SKYNI

When it was raining cats and dogs in Singapore on Good Friday. it was snowing and hailing in Stockholm. It was not good as some of the cars have already changed to the summer tyres and this created havoc on the roads.

Nevertheless, it is one of the kids’ favourite time of the year for good chocolate bunnies and loads of candies.

Enjoy and have a Bunny good time!

Just when we thought that Spring is really here and the flowers in the garden are just popping up…we woke up to a very very WHITE Stockholm. It is still snowing as I am writing this blog.

I thought it will be an April’s Fools joke when they said they were expecting a snow storm over the weekend. I thought it cannot be true as I think most have cleared their Winter clothes and have taken out their spring/summer collection. I have already put away the children’s winter clothes, cleaned their boots and we were starting to enjoy the spring weather in the past few days. And now it is back to 0 degrees. Jonathan asked if Christmas is around the corner.

I only realised that the snow storm could be possible when it started to hail during lunch time.

Well, you will never know with the weather here. It is really unpredictable.

Have a great weekend!

We are really proud of Jonathan as he went to the dentist this morning without any complaining and was very well behaved.

He listened and followed all the instructions from the dentist. He also had the moral support from Linn. Jonathan was really glad to get a present from the dentist for being so good.

Bravo Jonathan, we are so proud of you!

The children’s latest craze … long bubble baths until they become wrinkly. They really love it.

We have seen a lot of growth in the kids lately. Specially Linn. She seems to be more aware that her brother is different from other children. But she remains protective and proud of her brother when he comes to her childcare. She will introduce Jonathan proudly and tell all her teachers and classmates that Jonathan is her brother.

Just yesterday, she helped him to draw a heart when he wants one for his drawing. She sometimes will volunter her service when he is unsure of how to complete a task.

We have told her that in she will need to be Jonathan’s older sister even though she is younger than him. She can help Mummy and Daddy to teach Jonathan new things each day. Linn has already surpassed Jonathan in the development milestones.

Of course there are days when she is so fed up with Jonathan for destroying her toys and drawings. She will complain that Jonathan don’t seem to be listening when she clearly has told him repeatedly not to destroy her precious belongings. We have to be careful with our words now with Linn. I once tried to explain to her that Jonathan is ‘special’ and she became annoyed and said ‘But I am special too’.

We always thought that it is unfair for Linn to take responsibility for Jonathan. But what Nicke and I hope to achieve is that they will just love each other and be good to one another.

A funny incident at the airport which makes me really miss Singapore Airline.

My Lufthansa flight was cancelled and I had to take the next flight together with all other disgruntled passengers. The flight was going to be really crowded. When it was time to board the plane, they did not bring us to the usual gate but we took the bus to the plane and had to board the plane by climbing up the stairs. I don’t mind it so much because it was quite unusual. But we did not expect a sudden shower. It was about 5 degrees cold and all the passengers were standing out in the rain with no umbrellas, all standing in queue waiting to board the plane. The bus driver could have kept us in the bus but he wanted us out the bus. Believe me, it was not nice and I really pity the children who had to stand in the rain.

I was thinking this sort of thing will never ever happen on Singapore Airlines!

Sorry for the long absence. Have been really busy lately. Nichlas has been travelling quite a bit, my schoolwork has been piling high and the kids have been keeping me really busy.

Jonathan is in a Postman phase. He said that he wants to be a postman just like ‘Postman Pat’ when he grows up. There are letters and envelopes all over the house and he leaves them lying everywhere. We have to keep a close eye on him because I spotted him going through our neighbours’ postbox as he pretends to deliver our letters to them. He evens sleeps in his pile of envelopes

Jonathan gets a kick out of receiving any mail. Nichlas and his mom have been taken turns to send letters to him by post. He looks out for the stamps and chops as well.

The most difficult part is that he keeps asking me to find his letters and he gets really upset when I cannot find it. So, it has been really really tiring being the assistant to Postman Jonathan.

Back in Singapore, we were often exposed to the beautiful side of winter. The whiteness of the snow and how it covers houses and trees, making everything seems so flawlessly beauitful.

But we seldom get to see the end of winter,..how dirty and slippery the roads have become and the slush. Well, it is really not nice.

Now that winter is over, we can look forward to Spring!!!

Shortly after buying all those pink, purple and yellow girly clothes for Linn, she told me that she wants to wear boys’ clothes. According to Linn, boys do not wear pink, purple or yellow.

She even requested that I cut her hair really short like what Jonathan has. I took this opportunity and shortened her hair by 10 cm.

I guess it is not so much a problem. I just let her wear Jonathan’s clothes for now until she wants to be a girl again.

