through Wednesday.

Saying good-bye at MSP airport.

Arrived in Amsterdam after the 9 hour flight from Minneapolis. Was able to sleep for about 5 hours on the plane and felt pretty good during the layover. I slept the entire two hour flight from Amsterdam to Stockholm and had the best sandwich of the trip on the KLM flight. A delicious sandwich on a 2 hour flight? That's a pretty amazing luxury for an American.

Arrived in Stockholm around 5 pm. The train stop was half a block from my hotel, so I dropped my bags and headed out for a stroll. It was a chilly night but a beautiful sunset. The walk helped me stay awake a few more hours too.

Walking across the bridge, headed back to my hotel.

Swedish breakfast: meats and cheeses, smoked salmon, swedish pancakes and preserves. Dark and wonderful coffee. I miss Swedish breakfast.

Sunday morning I headed out for my only chance at sightseeing. I wandered along the rivers and canals, past the Royal Palace and other tourist destinations.

Ducks and swans, looking for a bite to eat.

I hopped on a 90 minute boat tour of Stockholm. It was an amazing way to see the city, but it was FREEZING. It was worth the cold, and there was a warm inner cabin to hide in when the cold got too much. 

Still lots of ice, good thing we were aboard an ice cutter.

The archipelago.

I wasn't the only one that was cold.

Hanging out inside for a few minutes.

Huge sail boats everywhere, this one is actually a hostel that you can stay in. 

Changing of the guard at the Swedish Royal Palace.

This guy was outside Central Station, just across the street from my hotel. Love him, love whoever put those earmuffs on him.

Fun is over, now it's time to work. Hosted a customer dinner Sunday night and then an all day customer meeting on Monday. It was a hectic 24 hours.

Monday night I headed to Gamla Stan after the customer meeting ended and all my European co-workers headed to the airport for their flights home.

I had the best meal of the trip that night. Crayfish with horseradish cream on toast to start and trout for my meal. It was all totally perfect.

Facetime with Henry and Kitty makes being away tolerable. Henry wanted a tour of my hotel room every night. It was the tiniest little room, but I gave him the tour anyway. The chair, the pillow, the tiny bed, the tiny closet, the bathroom, and the desk. Every night he asked to see my toothbrush too. Funny kid.

Tuesday I visited a hospital in Stockholm and observed cases all day. In the evening I headed back to Gamla Stan to buy a hat for my friend. It was a sunny and relatively warm evening.

Wednesday morning, up VERY early to get a cab to meet my Swedish co-worker outside of Stockholm. We headed north to Uppsala for the day to observe more cases. It was a wonderful day, and I learned so much. Swedish people are lovely, very nice and friendly. I couldn't ask for better hosts to spend a day with.

Driving back from Uppsala. The landscape looks a mix of northern Minnesota and the flat plains of North Dakota. When you tell most Europeans that you are from Minnesota they stare at you blankly and ask where that is in relation to NYC or Los Angeles. When you tell Swedish people that you are from MN they laugh and say, "Ah yes, little Sweden." 

Everywhere I saw these feather branches on display. I finally asked what they were in Uppsala. They are a popular Swedish Easter decoration. They sell the branches in flower shops, since Easter usually arrives before spring flowers do.  (Just like in Minnesota!) So whimsical, I love them. 

Thursday morning I woke early to catch the train to the airport. A long day of travelling ahead: two hours from Stockholm to Amsterdam, two hour layover, and then a nine hour flight to Minneapolis.

The best news was that I had the exit row seat on the way to Minneapolis. Nine hours with 6' of leg room is completely tolerable. I watched a ton of movies and tried to sleep a little.

Arrived home around dinner time and Henry and Luke picked me up from the airport. It was a wonderful trip, but I am always so happy to be home.