Amongst the good things about Sweden, visits to the dentist for kids below 18 years old are free of charge and the dentist will send reminders every 6 months to bring their kids for a checkup.

It was time for Linn’s checkup and I told her that I will accompany her to the clinic but she will have to do the consultation with the dentist independently. I will be next to her at all times when she needed me.

Surprisingly, she actually did as she was told. She responded when the dentist called her name and followed the dentist to the room, started the conversation (in swedish) with the dentist, obediently followed all the dentist’s requests and even shared with the dentist how she brushed her teeth and had a discussion about her milk teeth. All this without me saying a word. She ended the consultation nicely and even asked if she could have an extra toy,

Quite proud of her.

We are experiencing a beautiful winter day with a good blast of sunshine. The kids are still at home recovering from their winter flu but we still try get them to go outside as they should not miss the glorious sun.

It is wonderful as it has been cold recently with snow coming down fast and furious. Nicke was working the fireplace morning and night to keep the house nice and warm for us.

I met my neighbour this morning and he started talking about the weather. His exact words were

– ‘It is like summer today!’

Hullo!!!! I won’t call this summer when it is still 0 degrees outside.

The kids finally caught the winter bug and have been feverish all week.

Jonathan is also complaining alot about the pain in his legs. I think he is experiencing growing pains.

Linn has been waking up every hour in the night asking for water. Guess who has not been sleeping well for the past week? I haven’t been able to go to school and looks like I will be stuck at home all week till they get better.

I told Linn that she must have passed her sickness to Jonathan. She looked at me sadly and said ‘Yes mummy but I saved some for myself as well’.

The conversation with Linn this morning really cracked me up.

Linn : Mummy,why did you marry daddy?

SKY : Because I love him

Linn : Is it because he is also handsome?

SKY : Yeah, because I love him and he is handsome.

Linn : Is it because he has hair at that time and handsome?

I was reading Linn her bedtime story and asked her what would she wish for if she has 3 wishes. I told her that she could wish to be ‘smart’ when she grows up.

Her immediate response was ‘But Mummy, I am already smart!’

We had a very nice dinner at Klas and Leaneas last weekend but Linn was particularly taken in by their cat. Sneega. Sneega is a Sphinx cat and is the first ‘furless’ or ‘hairless’ cat I have ever seen. Linn played with him all night and I think, the poor cat was rather traumatised by her.

Linn is always asking for a pet but we keep saying no as she is not old enough to take this responsibility, So for now, she has to be contented with her ‘Little Pet Shop’ pets.

Please allow me to introduce my new friends who are making my life in Sweden so much better. Elsa, Jane and Vernetta, thank you so much (if you are reading this)

Life is definitely better after knowing them. I am enjoying our lunches and gatherings. We have so much fun, joy and laughter.

Elsa is a Malaysian from Penang. She makes fantastic Asian food. Her last attempt at cooking Laksa and Pulot Hitam was a huge success. Her ‘never say die’ attitude and making the best out of every situation is really admirable.

Vernetta is American and really wonderful to be with. She makes me laugh so much and her fantastic aspect to life is truly an inspiration.

Last but not least, Jane who is Korean American (not pictured here) is one of the sweetest, kindest, giving and strongest person I have ever met. She is our ‘Charlotte’ is the group and we are missing her alot as she has been stationed in Korea for the past 3 months.

I miss my old friends alot in Singapore but these girls are really making me smile again.

Finally, we are seeing more snow for the winter. It is definitely colder now but the children are loving it as they get to do their favourite winter sport….pukka. They build their snowman, hit each other with snow balls or simply make snow angels. It is certainly alot of fun.

Wishing everyone a very good Dragon year!

I just finished reading my first Swedish literature ‘Kejsarn av Portugallien’, an assignment by my swedish teacher.

It really really moved me and affected me greatly. In fact I cannot stop thinking about it. Although I had to refer to the dictionary quite often to fully comprehend the meaning of some words, I really enjoyed it.

The book is written by a Nobel prize winner and she wrote about the love of a father for his daughter. It was so moving that I cried. Maybe it made me think of my relationship with my own father. Maybe it is telling me something about my own relationship with my kids or maybe it is the pure simple crazy love between a father and his beloved daughter, how he would never think badly of his ‘always wonderful and good’ daughter and how he believed in his daughter – his only pride and joy.

ok…enough of my rambling..now, i have to pick up my daughter from school.

Linn drives me crazy at times specially when she does not listen to instructions and always testing the boundaries. But at times, she puts a smile on my face.

It was one of those evenings when I felt really dishearten and sad. I was visibly upset and Linn was trying to console me.

Linn said like she really meant it…’Mummy, you can cry on my shoulder’.

And she then placed my head on her small shoulder and patted me on my head to sooth the sadness….